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The Boys Season 3 Finale Review: The Father, The Son & The Holy S**t!
In terms of television, probably one of the toughest things that a creative team has to do when a series is ending is finding that balance between staying true to the story & vision while being respectful of the feelings of the viewers who've been along for the ride during its run. Probably the second toughest? Ending a season, when you have to find a way to answer just enough of the season's question marks to leave viewers feeling satisfied by the journey while also leaving just enough things unanswered to leave them wanting more… while also planting new seeds for new storyline threads. Unfortunately for me, the third season finale of Amazon and showrunner Eric Kripke's The Boys hurt my last argument by making it all look so easy. Directed by Sarah Boyd and written by Logan Ritchey & David Reed, "The Instant White-Hot Wild" was not only an excellent culmination of a season's worth of amazing writing, award-worthy performances, and steel-chair-to-the-back satire but also further proof that the streaming series might just be the best thing going on television right now.
In this final season chapter, all roads lead to Vought Tower, as Homelander (Antony Starr) and Black Noir (Nathan Mitchell) await the arrival of Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles), Butcher (Karl Urban), and Hughie (Jack Quaid)… and then just Soldier Boy and Butcher. For Homelander, it's a family reunion. For Black Noir, it's about settling old scores. Of course, Annie (Erin Moriarty), MM (Laz Alonso), Serge (Tomer Capon), Kumiko (Karen Fukuhara), and now Hughie (it's a long story) have a whole lot of reasons to crash that little party. Add into that mix a deeper & darker understanding of the deal Homelander made with Neuman (Claudia Doumit), A-Train's (Jessie T. Usher) "good deeds" going rightly punished, The Deep (Chace Crawford) deep-diving into bad habits, and Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott) unleashed, and it's hard not to be impressed with how many storyline plates this episode kept spinning at the same time. And what a show it was! Okay, so this is where I throw on the "MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!" sign and throw down an image spoiler buffer because it's time to show "The Instant White-Hot Wild" some love.
So let's jump right into it, shall we? Before we jump into "RANDOM THOUGHTS," my quick perspective on one of the season's overriding themes. As much as the focus has been (and rightfully so) on the damaging impact that toxic masculinity has had on generations and continues to have to this day (Soldier Boy cruelly dressing down his "son" Homelander exactly as his father did to him was as laser-focused of an example as you'll find), I didn't want to lose sight of an over-arching theme that encapsulates that.
Family.
The one we're born with and the one we gain along the way. The good, the bad, and all of the shit in-between. How a family can literally help raise you to new heights (like Hughie finally understanding the difference between "supporting" and wanting to "save" Annie) or drag you to deeper lows (as we see with the way Homelander brutally demeans his Vought "family," Ashley (Colby Minifie, once again breathtakingly amazing), The Deep, and A-Train. But we see hope in all of the madness. In three seasons, our heroes finally vibe like a unit, while MM demonstrated how easily walls can be brought down with simple honesty & openness, elevating his relationship with his daughter as he explains to her their family history and why he is the way he is. And then we have Serge and Kumiko, who have formed a family unit that's already demonstrating results as the two embraces a future feeling more independent and accepting who they are.
RANDOM THOUGHTS
Homelander's "It wasn't your fault" speech to Ryan (Cameron Crovetti) was already showing us that this storyline was going the Brightburn route, and the ending was the clincher. But did Homelander also just expose a major weakness he now has to the world? Plus, how ready is Homelander really to be the kind of parent he thinks he can be? We might be looking at another "Game of Thrones"/Joffrey situation.
We weren't the only ones vibing that Black Noir's time was coming to an end once we saw his Buster Beaver "pals" joining him on his return to Vought Tower, right? And once again, Homelander is blind to those around him who have been looking out for him all of this time (as that "Diabolical" episode showed), seeing family only in terms of genetics.
Ashley's "I'm sorry" to Maeve was heartbreaking, with Ashley deleting the security video at the end of the episode to keep Maeve off the grid as much as possible said as much about her character's development over three seasons as any other. Oh, and here's hoping that Butcher remembers from now on that Serge's "cake hole" will remain open for however long he wants… thank you very much!
Looks like the Katherine Heigl and James Marsden-starring 27 Dresses has a huge fan in Serge… who knew? And that moment between Serge and MM when the former offer the latter some "anti-tough love" by reminding him that his flaws don't keep him from being a great man… if anything, they make him greater by acknowledging them.
Just to be clear? It takes a quality actor to get us teary-eyed over a story involving pizza rolls and the Pierce Brosnan-starring Remington Steele… and Quaid is that quality actor ("I didn't know what strength was"). Hughie not only evolved in how he viewed his father, but he also confronted the toxicity within himself (with choosing his mind over V24 being a strong defining moment for both him and Annie).
I'm loving watching Doumit's Neuman walk that dangerously gray line, keeping her cards close, and making sure she's got skin in all the games going on. And now faced with the possibility of her being in The White House, one exploded mind away from The Oval Office? Well, it looks like Butcher may have a point at the end there…
Well, it's safe to say that Fukuhara's Kumiko has completely changed what goes on in my brain the next time "Maniac" from the Flashdance soundtrack hits. And it's great to see how comfortable Kumiko is getting now that she's embracing the great aspects of herself and not just the darkness she perceived.
And who can forget about Maeve! That was one helluva fight, and I'm still not convinced that she couldn't take Homelander in a fight where both are healthy. That said? She bloodied him, and impaling him in the ear was a move I didn't see coming. In a series filled with folks in need of a "happily ever after," it's nice to see Maeve get her version of it. That hug between Maeve and Annie was a perfect bookend to the first time they met and a fitting farewell. And yet, we can't escape this feeling that this season isn't her last…
Well, it may not have been NYC's 5th Avenue and it was laser vision as opposed to a gun, but Homelander finally got his opportunity to go full-on Trump at the end, murdering a protester for throwing a beverage that hit Ryan in front of everyone. And guess what? His followers loved him for it. And Homelander loved that they loved him doing that. But scariest of all? Ryan really seemed to be enjoying it all.
So will Butcher out-live his 12-18 months death sentence? Will Homelander realize he's taken on more than he'd realized? Will Solider Boy remain on ice? Will Maeve end up having to go the Compound V route as Kumiko did? How will Butcher react to having Annie on the team? Who will be the newest members of The Seven? Wow! So when are we getting a teaser for the fourth season?
The Boys Season 3 Episode 8 "The Instant White-Hot Wild"
9.5/10
In terms of television, probably one of the toughest things that a creative team has to do when a series is ending is finding that balance between staying true to the story & vision while being respectful of the feelings of the viewers who've been along for the ride during its run. Probably the second toughest? Ending a season, when you have to find a way to answer just enough of the season's question marks to leave viewers feeling satisfied by the journey while also leaving just enough things unanswered to leave them wanting more... while also planting new seeds for new storyline threads. Unfortunately for me, the third season finale of Amazon and showrunner Eric Kripke's The Boys hurt my last argument by making it all look so easy. Directed by Sarah Boyd and written by Logan Ritchey & David Reed, "The Instant White-Hot Wild" was not only an excellent culmination of a season's worth of amazing writing, award-worthy performances, and steel-chair-to-the-back satire but also further proof that the streaming series might just be the best thing going on television right now.
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