The Boys overlooks Homelander's saddest parody. The character is a despicable villain that fans love to hate. However, he also has many tragic layers as well, and the saddest is one that is often overlooked.
The leader of the Seven, The Boys' Homelander is a powerful, superhuman being that plays the part of a charming superhero. In essence, he's very much akin to Superman. Behind closed doors, however, he's a violent, dangerous villain who takes joy in killing and is prone to outbursts at the slightest provocation. Homelander is a deliberately vile character and there is no getting around that. That being said, the series has substantially fleshed out the character over the course of the series, revealing several tragic layers. One such layer is Homelander's origins in the hands of Vought.
In essence, the saddest aspect of Homelander is that he is The Boys' stand-in for a child celebrity, thrust into an environment at an age where he is not equipped at handling the daily pressures and struggles that come with such a lifestyle before proper development. As a result, Homelander evolves (or perhaps devolves) into an adult with no concept of reality or what constitutes acceptable behavior. What's interesting, though, is that this element of Homelander, which otherwise defines his entire character, is otherwise downplayed throughout the show. This is likely because Eric Kripke and the showrunners intend to make Homelander as unsympathetic and irredeemable as possible, and also because the show may further explore this concept through another character: Homelander's son, Ryan.
The finale of The Boys season 2 sees Homelander in a tough spot, having to submit to Maeve's demands after she uses footage of the two leaving the hijacked plane to crash as leverage against him. This, along with losing Stormfront and Ryan leaving him for Butcher, leaves the Supe on a teetering point. With that, season 3 will likely see him finally snap, becoming more dangerous than ever before. Because of this, it makes sense that Homelander being a stand-in for child celebrities is downplayed. While there is no denying how tragic the character's upbringing is, it seems that the showrunners want to ensure Homelander remains a villain to hate and not one to sympathize with. After all, he isn't redeemed in the comics - even despite The Boys' Black Noir twist clearing him from a few truly heinous actions - and there is no indication that the show will be any different.
Should Homelander's child celebrity comparison be downplayed in favor of keeping him unsympathetic, Ryan could fill in that role instead. Being the first naturally born superhero, Ryan will no doubt get a lot of attention from the world should his true identity be exposed. Since The Boys season 2 already showed his discomfort in public settings, he'll likely go through the same struggles that Homelander did. Ryan's role in the show is not in the comics, so the showrunners can take the character in any direction they choose. Either they make Ryan a bigger monster than Homelander, or they take a more positive approach and allow him to overcome the obstacles his father never could thanks to a healthy support system. In the latter case, it would provide a nice contrast for the child celebrity stand-in, showing both sides of what could happen through both characters.
Homelander is indeed a tragic character, but one that the show clearly views as not deserving of sympathy. This is perhaps why the child celebrity comparison is downplayed. Regardless, it'll be interesting to see what's in store for him when The Boys returns for season 3.
The Boys season 3 premieres June 3, 2022 on Amazon Prime.