Payback Vs. The Seven: Which Of The Boys Team Is Stronger

Amazon’s streaming service Prime Video had been lagging behind on good original content, whereas Netflix had pulled ahead with shows like Squid Game and The Witcher series. That was until Eric Kripke developed The Boys, which is based on a comic book series of the same name by Dynamite Entertainment. The show was met with high acclaim for its well-written story and cast, but the question a lot of fans have on their minds is which team is stronger on the show, is it Payback or is it The Seven?

Despite having Soldier Boy and Black Noir on their team and having been together longer than The Seven, Payback can’t stand against The Seven, mainly due to Homelander and Black Noir, who could take out all the Payback members by themselves.

The Boys depicts what would happen to society if superheroes existed, but assumes a darker approach compared to other superhero shows. In this article, I will discuss what The Boys entails and, in particular, about The Seven and Payback, and which team is stronger. Beware, spoilers ahead.

Who Are The Seven?

You would think that in a superhero series with the superheroes’ team name being The Seven, its members would be the good guys. You would be wrong to think that. The Seven are, as the name suggests, a group of seven superpowered humans who act as the antagonists of the series.

In a TV show where the lines between good and evil are blurred, and you’re not sure who the good guys are, calling The Seven villains tells you how abominable these guys are. Controlled, managed, and owned by the multi-billion dollar American conglomerate, Vought International, The Seven are as corrupt, immoral, and malevolent as what Vought represents and their every action is in the interest of increasing the stock price of the conglomerate and making its public image greater.

With some members either dead or retired, this is the list of all the members of The Seven:

1. Homelander: Current

Without a doubt the strongest of The Seven, Homelander is the leader of the team and the main antagonist of the series. Having raped Becca Butcher, the wife of one of the main protagonists, Billy Butcher, he is set up as the motivation for the formation of The Boys, who seek to destroy all supes. Possessing flight, super speed, super strength, super hearing, x-ray vision, and heat vision, he is invulnerable to any physical assault and deadly when angered.

2. Starlight: Current

Born Annie January, Starlight is one of the newest members of The Seven and one of the few supes that care about protecting people. After joining The Seven, she is shocked to discover how corrupt the team and the corporation that owns them are, and works together with The Boys to help take down Vought.

3. Queen Maeve: Current

Born Margaret Shaw, Queen Maeve is one of the strongest members of The Seven but having made so many sacrifices to become what was expected of her as a superhero by Vought, she became as corrupt and immoral as the rest of the team until Starlight joined the team and reminded her of who she once wished to become.

4. Black Noir: Current

The team’s ninja, Black Noir is a mysterious super skilled in martial arts and possesses heightened senses and super strength. Always depicted wearing a black costume and a mask, very little is known of the stealthy ninja other than he is terrifying and almost impossible to kill. Despite being shown to be extremely brutal, he is one of the supes who have shown a considerable amount of concern for innocent people.

5. A-Train: Reappointed

Born Reggie Franklin, A-Train is the speedster of the team and the archenemy of protagonist Hughie Campbell. He accidentally killed Robin Ward, Hughie Campbell’s girlfriend, by speeding through her while high on Compound V. This ultimately led Hughie Campbell to seek revenge by joining The Boys after being convinced by Billy Butcher.

6. The Deep: Reappointed

Born Kevin Moskowitz, The Deep is known as the Lord of the Seven Seas due to his ability to breathe underwater and communicate with sea creatures. After Starlight joins The Seven, he sexually assaults her, forcing Vought to take him off the team after Starlight reveals this information. He later rejoins the team following Homelander’s support.

7. Translucent: Dead

The first supe to be killed on the show, Translucent was an invisible supe who possessed a carbon metamaterial skin which made him bulletproof and almost indestructible. After he is kidnapped by The Boys team, they figure out a way to kill him by planting an explosive inside him and after trying to escape, Hughie detonates the bomb implanted in him, killing him instantly.

Who Are Payback?

Before The Seven ever existed, the greatest superhero team was Payback, a group of supes who were owned by Vought International (Vought American then) in the 80s. During a mission in Nicaragua in 1984, the team’s incompetence resulted in a botched mission and the death of some members. After that, the team became defunct.

The members of Payback were:

1. Soldier Boy

One of the major characters in the third season, Soldier Boy was presumed dead after he went missing during the Nicaragua mission but was actually captured by the Russian army. He is later revealed to be alive after The Boys discover him in a Russian military facility.

2. Crimson Countess

Soldier Boy’s former lover, Crimson Countess is one of the surviving members of Payback who is introduced in the third season as a supe working at a Vought Theme Park.

3. Gunpowder

A retired superhero, Gunpowder was Soldier Boy’s sidekick and an expert marksman who was exceptionally proficient in firearms. After being discovered by Billy Butcher, he is questioned about Soldier Boy and then killed by a superpowered Butcher.

4. Black Noir

Before he was a member of The Seven, Black Noir was a member of Payback and had his face terribly scarred during the botched Nicaragua mission.

5. Mindstorm

It is not known whether Mindstorm is alive or dead in the present day, but he is shown to be one of the members of Payback and, like his name, he possesses the ability of telepathy and flies using a jetpack.

6. Swatto

Having the ability to spawn wings like an insect from his back, Swatto was one of the prominent members of Payback. He was killed during the Nicaragua mission after being blown up by the Russian army with a rocket launcher while flying.

7. The TNT Twins

Tommy and Tessa are fraternal twins who were members of Payback, but little is known about them. Their name, though, suggests they may have explosive powers.

Payback Vs. The Seven

Unfortunately for Payback, this is not even a close fight for them, mainly due to Homelander. Possessing abilities similar to Superman and no discernible weaknesses, Homelander greatly tips the scale for The Seven, and except for Soldier Boy and Black Noir, Payback members do not possess any particularly spectacular abilities. If they were to fight with all their members alive, Payback would lose easily.