Sorry, is Soldier Boy dead? Explaining that confusing Homelander moment in The Boys

*Warning: Spoilers ahead for The Boys season five episode seven*

Soldier Boy finally started to feel something other than disdain for his weird son in the last episode of The Boys, and how does Homelander repay him? 

Well, firstly, let’s take a look at what happened last week. In season five episode six of the Prime Video series, Soldier Boy finally got hold of the last remaining sample of the V1, presumably to get rid of it. 

But in a dramatic change of heart, he just gave it to Homelander, who swiftly injected it and levelled up – he’s now biologically immortal (and even stronger). 

It was all a little confusing, but Soldier Boy reveals his reason in episode seven, and it’s what we expected: he did it because it’s what Clara Vought, aka Stormfront, would’ve wanted. 

Homelander mistakenly assumes this means he’s finally earned his father’s approval, and after disbanding The Seven as part of a Vought rebrand, he excitedly unveils plans for a new theme park called Homeland (what else?).

One section is even named “Soldier Boy, Father of God”, complete with the park’s fastest rides.

Soldier Boy rejects Homelander in BRUTAL fashion

While Homelander expects enthusiasm back, Soldier Boy immediately shuts him down, revealing he’s leaving for Bogotá and has no intention of coming back.

“This just ain’t my bag, kid,” he says, making it painfully clear he wants nothing to do with his son’s grand vision for the future.

Homelander desperately tries to keep him around, even offering to scrap the entire park, but Soldier Boy then delivers the real gut-punch.

“I gave you the V1 because of Clara. Because that’s what she would’ve wanted,” he explains, clarifying that he never “chose” Homelander at all.

He then says they were never going to be a normal father-son duo because Homelander is “too weird.” Ouch.

When Homelander insists he’s a god, Soldier Boy brutally mocks him: “No angel came to you. You had a wet dream about some chick with big, juicy tits. If that makes you a god, then I’m a f**king god every night.”

Realising there’s nothing he can say to change his father’s mind, Homelander tells him, “If you wanna go, go,” to which Soldier Boy replies, “Good luck, son.”

But just as it seems like the conversation is over, Homelander starts crying before grabbing Soldier Boy from behind and choking him unconscious.

So, is Soldier Boy dead?

Nope, as later on in The Boys season five episode seven, we see Soldier Boy back in his cryogenic chamber as Homie watches over him. 

It seems that rather than killing his father outright, Homelander chose to freeze him again. And we can assume that this means Soldier Boy will play a vital part in the final showdown between Homie and Butcher.

To be fair, you likely came to the same conclusion that Soldier Boy is still alive, but it’s worth clarifying as it’s not explicitly said in the episode. Plus, what’s more interesting is what it reveals about Homelander’s psyche. 

Why did Homelander do that?

Homelander’s desire to become a god stems from his desperate need to be loved. Throughout The Boys, he’s desperately craved approval from parental figures, whether that’s Madelyn Stillwell, Stan Edgar, or Soldier Boy himself.

So after being given the V1, he convinced himself that his father finally accepted him. Hearing Soldier Boy bluntly say he only did it because of Clara – and that he’s not a god and “too weird” – was basically Homelander’s worst nightmare.

And we all know how dangerous a fragile ego can be. That’s likely why Homie attacked him in the first place – it was an emotional impulse. 

At the same time, the fact that he doesn’t actually kill Soldier Boy says a lot too. If it were anyone else, their guts would be splattered across the room within seconds. 

As former Vought CEO, Stan Edgar, previously said, Homelander will hang onto any paternal figure he can. It’s one of the reasons he spared Edgar himself, as well as the Legend in the last episode – he just can’t bring himself to kill them. 

Showrunner Eric Kripe spoke about this to ScreenRant when discussing why he let Legend go despite his clear betrayal. 

“I think he has this weakness for paternal figures in his life – Soldier Boy, Edgar, Legend – and he cannot bring himself to kill them,” Kripke replied. “I think that’s a big part of it.”