The Boys has sneakily already revealed Soldier Boy’s original superteam, Payback, ahead of their debut in season 3. After it was announced that Amazon Prime Video’s hit superhero show would return for a third season, fans began wondering which characters from Garth Ennis and Darrick Roberton’s comics could appear. Right before The Boys season 2 began airing, it was announced that Jensen Ackles would play Soldier Boy in season 3.

Soldier Boy is a supporting character in the comics who is a parody of Captain America. Instead of being the commanding patriotic leader that Steve Rogers is, one of Soldier Boy’s known traits is wetting himself in battle. The Boys season 2 began setting up his introduction early on with references to Vought’s original superhero. With production underway on season 3, Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy suit seemingly revealed even more about him. He’s poised to join The Seven, but The Boys has already revealed his original team.

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In the comics, Soldier Boy is the leader of Payback, known as Vought’s second most popular team. The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke has teased that Soldier Boy’s involvement with Payback will be explored in season 3. The original team included Tek Knight, Stormfront, Swatto, Mind-Droid, Crimson Countess, and Eagle the Archer as Soldier Boy’s teammates. They’ve been described as The Seven before The Seven existed. That paints a fairly grim picture of what Payback will be like in The Boys season 3. And even though they’re only now being introduced, the show has been setting them up since almost the beginning.

Stormfront made her grand introduction in The Boys season 2 and has easily had the biggest role of any Payback member to date. The nearly unkillable Nazi reinvented herself for the 21st century, but she likely was fighting alongside Soldier Boy back in the day too. The Boys season 2 also featured a small role for Eagle the Archer, albeit in a very different capacity. He helped The Deep convert to the Church of the Collective, and it is unclear if this version of Eagle the Archer had any ties to the original Payback team. Meanwhile, there has been a reference to a Tek Knight movie and him breaking a woman’s back, confirming his existence in this universe. The Boys season 1 even included a reference to Crimson Countess as the person Starlight thought would join The Seven instead of her.

Since The Boys has yet to confirm Payback connections for most of these characters, it should be fascinating to see what is revealed about the team in season 3. This could be where original members like Swatto and Mind-Droid finally make their appearances. Depending on the explanation given for Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy, Payback might only be seen through flashbacks. The past is a great chance to explore Payback and bring the rest of the members to live-action. It could even be a chance to make several of these original Supes mantles that Vought wants to reboot in the present day with a fresh face underneath the suits.

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Cooper Hood
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Cooper Hood is a news and feature writer for Screen Rant. He joined Screen Rant in late 2016 following a year-long stint with MCU Exchange, which came after first developing an MCU blog of his own. He graduated college in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in Media & Public Communication, with a minor in Media Production. Cooper’s love for movies began by watching Toy Story and Lion King on repeat as a child, but it wasn’t until The Avengers that he took an invested interest in movies and the filmmaking process, leading him to discover the world of film journalism. Every year Cooper looks forward to seeing the latest blockbusters from the likes of Marvel, DC, and Star Wars, but also loves the rush to catch up on Oscar films near the end of the year. When he isn’t writing about or watching new releases, Cooper is a fantasy football obsessive and looking to expand his Blu-Ray collection – because physical media is still king! Follow Cooper on Twitter @MovieCooper.

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