The Boys Season 5 Premiere's Most Tragic Death Is Also A Full-Circle Moment
Contains spoilers for "The Boys" Season 5, Episode 1 — "Fifteen Inches of Sheer Dynamite"
"The Boys" never fails to produce disturbing scenes, and it isn't prepared to go quietly into the night as it comes to an end. The Season 5 premiere kills off a popular character who's been around since the beginning of the superhero show. While it's a sad ending for A-Train (Jessie T. Usher), it concludes a redemption arc that started a while ago.
In the episode, the team's rescue mission to get Hughie Campbell (Jack Quaid), Frenchie (Tomer Capone), and M.M. (Laz Alonso) out of the Freedom Camp hits a snag after the arrival of Homelander (Antony Starr). A-Train arrives in the nick of time to save the day and instigate the superpowered fascist man-baby into chasing after him.
A-Train looks to have the advantage, outpacing Homelander on a straight road, but an ordinary citizen stepping out of their car throws A-Train off. Rather than run through the person, A-Train swerves and crashes in the forest. It's here that Homelander snaps his neck after A-Train taunts him. This moment is powerful, as it links back to the first episode of "The Boys," signaling how much has changed.
A-Train completes his redemption arc in The Boys Season 5
In "The Boys" Season 1's opening episode, "The Name of the Game," the super-fast A-Train runs into Hughie's girlfriend, Robin Ward (Jess Salgueiro), killing her instantly. It's a moment that changes everything for Hughie, and also for A-Train. While A-Train didn't swerve to avoid Robin, he comes to regret his actions. This sets the course for him leaving the Seven — and Homelander — and redeeming himself as a character.
His end arrives after he does something he should have done in the beginning: consider others. By moving out of the way and not running through someone else, he loses control of his speed and allows Homelander to catch up to him. A-Train knows this is it for him, but he isn't scared of Homelander anymore. In fact, he says the quiet part that everybody has thought about the diabolical supe out loud.
Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2024, Jessie T. Usher revealed that he didn't see A-Train getting out alive in the end. "Just because I know where A-Train came from and all the things that he's done in his past, I think that's just wishful thinking," he said. "I don't see a clean exit for him." He was right. It's a tragic ending for the character, but at least it afforded him a moment of genuine redemption. Not many others get that.