In its final season, the showrunner of The boys explores how the series imitates life, and vice versa, with a mix of punk, reality and fiction
While The boys is getting closer to filming his fifth and final season, the boundaries between his satirical world and tangible reality seem to have vanished. Eric Kripke, along with series star Antony Starr (Homelander), delve into how this phenomenon influenced the production during a recent interview with Variety.
Since its beginnings, The boys was proposed as a disruptive series, a explosive mix of black humor and social criticism encapsulated in the figure of superheroes who, under their brilliance, hide a authoritarian and violent character. “We didn’t do this with the intention that the show would reflect reality so accurately,” Kripke says. However, the global development of recent events seems straight out of one of his scripts: “Suddenly, the world started to look more like our show. This made us one of the most relevant programs on current television.”
The promise of punk rock on television
What started as a comic book adaptation has evolved into a critical mirror of our society. This reflection led the team to feel both an obligation and an opportunity. “We decided that if we wanted to make a current series, we should allow it to be one satire reality as much as possible“says Kripke. This vision has creatively guided the series during the previous four seasons and promises to do so in the fifth as well.
At the same time, in an interview with Collider, Kripke expresses his concern for the maintenance of rebellious essence that characterizes it The boys. “Living in fear of becoming what we’ve been satirizing for five years is something that leads me to be extremely cautious about how we expand our universe,” he explains. The commitment to not “selling out” while expanding the universe of the series is palpable: “It’s punk rock, and it especially hurts when punk rockers burn out.“
The beginning of the end
The first day of filming has begun, and Kripke was quick to share details about the first episode of the final season via his Instagram. Under the title Fifteen inches of pure dynamitethe episode promises to be as explosive as the name suggestswritten by Paul Grellong and directed by Phil Sgriccia.
Kripke concludes with a simple but profound wish: “I just want people to recognize that, whether they want it or not, we have maintained a constant level of quality.” AS The boys prepares its farewell, not only promises to maintain its quality, but also continues to defy expectations and reflect a constantly changing world.
A distorted reflection of our world
AS The boys is approaching the end, The character of Homelander, masterfully played by Antony Starr, has emerged as a powerful symbol of the corruption inherent in absolute power. Over the course of the series, Homelander has been more than just a villain; it has been a lens through which to examine the corrosive influence of fame and authority. His evolution from hero to tyrant is a metaphor visceral and terrifying of how ideals can be perverted in the name of personal ambition and media control.
Comparing Homelander to other iconic characters from similar series, she stands out for her complexity and brutal emotional honesty. While characters like Walter White of breaking Bad have been transformed due to external circumstances, Patriot represents internal moral degradation exacerbated by a world that not only permits but celebrates his despotism.. This comparison not only highlights the ability to The boys present multidimensional characters, but also highlights its critique of a society that often looks the other way as its heroes fall from grace.