The season finale of Amazon Prime Video’s Original Series The Boys kicks off with Antony Starr’s Homelander finally rediscovering his son Cameron Crovetti’s Ryan. While Ryan was in hiding under the supervision of Grace Mallory, Homelander was able to make a deal with Claudia Doumit’s Victoria Neuman to provide her with Compound V for her daughter to develop superpowers in exchange for Mallory and Ryan’s location. She like all mothers, worries about her daughter getting hurt. So, she decides that it would be best if she gives her powers to defend herself. The interesting part about this is Ryan ends up going with Homelander which is different from the last time where he chose Karl Urban’s Butcher. The last time he chose Butcher was due to him seeing that Homelander did not care about him. In fact, he saw that he was a monster who hurt his mother, and only cared Aya’s Cash’s Stormfront. Now it is different this time he wants to connect with Ryan on an emotional level. He even goes as far as to tell him his mother’s death was not his fault with Ryan seeing him as someone who cares about him. Not even Butcher was able to tell him this due to a part of him blaming him for her death. Ryan shows that he feels alone with one to guide him on how to be good. This is a result of Butcher abandoning him for fear of not being able to be the father Ryan needed. He only knows how to inflict pain because that is what his own father taught him. Ironically, Butcher’s fear of being a horrible father is what causes him to be a horrible father by abandoning Ryan.
The next time the viewer sees Laz Alonso’s Mother’s Milk and Tomer Capone’s Frenchie is when they talk about Mother’s Milk’s issues. In Mother’s Milk’s mind he feels like the worst father in the world. He feels this way because of him hitting his daughter’s stepdad for implying that he is not a good father. Only the reason is much more complicated than the viewer would think when it comes to him. He did not hit his daughter’s stepdad just for the implication he hit him to take back control of his life. Ever since Jensen Ackles’s Soldier Boy came back Mother’s Milk has felt the effects of his trauma tear up his stable life. He is in the extremely unique position of having the chance to move on and let go of his trauma. All the while, the living embodiment of his trauma has come back from his apparent death. However, the viewer is treated to a nice moment between him and Frenchie. Frenchie tells him it is okay to have those issues. He tries to make Mother’s Milk see that everyone has baggage in their lives. Also, he should not worry about being a bad father because having those issues does not make him a bad one it makes him human. The series for all its gruesome moments knows how to balance it out with nice moments such as these.
Further into the episode, the viewer sees Jack Quaid’s Hughie at a gas station with Butcher as they are on their way to kill Nathan Mitchell’s Black Noir to keep their deal with Soldier boy that way, he will help them deal with Homelander since Black Noir is the last member of his team that betrayed him. As Hughie leaves the bathroom, Butcher tells Hughie he is just like his little brother and then knocks him out. The viewer sees that despite of everything he does care for Hughie as a brother. That is why he feels the need to knock him out, that way Hughie does not sink further just like Butcher. Butcher knows it is too late for him to change and be a good person. However, he knows that Hughie is his second chance to do the right thing. In Butcher’s mind he sees that Hughie has a kind heart just like his little brother did. And a part of him hates that he is dragged Hughie down to his level. That is the reason he knocks him out and leaves him behind. Obviously, he still hurts Hughie in the process only this time he does it out of love. The fascinating thing is, Hughie finds his inner strength because of Butcher’s actions. He realizes not choosing violence does not mean a person is weak it just means a person choses to be better. He also sees that Butcher did what he did to make sure Hughie is safe from harm. Which is why to Hughie Butcher has good in him even if Butcher does not believe so.
The episode comes to its climax, with Homelander killing Black Noir out of anger that he kept the truth about his father from him. Which then leads to a confrontation between Him, Butcher, Solider Boy, and Dominique McElligott’s Queen Maeve. However, there is a twist during this battle where Homelander and Butcher team up against Queen Maeve and Solider Boy. In this moment, the viewer sees how Soldier Boy does see Homelander as his son. Unfortunately, just like his father Soldier Boy treats Homelander as a weak mistake. The irony is earlier in the season he states that he wanted to be a better father then his was to him. Now he is exactly like his own father in the sense that he doesn’t care for his own son. It can be said that the idea of what makes a good father is the main point in this episode. Mother’s Milk worries about being a bad father, Homelander wants to be a good father to Ryan, Butcher doesn’t know how to be a father, and Soldier Boy gives up on being a father altogether. In the end The Boys defeat Soldier Boy with the help of Queen Maeve who now is depowered. Unfortunately, in the world of the boys there are no happily ever after. Since, Ryan leaves with Homelander much to Butcher’s dismay. During a rally Homelander shows his true monster by killing a protester, for bothering him about Erin Moriarty’s Annie’s broadcast about him. Where he reveals just the kind of evil person his behind the cameras. In that moment, the viewer can see how scared of everyone’s reaction Homelander is due to him thinking that he will no longer be loved by the public. And to Homelander the public’s love is the one thing he wants the most besides Ryan. The most horrific part is when everyone cheers for what he has done giving the idea that it is okay to be a monster. The season ends with the looming threat that Ryan may turn into another monster just like Homelander. As a result of seeing him kill someone like it was nothing and hearing the cheers of the people, he has a villainous smile. This being the implication that things are about to get much worse for The Boys.
Rating 8.5/10