While The Boys is one of the best superhero stories ever told on television, the series is still flawed. However, Season 4 just addressed fans’ biggest complaint about Homelander (Antony Starr).
Since its first season, The Boys has underlined how Homelander is the show’s ultimate antagonist. As the mightiest superhero ever created by Vought, Homelander is virtually indestructible. Since he knows his unparalleled powers, Homelander feels constantly frustrated to be treated as Vought’s mascot and forced to play by society’s rules. The Supe thinks of himself as a god among ants and wants nothing more than to rule the world with an iron fist.
The only thing stopping Homelander from going into a homicidal rampage and enforcing his twisted will is his pathological need for attention. In short, Homelander doesn’t become a dictator using humans for amusement because he struggles to keep his public image as a fair and just savior.
The problem with this personality trait is that Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) and the Boys have been pushing Homelander for three full seasons, tempting the Supe to unleash his rage and shed the mask of a good guy. Yet, Homelander keeps going back to the start, controlling his devious impulses despite his losses in the mediatic battlegrounds. Homelander’s need for public love is why he hasn’t slaughtered the Boys on multiple occasions, to the point where it’s perceived as a kind of plot armor introduced to prolong the series’ longevity. Fortunately, Episode 4 of Season 4 explains why Homelander acts this way.
The Boys just explained the origin of Homelander’s kryptonite
In The Boys Season 4, Episode 4, Homelander returns to the lab where Vought trained him to be their perfect weapon. His goal is to confront the people who used him as a lab rat, turning his childhood into a living nightmare. By doing that, Homelander hopes to shed himself of his humanity.
The episode gives us a detailed glimpse at the cruel experiments Homelander had to endure since his birth, as Vought determined the limits of his strength and endurance. For instance, the scientist in the lab locked Homelander in an oven for hours, exposing him to unspeakable pain. Homelander was also frequently left alone in an empty room, being observed 24/7 so that the scientist could study his behavior.
By exploring Homelander’s past, The Boys argue that monsters are not born; they are raised. It’s no wonder the villain turned out as he is, as anyone would break under the physical and physiological torture Vought inflicted on a lonely kid. Still, the most important revelation of the episode comes from Dr. Barbara (Nancy Lenehan), who oversaw the Homelander project in the labs.
As Barbara tells Homelander, Vopught always knew they couldn’t control the powerful Supe. In fact, Homelander was so strong as a child that he could have broken free from the labs anytime he wanted to. He stayed there and allowed people to torture him for years without an end due to his need for external approval. He wanted to be a good lab rat, regardless of the horrors he endured. However, Homelander wasn’t born with this psychological flaw; his unquenchable thirst for love was implanted in his brain by the best psychologist Vought could pay. This explains why Homelander always goes back to playing the hero, even though, deep down, he wants to do whatever he wants without accountability.
It makes sense for Vought to mess around with Homelander’s psyche to make him docile. Without a subconscious impulse to obey, Homelander could cause the end of the world. So, to turn him into the perfect product, Vought fractured his mind, a decision that might soon prove to be the company’s biggest sin.
Homelander has become more unhinged at each season. Nevertheless, the psychological restraints placed by Vought have kept him from snapping. The problem is that the longer he keeps his twisted compulsions bottled up, the more violent his outburst will be. Homelander has been trying to get rid of his human side for a long time. Now that he knows what Vought did to keep him in check, he has the knowledge to reverse the procedure and embrace the darkness within. It’s no wonder The Boys will end its story in Season 5.