The following contains spoilers for The Boys Season 3, Episode 5, “The Last Time to Watch This World of Lies,” streaming on Prime Video.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Steve Rogers did indeed have a happy ending, despite being a man out of time. Many felt her stunt with Peggy Carter fell by the wayside after he became a “Cap-sicle”, and she moved on with her life, getting married and then dying. However, Avengers: Endgame confirmed that he remained in the past, growing old with her following the Time Heist.
It was a clever way to allow a Sentinel of Freedom to stay in the present, while giving old man Steve the girl of his dreams and that stockade life. Granted, it felt like the rules of the timeline were being broken and a paradox occurred, but hey, fans went along with it all in the name of true love with these kindred spirits. That said, The boys‘ Season 3 just took a direct approach to its Cap and Peggy, but it remixed the romance with a very dark and disturbing finale.
The boys eventually unleashed Soldier Boy in Russia, only for the lost soul to return to America. However, he blew up a block in Manhattan, struggling to control his explosive abilities. He finally got his costume back from The Legend, and in time he was on his way to the Crimson Countess, his beloved daughter from the Vietnam War.
But when he got there, a powered-up version of Billy, along with a teleporting Hughie, arranged for her to be restrained so she could tell him the truth. Soldier Boy walked in and lamented how he hoped she would come for him while the Russians were experimenting on his body. In fact, the only thing that kept him alive was the hope that one day their love would reunite them. It was a lot like Steve thinking of Peggy when he went under the ice, and the belief that maybe one day they would have their dance.
Unfortunately, rather than admit Billy’s crew was wrong, the Countess confessed that she sold him to the Russians. Amazingly, she did it for free because she never liked it. She hated him, in fact, because of his ego and his bravado. It shattered her and Soldier Boy lost control, frying her with his heat blast.
He hated the fact that the only thing motivating him was what led him to become a lab rat, to let it all out after the nasty betrayal. It was pretty heartbreaking to see this show’s version of Peggy stab his cap like that, but it worked to Billy’s advantage as he plotted against Vought. Ultimately, a vulnerable Soldier Boy became his tool to kill Homelander, with Billy weaponizing the idea of love and turning it into pure, unadulterated hate.
New episodes of The Boys air Fridays on Prime Video.
