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Jesse T. Usher
- A-Train, played by Jesse T. Usher, was born Reggie Franklin, and he's one of the few members of the Seven whose family appears in the series.
www.slashfilm.com/1663825/the-boys-the-seven-real-names-explained/
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- Overview
- The Boys Series
- Personality
- Powers and Abilities
- Weaknesses
- Equipment
- Relationships
- Trivia
Reggie Franklin, better known as A-Train, is a major antagonist in the Amazon series The Boys, serving as the central antagonist of Season 1, and a major antagonist in both Season 2 and Season 3.
He is a speedster who used to be a part of the team known as the Teenage Kix, and is a returning member of The Seven. He inadvertently killed Robin Ward, girlfriend of Hughie Campbell, with his powers while high on Compound V, an action which led to Hughie becoming his archenemy, ultimately leading to him joining The Boys and the events of the show.
Background
Reggie Franklin was born in 1987. Shortly after his birth, his parents accepted Vought's offer to inject him with Compound V, subsequently transforming him into a Supe and granting him superhuman powers and abilities. It is implied that he grew up poor during his childhood. Reggie's father died when he was very young, and his mother had to work two jobs. Because of this, his older brother Nathan raised him. He eventually became Reggie's personal trainer after his powers began to develop. Reggie's superhuman speed activated at the age of three when he outran the bullets of a deadly shooting towards his home and as he grew up this ability allowed him to become a celebrity for Vought International under the name A-Train and aspired to become a superhero to support his family and also do good. At some point, he became a member of Teenage Kix where he entered into a relationship with another member named Popclaw. He would go on his first date with her where she ordered a dark beer, a New York strip and a chocolate chip cheesecake and thought to himself, "here's someone who isn't afraid to be happy." A-Train says he fell for her right then and there. They would have sex a few times, one time being recorded on a nanny cam. After leaving Teenage Kix, A-Train attended Godolkin University and trained under Richard Brinkerhoff. He was God U's top ranked student and Brink commented that he was the most driven kid he trained since Queen Maeve. Upon graduating in 2015, he was drafted into The Seven, replacing Mister Marathon. During his time on the team, it is possible he wanted to help people at first, but regardless, he became more fame hungry and greedy over time. He abused Compound V to maintain his status as the fastest man alive, something that would come at the cost of his own life and health.
Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman
A-Train was reported by Cameron Coleman postponing a planned exhibition race with Mister Marathon due to a "sensitive, classified mission," but was giving himself time to train as much as possible. A-Train later gave an earnest speech at the Vought Tower, apologizing to his fans around the world and citing the postponement's necessity due to the threat of super-terrorism. He starred in his music video dubbed Faster. He was also featured across various segments and advertisements.
A-train is a complex individual with many inner struggles. Initially, like most "superheroes," A-Train is greedy, self-centered, egotistical, and mostly interested in fame, fortune, and publicity rather than helping others. In fact, he displays a remarkable level of cutthroat ruthlessness, possibly even to the point of sociopathy. It is also implied during a conversation with Starlight about The Seven possibly losing their financial assets that A-Train's obsession with maintaining his wealth and celebrity status might be rooted in his impoverished upbringing and measures his own self-worth by his lavish lifestyle of being a Vought-owned supe.
Initially, Reggie desired to do good in the world, but under Vought’s influence and unimaginable pressure, this would corrupt him to his very core at the cost of his own integrity and self-preservation. In his first appearance, he was shown to be extremely careless. He kills Robin Ward by running through her, albeit accidentally while on Compound V. Further, there are hints throughout the series that he has caused this kind of incident before. Not only did he show no remorse over an accident that should have been traumatizing, but he displayed incredible callousness when he later joked about this incident to a fellow "supe," laughing at Robin's death. Although he personally apologizes to Hughie for killing Robin, he did this only because he was compelled to by Vought as a concession for Hughie Campbell, who would not sign Vought's non-disclosure agreement unless A-Train apologized. A-Train's indifference to the incident is further underscored in that he is unable to recognize Hughie, even after being shown a photo of him or when he encountered Hughie outside of Popclaw's apartment.
The only person A-Train seemingly cares about is his girlfriend, Popclaw; however, their relationship is strained due to A-Train's greater focus on his career as a member of The Seven and maintaining his title as the World's Fastest Man. Furthermore, Popclaw is frustrated by A-Train's repeated refusal to publicly acknowledge their relationship, instead pretending to be unattached and available. Things take a turn for the worse when she is blackmailed into revealing information on Compound V and A-Train is "forced" to kill her in order to ensure the security of his position on The Seven. While A-Train does feel some form of remorse about her death, he ultimately blames Hughie for "forcing" him into that position.
A-Train is determined to maintain his status as the fastest man alive. As a result, he uses the drug Compound V to further amp up his powers. This leads to his downfall as he later suffers from a heart attack, ultimately being the reason for him getting kicked out of The Seven. However, the constant use of Compound V shows A-Train's insecurity and lack of self-confidence despite his arrogant and confident attitude. The day before his race against Shockwave, he revealed to Popclaw his fear of losing and being outclassed by his rival with the stress of having to win the race to stay in The Seven. Another sign of his insecurity is the fact that he needs public approval more than anything else, caring about his public image above his health. After quickly recovering from his leg wound caused by Kimiko Miyashiro, A-Train began to exercise his body doing physical training because he needed to return as soon as possible so as not to tarnish his public image and reputation.
After the repercussions of his actions and his abuse of Compound V began to seriously cost him, A-Train was shown to have begun to change for the better due to him now having to endure humiliating experiences with his place in The Seven being jeopardized. As seen where he was forced to do a humiliating scene in the new The Seven movie in order to manipulate the public backlash of his scandal to not cause Vought any problems. He also showed great horror at the death of his rival Shockwave, showing he did not hate his fellow speedster.
Despite his exuberant public persona, A-Train's lack of empathy makes things rather awkward when he is forced to improvise in delicate situations. The results were disastrous when A-Train paid a visit to a terminally ill child from the Make-A-Wish Foundation. When the child indicated that he had requested a visit from Translucent, A-Train attempted to placate him by suggesting that Translucent would come by next week, unaware the child was unlikely to survive that long. He further made the ridiculous promise that if the child would get better, A-Train would teach the child to run as fast as him. After watching this fiasco on television, Madelyn Stillwell was convinced that A-Train cannot be unscripted when going into PR situations.
Powers
•Superhuman Metabolism: A-Train possesses a highly efficient and incredibly quick metabolism; unlike regular humans who only use about 25% of the caloric energy present in the consumed food, A-Train metabolizes an estimated 99.5% of the caloric energy content of foodstuffs. While working out, he had to consume 3,000 calories per hour to maintain his energy without passing out. He drinks vanilla milkshakes with extra whipped cream from Shake Shack because he needs 30,000 calories a day, and Homelander has seen him consume 24 cupcakes and nine servings of truffle. •Superhuman Speed: As the self-proclaimed "world's fastest man" and described as "a fierce competitor" by Shockwave, A-Train is able to move at inhuman speeds, appearing as a distorted blur of motion to onlookers. Every time he uses his superhuman speed, the sound of the sound barrier being broken can be heard, creating a sound similar to that of a train moving at high velocity (hence the name "A-Train"), meaning that he can move around the speed of sound (767 miles per hour/1235 kilometers per hour) with little to no effort. He first discovered his power when he was three years old, where he outran a bullet fired at him. The speed of bullets varies widely depending on the caliber, from 818 miles per hour (1316 kilometres per hour) for a .22 LR to 2075 miles per hour (3340 kilometres per hour) for a .50 BMG, but this is an impressive accomplishment regardless. During his race with Shockwave for the title of "the fastest man alive", the announcer states that A-Train can reach speeds in excess of 1,000 miles per hour (1,609.34 kilometers per hour/Mach 1.3). In the actual race, even after injecting Compound V, A-Train only managed to reach 371 meters per second (829.9 miles per hour/1,335.6 kilometers per hour/Mach 1.08). His speed allows him to run across entire city blocks in mere seconds—Billy Butcher has estimated that A-Train can cover all of Manhattan in 30 minutes, and A-Train himself stated he could cover all of New York City in three hours. He can also presumably run on water, since he was able to run from New York to Havana (the capital of Cuba). It was stated that cameras need to catch up to 5,000 frames per second just so that he can be caught on camera at all times. However, his greatest feat comes from his fight with Starlight, where after using Compound V once again, he managed to dodge her energy beams (which are either made of plasma or pure light), albeit at the cost of having a heart attack. •Accelerated Perception: A-Train's reaction time and the speed at which his brain processes information are heightened to a level similar to his running speed, enabling him to perceive his surroundings while traveling at high velocities. Because of this, when A-Train moves at high speeds he perceives the world around him as though it is standing still or in slow motion. •Superhuman Reflexes: Since his brain processing speed and perception are heightened to a level similar to his running speed, A-Train's reflexes are enhanced to inhuman levels the faster he moves. During his fight with Starlight, he was able to see her energy blasts and dodge them before they had a chance to hit him. The fact that his reflexes are tied to his movement speed has caused him to be hit by opponents far slower than him. •Superhuman Stamina: A-Train's body is adapted towards the rigors of high-speed running. His cardiovascular and respiratory systems are many times more efficient than those of a normal human being. The chemical processes in Reggie's muscles do not generate fatigue toxins, the byproduct of locomotion which forces the body to rest. His metabolism has also been enhanced to the point that most of the caloric energy that he consumes is utilized in an efficient manner, instead of being converted into fat, allowing him to run for prolonged periods of time. •Superhuman Strength: A-Train possesses superhuman strength, which he used to slam Kimiko through a wall in the train tunnels. While on Compound V, his strength also allowed him to slowly pull a several-carriage train, and trade blows with as well as knock around Starlight several feet through the air, another individual who also possesses enhanced strength. As he started his race with Shockwave, he broke the stone wall he placed his foot against, and later shattered one of Popclaw's bones when he jammed a needle into her arm. •Superhuman Durability: A-Train's body is adapted towards the rigors of high-speed running. His joints are smoother, his tendons have the tensile strength of spring steel, and his bones are made of significantly more durable calcium. As such, he was able to withstand the superhuman strength of another supe, Starlight, without issue. He can also withstand the pressure of breaking the sound barrier, the forces of rapid acceleration/deceleration, and hitting another human being at high speeds, without taking any damage. However, Kimiko was able to give him a compound fracture, meaning that his durability still has its limits. •Superhuman Agility: A-Train's body is more agile and flexible than any human could achieve. As such, he can rapidly change direction while running without loss of momentum, as seen against Starlight. However if he is going too fast, A-Train is unable to suddenly stop or change his direction, since he has unable to stop himself from killing Robin Ward on time, only managing to stop a moment later. •Superhuman Hearing: A-Train, being a supe, has better hearing beyond that of ordinary humans, capable of hearing certain frequencies. •Regenerative Healing Factor: A-Train can rapidly heal from his injuries. He was estimated to recover from a fractured femur in six weeks, however by using Compound V his bones fused back together in a matter of days. Due to his metabolism, his body has more energy available which likely can be used to accelerate his cellular regeneration.
Abilities
•Rapper: A-Train is a capable rapper. He performed the song "Faster". •Speed Combat: Due to having his powers ever since he was 3 years old, A-Train has become very skilled at using his speed on combat. He repeatedly smashed Kimiko's head against a wall, filled Popclaw's arms with heroin needles before she could even react, and dragged Blue Hawk along the road for miles. He can also kill an ordinary human just by running into them, such as the case of Robin Ward, Hughie's girlfriend, which reduced her to a shower of blood.
Psychological
•Obsession: A-Train is obsessed with remaining the fastest man in the world and a member of The Seven, thus he is willing to do anything to stay on top. This has led to extreme poor decision making and self-destructive behavior, most notably his addiction to Compound V which both resulted in severe health problems and more reckless behavior, which ultimately started the events of the series. The reason for his obsession is likely due to the fact that he grew up poor and that he had to use his super speed in order to get out of poverty. For this reason, his ability to run fast and his place on The Seven are the only things that make him feel worthy. •Ego: Due to being the fastest man in the world, A-Train is very prideful. His immense ego causes him to be extremely arrogant and cocky, which has allowed others such as Kimiko to get the drop on him. His ego is also one of the reasons for his self-destructive behavior, since he needs to go to extreme lengths in order to remain on top and validate his pride.
Biological
•Aging: A-Train is in his thirties, meaning that he is no longer in his prime. He can't get any faster and since his powers can be quantified and used in a competitive sporting space, his position on The Seven is constantly threatened by rival speedsters. Since A-Train can't retain the title of the "world's fastest man" with just his efforts alone, he started to use Compound V in order continue being on the team. •Calorie Consumption: Due to moving at supersonic speeds, A-Train needs to consume a high number of calories in order to have enough energy to perform such feats. While it is stated that A-Train needs 3,000 calories an hour and 30.000 calories a day in order to be at his top performance, Homelander says that this is only the case when he uses his powers on a regular basis. If A-Train does not run, he will just gain weight when he consumes high amounts of food. •Superhuman Momentum: If he is going too fast, A-Train cannot suddenly stop or change his direction. He had trouble controlling himself as he accidentally killed Robin Ward, Hughie's girlfriend by running into her, which reduced her to a shower of blood and made him accidentally swallow one of her molars. •Blunt Force/Limited Durability: While his strength and durability are still greater than a human's, they are on the lower end of the Supe spectrum. His body is vulnerable to attacks, as seen when Kimiko was able to break his leg fairly easily.
Former
•Compound V Abuse: A-Train's determination to maintain his status as the fastest man alive led him to consume Compound V, to the point that he became overly dependent on the drug. The drug eventually started to damage his body, causing a variety of health issues that have made him unable to use his powers like he used to. However after suffering from a heart attack, he stopped taking the serum and overcame his addiction. After a heart transplant from the body of Blue Hawk, the majority of the damage caused by his abuse of Compound V appears to have vanish, allowing him to operate like he used to. •Heart Condition: As a result of using Compound V to enhance his abilities, A-Train eventually suffered a heart attack when he fought Starlight and Hughie. The resulting heart condition prevented him from exerting himself as much as he used to. A-Train claimed to no longer have the condition, although he later admitted that he cannot run as fast as he used to and that he still has heart problems. Eventually, A-Train was no longer able his superspeed anymore, according to his doctors, doing so would be like "playing Russia roulette." In other words, if A-Train ran again there was a risk that his heart could explode. A-Train later suffered another heart attack when he used his super speed to kill Blue Hawk. However, after getting a heart transplant from Blue Hawk, A-Train's heart issues were fixed and he could run safely again.
•Hero Costume: Like most supes, A-Train has his own superhero uniform. This suit is strong enough to withstand the full force that A-Train creates when he moves at supersonic speeds. After rejoining the Seven, A-Train made changes to his uniform, so that he could rebrand himself as an African symbol. However, he would eventually change back to his older uniform after getting a new heart.
•Protective Goggles: A-Train wears a set of protective goggles to protect his eyes when he moves at high speeds.
Family
•Nathan Franklin - Brother and Former Personal Trainer
Allies
•The Seven - Colleagues •Homelander - Leader •The Deep •Black Noir † •Translucent † •The Lamplighter † •Sister Sage •Firecracker •Teenage Kix - Former Teammates •Popclaw † - Ex-Girlfriend and Victim •Mesmer † - Former Teammate •Vought International •Ashley Barrett - Boss •Also Ashley •Cate Dunlap •Sam Riordan
Enemies
•The Boys •Hughie Campbell - Former Situational Ally •Billy Butcher •Frenchie •Mother's Milk •Kimiko Miyashiro - Attempted Victim •Starlight - Former Colleague •Stormfront † •Supersonic † •Queen Maeve - Former Colleague •Shockwave † - Former Rival •Blue Hawk † - Victim
•His name stems from the A Eighth Avenue Express of the New York City Subway, commonly referred to as "the A train".
•He has his own brand of beer called Speeding Bullet Ale and his own cereal called Frosted A-Trains.
•He is 32 and weighs 185 pounds, as revealed in "Get Some." His personal best is listed as "1.34" and his season best "1.57," however both the unit of time and distance are unknown.
•According to Ashley, A-Train is responsible for three "straight-up murders." The identities of these murder victims are not revealed, but Ashley mentioned that these murders were committed while he was "out in the club with [his] crew, or getting [his] toe sucked by Popclaw," whom he also murdered. It is doubtful that Ashley was referring to Robin Ward as one of these murder victims, as her death was accidental, caused by gross carelessness, but not a murder.
•A-Train is the only supe explicitly said to have a high caloric requirment to be able to use his powers.
•A-Train is mainly the one responsible for killing Hughie's girlfriend, and causing him to join the Boys, causing mainly the events of the series.
Reginald "Reggie" Franklin, better known as A-Train, is a major character in the 2019 Amazon TV adaptation of the comic book series The Boys. He's the former archenemy of Hughie Campbell, a former member of The Seven, and the fastest man alive.
- Homelander. The leader of The Seven is akin to Superman except for Homelander's homicidal behavior, which intensifies with each episode. Former Vought employee Dr. Vogelbaum reveals Homelander's name is John during season 1, episode 7, "The Self-Preservation Society."
- Starlight. Starlight's mother calls her Annie in the first episode, "The Name of the Game." Annie blows her secret identity Annie January after she's caught on video, saving a girl from two potential rapists on season 1, episode 2, "Cherry."
- Queen Maeve. Queen Maeve is the most cynical of The Seven. She turned her back on her principles in favor of towing the company line. And during The Boys season 2, episode 2, "Proper Planning and Preparation," Maeve rushes to the hospital to be with Elena, who listed the superhero as her emergency contact using Maeve's given name, Maggie Shaw.
- A-Train. Unlike the comic character who is known strictly as A-Train, on The Boys, the speedster's real name is Reggie Franklin. A-Train's self-worth is wrapped up in his title as the fastest man alive.
Sep 28, 2023 · Jessie T. Usher plays Reggie Franklin, also known as A-Train. As the World's Fastest Man , A-Train is a standout graduate from Godolkin University who secured the top position in his class.
- Senior Author
Oct 1, 2020 · As for A-Train, his real name hasn’t been mentioned in the show yet, but it’s apparently in his character bio: His name is Reggie Franklin.
Here, he's given the name Reggie Franklin. Never My Fault : A-Train pins the blame of Popclaw's death on Hughie and the Boys since them blackmailing her is what led to him to killing her, ignoring the fact that he was the one who went through with ending her life .
