Mother's Milk

Lore & Background

Mother's Milk is a big, physically imposing and highly patient and methodical African-American man, appearing first in issue #2. Taught by his father to check every possible angle and means of attack, he can be somewhat particular and compulsive—getting annoyed whenever anyone does not put a drink coaster under their glasses or fails to sort out trash properly. He is the only member of the team, aside from the retired Greg Mallory, who is an American citizen by birth. In issue #35, M.M. reveals he is the only member of the unit exposed to Compound V since conception. His mother worked in a factory that had previously been a Vought-American laboratory and had not been sanitized, leading to her contamination before pregnancy. As a result, his brother Michael was born with severe mental disability and he himself was born needing regular doses of his mother's breast milk to survive. Issue #17 shows him throwing up and feeling disturbed by the constant need, while also finding the nourishment highly energizing and developing into a breast fetish, adding to his discomfort. His father worked tirelessly to sue Vought-American over his children's special needs and eventually succeeded, but the experience took a large mental and physical toll on him. M.M. became aware that Vought's lawyers were shrugging the loss off, but never told his father. His brother Michael died soon after from complications of his condition; their father died from the stress of trying to sue VA over and over again. His mother was left broken and unwilling to fight anymore, becoming morbidly obese; her own powers expressed themselves due to her overwhelming despair. She now lives in a facility, completely unaware of her surroundings. To support his mother and his new wife and daughter, he joined the U.S. Army, volunteered for the Rangers, and became an army boxer. In a championship match, M.M. accidentally killed his opponent in the ring by hitting him too hard, though not due to sudden power manifestation. He was released from the military and was recruited by Butcher and Mallory for the first incarnation of The Boys.

In Their Own Story

After Mother's Milk had been with The Boys for a year, Butcher accompanied him to rescue M.M.'s infant daughter Janine, whose mother, a drug addict, was incapable of raising her properly. The pair rescued Janine from a drug house whose addicts smoked crack cut with Compound V; Butcher suffered a savage beating from the addicts in the process. M.M. was later present at the destruction of the Brooklyn Bridge (caused by the Seven's attempt to prevent 9/11), where he attempted to help a woman from a falling car. Although he maintained his hold on her, she could not get free of her seat belt and was torn in half, dying in M.M.'s arms. The experience would haunt M.M. and serve as additional motivation for continuing the fight against Vought-American. After the disbandment of the unit, M.M. performed community work and tried to raise his increasingly rebellious daughter, now a teenager (and as a result of Compound V, matured early—although she appears 16–17, she is only 12 chronologically). Janine shows M.M. great disrespect but regards Butcher with affection, calling him "Uncle Billy." M.M. eventually agrees to return to the team, acting as Butcher's second-in-command. He is one of the few people who receives any consistent level of civility from the pathologically rude Butcher, who thinks very highly of him. He is also the only member of the Boys (other than Hughie) who thinks that at least a few superheroes might be decent people (as mentioned in issue #6). In The Bloody Doors Off, Mother's Milk discovers that his abusive ex-wife forced their daughter into starring in a pornographic film. He is furious, and after wrecking the Boys' HQ in a fury, leaves to deal with this family issue. He tracks down Janine, who reveals that Butcher murdered the producers and cast of the adult film, including brutally murdering Janine's mother in front of her. Butcher's final words, meant as both a warning and a threat, were for Janine to leave M.M. alone. In issue #68, Mother's Milk returns to New York for a meeting with The Boys to stop Butcher from using a weaponized version of the "V" compound on the rest of the Supes and innocents affected. Butcher walks in, and M.M. questions if Butcher is really going through with his genocidal plan. Butcher responds yes, stating he did not think he was going to survive the fight with Homelander and Black Noir. Butcher offers him a chance to walk away, but M.M. attempts to stop him instead. Butcher reveals to him that he thought of killing him.

Reader's Guide

Mother's Milk is a large, physically imposing and highly patient and methodical African-American man. He is the only member of The Boys exposed to Compound V since conception, making him the first naturally-born Supe. He requires regular doses of his mother's breast milk to survive, which he finds both disturbing and highly energizing, leading to a breast fetish. He joined the U.S. Army, volunteered for the Rangers, and became an army heavyweight boxer. In a championship match, his powers suddenly manifested and he accidentally killed his opponent by punching his head off, leading to his discharge and recruitment by Butcher and Mallory. He acts as Butcher's second-in-command and is one of the few people Butcher treats with civility. M.M. is particular and compulsive, getting annoyed when people don't use coasters or sort trash properly. He is the only member (aside from Hughie) who believes some superheroes might be decent. His daughter Janine, matured early due to Compound V, disrespects him but adores Butcher. After discovering Butcher's genocidal plan to kill all Supes and potential Supes—including M.M. and his daughter—M.M. confronts Butcher and is killed by him to prevent interference. M.M.'s mother then gives milk to Hughie, who confronts and kills Butcher.

Did You Know?

• Mother's Milk is the first naturally-born Supe, as his mother was exposed to Compound V before pregnancy, not while pregnant.
• In the comics, Butcher's second-in-command is The Frenchman, not M.M.
• M.M. was a boxer but never a heavyweight champion of the world.
• M.M.'s brother Michael died from complications of his condition, not from manifesting superpowers.