Summary
- The Boys Season 5 won’t mirror Avengers: Endgame, as Butcher’s dark path sets up a different tone.
- Butcher’s descent means Season 5 may not have a heartwarming resolution akin to MCU heroes.
- Major hero deaths are likely in The Boys Season 5, deviating from traditional superhero endings.
The Boys has frequently drawn parallels with the bigger theatrical superhero universes, but despite an Avengers: Infinity War-style ending to season 4, season 5 will not be anything like Avengers: Endgame. After four spectacular seasons, The Boys is setting the table for their final outing in season 5. While the show frequently parodies and mimics superhero and comic book movies in general, the tone of the show during the fourth season ended on a bleak note when The Boys were individually captured, apart from Billy Butcher.
This kind of ending where the heroes are robbed of all hope was famously done in Infinity War, but that was a set-up for the final chapter in the Infinity Saga, Endgame, when the heroes would have a triumphant return and Tony Stark, arguably the main character of this saga, gave his life in a heroic sacrifice to save his friends. But, The Boys season 5 is shaping up to be something entirely different. Especially since its central figure, Butcher, is on a very different path than Tony in the MCU.
Why The Boys Season 4’s Finale Is Being Compared To Infinity War
There Are Several Comparisons Between The Boys & Infinity War
Most shows about superheroes tend to split light and dark, or good and evil into clear and distinct camps. Due to this clear separation, hero movies are forced into a position where the good needs to overcome the evil to create an ending that makes sense and doesn’t leave the audience completely devoid of hope. However, when Infinity War came out in theaters in 2018, it completely shattered this expectation in the movie’s final moments when Thanos got all the Infinity Stones and snapped half of all life out of existence.
This harrowing ending challenged viewers, and created an overwhelming need for the audience to return and see what comes next. Likewise, The Boys season 4 has just ended on one of the darkest cliffhangers in the show’s run, with all the heroes of the story being captured. However, one member of the team has evaded capture, but it’s unlikely that he will have any sort of journey that resembles Tony Stark’s. The fact is, Butcher has descended to become a monster just like the supes, and he is dead set on fulfilling his mission, no matter who gets hurt along the way.
Butcher’s Story Means The Boys Season 5 Won’t Be The Show’s “Endgame”
Billy Butcher Is Going Down A Dangerous Path
When comparing the MCU and The Boys, it’s easy to see links between Butcher and Stark. Both men are arrogant, but also the best at what they do. Despite struggling to connect with others and work in a team, both men are made considerably better when they have a team around them. And in both cases, Stark and Butcher have developed a soft spot for a young trainee they take under their wing; Peter Parker in Stark’s case and Hughie Campbell for Butcher. However, this is potentially where their stories split.
Stark was broken after losing Peter, but he chose to focus on the family he still had and raise his daughter with his wife, Pepper Potts. Then, when his friends called him back, he found hope and jumped back with both feet to be the hero he was always meant to be. Butcher, on the other hand, has slowly descended to a point where he has embraced his inner darkness, and he is ready to kill, maim, and destroy anyone that stands between him and murdering Homelander. This is unlikely to end in the same heartwarming way as Endgame, considering the bloodshed that season 5 is likely to contain.
Most Of The Heroes Could Realistically Die In The Boys Season 5
The Boys Season 5 May Be The Bloodiest Season Yet
The Boys is a series that isn’t afraid of putting death and disaster in every episode. Season 4 saw some notable figures like Victoria Neuman brutally killed by Butcher, but so far, almost all The Seven remain alive, along with all The Boys. Potentially, they have been saving up these core characters’ deaths for the final season, but if the finale is anything like the comics, The Boys season 5 will mean the end for many of the characters who have been on the show since the beginning. Which means that more than just the corrupt heroes are at risk in season 5.
The Boys
season 4 has just ended on one of the darkest cliffhangers in the show’s run, with all the heroes of the story being captured.
Butcher has gotten hold of a virus which could potentially spread through the entire supe population. This virus is an outrageously powerful tool in the hands of anyone who would choose to wield it as a weapon, but in Butcher’s hands, it seems even more of a danger. Butcher has given into his dark side, and is now equipped with a super cancer that he uses to tear supes apart. But Butcher won’t be happy until all the supes are dead, with Homelander at the top of his list. This means the heroes in the stories, The Boys, may fall victim in Butcher’s line of fire.
Why An “Endgame” Ending Wouldn’t Work For The Boys
The MCU Is A Very Different Beast To The Boys
Even if The Boys wanted to end in a manner that resembled the MCU, it wouldn’t fit with the tone of the show, or everything that was built over the previous years. The show is dark, gritty, full of bloodshed and constantly trying to push boundaries. Ending on a light and fluffy high note, even if it means there is a big sacrifice in the mix, would be disingenuous to the source material, and everything the show has established over its run. The Boys is not a show about hope, it’s about the dark side of humanity.
If the ending does anything that fails to reflect this properly, it could feel like something else entirely. The comic’s ending is not all doom and gloom, as it still sees Hughie and Starlight walk off into the sunset together, but it also puts the fragility of humans and ego on full display. The fact that the humans in this world are imbued with superpowers only serves to enhance these flaws and the darker aspects of their personalities. So, The Boys finale needs to stay true to the stories that inspire it and ensure that characters like Butcher complete their arc, no matter how dark things get.