Butcher's First Superhuman Kill
Butcher is known for his brutal methods in The Boys, but his first kill is particularly horrifying. In The Boys: Butcher, Baker, Candlestickmaker #4, Butcher kills a supe infant with a lamp. This infant, Black Noir's child, was about to kill Butcher and had already killed his wife, Becky.
This act of violence is especially shocking because it involves a baby. While the infant was a supe with potentially dangerous powers, Butcher's act is a clear indicator of his descent into a full-blown villain.
A Pattern of Killing Infants
In The Boys #40, Homelander goes on a rampage and kills a room full of people, including an infant. This incident further highlights the dark theme of killing infants in The Boys.
Both Butcher and Homelander (through Black Noir) are the only characters in The Boys to kill infants. This shared trait foreshadows their fates in the series.
Consequences for Killing Children
Garth Ennis, the creator of The Boys, has a tendency to punish characters who kill children in his work. In the comic book series Crossed, survivors are haunted by their decision to kill children, even if it was for survival.
In The Boys, Black Noir is brutally killed by Homelander and then by Butcher. Butcher is left paralyzed and dies a gruesome death after Hughie stops him from launching a supe bomb. These deaths serve as consequences for their actions, highlighting the devastating impact of killing infants.
Butcher's Fate Was Sealed
By retrospectively examining Butcher's actions, it's clear that his fate was sealed from the moment he killed the infant supe. This gruesome act foreshadows his eventual downfall and death.
This twisted clue to The Boys' Ending emphasizes the consequences of Butcher's violent actions and the moral complexities of the series.
