(Mega spoilers for The Boys will be found below.)
Are you still breathing after fourth season finale of The Boys? Everything has suddenly gone down hill for the vigilantes, and through no victory of his own, Homelander is now the de facto U.S. leader after the rapid presidential ascendance of the Speaker of the House, who pledged his allegiance to Homie of the Seven (thanks to Sister Sage). Homelander then declared martial law and deputized Supes to round up anybody who opposes them.
This, of course, is very bad for The Boys group, and in light of certain current events, Amazon/Sony Pictures TV issued a statement including, “The Boys is a fictitious series that was filmed in 2023, and any scene or plotline similarities to these real-world events are coincidental and unintentional. Amazon, Sony Pictures Television and the producers of The Boys reject, in the strongest terms, real-world violence of any kind.”
With that said, the episode was formerly titled “Assassination Run” but has since been changed to merely “Season 4 Finale.” Additionally, the Shifter’s assassination plot did get thwarted when Starlight escaped captivity. Butcher then showed up — Suped and tentacle’d to the gills — and ripped Victoria Neumann in half, followed by Sister Sage releasing a tape that took Robert Singer out of the White House. And so, Homelander is now in charge with most of the vigilantes taken into custody in the episode’s final moments. Now it’s time to rank where the characters ended up (power wise, not whether they are right or wrong because that means very little in this show) this season.
Unranked: Soldier Boy
Not much to work with here, but a credits scene set the stage for a Soldier Boy return. In response, Homelander appeared to grow emotional (oh boy), and also, there is the promise of seeing Jensen Ackles onscreen again.
18. Victoria Neumann
Cons: Began the season with Butcher sending her a disgusting “selfie.” Ended the season with Butcher assassinating her in the goriest manner after she was exposed to the world as a VP Supe. Not great. It’s officially over for her.
Pros: Possibly left a head-popping legacy for her daughter, who might be back (if she can escape the Red River Institute).
14-17. The Boys: MM, Frenchie, Kimiko & Hughie, At Least
Cons: Man, I hate rounding these characters up together because they deserve more (Butcher will come later), but their fate is a collective clusterf*ck, since they were rounded up and imprisoned. MM got a shoulder tap and a knockout from Love Sausage, Frenchie received a whisper from Cate, and Kimiko was strong-armed by Sam. Also, she finally overcame her trauma-induced muteness in the most heartbreaking way possible:
Man literal CHILLS watching this part😭 #Theboys #TheBoysFinale pic.twitter.com/rzGPDcXKfF
— The Boys Out of Context Clips (@TheBoysOOCC) July 18, 2024
As for Hughie, god. The poor guy lost his father, was violated in Tek Knight’s lair, and was tricked into getting engaged to the Shifter disguised as Annie January. Prison might sound like a relief in comparison (for a few moments).
Pros: The group is screwed, but potential saviors exist out there.
13. Deep
Cons: Killed his new octopus girlfriend portrayed by Tilda F*cking Swinton before being rejected by Sage. Got kicked in the crotch (a long time coming) by Starlight and couldn’t successfully fight a woman.
Pros: Still alive because he knows how to bend the knee (literally).
12. Ashley
Cons: Mainlined Compound V, which did not go well, on a whim after being targeted for death by the remaining members of the Seven.
Pros: Perhaps she can Hulk Out while doing the dominatrix thing for a living? She’d surely enjoy that.
11. Starlight
Cons: Her boyfriend got engaged to a fake Annie January, and they slept together, well, under 20 times while the real Annie was imprisoned. She forgave said boyfriend, yet he’s now been rounded up for an internment camp.
Pros: Reactivated her powers in time to fly away when Cindy appeared out of nowhere to drop a boat on a highway. Now, it’s up to Annie to rescue The Boys, but she might find assistance from A-Train. Ashley, too? Maybe.
10. Black Noir 2.0
Cons: Killed the wrong Ashley after catching some serious air. Looks badass but isn’t nearly as interesting as a talking version of the character. Also, not too bright!
Pros: Actually managed to not be killed by Homelander this season.
9. Firecracker
Cons: Probably destroyed her long-term health by taking drugs to lactate for Homelander and still got ditched.
Pros: Acted as the forward-facing member of the Seven to celebrate Homelander’s victory. That’s probably all that she really wanted.
8. A-Train
Cons: Had an unlikely yet successful redemption arc. Must now hide forever. Yet he will probably get pulled back into the action to help rescue The Boys.
Pros: At least he got away alive and removed his tracker. Good for him.
5-7. Sam, Cate & Cindy
Pros: Got queued up for the next season of Gen V. Heck, maybe it’s time to send Cindy to college, too.
Cons: Not seeing any at the moment. These pro-Homelander Supes haven’t hit the skids with him (yet).
4. Ryan
Pros: At this point, Ryan might be the only option to kill Homelander. Although he went to the dark side in this season finale, it seems likely that he will switch sides again in the fifth season. Also, he is now (physically) free, although nobody could condone how he ended up that way.
Cons: Yup, he’s gonna have to kill his father.
3: Billy Butcher
Pros: Snagged the Supe virus, and he’s now in the wind, presumably aiming to commit Supe genocide and avenge Becca. (Leave A-Train out of this, man.) Even though these are “pros” for him, Butcher has now fully embraced the tentacles and the devil on his shoulder, and he will surely lose fans after overruling the deal with Neumann and ending her life. Arguably, the Butcher vs. Homie war now adds up to super villain against super villain.
Cons: That wicked brain tumor means that he’s still talking to Joe Kessler in this show’s take on Fight Club. That feels like the worst self-punishment, even if (physically speaking) Butcher surfaced with power.
2. Homelander
Pros: He’s apparently king of the free world now and still doing his best to fill that hole in his soul. That will never happen, but he did receive a few seconds of satisfaction by visiting his “home” lab and going on a murder spree.
Cons: This show cannot end without Homelander’s death.
1: Sister Sage
Cons: As prisoner of her own mind, she still can’t enjoy life without a lobotomy.
Pros: She’s on top of the world right now and might be the only living being with any strategic pull over Homelander. Hell, he owes her beyond any measure at this point because he would otherwise still be sobbing on the floor. Yes, she’s been doing massively evil deeds (for her own entertainment), but there’s always a chance that she could “Caesar” Homelander in the end.
‘The Boys’ fourth season can be streamed on Prime Video/Amazon.