The Boys

Credit: Prime Video

Things have gone from bad to worse as The Boys nears its fateful conclusion. With just two episodes left before the superhero show wraps up, it looks like we’re in for some intense final showdowns.

The sixth episode of The Boys wrapped up the V1 arc that’s been drawn out all season. As I’ve noted previously, while I’ve enjoyed Season 5 for the most part, it has felt a bit all over the place in terms of both pacing and plotting. This week, we finally reached the big turning point, setting the stage for the final act.

All season long, Butcher, Hughie, MM, Starlight, Frenchie and Kimiko have been hatching their supe-virus scheme. They hit a major setback when they discovered that Soldier Boy was immune thanks to V1, the original Vought serum that gave him and a few other early supes their powers. Homelander was not a V1 supe, so he was still vulnerable to the virus.

The Boys began their search to find and destroy the last remaining supply of V1 while Homelander and Soldier Boy went on the hunt as well. At first, Soldier Boy was just as determined to destroy the V1 as our heroes, but after some father/son bonding all this changed. Sister Sage tried to manipulate Soldier Boy into hating Homelander again, but failed miserably and at the end of Episode 6, after getting the V1 from his old rival, Bombsight, Soldier Boy hands it over to Homelander who quickly injects himself, falls to his knees, and shoots lasers out of his eyes while the V1 transforms him into an immortal.

“Run,” Butcher tells his companions before the credits roll. You don’t see Butcher frightened very often.

This was all a great dramatic moment. Bombsight shows up to rescue Golden Geisha from the Boys, and Butcher offers to trade her for the V1. But Bombsight still wants to use the V1 to grant his old lover immortality so that he doesn’t have to spend it alone. She doesn’t want it and urges him to hand it over, but Soldier Boy shows up and the two supes duke it out. Just when Soldier Boy is about to break his neck, Bombsight pleads with him to stop.

Soldier Boy is not a good person, but he does show mercy a lot more often than Homelander (though Homelander has his moments – more on that in a minute). He relents, freeing Bombsight and telling him that he can take away his powers and his immortality, freeing him from his superhero curse. He can go live out the rest of his days with Golden Geisha, and all he has to do in return is hand over the V1. Everything is going according to Sister Sage’s plans until Homelander shows up and Soldier Boy gives him the serum. It’s what Clara would have wanted, Soldier Boy tells him. Sage’s plan to turn Soldier Boy against Homelander by showing him a sex tape of the two of them backfires. With Homelander now immune to the virus, the Boys will have to scrap that plan entirely (avoiding a genocide in the process) and come up with a new plan. But what can they possibly do now to stop Homelander?

This was a powerful scene, but I can’t help but feel it’s built on a flimsy foundation. The only reason Soldier Boy went from despising Homelander to having some kind of fatherly affection toward him was the fact that Homelander spared his life at Fort Harmony after Soldier Boy locked him up in a radioactive cell. I’m just not buying the change of heart. It feels like something much more dramatic ought to have happened in order for Soldier Boy to have this kind of change of heart. It’s one thing for Soldier Boy to save Homelander from the comedians in last week’s episode, and another altogether to grant him immortality and immunity from the virus.

There are only two superheros left who can stop Homelander now, and after the V1 neither is even close to his power tier now. Soldier Boy is one of them, of course, and could theoretically strip Homelander of his powers like he did for Bombsight. This, of course, would require him to have yet another about face and the only reason I can see this happening is if Homelander does something beyond the pale. That could have to do with Homelander’s son and Soldier Boy’s grandson, Ryan, who has been out of action for the last few episodes. Ryan is the only other supe that might have the power to stop Homelander, but even before V1 he was outmatched so this seems unlikely. And at this point, while Soldier Boy has paternal instincts toward Homelander, there’s no indication he feels anything at all for Ryan.

In any case, another change of heart from Soldier Boy would be annoying at this point, but I’m not sure what else can stop Homelander. We shall see.

The Deep vs Noir 2.0

I’ll be honest, when this episode first started showing stuff about the pipeline disaster off the coast of Alaska, and the Deep grieving over dead fish, I thought it was a nightmare. I thought it was a dream sequence and the Deep was freaking out over betraying his values (the only morality he seems to cling to is all fish-related). I guess it all felt really rushed and out of left field, but it made sense once Noir 2.0 revealed he was responsible and that it was just an act of vengeance over the Deep’s actions last week. As predicted, the two end up fighting. I thought it would make sense for the two of them to kill one another, since Noir is pretty powerful – bulletproof, super-strength, flight etc. – but the fight was incredibly brief and the Deep just stabs him to death.

This was . . . incredibly disappointing, to say the least. Surely they could have come up with a better fight between two of the only remaining members of the Seven. I suppose I understand why the Deep had to win. It would make more sense for Starlight to kill him, or even Homelander, or maybe he gets away in the end and goes to live with his aquatic companions in exile, but I think a fight to the death that left both Noir and the Deep dead would have been just as fitting.

Starlight vs Oh Father

Perhaps the weakest part of the fifth season is the team itself. The good guys. The titular Boys. There’s probably just not that much room for them to grow at this point, so we get a lot of wheel-spinning with each character and their relationships. I’m not sure if that’s a fault of the writing or just the inevitable after five seasons. Starlight is perhaps the most disappointing of all.

After Season 4, Starlight was set up as Homelander’s chief foil. She also gained the power of flight, and it seemed likely that her overall power level had just gone up significantly. In Season 5, she’s done next to nothing. She hasn’t even brought her Gen V allies to the fold. When she and Hughie head to the church to plant the supe virus, she’s caught by Oh Father and, after a bit of a chit chat about faith, he unleashes his sonic powers on her.

Despite her power ups, her previous membership in the Seven and all her notoriety, she appears to be no match for Oh Father. It’s possible that she was worried about unleashing her powers with the virus right there, but it sure looked like she was trying and just couldn’t overcome Oh Father’s powers. If Hughie hadn’t threatened to unleash the virus, it seems like Oh Father would have defeated her. It’s as puzzling as Noir not standing a chance against the Deep in a land-based fight.

The Legend vs Homelander

My favorite scene this episode took place between The Legend and Homelander. Homelander finds him after he helps the Boys locate Golden Geisha (and then grows disgusted with them when they reveal their plans). Homelander questions the Legend and a surprising scene ensues.

When it becomes clear to the Legend that he’s not making it out alive, he gives Homelander a bit of a talk. It’s all very real and raw and nonjudgmental. Probably the most human man-to-man talk Homelander has ever had with another person in his life. Even when he calls him a total whackjob, he appends that with “But that’s talent.” Again, no judgment, just an observation born out of years in the business. It’s almost a shame that Homelander didn’t have this guy around when he was young and impressionable and instead was surrounded by guys like Stan Edgar.

When he realizes that the Legend isn’t afraid of him, that he isn’t trying to stroke Homelander’s ego, that he isn’t trying to get anything out of him at all, Homelander tells the Legend he can leave. No words, just go. Unlike other characters who Homelander has tried to spare but who have then, rather stupidly, not taken him up on that opportunity, the Legend makes life a leaf and scrams.

Seriously, he earned his moniker this episode.

All told, this entire season really does feel like a huge setup for the new Vought Rising prequel series. Soldier Boy feels like a more important character than just about anyone at this point.

I suppose I have mixed feelings about this. I’m not sure what they could have done this season to really focus more on the main characters, since most of those characters have run out of steam. And they couldn’t just have every episode filled with showdowns between them and Homelander. Still, I can’t help but feel that Seasons 4 and 5 could have been condensed into one longer season where everything was wrapped up by now. Hopefully the final two episodes are really good and we get some satisfying conclusions.

What do you think of Season 5 so far? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.