I’ll be honest right from the off here, I haven’t read the comic run for The Boys. I’ve only heard about them so my knowledge isn’t up to scratch on the comics. My opinion here stems from a fan of the show since season 1 like many others because it’s on Prime and, well, it’s a bloody good show.
Homelander has been the main antagonist and is set to continue into season 4. I recently went back and watched the show from the start. You slowly see Homelander become more unhinged and psychotic as the seasons go by with the worst yet to come.
I’ve seen a fair few comments suggesting he should’ve died at the end of season 3 at the hands of Soldier Boy and Butcher, setting up Soldier Boy as the main antagonist moving into the next season. When you watch that finale back, it doesn’t make much sense why Butcher switched so quickly when his main goal was Homelander; it could’ve ended there and then.
Homelander has gone from doing his violent outbursts out of the public eye with the odd blow-up in an interview. Now he’s straight up lasering people in half in a public political rally. People cheer him as well. So the question does bode as to how far he can go.
I have mixed feelings. Homelander to me is what Voldemort is to Harry Potter or what Moff Gideon is to Din Djarin in The Mandalorian. He’s part and parcel of why the show is so good because he’s a fantastic character who gives this terrifying aura so much that it sort of spills into the actor, Antony Starr. That’s when you know he’s done such a good job with the character.
I’m also unsure of whether or not Homelander dying or leaving the show would hurt it more in the long run. It got to the point at the end of Gen V when he showed up and I genuinely thought he was going to help (he didn’t). It’s a testament to Antony Starr and the writers that Homelander could be redeemed in an instant, like the split-second moment he helps Butcher with the laser vision in the season 3 finale.
Then the other hand is how far can it go? How much more story can they tell with Homelander? We’re still yet to see the Flight 37 footage leak to the public and I genuinely hope this happens in the next season.
This season truly needs to show the power of Homelander because I don’t even feel like we’ve seen barely enough. I mean, we’ve only ever seen him fight twice with someone close to his level and that was in season 3. I think if we move on from Homelander after season 4, we need this season to make him truly shine.
I think in the end it depends on how season 4 progresses to determine whether or not it should be the end for Homelander. I’d still like to see Soldier Boy return for his revenge against The Boys as well which could happen post Homelander if his end comes this season.
Either way, it’s exciting. Prime has done a wonderful job with the series. It’s now been announced The Boys season 4 will premiere on June 13th, 2024. Strap in folks, it’s going to be crazy as always.
