The Boys Characters' Counterparts from the Marvel and DC Universe

Make With all the dark humor, jokes, and unapologetically gross and gory scenes, The Boys is a show like no other! One of the things this series is famous for is how it mocks the popular Marvel and DC franchises in countless ways. It is not hard to notice that most, if not all, of the characters are inspired by superheroes or supervillains from those two universes. Here are some of the most bizarre and funniest character inspirations that The Boys has taken from Marvel and DC.

Homelander - Superman

Starting with the leader of The Seven—Homelander and his undeniable inspiration—Superman. Superman is one of the most popular heroes, not only from the DC universe but of all time. They both share the same superpowers, which include flight, laser/heat vision, and X-ray vision. They are both seen as the ultimate heroes in their universe, but that's where their similarities end. Homelander is an evil version of Clark Kent who doesn't possess any of his moral and humane traits. It is interesting to see a character that has the same respect and strength as Superman take up the lead role in a show but as a villain.

A-Train - Flash

The similarity here is obvious—both of them are considered the "fastest man" in their universes. However, The Flash has far more heroic traits than A-Train could ever acquire. Even though we've witnessed A-Train's slow path to turning good, he still has a long way to go. Let's not forget all the unforgivable things he has done so far, including killing Hughie's girlfriend without any remorse and killing his own girlfriend.

Crimson Countess - Scarlet Witch

Crimson Countess resembles Wanda Maximoff not only in their powers but also in their identical-looking costumes. Of course, her role in The Boys was minor, and Crimson is not nearly as strong as Scarlet, who is considered one of, if not the strongest, heroes in Marvel.

Ezekiel - Reed Richards / Plastic Man

All three of these characters have the unique power to extend their bodies as much as they want. Ezekiel, similar to Plastic Man, can also increase and decrease his body size. What makes him stand out from his DC and Marvel counterparts is his character. Ezekiel is a Christian, God-loving Supe who is secretly gay and participates in constant perverted parties. However, this side of him can also be related to Plastic Man's perverted tendencies.

The Deep - Aquaman

The Boys created a character who is the total opposite of DC's Aquaman while sharing the same abilities as him—The Deep. Both of them are undoubtedly powerful and good in their own gig, but while Aquaman is highly praised and respected, The Deep is... well, he is a total joke. Not only is he not taken seriously by anyone, but we see all his aquatic powers in their worst light and put in the most bizarre scenarios.

For instance, Aquaman, played by Jason Momoa, really made the DC character even more proud thanks to his body that he's been widely praised for. However, in The Boys, we actually see The Deep struggle with his body image due to his anatomy, which is made to utilize his underwater existence. This issue has never been shown in Aquaman, as we see The Deep in today's world trying to live comfortably as a human with fish body parts.

Queen Maeve - Wonder Woman

Unlike most of the characters on that list, Maeve resembles her DC counterpart not only through her powers and design but also through her persona. Maeve had the strongest moral compass out of The Seven and fought for justice. She did have some moments where Homelander's pressure got to her and made her act irrationally, but that heavily affected her mental state. To compensate for her mistakes, Queen Maeve fought against Homelander despite how scared she was. She is a fan-favorite character for a reason, as she remains one of the most human and relatable ones on the show.

Soldier Boy - Captain America

Here is another character parody you all knew was coming: Captain America being the inspiration for Soldier Boy. While Captain America can also be seen in some aspects of Homelander's role, there is an undeniable similarity between him and Soldier Boy.

Starting off with his costume, shield, and superhuman strength, Soldier Boy resembles Steve Rogers in many ways. The two of them also share very similar backstories: both served in WWII, were frozen for decades, and brought back to the modern world. However, when it comes to their character, Soldier Boy is as evil and corrupt as most of the Supes in The Boys. You can see the obvious pattern where all the hero parodies here have no morals and care for the people they are supposed to protect.

Storm Front - Storm

While Stormfront's character as a Nazi-first superhero can't be matched to any “hero” from DC or Marvel, her powers are based on Storm from Marvel's X-Men and Shazam from DC. Stormfront has the power to control electricity, be almost invincible, and fly—all properties of the all-powerful Shazam. Her character design is also very similar to Storm's, with their tight dark costumes, capes, electrical powers, and gender.

Kimiko - Deadpool / Wolverine

Kimiko, or as the comic calls her, "The Female," bears a striking resemblance to two X-Men characters: Deadpool and Wolverine. Throughout the show, Kimiko demonstrates incredible regenerative powers, regrowing limbs, healing bullet wounds, and even restoring entire parts of her body, much like the mutants in X-Men. Her character is also very similar to Wolverine, as they both have traumatic pasts that bring out their innate feral side. While Wolverine is a lot more feral and serious, we can see some notes of Deadpool in Kimiko's sarcastic and humorous moments, though not to the same extent as Deadpool.

Web Weaver - Spider-Man

In the most recent episode of The Boys, Season 4, we finally saw a parodic version of Spider-Man as well. Unlike the other copied heroes in The Boys, Web Weaver wasn't an evil version of the character. Instead, he was a perverted and gross junkie who showed us how disturbing real-life human webs can be. Not to mention, we got a joke that referred to the real-life actor of Spider-Man, Tom Holland, and his girlfriend Zendaya.

Here are some additional references from Episode 6, Season 4, that you might not have caught. We saw a lot of disturbing and gross things happen in Tek Knight's cave that we can't get into for obvious reasons. However, this whole scene showed Tek Knight as a parody of Batman and his Batcave. Tek Knight even had his butler attend his perverted party, who obviously referred to Bruce Wayne's butler, Alfred Pennyworth. Not to mention that Tek Knight's old sidekick, Ladio, who is wearing the red full-on leather costume, is supposed to be his Robin. This is honestly so funny and disgusting at the same time. 

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