Warning: SPOILERS for The Boys season 2 finale.
After a wild season, here's how The Boys season 2 finale ends and what it sets up for the future. Based on the comics by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, The Boys season 2 has taken the characters, story, and its popularity to new heights. Season 2 picked up almost immediately after the first ended, and the large ensemble cast allowed many different storylines to be tied together with surprising results.
The main storyline of The Boys season 2 was based around Stormfront's (Aya Cash) arrival and her ties to Vought's origin. Hughie (Jack Quaid), Starlight (Erin Moriarty), and Mother's Milk (Laz Alonso) discovered that she was a former Supe in the 1970s known as Liberty, but Stormfront's origin goes much farther back. She revealed to Homelander (Anthony Starr) that she was the wife of Vought's founder and the first successful Supe created with Compound V. Stormfront wanted to bring the ideals of her and Vought's Nazi origins back by creating an army of Supes who could power their takeover, with Homelander positioned as the one to lead them all. The Boys still tried to take Vought down by exposing their creation of Compound V, which launched public outcry over the lies about how Supes are created.
Of course, The Boys season 2 also showed Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) trying to rescue his wife, Becca, and her son, Ryan, from Vought, while Homelander wanted to be a better father to Ryan. We also saw Frenchie (Tomer Capon) and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara) develop their relationship. Inside of Vought, Queen Maeve's (Dominique McElligott) life continued to be manipulated to help The Seven, A-Train (Jessie T. Usher) was kicked off the team due to his heart problem, and The Deep (Chace Crawford) became a member of the Church of the Collective to repair his public image in an attempt to rejoin The Seven. And, Black Noir (Nathan Mitchell) received a more active role in the plot before his nut allergy nearly killed him.
These storylines came to a head by the end of The Boys season 2's seventh episode. After Homelander and Stormfront took Ryan from Becca, Lamplighter (Shawn Ashmore) killed himself before he could testify against Vought, and the explosive Congressional attack, here's how The Boys season 2 finale ended.
Vought's Law Enforcement Deal Sets Up The Boys' Comic Twist
Ever since Starlight exposed the truth behind Compound V, The Boys focused on what will happen with the drug next. Recent developments led the President of the United States to authorize Compound V to be used by law enforcement and first responders. This notion is opposed by The Boys' founder Grace Mallory (Laila Robbins) and congresswoman Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit). Before Compound V is released, though, Vought puts this plan on indefinite hold after Stormfront's Nazi history is made public. While that will keep the drug from going mainstream right now, this is a step towards The Boys using another element from the comics. The source material has The Boys take doses of Compound V to get superpowers for a limited time so they can fight Supes. With Mallory starting a Supe monitoring team and discussions about Compound V being widely distributed, the set up exists for The Boys to do the same.
Becca's Death & Ryan's Future With Mallory
After Ryan left with Stormfront and Homelander, Becca managed to escape from the undisclosed Vought location she was being kept in and find Billy. He agreed to help her find Ryan and bring him back. This required Billy to make a deal with Vought CEO Stan Edgar (Giancarlo Esposito) that would see Ryan and Becca separated for life. However, Billy couldn't go through with the agreement once he and Becca rescued her son. They tried to escape from Stormfront and Homelander, but Stormfront caught up with them. Just before she is about to kill Becca, Ryan's anger brings him to use his laser vision for the first time. While this does stop Stormfront, Ryan also injures his mother, causing her to die.
Becca spends her final moments telling Billy to make sure Ryan knows that this isn't his fault. Now without a mother, Billy assumes the responsibility of caring for Ryan but knows that Vought will try and get him back. Billy decides to send Ryan away with Mallory, who hopes that he won't end up like his father. If they want to make sure that this doesn't happen, Ryan's future with Mallory could be focused on him living a semi-normal life while being heavily protected. But, after he used his powers for the first time and accidentally killed his own mother, how Ryan copes with his actions will play a major role in determining his future.
The Boys Confirms Vought & Church of the Collective Are Uneasy Allies
Vought Industries was already established as a powerful organization before The Boys season 2, but the season 2 finale further showed the Church of the Collective's power. The finale sees Stan meets with the Church's leader Alastair Adana (Goran Visnjic), to discuss the possibility of The Deep and A-Train rejoining The Seven. Although there is clearly some animosity between Alastair and Stan, it is implied that there is a working relationship between their two organizations. Stan points out Stormfront's prior association with the Church, which indicates that it has deep ties to Vought and its origins.
It isn't clear how Vought benefits from any arrangements with the Church, though. Stan implies that they receive a cut of the paycheck for any Supe who is a member, but Alastair has plans to hurt Vought. He revealed to Neuman that the Church has enough dirt to destroy over a dozen Supes' lives, which would be a crushing blow to Stan and Vought. Now that Alastair is dead (more on that later), it is possible that whatever ties exist between Vought and the Church could change moving forward, for better or worse.
The Seven's New Lineup & Homelander's Season 3 Status
By the end of The Boys season 2 finale, The Seven also has a new, but familiar, lineup. Black Noir was unresponsive after the Almond Joy attack, so he's out of commission for the time being. Homelander is still the face of The Seven and leads a press conference thanking Queen Maeve and Starlight for defeating Stormfront. Starlight is welcomed back after Homelander previously accused her of being a traitor. It is also revealed that A-Train has been brought back to The Seven after the death of Shockwave. But, his return means The Deep can not go back yet, as Stan says two has-beens returning would be a sign of weakness. No new members were announced by the end of The Boys season 2 finale.
With only four active members of The Seven, the team's status and Homelander's leadership should be questioned. Throughout season 2, Homelander manipulated Queen Maeve's life, locked up Starlight, and fired A-Train. Maeve even blackmailed him in the finale, using the footage of the airplane crash from season 1. This was done so Homelander had to let Butcher and Ryan live, stop hunting Starlight, and leave her personal life alone. Homelander won't be able to lead Maeve or Starlight now, and A-Train likely won't listen to his orders either after the way he fired him. Perhaps a new leader for The Seven will rise in season 3.
Stormfront Reveal Could Set Up The Boys Season 3's Soldier Boy
The Boys season 2 finale saw Stormfront's biggest secret become public: she was a Nazi. Given her quick rise in popularity, Stormfront's Nazi past, along with her ties to Vought's founder, will be terrible for Vought's public image. Associating with Nazis and white supremacists is obviously a bad look for Vought, so their PR team will need to work overtime to fix this in season 3. This could be the reason behind the return of Soldier Boy, who was the original Supe in the comics. It was previously announced that Jensen Ackles would play Soldier Boy in the next season. The addition of a classic American hero who possibly even fought Nazis would be a smart way for Vought to regain some favor and keep their multi-billion Supe industry flourishing.
Stormfront Is Alive After The Boys Season 2 Finale
One of the biggest questions left after The Boys season 2 finale is the status of Stormfront. Ryan used his laser vision to stop her from killing Becca, and he caused severe damage to Stormfront in the process. Her arms and legs were cut off, and there were burns all over her body. Her German ramblings and Homelander's response to seeing her seemed to indicate that she did die from these wounds. However, showrunner Eric Kripke has already confirmed that Stormfront survived The Boys season 2 finale, but how is this possible?
The Boys already proved that she could heal, and the season 2 finale avoided showing her take her last breath. Following the classic rule of TV/movies that a character isn't dead unless they show the body, they left the door open for Stormfront to be alive. Homelander also says at a press conference in the episode that she has been "neutralized" and held at an undisclosed location. He even went on to say that Stormfront will be punished for what she has done. After Stormfront's origin was exposed, it would be in Vought's best interest to tout that she has been permanently defeated. But, they've decided to tell the truth instead and let everyone know that she is no longer a threat, even if she's alive.
Why The Boys Split Up & Each Team Member's Future
Following Stormfront's defeat, The Boys ends with the Boys team splitting up, at least for now. Mallory confirms that all criminal charges against Billy, Hughie, Frenchie, Kimiko, and M.M. have been dropped, including those for crimes they actually committed. They are all now free to live their lives, and that means going off on their own. Billy seemingly agrees to join Mallory's taskforce to monitor Supes, bringing him one step closer to matching his role in the comics. Frenchie and Kimiko stay together but leave The Boys' base behind, potentially to develop their relationship. M.M. uses this opportunity to finally return home and see his family, which puts his future with The Boys in question. Meanwhile, Hughie decides that he wants to fight Vought the right way and asked Neuman for a job on her campaign team. He says that he never really belonged with The Boys and wants to take down Vought without getting as much blood on his hands.
Victoria Neuman's Powers & Plan Explained
The biggest revelation to come from The Boys season 2 finale was saved for one of the final scenes, where it was confirmed that Neuman is a Supe. She is on the phone with Alastair discussing what they can do next to take down Vought, but his head explodes right after the call ends. It is revealed that Neuman is outside his house and her eyes change, indicating that she was the one responsible. Her head popping abilities have been featured throughout season 2 of The Boys. She killed Susan Raynor in the first episode of the season and was behind the Congressional attack in episode 7.
Even though The Boys has confirmed Neuman is the head popper, how and when she got these powers is still unclear. However, it does appear that Neuman's plan is tied to the betterment of Vought, despite her "F*ck Hate" campaign slogans and public statements about Vought's corruption. Neuman is now confirmed to be the one responsible for killing Raynor before she could tell The Boys about a "coup from the inside" involving super-terrorist, killing Jonah Vogelbaum before he could testify against Vought in the Congressional hearing, and killing Alastair after revealing his plan to take down more Supes and Vought. Perhaps she and Vought are working together to get a Supe in the White House.
The Boys Season 2 Finale Teases Lamplighter Being Alive?
Lamplighter appeared to die in episode 7, but The Boys season 2 finale may have hinted that he's alive. When Hughie visits Neuman's campaign office, a full look at the offices is shown. The decor is standard for a politician's campaign headquarters, but there were also multiple TVs in the background all tuned in to the same news alert that read, "Warehouse Fire Spreads." This could be a coincidence, but a giant fire happening right after Lamplighter was believed to have died is suspicious, especially since showrunner Eric Kripke revealed he already regrets killing Lamplighter. There is comic precedence for Lamplighter coming back from the dead, too, so could this burning warehouse actually be a Vought location where he was being held?
How The Boys Season 2 Finale Sets Up Season 3
All in all, The Boys season 2 finale features a lot of set up for where the story could go in season 3. The decision to save Neuman's powers as a reveal for the end signifies that she should be central to the story next season, especially with Hughie now working closely with her. He might think that he has found a better way to fight Vought, but Hughie could once again find himself thrust into a Supe-related plot on accident if he learns what Neuman has done or is planning to do next. This could even lead to him being the one to call on The Boys to re-assemble.
There is also plenty of set up done for what will happen to the Supes next. Homelander was last seen masturbating on top of a building, repeatedly saying, "I can do anything I want," so he could be even more unhinged in season 3. If The Seven don't listen to him anymore, though, that will drive him even madder. This could change with the addition of Soldier Boy as a team member, but he might not be the only new member of The Seven next season either. If Black Noir doesn't return to his normal self, then there will be another spot open. It doesn't appear that The Deep will get that spot now, so his future is still uncertain heading into season 3.