The Boys season 2 feels closer to the comic books in a host of different ways, but especially after Butcher and Kimiko's recent developments. The second season of Amazon's The Boys has been, to paraphrase Billy Butcher himself, flipping diabolical. There's an ageless racist in The Seven, and Homelander is rapidly reaching the end of his patience. Meanwhile, The Boys are more desperate and divided than before since Vought bounced back from the Compound V scandal and Becca Butcher refused to be rescued. After so much chaos, "We Gotta Go Now" offers a brief reprieve - a bottle episode that develops the characters of Butcher and Kimiko, bringing both nearer to their comic counterparts.
Season 2 of The Boys in general shares more common ground with Garth Ennis' original comics than last season, but simultaneously introduces elements that forge a totally different path. On one hand, The Boys and The Seven are now in open warfare, with Butcher's team working as a five-piece unit, mirroring the setup at the beginning of the source material. However, The Deep joining a cult, Stormfront's grand plan, and the Becca rescue all represent clear points of divergence, where Eric Kripke and his team are happily going in a brand new direction.
For fans of the comics, however, "We Gotta Go Now" is a love letter of references and nods, and by the end credits, the world of The Boys feels decidedly more authentic. One half of the episode sees Butcher visit his drug-dealing aunt, who has custody of Terror, Butcher and Becca's old dog. There's a running joke over the mutt's lust for stuffed animals, and this is drawn entirely from the comics. The printed version of Butcher keeps Terror by his side permanently, even during missions, but the TV series opted against this due to the difficulty of working with animals. With that said, Kripke did promise fans a Terror episode in The Boys season 2, and "We Gotta Go Now" duly delivers. Even Terror's rampant libido and the "Terror, f**k it" line are derived from the pages of Ennis' comic. Another neat parallel comes when Black Noir goes to hurt the dog, and Butcher threatens him with swift and severe retribution should Terror come to any harm. This scene is reminiscent of a comic exchange between Butcher and Homelander, with The Boys' leader once again standing up for his canine companion.
The episode finally explains Butcher's family dynamic - another clear lift from the comic books. Parental troubles and a beloved brother called Lenny were introduced in the "Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker" comic story, and both are mentioned by Butcher's aunt in "We Gotta Go Now." The additions of Terror and Lenny to Amazon's The Boys humanize Butcher just a little bit. In the comics, Terror's presence allowed Butcher to show at least some kindness in his bloody crusade to end superhero kind, and the dog has a similar effect in the TV series, even if Terror isn't a permanent member of the cast. Reportedly, Amazon couldn't afford his wage demands.
And it's not just Butcher who walks away from "We Gotta Go Now" feeling more like their comic self. The other half of the episode deals with a rapidly crumbling Kimiko, chased around the city by a lovesick Frenchie. High as a kite and with hearts in his eyes, Frenchie follows Kimiko and discovers her working freelance as underground muscle, attacking gangsters for payment. Although the circumstances are different, Kimiko carries out mafia hits in the comics too. The Female would execute criminals as a hobby during her time away from The Boys, but in the TV show, the gruesome murders are a way to distract from the death of Kenji. Nevertheless, Kimiko's face-ripping scene is torn directly from the comic books, where the very same image is one of The Female's most famous panels.
The Boys season 2 has improved Kimiko's character by giving her a voice and a more complete personality, but this evolution risks losing the sense of unpredictable violence the comic character was famous for. Fortunately, Kimiko's mafia storyline restores any edge she might've lost by showing more emotion earlier in the season. The Boys may not be a like-for-like adaptation, but these touches keep the TV series firmly rooted in the comics.