Why Is Kimiko Not Healing? What Did Soldier Boy Do to Her?

The ending of episode 4 of season 3 of The Boys showcased one of the biggest twists yet when they discovered that Soldier Boy was still alive somewhere in a Russian military base. He used a move that was seemingly new as it allowed him to blast energy from his body. Kimiko saved Frenchie from getting hit but was the one hit by the blast as she got injured and never healed from her injuries. So, why is Kimiko not healing, and what did Soldier Boy do to her?

It is possible that Kimiko is not healing because the energy blast from Soldier Boy was made to neutralize supe powers. As such, he could be the weapon that could neutralize Homelander’s invulnerability powers as Soldier Boy did the same to Kimiko’s amazing healing factor.

While we are yet to see the weapon that the Russians have against the supes, it is possible that what they are talking about is the same kind of power that they implanted in Soldier Boy. As such, this power could be the one that The Boys want to use against Homelander because it is capable of neutralizing supe powers. With that said, let’s look at what Soldier Boy did to Kimiko.

Why Is Kimiko Not Healing?

Episode 4 of season 3 of The Boys has become more interesting with the turn of events that happened in the latest episode. It was in this season that we got to see more character development from Kimiko and her involvement with the entire Boys group, which has begun to steadily implode with Billy Butcher alienating them and making them feel less important to him.

In that regard, Kimiko was one of the highlights of this episode, considering that she was able to show that she was also growingly becoming more unhappy with the way Butcher was running things. We saw her getting involved with the assassination of one of Little Nina’s supposed rivals, as that was when she realized that she was being treated by a desperate Butcher as a tool. In that regard, she urged Frenchie to leave the group after that mission in Russia.

Then again, when they were finally able to get inside the military compound where the Russians were supposedly keeping the weapon that might have killed Soldier Boy, that was when it was revealed that Soldier Boy was still alive. The supe was being held by the Russians all along, to the surprise of The Boys.

An enraged Soldier Boy released a blast of energy coming from his body as he was aiming at Frenchie. However, Kimiko pushed him out of the way and got hit by the blast instead. Soldier Boy fled the premises as Kimiko was seen gravely injured after getting hit by that blast. She wasn’t even healing, to the surprise of Frenchie, who had to rush her to the hospital.

Now, we all know that one of Kimiko’s best assets as a supe is her ability to heal from almost any kind of injury and wound. In the same episode, we saw that she was able to heal from a gunshot to the head, which is an injury that everyone in the world will almost always die from. However, in that encounter with Soldier Boy, she got impaled right through her abdomen and was not healing from her injuries.

This could lead to the possibility that whatever Soldier Boy did to Kimiko was capable of neutralizing her healing factor, which is her main supe ability. It could be possible that this attack from the supe was capable of probably temporarily negating whatever supe ability a supe may have, and that was why Kimiko wasn’t healing from the attack. This is where it could get interesting in the future, especially with the impending encounter between Soldier Boy and Homelander.

What Did Soldier Boy Do To Kimiko?

Since 1984, the longstanding belief was that Soldier Boy had been killed by a nuclear explosion because that was Vought’s press release. However, he disappeared when a Russian weapon supposedly killed him and took his body in the Nicaragua incident that happened in 1984. And it was revealed in episode 4 of season 3 that he was still alive and was being kept by the Russians the entire time.

In that episode, as mentioned, Soldier Boy released a blast of energy that was able to injure Kimiko and prevent her from healing. This is something that surprised everyone because of the fact that Kimiko’s greatest asset is her healing factor. So, what did Soldier Boy do to her?

It is possible that the Russians were able to neutralize Soldier Boy in 1984 using a weapon that neutralized his supe powers. Time and time again, Soldier Boy was described to be almost as powerful as Homelander, as Grace Mallory found it impossible that there was a weapon strong enough to “kill” him. This suggests the possibility that he could also have the same kind of invulnerability that Homelander has.

So, with that said, this weapon that the Russians used might have been something that the Russians were able to incorporate into Soldier Boy’s powers and abilities when they were experimenting with him since 1984. And it could be possible that he gained the same abilities as the weapon that was used to neutralize him so that he could also serve as the Russians’ deterrent to Homelander and all of the other supes that America could throw at them.

This becomes an interesting possibility heading into the next episodes of season 3 of The Boys because of the fact that it could be this power that Soldier Boy used on Kimiko that could turn the tide of battle in a possible encounter with Homelander. And if that power could neutralize Kimiko’s healing factor, it might be possible that it could also negate Homelander’s invulnerability.

Is Karen Fukuhara Leaving The Boys?

From what we saw in episode 4 of The Boys season 3, it looked like Kimiko was ready to leave The Boys together with Frenchie because she now wanted to live a life away from Butcher, who she thought was merely using her and the other Boys. However, it is beginning to look like she probably won’t be able to live that life after what Soldier Boy did to her.

The fact that Kimiko could possibly die due to the wounds she suffered from what Soldier Boy did could point to a new direction for The Boys. Kimiko’s wounds might end up killing her as Frenchie, and the others were trying desperately to keep her alive while rushing to the hospital. And with Frenchie no longer having a reason to stay with The Boys, Kimiko’s death could give him more reasons to continue fighting the supes.

So, in that regard, there are rumors that point to the possibility of Karen Fukuhara, who plays the role of Kimiko, leaving The Boys with the onscreen death of her character. It is this possible exit from The Boys that may have led the show’s creator to write her off from the series with a death that could also help in the progression of the storyline. 

But there has never been anything confirmed regarding Kimiko possibly dying or Karen Fukuhara leaving the show. The fate of the character could be revealed in the next episode as we might learn whether or not this energy blast from Soldier Boy permanently neutralized her healing factor.