As Season 4 of The Boys approaches the finishing line, the show doubles down on its sharp political commentary. In episode 6, The Boys underlined how people with genuine power just don’t care about the tired discussions of race and gender.
In Episode 6, Homelander (Antony Starr) invites billionaires to a private party at Tek Knight’s (Derek Wilson) mansion to enlist the people who genuinely rule America for his coup. Homelander plans to kill President-elect Robert Singer (Jim Beaver) before he can take office, creating a vacuum of power that would allow Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit) to become a Supe POTUS. It’s a complicated plan by Sister Sage (Susan Heyward) to turn the U.S. into a Supe paradise at the expense of human lives.
When Sister Sage is taken out of commission by the Boys crashing the party, Homelander directly addresses the billionaires. The leader of The Seven is used to making inflamed speeches for the masses, and he tries to use the same strategy, underlining how Democrat POTUS would lead to the rise of trans children and illegal immigrants. Homelander’s audience quickly dismisses him, telling the Supe they don’t care about “The Boogeyman.” Instead, they want to know how they will benefit from the coup and how they will prevent the army from intervening. Once again, The Boys shows how its fictional story is aligned with current U.S. politics.
“The Boogeyman” only works for the masses
The Boys astutely portrays how fearmongering about minority groups is often a tool used to manipulate the general public while those in power remain indifferent to these issues. This mirrors real-world politics, where certain politicians frequently stoke fears about marginalized communities to rally their base. One could almost chuckle at the irony – while some politicians are busy warning people about the “gay agenda” or the “immigrant invasion,” the one percent are more concerned with their profit margins and tax breaks.
With a single line, the show brilliantly exposes the disconnect between populist political discourse and the actual concerns of those pulling the strings. That’s because, much like their real-world counterparts, the billionaires in The Boys are more interested in maintaining the status quo than engaging in culture wars. They view Homelander’s rhetoric as a distraction from the real question: how will they get even wealthier with the proposed coup?
This storyline also cleverly implies that the constant barrage of fear-based messaging about marginalized communities is often a calculated distraction from the machinations of those in control. As such, Episode 6 of The Boys Season 4 forces the audience to question who the true enemies of freedom and justice are. It’s no wonder The Boys is such a biting political commentary, as the show is unafraid to shine a light on uncomfortable truths about power, manipulation, and the cynical nature of political discourse.
