MM is livid and hits out at Butcher for blurring their line of morality. After all, given they’re fighting for the end of Supes, doing so by utilizing the very power they’re fighting against is a little hypocritical. As a result, the team are completely disbanded and it’s left with just Butcher and Hughie to try and stop Homelander. Meanwhile, Homelander holds his first board meeting, with the suck-up suits there succumbing to his will. Anyone who so much as tries to question his authority are kicked out. These changes ripple all the way down the chain of command, with The Deep made the Head of Crime Analytics. Annie shows up to see Hughie, blaming herself for Supersonic’s death, which is spreading across the news. Hughie also breaks the news that Moscow was a complete dead-end… and mentioning the “little” details including Soldier Boy and temp Compound V. Annie is worried and shocked, telling Hughie (who’s still on a high following his Compound V gig) that she doesn’t want to lose him. A-Train is finally granted his meeting with Blue Hawk, where they talk through their issues. A-train wants him to give a public apology but it’s clear that this whole shtick is not what he had in mind. A-Train eventually brings Blue Hawk in with his cameras but A-Train’s brother is livid. He does agree to give him 5 minutes of air-time but Blue Hawk’s speech is disingenuous. Eventually he shows his real side, as the livid public call him out as a racist. Blue Hawk loses his temper and uses his powers of several people – including Nate who’s lying face-down on the floor. When Blue Hawk finally leaves, A-Train is shocked and even more so when he learns his brother is never going to walk again. Maeve arrives to see Butcher, shocked about Soldier Boy still being alive. However, she also shows with numerous vials of temp Compound V. Despite them both being sober, they decide to drink together. In doing so, Butcher admits that he wants every single Supe to be killed… and then the pair have sex. Nina shows up at the hospital where Kimiko is still recovering. Recovering – but alive. She confronts Frenchie about the collateral damage they’ve caused and tells him he’s going to have to repay that debt to her. Kimiko awakens when Nina leaves and realizes that Soldier Boy’s powers have done more than knock her down – they’ve effectively taken her powers away completely. Is this how they’re going to defeat Homelander? Well, Soldier Boy arrives in New York to find the place very different from when he left it. He’s still suffering PTSD from his time in Russia and in fact, he blows up a city block. With 19 people dead, MM sees the news report and immediately realizes this is Soldier Boy’s doing. Hughie and Butcher show up at the crime scene. Radiation is off the charts, the devastation is unreal and MM showing up, seeing all of this for himself, sees Butcher set up an uneasy alliance with his old partner to take out Soldier Boy. Once that’s dealt with, they can go their separate ways. For good. MM has a lead, in the form of a guy called ‘The Legend’. He used to be the VP of Vought before it all turned into tweets and reputation points. He’s previously been in contact with Soldier Boy but he’s worried this is going to have repercussions. It turns out that The Legend is the guy who covered up what happened to MM’s family. The guy also just so happens to have the Crimson Countess’ address. Meanwhile, Homelander arrives to see Maeve, where he brings up her ties with Butcher and what they may be planning together. Specifically, in how they’ve brought Soldier Boy to New York. When Homelander questions what they had together in the past, Maeve admits that she hated him from the beginning and eventually ended up pitying him too. Aa they talk, it’s not Homelander who strikes – it’s Black Noir. He happens to be behind her and pounces. Elsewhere, Butcher brings MM to his car, where they once more talk about the morality of using temp Compound V. MM refuses to take it, believing this is a recipe for disaster and that they need to draw the line somewhere. As for Hughie and Butcher, they’re going to take this before heading off to see the Countess. Over at Vought HQ, Starlight pleads with Ashley for help. The official story is that Maeve is at a Global Wellness Cenre in Malibu but Annie wants the true story. There’s a moment here where Ashley almost speaks out but given how terrified she is of Homelander, she eventually succumbs to that and refuses to speak out. The boys eventually show up at Crimson Countess’ trailer, breaking the news to her that Soldier Boy is still alive. It turns out, she knew about that all this time. She’s worried and pleads with them to help, given Soldier Boy is going to kill everyone. Instead, they keep her as bait, ready for Soldier Boy showing up. Starlight soon arrives as a wildcard, unhappy that she was in the dark about this plan. Hughie is determined to try and do his best and save Annie but she’s heartbroken, pointing out that she actually needed the old him – not this new teleporting version of him. Meanwhile, Butcher drugs MM and leaves him incapacitated, needing to talk with Soldier Boy personally. He offers up Crimson Countess as a gesture of good faith in exchange for teaming up and taking out Homelander. Soldier Boy completely fries Countess and heads off with Butcher, with Hughie tagging along too. As for Annie, she pleads with him not to go but for Hughie, this is a culminating in everything he’s been working up toward. He leaves Annie and heads off with Soldier Boy, as they prepare to fight H0melander.
The Episode Review
The Boys returns this week with another solid episode, one that sees Soldier Boy finally enter the fray and team up with Butcher and Hughie to take out Homelander. There are some intriguing parallels between Homelander and Soldier Boy, especially the moments involving their lovers telling the monsters that they hate them. That’s definitely a nice touch. Likewise, the drama spills over to numerous other characters here too, with Frenchie’s situation involving the gang boss Nina, Kimiko no longer sporting powers and the precarious situation inside Vought helping to give this chapter more depth. Seeing Ashley almost open up to Starlight, only to be blinded by her own shock and horror, is a really powerful statement and a great testament to her acting prowess – and Homelander’s power. Spiking of which, Antony Starr is by far the stand-out this season. He’s been good in the past but playing this unhinged version of Homelander, teetering on the edge of insanity, is absolutely gripping to watch. If he doesn’t get an award for this I’ll be shocked. As we move into the business end of this season now, quite what will happen next is anyone’s guess.
