The Upgrade The Boys Fans Are Waiting To See In The Amazon Series
As is often the case with adaptations, The Boys doesn't perfectly align with its source material — in this case, the comic book series of the same name by writer Garth Ennis and illustrator Darick Robertson. It's a conscious decision on the creators' part, both as a means to surprise comics readers with twists even they don't see coming, and because what works in one medium doesn't always work in another. With a third season confirmed, viewers from both ends of the spectrum are waiting with bated breath to see how the consequences of season 2's ending will ripple into the future.
One of the biggest questions fans have is how the titular team plans on dealing with Homelander (Antony Starr) now that he has plenty of incentive to put the group down. As the most powerful of all the Supes, it'd be no biggie for him to incinerate them all with a quick dose of heat vision, or drop them all from way on high, or use his unparalleled super strength to — well, you get the idea. The Boys know how to work stealth to their advantage and employ clever strategies that favor brains over brawn, but Homelander is simply on another level.
In the comics, the Boys use the Supes' own weapon against them: Compound V, a drug created by Vought International that grants enhanced strength, speed, endurance, durability, and for some users, additional powers like flight or stretchy limbs. The potency and extra effects of Compound V vary from user to user, but in the comics, it's enough for the Boys to go toe to toe with Supes. The events of season 2 have made the drug more readily accessible, so the question is, will the Boys use it come season 3? Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara) and Starlight (Erin Moriarty) already have it running through their veins, but those two alone aren't nearly enough to defeat Homelander — and he's not a patient man. They need a countermeasure, and fast.
Potential spoilers for the future of The Boys ahead!
Compound V: hit or miss
Homelander is unquestionably the most powerful man in the world of The Boys. That's a good thing so long as no one catches up to him, but there'd be a slight problem if that ever changes: for all his power, Homelander isn't much of a fighter. Action scenes he's involved in on the show usually involve him shooting lasers from his eyes or using his Herculean strength to dispose of far weaker enemies uncontested. That's all well and good, yet viewers never see Homelander slugging it out with anyone, which could very well mean that his hand-to-hand skills are super unpolished... unlike several members of the Boys.
Hughie's (Jack Quaid) not the best candidate for the job; he's changed a lot since The Boys began, but he's admittedly more a man of ideas than a man of action. Homelander isn't going to pick favorites, so Compound V could at least grant Hughie some degree of survivability. But Frenchie (Tomer Kapon), Butcher (Karl Urban), and Mother's Milk (Laz Alonso)? Those guys could put up quite a fight — especially the latter two. They've got years of experience getting their hands dirty, and there's no doubt they'd give Homelander more than a run for his money mano a mano.
Again, Compound V doesn't treat all its users equally. One need look no further than the power differential among the members of the Seven, The Boys' Justice League analogue, for proof of that. There's always the chance the Boys could use the super drug only to find themselves on the lower end of the power scale, not a match for Homelander even when banded together. That risk factor is a huge deterrent, not to mention all the failed Compound V experiments the Boys find at Sage Grove. As the drug was originally intended for babies, the experiments focused on perfecting a strain for adults, and the results were... mixed. To say the least, it makes trusting in Compound V even scarier.
Compound V or no Compound V, however, the ticking of the clock follows the Boys wherever they go. Season 3 should be interesting indeed.