This article contains brief mentions of storylines involving sexual assault.
With season 5 confirmed as the final installment in The Boys‘ run, the series has a lot of stories to wrap up. The Boys season 4 ended on a multi-level cliffhanger, which saw Frenchie and Kimiko captured, previous antagonist Victoria Neuman killed, and tentacles emerging from former supe-hater Billy Butcher’s chest. As The Boys is dramatically different from the comics of the same name, many characters’ fates are confirmed to be different from their comic book counterparts. This has led to intense speculation over what The Boys season 5 will do with its characters.
Having admitted to GamesRadar, “Many series finales suck,” The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke is under pressure to give The Boys a satisfying ending. Even the actors have voiced opinions over the fates they want their characters to have, and who they want to kill. While none of the actors’ requests are guaranteed to happen, their attachment to their characters indicates how popular The Boys has become, and how difficult it may be to give audiences a fulfilling ending. Exactly how things will play out is unclear, but setup with some of the characters and other developments offer some interesting clues.
Hughie Kills Billy Butcher And Leads The Boys
Hughie suffered throughout The Boys season 4, first having to mercy-kill his father and then being repeatedly violated by Ashley and his former hero, Tek Knight. Hughie might not have been much of a fighter at the start of The Boys, but these experiences have brought a darkness to his character. Hughie has grown into a character capable of making tough decisions, and though he is captured in the season 4 finale, seeing Starlight escape might give him something to fight for.
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Hughie grew in confidence as The Boys went on, becoming more formidable each season, and sometimes gaining more authority than Butcher. Seeing Butcher transforming into a supe and ignoring his and the Boys’ request to leave Neuman unharmed in the season 4 finale could force Hughie to make another difficult decision. With Butcher potentially becoming the new main antagonist, taking Butcher down could be the final push Hughie needs to begin leading the Boys.
Homelander Becomes President
While Homelander is not president when The Boys season 4 ends, the newly-elected President Calhoun defers to him, and it seems only a matter of time before Homelander becomes president himself. In the comics, Homelander assembles a supe army and stages a coup, killing President Neuman and taking The White House for himself. The show includes all of these elements, but in a slightly more subtle way, incorporating Sister Sage’s mysterious plan.
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Though Homelander does become president in the comics, he is later taken down by Black Noir, who is revealed to be Homelander’s clone. Season 5 is almost certain to give viewers President Homelander, but as Homelander disembowels Black Noir in the season 3 finale, the comic book ending looks virtually impossible for Antony Starr’s live-action Homelander. The Boys writers could create a Black Noir twist, but it seems unlikely as there are other candidates for killing Homelander.
Starlight Kills The Deep
Starlight actress Erin Moriarty wants Starlight to kill The Deep. Starlight’s first major storyline in The Boys was an extremely on-the-nose “#metoo” commentary, in which The Deep pressured her into sexual contact as a new member of the Seven. Though The Deep appeared to be on a redemption arc in season 2 when he experienced his own version of gill-based sexual assault, he has since returned to his cowardice and self-serving habits.
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As Starlight exposed Vought and escaped capture in season 4, her plot arc needs to continue the empowerment theme with a resolution in which she gets some revenge. As Homelander seems virtually indestructible and destined for a final battle with Butcher, The Deep might be an understandable target for Starlight as she has a personal injustice to settle with him. If The Boys writers intend to pay this off, Starlight killing The Deep is a likely possibility.
Ashley Will Become A Literal Monster
The Boys made Ashley Barrett an increasingly complex character over seasons 3 and 4. Ashley went from a shallow Vought company sycophant to a sympathetic character, terrorized by Homelander. Although season 4 also gave Ashley a disturbing sexual nature, she believed the disguised Hughie to be a different (and consenting) person. After injecting herself with Compound V, Ashley’s dramatic transformation in The Boys season 4 finale could end her character arc as a literal monster.
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When Ashley frantically tried to protect herself from Homelander’s wrath by injecting herself with Compound V, audiences saw a glimpse of her transformation. The brief scene was a memorable piece of body-horror, suggesting that Ashley’s final appearance might be monstrous. Ashley’s hair has been a recurring subject in The Boys, and it is possible that in a reflection of Ashley’s struggle with her trichotillomania (hair-pulling disorder,) her supe power involves weaponizing her hair.
Vought Has A Diabolical Plan For Frenchie
Frenchie’s troubled past and sentimental nature have often seen him overlooked as a member of the Boys. However, Frenchie’s skills as a chemist and narcotics expert have often been sought after throughout The Boys, by both human and supe villains. It would have been easy to kill him in the season 4 finale, yet Cate quickly subdued Frenchie with mind-control powers. This almost certainly means that Frenchie has skills that Vought wants.
Frenchie’s main role in The Boys was to make chemical weapons that worked against supes. By kidnapping him and using Cate to control him, Vought could force Frenchie to create anything, including new versions of Compound V, or bioweapons against humans or supes. Vought’s control of Frenchie would give the company a new chemist while potentially depriving the Boys of two of their greatest assets: if Kimiko allows Frenchie near her, Cate could manipulate him into killing her too.
Ryan Will Have To Kill Butcher Or Homelander
For the majority of The Boys, Ryan has been caught in a power struggle between his two father figures, Homelander and Butcher. However, the decision over which father figure (if any) to follow is about to become much more difficult for Ryan. Ryan’s dark side has already been seen in The Boys, but whether he will become Homelander’s successor or the darkness Ryan has will turn to righteous anger is up for debate.
With Homelander as evil as ever, and Butcher potentially set up to become The Boys’ new supervillain, Ryan might stand a chance of killing one of them if he can choose a side. Ryan might be the only character who can get close to both Homelander and Butcher, but what he will do with that ability is unknown. Ryan’s behavior was unpredictable throughout The Boys season 4, and he was prone to rage, often resembling both Homelander and Butcher.
Mother’s Milk Will Kill Soldier Boy
With a battle between Homelander and Butcher on the cards from the first season, and several other plot arcs needing resolution, Solder Boy’s return as another antagonistic main character in The Boys was unexpected. However, season 3 revealed that Mother’s Milk (MM) hates supes because Soldier Boy killed his family, meaning that MM’s vendetta against him needs resolving. Although Soldier Boy is returning to The Boys to kill Butcher, MM might find him first.
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When Soldier Boy threw a car into MM’s house, it killed his grandfather. The stress of the resulting fight for justice appeared to kill his father as well, with MM being left with PTSD. This reveal added a heartbreaking layer to a character who had generally seemed tougher than the other Boys, except perhaps Butcher. MM was disgusted at Butcher for trying Compound V, but he could change his mind if it allowed him to kill Soldier Boy.
Kimiko And Frenchie Will Reunite
If any characters deserve a happy ending, The Boys fan-favorite couple Frenchie and Kimiko are surely candidates. Their “will-they, won’t-they” relationship finally went from friendship to confirmed romance with a long-awaited kiss in the last episode of season 4, only for Kimiko to speak her first word in years as Frenchie is taken from her. While Frenchie may have forgotten her due to the mind-control he is under, Kimiko may be harder to keep prisoner.
As Kimiko’s supe powers appear to make her unbreakable, with both rapid-healing and super-strength abilities, she will be difficult to contain. In the season 4 finale, Sam dispatched her easily with his equal super strength. However, as Sam did not kill her, this could mean that, like Frenchie, Vought also has a use for Kimiko. On the other hand, this use could be as simple as an incentive for Frenchie to cooperate with Vought in exchange for her safety.
Firecracker Will Meet A Horrible End
Another actress who has commented on her character’s potential fate is Valorie Curry, who plays Firecracker. Curry hopes that Firecracker has a dark fate in The Boys, as her manipulation gives way to desperation. Firecracker’s powers appear to be minimal, but her business and publicity skills have propelled her toward Homelander, even learning to manipulate him through his breastfeeding fetish. However, in season 4, Firecracker was looking sicker by the episode.
Firecracker’s apparent sickness could be caused by the pills she was taking to induce lactation, and she appears to be aware of this. Firecracker has been treading a narrow path with the unpredictable Homelander, and if the pills are making her sick, she may need to choose between her ability to give Homelander the one thing nobody else can, and her own life. Curry hopes her character dies, and this seems likely.
Sister Sage Will Be Revealed As A Global Mastermind
Of all the new supes in The Boys season 4, Sister Sage’s powers give her one of the most difficult burdens to carry. Possessing seemingly unlimited brain powers that make her the smartest person in the world, Sage regularly lobotomizes herself to experience a few hours of peace. The Boys season 4 finale revealed that Sage has propelled Homelander to the presidency just to see if she could. However, Sage might not be done yet, as she could wind up seizing absolute power before her arc is finished in The Boys.
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Sage mentions her plan’s “Phase 2,” but its nature is a mystery. It seems odd for a woman to bring a dangerous, misogynistic dictator to power, so if she gave him the White House just to see if she could, she might be planning to take it all away with even greater force. Sage’s influence could reach further back than viewers expect, and if so, The Boys could reveal her as the master manipulator behind the entire series.
Source: GamesRadar
The Boys
The Boys franchise is a satirical and dark superhero series based on the comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. It explores a world where superheroes, or “Supes,” are corrupt, violent, and morally bankrupt, all controlled by the powerful corporation Vought International. The story centers around two opposing groups: The Boys, a vigilante team aiming to expose and defeat the corrupt heroes, and The Seven, Vought’s elite team of Supes led by the ruthless Homelander.
- Created by
- Eric Kripke , Garth Ennis , Darick Robertson
- First Episode Air Date
- July 26, 2019
