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‘The Boys’ Season 5 kills off major character in debut twist and we can't stop screaming

The first major character death in 'The Boys' Season opener left fans reeling.

Contains spoilers for 'The Boys' Season 5 Episode 1: 'Fifteen Inches of Sheer Dynamite' and fans' reaction.

The first casualty at the hands of Homelander (Antony Starr) was a character expected to die. 'The Boys' Season 5 did not hold back on the copious bloodshed from its previous instalments. Titled, 'Fifteen Inches of Sheer Dynamite', Episode 1 was a pure blur, and the end, unfortunately, was a tragic one for Reggie Franklin, aka A-Train (Jessie T. Usher). The speedster supe meets his end at the hands of Homelander in the final minutes of the season opener, sending shockwaves among fans on social media.

Forwarding to the final moments, A-Train rescues the inmates at Freedom Camp, where Hughie Campbell (Jack Quaid), Frenchie (Tomer Capone), and Mother's Milk (Laz Alonso) are detained. The episode opens with Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) planning to rescue the trio after reuniting with Annie January, aka Starlight (Erin Moriarty), and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara). Homelander catches wind of the Butcher’s ploy and meets them at the camp, leading to a savage fight breaking out. When Homelander decides to lure Starlight back by attempting to laser Hughie, A-Train pulls off a last-minute rescue in ‘X-Men: Days of the Future Past’-esque fashion, as he saves Hughie. An enraged Homelander chases the supe, who crashes into the woods, trying to dodge an innocent bystander. However, this calls curtains down on A-Train’s run in the series after Homelander snaps the speedster’s neck. But not before A-Train ridicules the leader of the Seven.

Fans on X (formerly Twitter) expressed their shock after A-Train's grim death in the first episode. "This scene, him saving the boys and dodging the woman not repeating his mistake and facing Homelander and dying a hero god, I can’t take this rip a-train I will miss you so much king #theboys," a fan wrote. This was seconded by another fan saying, "Killing off a train in the first episode of the last season of the boys .... girl, whatever." More posts trickled in after the premiere. "The boys Season 5 spoilers YOU ARE NOT GOING TO KILL MY GOAT ATRAIN IN THE FIRST EPISODE DAWG WHAT THE HELL," a post read. "That was such a full circle moment for A train, from ripping through a woman in szn 1 to now dodging a woman and that becoming the reason for his death," another comment said.

A-Train’s death comes as a heroic sacrifice after his prickly introduction on the show. One of the supes whose character arc has been impressive over the last four seasons, A-Train, was finally looking like a good person. But bettering himself with Homelander in the mix is also a good way of putting himself on a collision course with death. The redemption storyline can be fulfilled by A-Train sacrificing himself to save one of ‘The Boys’ or any member of the public. This completes his journey from a cocky and evil supe to a hero who died saving lives. Only time will tell if his sacrifice was in vain as new episodes of ‘The Boys’ Season 5 drop weekly on Prime Video.