fter just two seasons, The Boys has had no trouble turning a fan-favorite comic into some of the most exciting new superhero action in years. There are plenty of The Boys show characters that have made a successful jump from comics to TV, but considering how the show has been happy to diverge from the comics’ canon, some of the best characters were created solely for the show itself. Whether they are a superpowered being or just an everyday evil bureaucrat, a lot of the additions have fit seamlessly into the superhero satire.
Powered beings like Translucent, Mesmer, and Doppelganger have fleshed out the show’s “supe” ranks, while people like Madelyn Stillwell, Stan Edgar, and Ashley Barrett have served to make Vought feel like a genuine American corporation that wouldn’t feel out of place on the Fortune 500. It just goes to show that the creators have such a firm grip on their superhero universe that it’s hard to tell fan favorites from absolute newcomers.
1. Stan Edgar
Giancarlo Esposito was one of the breakout stars of Breaking Bad, and much like his role in Disney+’s runaway hit The Mandalorian, the memorable character actor brings his signature villainous touch to The Boys with his role as Stan Edgar. Edgar is merely mentioned in the comics and is never seen before he perishes off-panel.
The Stan Edgar of the television show is all about business and manages to talk down to Homelander without meeting his end, which is something that is becoming rarer and rarer as time goes on. He shows the true depths of his capitalistic evil by enabling Stormfront’s racist Third Reich leanings because it’s good for Vought’s bottom line.
2. Madelyn Stillwell
Elizabeth Shue’s Madelyn Stillwell is based on the James Stillwell of the comics, but while they are both similarly high up in the Vought ranks, Madelyn is a much different person in the show. Madelyn’s bizarre relationship with Homelander served as one of the show’s most reliably unsettling storylines throughout the first season, and her rock-solid hold on Homelander seemed to keep his worst tendencies at bay for the most part.
Before Homelander took her life at the end of Season 1, Madelyn was in line to take over Vought from Stan Edgar when he retired in the future, which highlighted just how efficient she was at her job. Just don’t bring up Homelander’s weird obsession with her breast milk.
3. Translucent
The Boys sets itself apart from other superhero universes with its no-holds-barred depiction of superpowered chaos and destruction. Seeing Translucent explode at the hands of the weak but affable Hughie Campbell was the first real moment that the show established how far it was willing to go. Before his untimely demise, this invisible creep answered the question of what Sue Storm would be like if she was a deviant who had to completely disrobe to turn invisible.
Before being trapped in a cage by Frenchie, Butcher, and Hughie, Translucent could be seen creeping in the women’s restroom at Vought Tower, and managed to get caught by two normal humans even though he was invisible and bulletproof. His awfulness sets the tone for the show and watching him push Hughie to the breaking point was a key moment for both the show and Jack Quaid’s character.
4. Victoria Neuman
If we’re picking nits, Victoria Neuman is based on the comic book character of Victor “Vic the Veep” Neuman, but they really aren’t much of the same character at all outside of their name and the fact that they are both in politics. While Victor is a parody of George W. Bush, Victoria seems to be based more on Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and the twist involving the character at the end of Season 2 sets her up to have a massive impact in Season 3.
Will Hughie survive working for Victoria after joining her team in the season finale? What exactly is her endgame? Does her daughter also have powers? It’s gonna take a little time to answer those questions.
5. Alastair Adana And The Church Of The Collective
One of the most enjoyable storylines of Season 2 was the Deep’s involvement with the Church of the Collective. Both the Church and its leader Alastair Adana were created for the television series, and their addition shows just how deft the show is at roasting Hollywood.
Clearly both corrupt and powerful, Adana and his Church of the Collective played an integral part in the second season when he used the Collective’s pull to reinstate A-Train on the Seven. Though Adana is deceased, we doubt the Church is going anywhere. After all… there is still a lot of Fresca to drink out there!
6. Ashley Barrett
One of the main differences between the television show and the comic books is the show’s depiction of Vought as a company with a high degree of media savvy. The company has its own film studio, a staff of full-fledged public relations experts, and they plan everything down to a T.
This is where Ashley Barrett comes in. Before becoming the senior vice president of Hero Management after Stillwell’s demise at the end of Season 1, Ashley served as Vought’s director of talent relations and provided the show with plenty of satire about the inner workings of Hollywood. Seemingly always in over her head and stressed to the point of her hair falling out, Ashley struggled to keep it together when faced with the challenges of keeping Homelander happy and the rest of the heroes on script.
7. Kenji
How do you take the least fleshed-out member of the Boys team from the comics and give her a more well-rounded portrayal on the television show? You give her a grim backstory involving a brother who also gets powered up and is tragically, diametrically opposed to her, that’s how.
Kimiko’s brother Kenji received telekinetic powers thanks to Compound V and became a full-fledged terrorist after being separated from his sister by the Shining Light Liberation Army. His horrifying end at the hands of Stormfront served as the moment when viewers first realized that everything wasn’t as it seemed with that particular member of the Seven.
8. Ryan Butcher
While Homelander and Becca’s offspring technically exists in the comic book, the fetus doesn’t survive long after it prematurely claws its way out of his mother’s stomach, ending her life. It is safe to say that Ryan Butcher is both more suitable for television and a more interesting addition to the series in general.
Ryan is the first natural-born superpowered being in the world of The Boys, as every other powered individual got their power thanks to Compound V. It is unclear what will happen to Ryan after Butcher shipped him away to hide from Homelander at the end of Season 2, but here’s hoping he grows up to be a genuine superhero, unlike his sadistic father.
9. Seth Reed
Keeping in line with the television show’s insistence on being a more wide-reaching media satire than the comic books, we have Vought’s public relations writer Seth Reed. Portrayed by talented character actor Malcolm Barrett, best known for his roles in cult favorites Better Off Ted and Preacher, Seth seems like your typical PR writer before getting fleshed out as yet another in a long line of those injured accidentally by superheroes.
Seth’s injury is a bit more unique than your average mark, though and it certainly is a bit more… intimate. While dating a superhero known as Ice Princess, Seth and his girlfriend ended up going to bed together. Unfortunately for Seth, Ice Princess’s body turned into ice while they were making love, which immediately froze his privates off his body. Always wear protection, kids.
10. Mesmer
Who do you get to play a former superhero who is struggling to get his life together after getting out of the hero game? Former child star Haley Joel Osment, of course! Adding a new supe like Mesmer to the show served as a solid glimpse into the world of The Boys at large and showed that even superheroes can find themselves beat down by the world.
Outside the hilarious and meta decision to have an actor most famous for playing a child with special abilities portray a washed-up psychic superhero, Osment does a fantastic job of playing a desperate, sad-sack father who just wants some of his former glory back. It’s too bad Butcher beat the life out of him in a public bathroom. That really isn’t a dignified way to go.