Caution: Spoilers ahead for The Boys season 1 finale
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The Boys season 1 concluded in shocking fashion; here's exactly what happened during the finale and how the episode's revelations could impact future seasons. Based on the popular Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson comic series of the same name, Amazon's The Boys charts the exploits of five rogue superhero hunters led by brash, ultra-violent Englishman, Billy Butcher. Along with former colleagues Frenchy and Mother's Milk, Butcher recruits Hughie, whose girlfriend was accidentally killed by a reckless "supe" in the season premiere.
Joining up with the mysterious Female, The Boys cause enough trouble to catch the eye of Vought, the corporation that controls the top heroes of the United States, and comes into direct contact with The Boys' own version of the Avengers or Justice League: the Seven. Mixing brutal action with the darkest of humor, The Boys is heavy in satire, with topics such as social media, #MeToo and Christian evangelism all covered in the show's gleefully unsubtle fashion.
This isn't to say that The Boys doesn't deliver drama and emotion when necessary, and the season 1 finale is a prime example of this fine balance, leaving viewers open-mouthed and misty-eyed ahead of the already-confirmed season 2. Here's exactly what went down in The Boys' season 1 finale, how it deviates from the comics and what implications the events could have moving forward.
The Boys Season 1 Cliffhanger Ending: Butcher’s Wife Is Alive (& Raising Homelander’s Child)
Much of The Boys' season 1 finale deals with Frenchy, M.M. and the Female being captured by Vought, and Hughie's attempt to break them free with the aid of Starlight. Elsewhere, the episode begins to explore the consequences of superheroes being allowed to act as part of the U.S. military, however, it's the Butcher and Homelander storyline packing the meatiest punch.
Earlier in the season, viewers learned that Butcher's wife, Becca, worked for Vought and was raped by Homelander, after which she disappeared and was assumed deceased. In his usual callous coldness, Homelander thought little of his crime, and only began to suspect something was amiss when he noticed Butcher on a crusade for vengeance. Investigating further, Homelander discovers that his assault on Becca conceived a child and, desperately struggling to deal with the problems caused by carrying a superhero, Vought forced Becca to birth the child in secret. Homelander is initially told by Vogelbaum that the birth killed both mother and child but when confronting Vought executive, Madelyn Stillwell, about the scandal, her story changes to Becca suffering a miscarriage.
This inconsistency forces Homelander back to Vogelbaum, where he learns the real truth: that Becca survived the birth and has been raising a super-powered son in a secret location ever since.
Butcher, meanwhile, discovers the twisted, sexual dependence between Homelander and Stillwell and uses the company woman as bait to draw his wife's attacker into the firing line. This plan backfires, as Homelander, irked by his recent discovery, kills Stillwell himself. With all leverage gone, Butcher desperately enacts a last-ditch effort to blow Homelander to pieces. He fails, obviously, and upon awakening from the blast, finds that Homelander has flown him to the front door of Becca's secret residence, revealing the truth about her fate.
What Is Homelander’s Plan In The Boys?
One of the major questions coming out of The Boys season 1 is exactly what Homelander has planned now that the truth about Becca has been revealed. More pertinently, why take Butcher along to reunite with his wife? After all, Homelander isn't the type to act out of the goodness of his heart. The final line of The Boys season 1 is Homelander joyfully declaring "we are a family" to his newfound son, suggesting that he intends to become a key influence in his child's life. This makes perfect sense, as Homelander's parental issues are well-documented and the character attempting to be a doting father to his own offspring is entirely logical.
While Homelander will almost certainly want to belatedly start a relationship with his son, the superhero's intentions for Becca are less clear. Butcher's wife is visibly shaken by Homelander's presence (even before clapping eyes on her husband) and has been complicit in the cover-up to keep Homelander in the dark. With both Stillwell and Vogelbaum killed for their part in the deceit, it's very possible that Becca's life is in danger, with Homelander perhaps looking to kill her and steal away his son to raise alone.
This would also explain why Homelander took Butcher along for the reunion. The concepts of kindness and fear are unfamiliar to Homelander, so the only possible reason he might take Butcher to see Becca is to further warn him against interfering in the Seven's business, by murdering Becca on the spot.
The Boys Season 1 Ending Changes Butcher’s Story
While Amazon's The Boys is a reasonably faithful adaptation of its source material, it does make considerable changes throughout, and this ending scene is arguably the biggest of the lot. In the comic book version of The Boys, Butcher's wife is indeed raped and impregnated by Homelander (later revealed to be a clone), but she doesn't disappear afterwards. Instead, the unborn baby punches its way out of Becca's stomach while she and Butcher are laying in bed. Still in shock from the horrific death of his wife, Butcher is also forced to put down the infant supe, leaving no ambiguity as to the pair's fate. As in the TV adaptation, this is what inspires Butcher to start his superhero-spanking career.
With the events of The Boys' season 1 finale, Butcher's basic story takes a wild detour from the comics, as Becca, the very person he's been striving to avenge, is revealed to be alive. Undoubtedly, this fact will alter Butcher's outlook. Instead of throwing his all into killing superheroes, Butcher will surely now wish to return to something that resembles his simpler old life, even if Becca's trauma means she isn't as enthusiastic at first.
Of course, it's highly unlikely that The Boys season 2 will descend into a tale of one man trying to win back his ex-wife and this adds further weight to the theory that Becca will be killed by Homelander fairly quickly in season 2. If not, then The Boys' whole reason for coming together falls apart.
Additionally, the finale does appear to confirm that Homelander was the superhero who attacked Becca, rather than the clone from the comic books.
What The Boys’ Finale Means For Season 2
The real strength of The Boys' season 1 finale is that the show's future can head in any number of vastly different directions. On the most optimistic end of the spectrum, Homelander would atone for his crimes, allow Butcher and Becca to be together again and play a part in his son's life. Unfortunately, this scenario might not be conducive to The Boys' long-term prospects as one of the most brutal shows on television and fans are likely content to see Butcher's softer side in far smaller doses.
Whether via Becca's death, or Homelander whisking her away to parts unknown, the reveal that Butcher's wife is alive is unlikely to end happily and will almost certainly result in Karl Urban's character becoming more angry, more desperate and more punchy. This transformation could mark the beginning of The Boys' real campaign against the world's superheroes. The Boys season 1 was relatively light on action involving all five members of the group compared to the comics, but whatever nasty fate Homelander might have in store for Becca could change that, ramping up hostilities between Butcher's Boys and Vought's Seven in time for season 2.
The Boys season 2 is currently without a release date. More news as it arrives.