The Boysis one of those rare instances where a live-action adaptation has surpassed the source material. Initially released in 2019,The Boystook the audience by surprise with its unique approach to superhero cinema, also proving that superhero movie fatigue isn’t real.
The Boyshas consistently improved in quality with each passing season. While all the members of the Seven are exciting in their own right, each possessing their own set of morals and twisted personalities ranging from homicidal tendenciesto aNazi soldier turned superhero, no one stands out more than the narcissistic and egoistic speedster of the Seven, A-Train.
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Who Is A-Train In The Boys?
Reginald Franklin,better known as A-Train, is one of the members of the Seven from Vought, serving as the team’s speedster and the world’s fastest man alive. A-Train was one of the main antagonists inThe Boysseasons 1 and 2. While portrayed as a superhero and celebrity athlete, the reality of the character is even more twisted, as he’s shown to be an egotistical and narcissistic Supe who cares about nothing else except being the best. Everyone is familiar with A-Train’s first appearancecaught many off guardwhen he ran right through Hughie’s girlfriend in the opening scene of the first-ever episode of The Boys. This event drove Hughie to seek revenge on the corrupt superheroes, leading him to team up with Billy Butcher and eventually form the anti-supes team calledThe Boys. A-Train, technically, was responsible for the creation of The Boys, and his actions caused significant stress for Vought’s Seven.
How has A-Train Changed Over 3 Seasons Of The Boys?
Not even the world’s fastest could outrun the consequences of the actions of A-Train that he had been building up for 3 seasons of the show. A-Train went through multiple patches and disasters which even made some viewers feel pity for him despite everything he did. Due to his aging even more and his over usage of the V-Compound, a drug that is used to make the supers, A-Train’s body couldn’t further endure it all giving him heart problems. During his fight against Starlight and Hughie in the first season, A-Train gets a heart attack and is shown to go into a coma. In the second season, A-Traingets fired by Homelanderwhen he realizes his heart can’t handle high speeds anymore and replaces his position with another speedster called Shockwave within the seven.
Even after being demoted, A-Train is insecure about losing all his fame and tries his best not to leave the spotlight. A-Train and his team completely revamp his identity as a Supe just in order to keep him relevant. The new A-Train attempts to reconnect with his ancestry, even acquiring a new suit reflecting thecolors of his African roots. Seeing all this, A-Train’s brother, Nate, who had also been his coach in the past, calls him out, urging him to advocate for the Black community by exposing Blue Hawk’s actions to the Seven.
Blue Hawk was yet another corrupt Supe who appeared to be aiding the streets by fighting crime. Although, his focus was mainly on the Black community where he displayed aggression and bias towards Black people. Nathan brought Blue Hawk’s attention to A-Train, describing how Blue Hawk had violently slammed an innocent Black man onto the pavement so hard that it shattered it. In response, a meeting was organized by Ashley, during which the group brainstormed solutions. Everyone came to the conclusion that Blue Hawk should publicly apologize to those affected.
However, Blue Hawk’s insincere apology, combined with his failure to admit his mistakes, incited anger among the Black community. The crowd reacted by hurling insults at Blue Hawk,who retaliated with racist remarks. This escalated to physical altercations, during which Blue Hawk threw people around, including A-Train’s brother, Nate. Medical professionals informed Nate that he might never walk again due to his injuries. Despite these events, Blue Hawk faced no repercussions, as the Seven feared tarnishing their public image. All these circumstances led to the distance between A-Train and Nate with Nate even cutting off any ties with A-Train.
What is next For A-Train on The Boys
It’s safe to assume that all of the recent disasters have changed A-Train’s character significantly. After losing everything he cared for and facing consequences for his actions, as well as experiencing powerlessness, A-Train begins to feel limited empathy instead of remaining the cold-hearted Supe he once was. Frustrated and infuriated against Blue Hawk, A -Traingoes to Herogasm to seekout Blue Hawk and exact revenge for what happened to his brother. During his search for Blue Hawk, he comes across Hughie who confronts A-Train about the death of his girlfriend, Robin. A-Train surprisingly apologizes, and even displays an unusual level of sympathy, which is out of the ordinary for a man like A-Train and even left Hughie speechless.
After Solider Boy destroysthe location of Herogasm, A-Train finally finds and confronts Blue Hawk. This confrontation leads to A-Train grabbing Blue Hawk by his neck and dragging him across a concrete road at high speeds, completely destroying his face and killing him. Due to his poor heart condition, A-Train suffers a heart attack and is shown to wake up later in a hospital where Ashley fabricates a story about A-Train’s attempt to save Blue Hawk from Soldier Boy. She also informs A-Train that he received Blue Hawk’s heart, allowing him to regain his supe abilities. However, A-Train’s facial expressions reveal his discomfort with the situation.
With his powers restored, A-Train rejoins the Seven and will play a more significant role inThe BoysSeason 4. His return to power marks the beginning of a redemption arc as he strives to make amends for his past mistakes. Having experienced multiple betrayals from Vought throughout theSeason 3 ofThe Boys, and being frequently sidetracked, it’s no surprise that A-Train might start opposing the Seven or even consider joining a different side, but that remains to be seen.
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