What Are Bennies? Soldier Boy’s Favorite Drug Explained
In The Boys season 3, Soldier Boy can be seen indulging in “bennies,” leading viewers to wonder whether these obscure drugs are real and, if so, what they do and how they work. The Boys has never shied away from depicting its superheroes, or “supes,” as morally dubious. Season 3’s new villain, Jensen Ackles’ amoral patriot Soldier Boy, is no exception to this rule.
A relic of the Cold War and the 80s who was defrosted by the titular vigilante gang, Soldier Boy is as self-serving and hypocritical as any of the supes seen in the Prime Video series so far. Despite traumatizing The Boys hero Mother’s Milk when he killed his grandfather during his violent, ill-informed campaign against drugs and crime in poor neighborhoods, Soldier Boy can be seen indulging in hard drugs himself when Butcher and Hughie run some errands for him. Alongside whisky and fast food, Soldier Boy orders and subsequently snorts a prescription of “bennies.”
Related: The Boys Season 3: The Secret Meaning Behind Blue Hawk’s Name
Unlike Compound V, bennies are a real and consistently popular drug. Their name comes from the brand Benzedrine, which was surprisingly not a drug unique to the 80s despite Soldier’s Boy’s origins. The first branded amphetamine, bennies, are legally used as an ADHD and narcolepsy medication while also having a long history of abuse as athletic and cognitive performance enhancers. Recreationally, they have been used as a stimulant (Soldier Boy’s preference), inducing euphoria and allowing users to override their need to sleep, eat, and rest while high. Much like Hughie’s season 3 powers give him a temporary rush and confidence boost, most benzedrine users report a sensation of feeling invincible and unstoppable before the
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