This The Boys Character's Backstory is Hands Down the Worst
Maybe the darkest superhero tale ever to grace the screens, Prime Video's The Boys is rife with tragic backstories.
Hughie watches his loving girlfriend explode on impact when A-Train tears through her like paper, standing helpless as he holds her severed hands. Kimiko was abducted as a child and turned into a soldier before she was trafficked to the United States. Billy Butcher suffered an abusive father who drove Butcher's brother to suicide – and when he finally found someone that made his life worth living, she was ripped away from him.
But hands-down the most tragic backstory still belongs to Homelander.
He's one of the vilest villains on television. He rapes and he murders without a second thought, filling every scene with a sense of dread. While none of that is condonable, many fans are at the very least sympathetic toward his plight.
More than anything else, he's a tragic character.
Parentless
He was raised in a lab, born from experimentation, motherless and alone. Dr. Vogelbaum was the closest thing he had to a father figure, but he was treated as a weapon to be tested, not a child. That initial father figure called him his "greatest failure." When he finally met his true father – Solider Boy – he, too, shared his disappointment (in far more colorful words).
In fact, he uses this tragic, fatherless backstory as a reason to become a good father. In Season 3, he's a surprisingly great dad to Ryan. He gives Ryan the love and protection he never received. Maybe that's because his child was the only one to show him the love he needed.
He never experienced true love
Homelander was never given any love. If there were anyone who truly cared about him – out of love, not fear – maybe he would change for the better. Madelyn Stillwell had an apparently loving relationship with him, but it was based on fear and ulterior motives – there was no true love.
This theory especially presents itself with Ryan. Born after Becca Butcher was raped by Homelander, he routinely seeks to spend more time with his father. After Becca's death and Billy Butcher's rejection, Ryan ended Season 3 by Homelander's side. Ryan looks up to his biological father and seems to be the only character who truly loves him. And because of that, Homelander shows Ryan more love and kindness than viewers thought possible. If anyone else treated him with that sort of fearless, unconditional love, maybe Homelander wouldn't be quite so evil.
Far too powerful for his own good
Most importantly, his supreme power makes him inherently destined for evil. Nothing can stop him. If he wants something, he gets it. He was told he was essentially a god since he was a child. What other reaction would a man with that much power have other than to abuse it?
With too much power and too much praise from that early on, the only natural reaction is to believe himself invincible. His wants are more important than anyone else's.
And that is a true tragedy.