Why Stormfront From The Boys Season 2 Is So Different From The Comics
When it comes to The Boys, fans already know that showrunner Eric Kripke is willing to take some major liberties with his source material. Season 2 has certainly continued this trend, and even the much-anticipated introduction of a character from Garth Ennis' comics didn't come without substantial alterations.
From the outset, season 2 of Amazon Prime Video's cynical smash hit The Boys has hit the ground running. Aside from the continuation of all the open-ended stories from last season, this new set of episodes has opened up some substantial new mysteries and even called up a new Supe to the big leagues as a replacement for the dearly departed Translucent (Alex Hassell). Stormfront (Aya Cash) made an immediate impact when she arrived on the scene during one of Homelander (Antony Starr) and Queen Maeve's (Dominique McElligott) military press junkets and proceeded to liveblog her disruptive induction into The Seven. If you are a fan of the comics, then you were probably as confused as Homelander by the appearance of this spunky new Supe, since she's nothing like the character culled from the pages of Ennis' work.
We learn quite a bit about TV Stormfront from her very first scene. For one, she dresses in a fascist-chic black bodysuit with an ominous leather cape. She's also got some serious social media savvy; Vought's gotta love that. Most importantly, however, she's a she. More on that below.
Aya Cash's Stormfront is a more complex character than Garth Ennis' version
In Ennis' comic series, Stormfront is a male Supe and an explicit Nazi. While Cash's Stormfront may have inherited some of the racism and brutal tendencies from her inspiration, creator Eric Kripke definitely updated her xenophobic ways to match the times. She's much more "poster from the dark corners of 4chan" than "goose-stepping storm trooper of the Third Reich."
Fans of both versions of The Boys will note that, in addition to her Supe name, Stormfront has inherited comic-Stormfront's powers. They both have the ability to fly and can manipulate some kind of lethal bio-electric energy. That's pretty much where the similarities end, however. Cash's character was very explicitly introduced on the show as a foil to and thorn in the side of Seven psycho-leader Homelander. In the comics, Stormfront never joins The Seven. He doesn't even share a single panel with Homelander.
So why does this matter? It's obvious that Kripke and his writing team wanted to make better use of Stormfront in the TV series. Comic-Stormfront is a one-dimensional, führer-heiling Nazi. He's a cardboard cutout who speaks in shouted German, and as a result he's almost uniformly hate-able. Cash's Stormfront, on the other hand, has a rebel's charisma. Despite the brutality and casual racism, it's obvious that we're supposed to feel a pang of sympathy for this feisty newcomer. Like most characters in Kripke's version of The Boys, Stormfront isn't just one thing.
And that's a very good thing for her future on the show.