Dark Reflections of Reality
Military goons round up liberals for “thought crimes” and throw them in prison camps. Political leaders cut through the separation of church and state like a hot knife through butter. Government organizations cause irreparable, self-inflicted damage in an effort to root out anything “woke.” That’s right, The Boys is back in town.
While The Boys has always mixed its superhero satire with a hefty dose of political commentary, the fifth and final season of Amazon’s Prime Video series feels tailor-made for the second Donald Trump era, mostly thanks to its arch-antagonist Homelander (an evil Superman parody played to perfection by Antony Starr). What started in 2006 as an ultra-edgy comic book riffing on Marvel and DC, and became a hit live-action show in 2019, quickly evolved into something unexpected: a sharp portrayal of rising American fascism.
In season 5, showrunner Eric Kripke (Supernatural) tries to match the depravity of President Trump’s second term in office, ratchet up the requisite drugs, sex, and violence, and all while wrapping up a complex story with a satisfying finale. Based on the first seven episodes of The Boys season 5 (out of eight total) provided to critics, Kripke mostly meets that challenge, even if he sometimes gets tripped up by a few standby tropes of the superhero genre.
Stakes and Power Struggles
After rising to the top of the U.S. government in season 4 and installing a puppet president, Homelander begins season 5 with unrivaled power. His enemies are in prison camps and the country is controlled by genetically enhanced “supes” who all answer to him. Only Starlight (Erin Moriarty) challenges his power, inspiring rebel “Starlighter” cells across the country that Homelander brands as terrorists in an unsubtle parallel to Trump’s attack on the anti-fascist movement.
But when Homelander sets a trap for Starlight early in season 5, it backfires, giving our supe-killing heroes an opportunity to escape and plot their revenge. With one last chance to stop the bad guys before it’s too late, The Boys hatch a plan to wipe out all superheroes forever (including a few of their own), while Homelander plots his ascension to godhood and attempts to refashion not just the government but Christianity and America in his image.