The pilot of the hit Amazon Prime series “The Boys” debuted July 26th, 2019. The show was an immediate hit due to its disturbing humor, satirical portrayal of modern-day superheroes, and graphic violence. Now, it’s set to return for a fourth season, and enthusiasts of the series are ecstatic to see the return of their favorite corrupt superheroes.
“The Boys” is an American TV series created by Eric Kripke based on the late 2000s comic book series by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The main antagonist and mentally-unstable super hero Homelander will stop at nothing to get what he wants, even if that includes taking down an over-water airplane full of innocent civilians. He is the leader of Vought’s elite superhero group, The Seven. He is guilty of crimes so heinous that I would not consider listing them here, but the main thing you need to know is that he has gotten away with all of it because he brags ‘I’m the Homelander, and I can do whatever the f**k I want.’ This is where our protagonists come in, also known as the four anti-Vought vigilantes who call themselves ‘the Boys.’ They originally were led by William Butcher, the leader whose wife Becca disappeared at the hands of Homelander. They aspire to bring down all corrupt superheroes, often referred to as ‘supes’, and expose Vought for their crimes. They receive help even from Vought-owned heroes themselves such as the Queen Maeve and Starlight. They also are provided assistance from Victoria Neuman, a politician who is later revealed to be a plot-twist antagonist.
The description for the YouTube trailer uploaded by Amazon Prime reads, “The world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscular thumb of Homelander, who is consolidating his power. Butcher, with only months to live, has lost Becca’s son as well as his job as The Boys’ leader. The rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it’s too late.”
The trailer for season four begins with off-screen dialogue from an unknown female character talking to presumably Homelander, considering that a clip of him smiling is shown after the commentary and because the voice sounds like him more than any other male character. She is talking about how democracies such as Rome and Greece have all fallen, but that it’s at the hands of humans because they are ‘stupid.’ She tells Homelander that all people need is a nudge in the right direction, a reason to incite chaos so that he would be able to come in and act as their savior. The woman then compares him to the historical Roman figure, Julius Caesar. During this commentary, scenes of people who stand with Starlight and extremists in support of Homelander are seen at a protest in front of the New York County Courthouse. Although these scenes are short, the atmosphere quickly becomes violent as a riot ensues between protestors of the opposing sides. People are brawling, tear gas is sprayed, and Starlight watches in horror before locking eyes with a smirking Homelander. The context of this scene is not clear, but we can already tell Homelander is already back to his manipulative antics.
Over the remaining 51 seconds of the trailer, multiple scenes are shown such as Homelander at a rally with his son Ryan Butcher. Behind them is Black Noir, however the original man behind the mask was killed by Homelander in season three. It’s likely that Vought probably replaced him secretly in order to avoid conspiracy from the public. There are two new female superheroes that will be a part of The Seven, who are known as Firecracker and Sister Sage. Sister Sage is the first member of The Seven to be both female and African-American, which may be an issue due to Homelander’s bias. While it’s not clear whether these characters will be antagonists or not, it is certain that they’ll be Homelander’s next victims when it comes to getting them involved in his schemes or flat-out tormenting them.
Two separate scenes of “The Boys” members being attacked by non-Vought superhumans are shown too, like a man splitting himself into two separate bodies and a child with centipede-like creatures emerging from her mouth. In the last clip shown, Billy Butcher is conversing with an unknown character played by American actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan. The man asks Butcher about his team and their codename. When Butcher tells them that they call themselves The Boys, the character implies that it’s a stupid nickname and asks “who came up with that?” The trailer ends with a title card later followed by a scene of Homelander drenched in blood with an unsettling smile plastered across his face, standing inside of an elevator.
Freshman and JV soccer player Rafael Antonia Adelan expresses his excitement for the new season. He states, “The trailer looks really good and I’m excited to learn more about the new characters. They look like they would have interesting superpowers.”
What we can take from this trailer is that the next season will be even more dark than the last. Although we didn’t get many clips, it’s obvious that Homelander’s mask of sanity is beginning to slip. The new arrival of two new members of The Seven, both female and one a minority, is sure to stir up trouble as well. Homelander is a narcissistic, bigoted, and the complete opposite of what a hero is supposed to be.
There’s no doubt that this season will have more violence, dark humor, and political satire. Creator of the show Eric Kripe confirms that the series’ premiere was delayed due to the Writers Guild of America strike, and would release in 2024. Nonetheless, fans all across the nation are hyped to see the return of their favorite heroes and villains alike.
