Amazon Prime Video’s The Boys has been controversial from the start, but season 5 looks destined to repeat the most divisive part of season 4. The Boys has been one of Amazon’s best shows, by far. Led by Eric Kripke, The Boys’ launch presented Kripke fans with a most impressive diversion from his fantastic but commercial hit show, Supernatural. It had the supernatural horror and black humor fans had come to expect from the showrunner but pulled no punches in its social commentary, leading The Boys season 4 to split fans over its clear real-world parallels.
The Boys characters of season 1 were introduced throughout the season, preventing deeper dives into conspiratorial arcs that started manifesting in seasons 2 and 3. This spectacular first season was spent on exposition of the show’s uniquely satirical world and its farcical “supes,” corporate pop stars with little in common with the superheroes of Marvel tradition that they mocked. Or, more in common than anyone had ever realized, as the show was positioned to point out so aptly. But by season 4, the show was outraging fans and non-fans alike with its election plot, which season 5 should revive.
The Boys Season 5 Will, Like Season 4, Mirror Real Life
The Boys Season 5 Will Keep Parodying America’s Elections
The U.S. has been through a shocking electoral back-and-forth the likes of which the millennials watching The Boys had scarcely seen, and The Boys wasted no time in parodying it. Whatever one’s political beliefs, The Boys was taking aim. But one politician, in particular, took the brunt of the show’s derision, which was only sometimes good-natured. The incredibly parodiable Donald Trump (parodiable being as much a blessing as a curse) got clearly allegorized by the exceptional Antony Starr in the role of Homelander, who ended season 4 as President of the United States.
Homelander comes as close to a supervillain as possible, tragic as he is.
To The Boys’ credit, there are few true heroes and villains in the show. OK, almost everyone is a villain. But they are often so sad and sympathetic that they genuinely invite viewer support, even if just out of the morbid fascination of discovering how bombastically they will wreak havoc. But they often rock the boat of the general consensus on who really threatens world safety. That’s the whole point of the show. And Homelander comes as close to a supervillain as possible, tragic as he is. Trump was just re-elected, and Homelander should reflect this in season 5 in polarizing fashion.
The Boys Season 4’s Controversy Wasn’t Entirely Deserved
The Boys Got Flack In Season 4 For Becoming More Explicit In Its Allegory
The Boys was a smash hit on launch and well into its third season, but Sage and Homelander’s plan invited controversy that wasn’t entirely deserved. Homelander has always been the show’s main villain. However, his increasing power in season 4, largely down to Sage, led many to start seriously bristling. The gruesome twosome looked increasingly like they were supposed to caricature American politicians in season 4, until, finally, they aspired to Make America Super Again, eradicating any uncertainty about which political party they were approximating. But The Boys was always political, and Homelander always parodied Trump.
The show received criticism that it went political in season 4, but these viewers can’t have been paying much attention.
It’s fair to dislike or criticize a show based on its politics. Politics improves some shows and ruins others. But The Boys season 4 backlash ignores what the show was for the last five years. The show received criticism that it went political in season 4, but these viewers can’t have been paying much attention. From Stormfront being the name of a neo-Nazi online forum to Homelander basically shooting someone on Fifth Avenue and the world still voting for him, while Eri Kripke said “He’s always been a Trump analog,” The Boys always mocked fascists (Rolling Stone).
If Anything, The Boys Season 5 Will Be Even More Divisive
The Boys Season 5 Is Set To Finish Explosively
The Boys season 5 isn’t looking like it will take any more prisoners than its first four seasons, and the show isn’t likely to regain the fans it lost in season 4. The show experienced review bombing in season 4, whereby some viewers campaigned against the show’s success by submitting terrible review after terrible review on multiple platforms. Many of these review bombers felt targeted by season 4’s overt politics. Trump’s election in real life makes season 5 even more likely to keep caricaturing Trump through Homelander, who will desperately try to hold onto power throughout the season.
The show will have to end explosively, even if it doesn’t follow the comics. The Boys was always meant to end in season 5 to avoid the protracted uncertainty of ongoing renewal and relevance. Kripke is no stranger to the eternal TV show, with Supernatural the longest-running American live-action fantasy TV series. The Boys will kick Kripke’s habit of piling on season after season, even if fans beg for more, which will require season 5 to go all out. This is sure to make it even more divisive than season 4.
Garth Ennis and Garick Robertson created The Boys comics.
And, the show shines when it doesn’t follow the comics, creating original material necessary for TV pacing. This will make it easier for the show to imitate U.S. events. However, following the comics will keep The Boys political, even regardless of real-life events. Without creating spoilers, there are possibly scenes ahead that end rather tumultuously in the White House. From the show’s source material to its dark first three seasons, it was poised to divide its audience. But that audience should have been divided from season 1, and The Boys will revel in keeping it so to its death.
Source: Rolling Stone
