Following last week’s tragic sacrifice, the series finale begins with Frenchie’s funeral, with all of The Boys present to mourn their fallen friend.
Hughie (Jack Quaid) reads Frenchie’s will, which is equal parts heartfelt and hilarious, as he notes how he’s seen all of their buttholes, albeit mostly by accident. He gets more serious towards the end and calls The Boys his family, adding that he’s now at peace because, for a moment, he knew heaven on Earth. Everyone is very emotional. Kimiko stays silent and seems angry.
Cut to Ryan (Cameron Crovetti), who is watching a video of Homelander being introduced as God. He has a visitor—it’s Homelander (Antony Starr)! He tells Ryan he’s not there to hurt him, but Ryan is still not pleased to see him. Homelander refers to Ryan as the son of God, but Ryan rejects him and tells him he doesn’t want to be near him. Homelander still wants Ryan to stand by him, claiming that they are the same, but Ryan tells him to get fked and that he’s nothing like him. Ryan continues to tell him off, saying that Homelander is going to be even more lonely now that he’s immortal. Ryan then gives Homelander a reality check, telling him that scaring people into calling him God doesn’t actually make him God. Homelander tells him he’ll understand eventually before leaving.
MM (Laz Alonso) and Hughie are worried about Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara), who is no longer speaking. They speak with Jordan Li (London Thor) and all wonder whether Kimiko actually gained Soldier Boy’s power, or whether Frenchie died for nothing.
Annie (Erin Moriarty) talks to Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair), who doesn’t want to keep running. Annie tells her she’s not telling her to run, but rather to save the people from the previous episode. Emma Meyer (Lizze Broadway) joins them. Marie wants to do more to stop Homelander, but Annie tells the two of them to take the survivors to Canada. Marie realizes The Boys are going on a suicide mission. Annie then recounts the first time she met Queen Maeve, noting she now understands why Maeve was the way she was when Annie joined The Seven, and how Annie annoyed her with her optimism. She tells Marie she doesn’t want to give up and wants to keep the light burning as long as they can. The Gen V trio gather the survivors and leave for Canada.
Ashley (Colby Minifie) and Oh Father (Daveed Diggs) celebrate her newfound presidency, and she gifts him a new super ball gag. He’s working on Homelander’s speech but is conflicted about the number of people doubting Homelander’s ascension. Ashley tries to communicate with Back Ashley and wants to know whether Oh Father would flip on Homelander, but Back Ashley says nothing. Ashley tries to test the waters with Oh Father, but he doesn’t take the bait, so she retreats and continues to feign support for Homelander.
Kimiko is sitting at Frenchie’s grave. Butcher arrives with Sage (Susan Heyward) to talk to her. Sage begins talking to Kimiko and gets increasingly more aggressive, saying things to agitate her. Kimiko gets angrier and angrier before finally starting to glow. She then blasts Sage with a powerful beam of light. Butcher reveals that he wanted to test Kimiko to see whether she’d gained Soldier Boy’s power, since it usually required Soldier Boy to be super angry for his power to work. Sage gets up, and it becomes clear that something’s off. She’s lost her powers and is now stupid like everyone else, which means Kimiko has Soldier Boy’s power!
Hughie does a radiation test on Kimiko and it’s very high, but it seems like Frenchie did it! They know Homelander is going to use Easter to announce himself as God, so they know his location. They have to break into the White House by using JFK’s secret tunnels. It’s time for one last mission and everyone is ready to go… except Sage, who instead chooses to go to Harry Potter World.
There’s a billionaire white supremacist meeting with Oh Father. Homelander arrives and doesn’t care to meet with the billionaire, but Oh Father tells him they need his support to build the church. Oh Father then suggests postponing Homelander’s announcement, but Homelander doesn’t want to. He’s not afraid of Butcher.
The Deep (Chace Crawford) returns and asks Oh Father to become one of Homelander’s Crusaders. In the background, Homelander kills the racist billionaire, leaving him in space. Homelander then tells Deep that he’s never had less respect for anyone than him and that he’s worthless. Oh Father gives Homelander an update about the psychics, who are in position around the globe. They’re going to start working on weeding out nonbelievers after the broadcast is over.
The Boys prepare to break into the White House. Hughie takes a moment to talk to Kimiko and tells her she’s not just a weapon. He tells her Frenchie saw who she really is, and they all do too. The Boys then head out for their final mission.
Homelander is ready to deliver his speech. Ashley is watching but is also still trying to communicate with Back Ashley, who is still giving her the silent treatment. Homelander begins his speech and introduces himself as God. He tells the world about his visit from an angel and tells them how he wants to save humanity. He says he’s the first coming, the lord, the world’s savior. Ryan watches Homelander’s speech from his hideout.
The Boys break into the tunnels under the White House, but there’s a silent alarm they don’t see. The Secret Service inform Ashley and Oh Father about the Boys’ presence. Ashley gets ushered away to a secret bunker but decides to finally make a stand and runs away from her security detail.
The tunnels aren’t quite what The Boys were expecting, and they soon find themselves trapped in a small hall with a supe dog whistle blaring from above. Everyone is affected except MM and Hughie. An automatic gun begins to shoot down at them, but they do their best to protect one another. Suddenly, Back Ashley speaks and helps Ashley save The Boys! She tells them Homelander is in the Oval Office and wishes them well. She doesn’t want to die, so she runs. Back Ashley tells her she’s proud of her.
The Boys infiltrate the White House and find the Deep openly weeping. Upon seeing them, he believes this was all a test and threatens to kill Annie. Annie instead launches at him and flies him straight through the window. They crash-land on a nearby beach, where Annie finally confronts Deep. She asks him whether he wants to be free of Homelander, but he continues to blame her for ruining his life. She tells him to take responsibility for himself, but he attacks her instead.
Back at the White House, Oh Father enters the room and attacks The Boys. Oh Father wants Butcher and Kimiko, so Hughie distracts him with his best Billy Butcher impression. Oh Father takes the bait and chases after Hughie and MM. After they leave, Butcher and Kimiko rush toward Homelander’s location.
Hughie and MM run away from Oh Father. MM looks around for a weapon. Oh Father goes after Hughie and charges up his sonic scream, but at the last second, MM stuffs the super ball gag in Oh Father’s mouth and the sonic scream blows his head straight off. MM and Hughie are covered in blood.
Homelander continues his speech but gets tripped up near the end when there’s a line about being the world’s father. Homelander can’t bring himself to say it and finally goes off-script. He tells the world he knows they won’t accept him nor believe in him. He offers nonbelievers oblivion and tells everyone who doesn’t believe in him that he’ll kill them all. Everyone watching is stunned.
Butcher finally breaks into the Oval Office and confronts Homelander: “Daddy’s Home.”
Homelander begins to taunt him about Frenchie and asks about his science experiment. Butcher says they should find out together, and Kimiko enters the room. Homelander goes quiet. He starts blasting laser beams at Butcher and Kimiko, but they manage to hold their own. Still, it’s clear Homelander is much stronger than them both.
Starlight continues her fight with Deep, who isn’t holding back, but Starlight is much stronger now. She hits him with a huge blast that knocks him into the ocean. Deep is terrified and starts swimming for shore. A bunch of sharks, octopuses, and other sea life begin to pursue him, before grabbing hold of him and finally killing him. The Deep is dead! Annie is a little surprised to see how things played out.
Butcher and Homelander exchange blows while Kimiko tries to charge up. Homelander stops her with a laser blast. Homelander now tries to run, but Butcher catches him and keeps him grounded. They fight some more before Homelander gets another opportunity to fly away—but, this time, he gets knocked out of the air by Ryan! Homelander disowns him and prepares to square off against Butcher and Ryan.
Butcher and Ryan are still no match for Homelander, but they’re able to keep him in the Oval Office. Homelander continues to levy threats. Butcher tells Kimiko to hurry, but she’s having trouble charging up. She then has a vision of Frenchie (Tomer Capone) and begins to smile. Frenchie approaches her and asks her why she can’t get angry. She signs to him that she doesn’t feel angry, only sad. Frenchie places his hand on her heart and tells her that rage isn’t what makes her strong. He then nods to her and disappears. Kimiko watches the fight between Butcher, Ryan, and Homelander and finally musters up the strength to blast the three of them with her chest beam. It leaves a lot of damage across the room.
Butcher is the first one to wake up. He spots Kimiko and Ryan unconscious nearby. Homelander then wakes up and faces Butcher. He tries to shoot him with his lasers, but nothing happens. He tries to fly away, but, again, nothing happens. Homelander has lost his powers! He’s no longer a supe! Butcher flashes a big smile.
“Shock and awe, my son. Blood and [frick]ing bone.”
Homelander attacks Butcher but is nothing without his powers. Then, in Frenchie’s honor, Butcher delivers a vicious beatdown on Homelander. He beats him to a bloody pulp, leaving Homelander begging for his life. There’s a camera still running from earlier, so the world is watching everything. Homelander tells Butcher he’ll give him Vought and even offers him fellatio, showing just how pathetic he is. Homelander supporters begin to run. Butcher finally calls Homelander nothing for the last time and then kills him with a crowbar for Becca. He then spills his brains all over the President’s desk. After five seasons, Homelander is dead.
MM, Hughie, and Annie join Butcher in the Oval Office and see Homelander’s dead body. MM smiles once he realizes it’s over. Ryan wakes up and also sees his dead father. Butcher notices the camera running and stomps it out.
News of Homelander’s death spreads across the world. President Ashley Barrett makes a public stand against Homelander and says she’s not going to resign because she’s done nothing wrong. We then receive a quick update revealing that Ashley was impeached and immediately removed from office.
The Boys share a few cigars and Kimiko begins talking again. MM wishes Frenchie could’ve been there, and Kimiko says he was.
Butcher goes to comfort Ryan and tells him he did the right thing standing up against Homelander. Butcher tells him they can start over—just him, Ryan, and Terror—but Ryan doesn’t want that. Ryan tells Butcher he’s not a good person and that he didn’t choose Butcher over Homelander; he chose himself. He tells him he doesn’t want a fresh start with Butcher—he just wants this to be the end.
Butcher goes to check in on Terror and sadly realizes that his beloved dog has passed away in his sleep. Butcher is heartbroken and seems to finally snap. He goes to his drawer and retrieves the supe-killing virus.
Stan Edgar (Giancarlo Esposito) shows up on TV and delivers a speech on Homelander’s death. We also learn that he’s returning to Vought as its interim CEO, and that he wants to create a new dynamic with superheroes. MM chuckles.
Hughie goes to visit Butcher but finds Terror’s body and also notices the vial is gone. He rushes outside to see Butcher driving away. He begins to chase after him.
Hughie tracks Butcher back to Vought Tower. Butcher is standing in The Seven’s old meeting room, looking out at the city. He’s not surprised Hughie found him and tells him he should’ve brought an army to stop him. Hughie says that if he were going to release the virus, he already would have. Butcher says he’s waiting for the supes to clock in for the day shift so he can disperse the virus in a building full of supes. Hughie asks him where he put the virus. Butcher put it in the sprinkler tank and just needs to pull the trigger to set it off. He projects that if they deploy it in the building, it’ll go worldwide within a couple of days.
Hughie asks him why he’s doing this when they’ve already won. Butcher says they haven’t won—they only gave them a black eye—and that as long as Vought is standing, there’ll be more supes and probably another Homelander eventually. Butcher wants to end this permanently.
Hughie tries to get him to see reason and tells him he’s not a monster; it just hurts to be human. Butcher apologizes—superheroes are done. Hughie draws his gun and tells him he can’t let him do it. Hughie points the gun at Butcher, but Butcher easily disarms him and knocks him down. They fight for the trigger and exchange blows, but Butcher is just a better fighter than Hughie. Butcher reclaims the trigger and has a quick vision of his brother when he looks at Hughie. He briefly takes his finger off the trigger, and Hughie shoots Butcher.
Hughie goes to Butcher, who immediately forgives him for shooting him. He tells Hughie he gave him no choice because he wasn’t going to stop. He says that no matter what he put Hughie through, Hughie stayed himself—he stayed good. Butcher says he doesn’t know what to do. Hughie tells him he doesn’t need to do anything. Hughie holds his hand, and Butcher tells him he’s just like his brother. Butcher dies. Hughie cries.
RIP Billy Butcher.
The Boys hold a funeral for Butcher, and Hughie delivers the eulogy. He calls Butcher a hero for stopping Homelander and imagines that he’s probably in hell right now kicking the sh*t out of the devil. Ryan is there and tells them he’s glad Butcher is buried next to Becca.
Kimiko then says goodbye to the group and leaves. MM bids farewell next and takes Ryan with him. Hughie and Annie are the only ones left and decide to go to a topless steakhouse in honor of Butcher. We then get a look at his gravestone, which reads, “Oi, F**k Off, You C**ts.”
The Boys are done.
In the epilogue, we see MM remarry Monique (Frances Turner) and reunite with his daughter Janine (Liyou Abere). Ryan is there beside him at the altar, so it looks like he’s finally found a home with MM.
Kimiko has adopted a dog and is now living in Marseille, France, where Frenchie grew up. She enjoys a madeleine by herself, finally having some peace.
Then, cut to Hughie, who gets a call from Bob Singer, who is now the new President of the United States. Singer tells him the nation owes him and his team a huge debt. He lets him know that Vought is a clusterfk and that supes are running amok, so he’s relaunching the Bureau of Supe Affairs, and he wants Hughie to run it. He’d be reporting directly to the President if he takes the job.
Hughie politely declines and tells him he’s working on his own startup venture. Singer tells him the offer stands if he ever changes his mind. Hughie then walks into his store, Campbell Audio & Visual, which he owns and operates with Annie… who is very pregnant! We learn that Annie’s mom wants them to get married, but they’re both okay with waiting. Suddenly, there’s a distress signal on the radio. They’re still fighting the good fight and helping bring in rogue supes.
The lovebirds head outside as Annie prepares to go to work. We learn they’ve decided to name their daughter Robin (after Hughie’s ex who was killed in the series premiere). Hughie and Annie share a kiss before Starlight flies off into the sky to save the day. Hughie smiles at her from the ground… and that’s all folks!
There isn’t a post-credits sequence, but the credits do feature fun photos of the cast and crew over the years.
Read our previous recaps at the following links:
Plus, check out our The Boys season five interviews:
The Boys Season 5 will premiere the first two episodes on Wednesday, April 8th, followed by weekly episodes, leading up to the epic series finale on Wednesday, May 20th.
In the fifth and final season, it’s Homelander’s world, completely subject to his erratic, egomaniacal whims. Hughie, Mother’s Milk, and Frenchie are imprisoned in a “Freedom Camp.” Annie struggles to mount a resistance against the overwhelming Supe force. Kimiko is nowhere to be found. But when Butcher reappears, ready and willing to use a virus that will wipe all Supes off the map, he sets in motion a chain of events that will forever change the world and everyone in it. It’s the climax, people. Big stuff’s gonna happen.