Tag: The Boys

‘The Boy’ Series Finale Takes an Emotional Ride and Comes Full Circle

‘The Boy’ Series Finale Takes an Emotional Ride and Comes Full Circle

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There is always a lot riding on series finales. Eric Kripke repeatedly said he was nervous about landing this one for The Boys after 5 seasons, but also that he was grateful to be able to end it when they wanted to. Having lived through the contentious Supernatural finale after 15 seasons (which I loved), I was worried FOR him. And of course there are plenty of people posting that they didn’t like The Boys series finale either, but there are also plenty who did – I’m relieved that I’m one of them. I think it went the way it should have gone, even if I might not have enjoyed 100% of it – it made sense and felt like an earned ending, which I thought was also the case for Supernatural.

I enjoyed all the hoopla too (something Supernatural definitely did not get in 2020!)  Many fans went to see the episode in the theaters it played in all across the country and much of the cast and crew attended the red carpet festivities in LA before that screening. Their excitement was contagious, so even though I didn’t go to one of the screenings near me, I felt even more anticipation than usual after watching the cast and crew smiling and proud of what they’d accomplished.

As a Supernatural fan, it also warmed my heart to see so many #SPNFamily in attendance. Eric Kripke (creator of Supernatural and showrunner of that and The Boys) finds good people in the industry, whether actors or directors or crew, and works with them on multiple projects, which means there are always familiar faces. I love that these people love continuing to work together, and also still have such a soft spot for the little show that brought them together. Phil Sgriccia, who directed so many episodes of Supernatural, directed many episodes of ‘The Boys’ including the finale – he and Eric Kripke looked like the proud papas of the evening. Chris Lennertz was one of two composers for the entire run of Supernatural, and he’s the composer for The Boys too – so talented and also just a great guy! Many actors have Supernatural and The Boys in common – at the screening there was of course Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester and Soldier Boy), and also Nathan Mitchell (Black Noir) and Rob Benedict (Splinter) who were on both shows (and Rob’s partner Ruth Connell of Supernatural too). It was so nice to see them all celebrating together!

Yes, we needed that photo of Jensen Ackles on the red carpet.

Now, for the episode itself. Major spoilers ahead, obviously.

I was actually glad that Soldier Boy was not going to be in the finale – I have complicated feelings about the character partly thanks to Jensen Ackles playing him – and I was oddly glad he was safely tucked away in stasis while everyone else fought to the death. (Yes, I said safely. I admit I didn’t want him to die. I also admit I should want him to die.) If you, like me, are a Soldier Boy fan, check out the very in depth chapter I wrote in ‘Supes Ain’t Always Heroes’ all about the fascinating character, and also read Jensen Ackles’ exclusive interview chapter all about how he crafted his complicated character – info at the end of the article.

It’s also fitting that we return to a focus on Butcher and Homelander for the finale, wrapping back to where we started this journey. The opening reminds us of their scorched earth pact: In the end, only one of us left standing.

The Boys

The Boys start the episode discouraged and mourning Frenchie, especially Kimiko.

They give him a funeral which is very The Boys, alternating between Frenchie’s scribbled out words about being closer to all of them than his own blood, that they are his family, and he’s at peace because he knew Heaven on Earth in Kimiko’s arms – and then noting that he’s seen every one of their assholes (with details of how and when) as the proof of how well he knows them. I’ve said it a lot, but the 14 year old boy humor always throws me out of the scene a little, and this was no exception. It’s the show, though, and I guess I’m in the minority since it has characterized it since the start.

Many fans were upset about the abrupt cancellation of The Boys spinoff Gen V, and hopeful that those characters might play a pivotal role in The Boys finale. They do appear, but were kept on the periphery, to some fans’ disappointment. (It seems we may see them in the two other The Boys universe properties in development, however.) Annie asks Marie, Jordan and Emma to help the influencers they saved, but they’re reluctant. As Emma asks, “the ones who were just with the guy whose hog they were dying to suck yesterday?”  As I’ve written before, I like Emma and I miss her – that one line was excellent.  Annie tells Marie a story intended to inspire her not to give up – about how she idolized Queen Maeve and then met her and was disappointed. She was by then checked out, bitter. Annie says she swore she’d never let that happen to her, but it did – but not anymore. Now it’s about keeping the light burning as long as they fucking can. Don’t meet your heroes, she advises Marie.

Marie: I don’t know about never meet your heroes – worked out kinda okay for me.

It was a sweet little moment. The Gen V three drive off, headed to Canada to help the people they can, leaving the universe open for the Gen V characters to return in another iteration of the universe.

Sage joins Kimiko at Frenchie’s grave and taunts her about letting people think she was the stray that he took in when it was really the other way around, accusing her of keeping Frenchie like a pet, on a leash, until finally Kimiko gets enraged enough to do the chest blast thing.

It works – Sage is no longer super smart.

Sage: It worked! I’m fucking stupid like you guys!

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‘The Best of The Boys’ Music Vinyl Collection Releases Today – with Two Jensen Ackles Songs!

‘The Best of The Boys’ Music Vinyl Collection Releases Today – with Two Jensen Ackles Songs!

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A three disc vinyl collection of the music from Prime Video’s series ‘The Boys’ releases today covering the music of all five seasons. Like another Eric Kripke show we know and love (that would be ‘Supernatural’ in case you didn’t know), the music of ‘The Boys’ has always been an integral part of its storytelling, thanks to Emmy Award-winning composer Christopher Lennertz (who was one of two composers on ‘Supernatural’ also). This collection has an original score by Lennertz and Matt Bowen, and some original  and cover songs performed by the cast.

The official release of Jensen Ackles’ cover of Blondie’s “Rapture” is included along with his memorable rendition of ‘From A Logical Point of View’, plus songs from Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Karen Fukuhara, Laurie Holden and of course Daveed Diggs from last week’s musical extravaganza. There are also liner notes from the cast and crew. The collection is pressed on 3x 140gm Color Vinyl.

“We’ve spent five seasons building a musical identity for this show, and the Best of The Boys vinyl is a love letter to that evolution,” say composers Christopher Lennertz and Matt Bowen in the press release. “Curating the collection was like watching the entire series again through the music alone — you can hear the score grow up, get darker, get weirder, and find its identity over five seasons. But Season 5 is where all of that paid off. Everything we learned over the life of this show — every instinct, every risk — we poured into this final chapter. The score has never been this big, this emotional, or this relentless, and we think the Season 5 soundtrack captures the most ambitious work we’ve done for the series — the tension is sharper, the emotional swings are bigger, and the music goes to places we never would have attempted in earlier seasons. It’s the most complete and fearless work we’ve done on the show, and we think it’s the score this finale deserved.”

Christopher Lennertz (and me) Comic Con 2019

‘The Boys’ is also known for its standout original songs, performed by the cast and woven directly into the fabric of the show’s storytelling to enrich the show’s iconic scenes. Lennertz went on to talk about Season 5’s music, saying: “Over the past four seasons, original songs have played an increasingly important part of The Boys’ storytelling, and this final season’s entry might be the pinnacle of that satirical insanity. After the success of “Let’s Put the Christ Back in Christmas,” we knew we had to go even bigger and better for the plot twist that would set the entire finale into motion. As soon as Daveed Diggs was cast as “Oh Father,” I texted [Eric] Kripke and said that it would be a crime if he didn’t sing on the show. Once Eric and the writers had the concept, I knew Daveed had to write the song with me to embody the authentic voice of this character he had developed. This season’s big original song release, “Raise Him Up,” became the most soulful and audacious anthem of Vought blasphemy that would exceed all of our expectations and finally ‘rise up’ and be worthy to represent the climax of Homelander’s unhinged hubris.”

If you missed it in last week’s episode, go check it out!

The collection also features artwork by Matt Ryan Tobin, who crafted packaging to make the set a collector’s item. Tobin gets the show’s appeal, saying in the press release that “This show is fucked up. It has me grossed out and recoiling one second, convulsing with laughter the next, before eventually ripping my heart out and bringing me to tears; and repeat. I can’t think of another show that recklessly toys with your emotions so much, yet so well. The music really pilots all of these emotions, and masterfully so.”

The collection is released by Mutant, whose co-founder Mo Shafeek said: “The greatest joy of The Boys comes from its stranger-than-fiction alternate reality where superheroes exist, but just about everything else about our world remains the same. Because of that, the world of music in The Boys universe, both diegetic and non-diegetic, is so compelling. What Christopher Lennertz, Matt Bowen, and their incredible collaborators have done for five seasons is worthy of celebration. We at Mutant are honored to bring the musical world of The Boys into the real world.”

Available for pre-order starting today at MadeByMutant.com.

If you’d like to read more about the music of ‘The Boys’, along with insights from the actors and psychologists into the complicated characters, check out the book ‘Supes Ain’t Always Heroes’ too, available at https://smartpopbooks.com/book/supes-aint-always-heroes/ with exclusive interviews from Jensen Ackles, Nathan Mitchell, Aya Cash and more (including Christopher Lennertz!)

Vinyl Track List:

Side A

  1. Never Truly Vanish Performed by Erin Moriarty
  2. Faster Performed by Jessie T. Usher, Aimée Proal
  3. Rock My Kiss Performed by Miles Gaston Villanueva
  4. Dream a Little Dream of Me Performed by Karen Fukuhara
  5. You’ve Got a License to Drive (Me Crazy) Performed by Miles Gaston Villanueva
  6. America’s Son Performed by Laurie Holden
  7. From a Logical Point of View Performed by Jensen Ackles

Side B

  1. Rapture Performed by Jensen Ackles
  2. Chimps Don’t Cry Performed by Laurie Holden
  3. Let’s Put the Christ Back in Christmas Performed by Shoshana Bean, Andrew Rannells, James Monroe Iglehart and Christopher Lennertz
  4. See Something Say Something Performed by Christopher Lennertz, Alex Karukas, and Baraka May
  5. Faster (Gospel Version) Performed by Bryson Camper, Baraka May, David Loucks, Cherise Thomas, Brittany Wallace, Princess Jones, Aja Marie Grant, and Christopher Lennertz
  6. Avenue V  Performed by Christopher Lennertz and Alex Karukas
  7. Stay Back! Performed by Antony Starr, Christopher Lennertz, and Alex Karukas
  8. Raise Him Up Performed by Daveed Diggs, Christopher Lennertz, Baraka May, Caleb Curry, Kadeem Nichols, Carmen Carter and Alex Karukas

DISC TWO

Original Score by Christopher Lennertz and Matt Bowen

Side C

  1. Truck Robbery
  2. Homelander and Stillwell*
  3. Boys Arrive*
  4. Hughie Trashes Room*
  5. Hospital Shootout
  6. Break Every Bone
  7. Meeting Blindspot
  8. Homelander in Hallway
  9. Halloween Store
  10. Fake News
  11. Brother and Sister*
  12. The Vial
  13. Shootout

Side D

  1. Not Ready
  2. Dawn of the Seven
  3. Termite Fight and Rescue*
  4. Soldier Boy
  5. Home for the Super Abled
  6. Butcher Sold Me*
  7. Soldier Boy vs. Homelander*
  8. This Is About Loyalty
  9. Maeve’s Ultimate Sacrifice*
  10. The Only Way I Could Save You*
  11. Homelander’s Dream

DISC THREE 

Original Score by Christopher Lennertz and Matt Bowen

Side E

  1. I Can Do Anything / Finale
  2. Vought Through the Years
  3. Bat Mitzvah Rock*
  4. Mirror Mirror
  5. Training A-Train
  6. Final Audition
  7. Virus
  8. Ol’ Dealey Plaza
  9. Family Is All You’ve Got
  10. Fifteen Inches of Sheer Dynamite
  11. The Democratic Church of America
  12. Cast Those Demons Out
  13. Soldier Boy Reborn
  14. Meet Quinn
  15. Cowboys and Jesus

Side F

  1. Passing the Crown
  2. Kessler
  3. The Speech*
  4. It Has Always Been You
  5. Blood and Bone
  6. The Wreckage
  7. To the Tower
  8. Canary in the Coal Mine
  9. Goodbye

Mutant is a pop culture art, music, and collectibles shop headed by creative director veterans Spencer Hickman, Eric Garza, Mitch Putnam, and Mo Shafeek and CEO Jenny Jacobi, a division of the genre-bending production company SpectreVision.

Check out the music collection and then get ready for the series finale next week!

–Lynn

You can read the book that takes a deep

dive into The Boys, with insights from its

actors, composer Chris Lennertz, artist

Darick Robertson, and  many more at:

Supes Ain’t Always Heroes

Jared, Jensen and Misha Tease This Week’s ‘Supernatural’ Reunion on ‘The Boys’ – Plus Kripke on Why His Two Shows Go Together

Jared, Jensen and Misha Tease This Week’s ‘Supernatural’ Reunion on ‘The Boys’ – Plus Kripke on Why His Two Shows Go Together

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This week The Boys hosts something that Supernatural fans have been waiting for a long time – Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki and Misha Collins onscreen, together again. It will be the first time the three have shared a screen since their many years together on Supernatural as Sam, Dean and Castiel.  For Supernatural fans, this feels like a momentous occasion.

The three gave fans some rather tantalizing tidbits of information about the upcoming episode at a Supernatural convention in Rome this past weekend.

Photo Happytortuguita on X

Eric Kripke is of course the common denominator between the two shows as the creator of Supernatural and the showrunner who adapted The Boys comics into a series. Jensen Ackles joined as Soldier Boy in Season 3 and has been making fans conflicted about loving and hating him ever since.

Fans figured out last month that Jared Padalecki will be playing Mr. Marathon from a photo on the wall when we caught a glimpse of the character in a promo, because nothing gets by motivated fans!

Jared confirmed it at a convention shortly after – which prompted Kripke to go out and confirm it too, saying that he had wanted a meaty part for Jared that was important to the story arc. Jensen Ackles has said that he was nervous about bringing his two friends onto The Boys – not because he worried about their performance, because he knew they’d be great, but in the way a dad worries about his son going up to bat. Picture him across the set going “come on guys, you can do it!”

Apparently they did.

Kripke recently confirmed that Padalecki had ‘crushed it’, unsurprisingly.  We also know that Mr. Marathon is a far cry from Jared Padalecki, who has said the character says and does things that he would never do. He’s a douchebag and a cokehead, reminding many people of the fanfic Kripke read many years ago featuring a cokehead Jared and an assertive Kripke and let’s just say it wasn’t rated G and that I may or may not know more about how that all happened…

That was a long long time ago, as Supernatural was in its earliest seasons. This was Kripke back then, the first time we met him – baby Kripke!

Photo Lizz Sisson

Anyway… Collins’ role hasn’t been officially announced, but there are plenty of rumors that he might be Mr. Marathon’s partner and perhaps a supe named Synergy.

Looks like Soldier Boy is not a fan.

That would be an awesome (though probably tragic) twist for all the Mishalecki fans out there.

Jared and Misha have been having a great time teasing the possibilities.

Soldier Boy still not a fan.

Photo Chris Schmelke

Padalecki joked at the Supernatural convention in Rome this weekend in response to a prompt about getting naked – “next Wednesday on The Boys!”

Now that might just be a joke, but on the other hand, Ackles has already been sans clothes for Soldier Boy’s debut and the show is famous for Herogasm, so who knows?!

Padalecki and Collins also resurrected their long-running joke about “influence” on each other from an earlier convention in Rome, with influence being a bodily fluid that’s also not G rated, when answering a question about The Boys episode.

Jared: There’s quite a bit of influence going on… I mean, not as much because we’re older, but…

Misha: I think quite a bit of influence on each other… in each other? In this episode there’s more bodily fluid than…it’s a lot…

Ackles rolled his eyes at his two friends’ antics while fans cheered.

Muriel Forir Photography
MyConPhotography by Anika

If all those teases aren’t enough to whet your appetite for this week’s episode, I don’t know what would – as someone whose favorite shows are Supernatural and The Boys, I can’t wait!

I’ve had some great conversations with Eric Kripke over the years about both shows and the similarities between them (the resistance in both comes in the form of plain old humans who are willing to go against the odds and keep fighting).  So on the eve of this momentous occasion, I thought I’d share some excerpts from my interview chats with Eric over the years about the two shows and how they intersect. It’s a history of the Supernatural-The Boys connection as we get ready to make that connection a lot more direct!

I first asked Kripke about the similarities between his brand new show The Boys and his long-time show Supernatural at San Diego Comic Con way back in 2019, before Supernatural had ended.

Eric:  This show is also about family. It’s about the boys, who are the good guys in this show. They’re the heroes because they stick together and show each other loyalty and have each other’s backs and they’re willing to admit vulnerability and weakness. They’re scared and they’re outmatched and they’re outgunned but they’re taking on these powerful forces. Not dissimilar to the way Sam and Dean would take on monsters and demons. What I love is that the heroes of the show are the ones who express vulnerability and weakness and can be imperfect, but we spend a lot of time building the iceberg under the water with the emotion and the satire.

That was enough to get me excited about the show and I’ve been watching ever since.  I had the chance to chat with Eric in depth about The Boys shortly after that Comic Con. I pointed out that both Supernatural and The Boys begin with an everyman inspired to get revenge after the love of his life is violently killed (Mary burning on the ceiling and Robin mowed down by A Train). In the case of The Boys, that comes from the comics, but the show captured it.

Eric: Now that you’ve pointed it out, there are similarities to that. Robin dying in The Boys is taken almost frame for frame from the comic book so it’s funny, that hadn’t really occurred to me about that connection, because in The Boys the instigating incident is so infamous for anyone who’s a fan of the books. It was my job to capture it as faithfully as possible and that’s mostly where my head was, but yeah. Also, I think where they’re similar is there are a lot of tonal and thematic similarities. In a lot of ways, The Boys is a hard R Supernatural.

(Something many Supernatural fans would not mind at all!)

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Everyone Goes Darkside in ‘The Boys’ Episode 4 ‘The King of Hell’

Everyone Goes Darkside in ‘The Boys’ Episode 4 ‘The King of Hell’

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Not gonna lie, as a Supernatural fan I was waiting for Mark Sheppard to show up as Crowley after the title of this episode appeared – alas, we didn’t get a Crowley cameo. From the reviews, some people were critical of this episode that “nothing happened to move the story forward” but I 100% disagree. This episode gave us the kind of insights I crave the most – the emotional and psychological ones. It didn’t move the story forward a great deal if the ‘story’ is ‘get the V1’ but to me the fascinating story is that of the characters and their relationships, and we got A LOT of insights about that.

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE BOYS EPISODE 5.04!

How to Sell a Lunatic as the New God

Samaritan’s Embrace is bankrupt and Homelander is convinced he’s a God, and those two things work together to make a dark statement about religion and power as The Boys continues to reflect some of our darkest reality in a truly disturbing way. Homelander continues to fascinate me as he uses his hallucination of Madelyn and the delusions of grandeur that followed to move ahead with his plan to be the savior of the world. He’s still very much obsessed with his own family though, the episode opening with him sadly looking at a phone of him and Ryan and then accusing Firecracker of smelling like Soldier Boy (which he’s absolutely correct about).

He tells Firecracker that he was visited by an angel who foretold his destiny.

Firecracker: Well praise be – what is it?

When he answers ‘God’, she thinks he means serving the lord, but he quickly corrects her. He won’t be serving the lord, he’ll BE the lord. The messiah.

Homelander is making sense of his tragic life and all its hardships as the price he’s had to pay for being special and destined to be god, and he’s convinced Firecracker saw it all along and she’s not about to dissuade him. Therefore, he informs her, he’s chosen her to spread the word – since they control the media.

Homelander: Jesus would kill for our marketing.

Firecracker: WTF face

(This is a theme throughout the episode, which is peppered with small humorous moments like WTF faces to break up the too-close-to-reality darkness).

We get a typical The Boys scene intended to make most people say ‘ewww’ with Ashley and Oh Father, who married for PR but have discovered that she loves punishing him and he loves being punished, so they make enough noise to disgust the guards at the door and send his ball gag flying with enough force that it breaks the wall when he screams in ecstasy, ‘Back Ashley’ enjoying the show as voyeur. She reads his mind when he’s unguarded though, and realizes that the church is bankrupt.

Just then Firecracker shows up and gets to deliver a Soldier Boy-worthy gross line – “Dang, smells like a wet shit in a Waffle House in here”.

I admit that got the “ewww” the show was going for.

Some of the Seven minus Homelander and Soldier Boy meet at Vought Tower to brainstorm how they can make Homelander being God palatable to the masses.

Worm: What we need is a good story, who’s read Joseph Campbell?

I like Worm. Bring him some tasty dirt, someone.

The PR lady, on the other hand, does not like Worm, saying no wonder his last film got a low rating on the AV Club (which is a real thing and a nudge at fandom ala what Supernatural used to do in its meta episodes, so it made me smile).

Worm: I had to service fourteen main characters and cross over a bunch of assholes – you try to make a good finale out of that!

(Writers getting meta and putting a writer character into the canon, it’s the series’ last season after all and Kripke has spoken openly about being worried about fan reception of the series finale – he didn’t write the ending to Supernatural, but that finale certainly came with a range of reactions!)

It’s Firecracker who comes up with the idea that they need a church that preaches America and convinces the masses that the real American hero is Homelander, and he’s their savior. The Democratic Church of America. Voila, kill two birds with one stone, rescue her hubby’s failing church and find a way to get people to accept Homelander as god.

I am sincerely shocked that doesn’t exist with exactly that name already, to be honest.

Fathers and Daughters

A variation on the theme of fathers and sons that has so characterized this season and this show, Annie pays her estranged father a visit. I know some people thought this was a needless detour but I loved exploring her backstory more and finally knowing what the real story was with her dad. Turns out he’s remarried and Annie has a half brother, Mason.

Annie: WTF face.

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‘The Boys’ are Back – Season 5 Kicks Off with the Return of Soldier Boy!

‘The Boys’ are Back – Season 5 Kicks Off with the Return of Soldier Boy!

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The Boys Are Back!

One thing about waiting for literally years between seasons of a show you like is – it builds up A LOT of anticipation! So let’s just say I was really excited to finally watch the season premiere of the fifth and final season of The Boys. I’ve been watching since the very beginning – I’ll give any show a chance that has Eric Kripke’s genius attached to it, and I was captivated by The Boys from the start because of its eerie reflection of what was already happening all around us. The comics began the tradition of calling out things that are wrong with our society, but by the time the series aired, the reflection started to seem less like fiction and more like reality. Season 5 was mostly written well before the last election and there’s no way Kripke and company could have known how disturbingly close to home some of the story lines would hit right now – but I’ve said more than once that the man is eerily prescient. As I watched the first two episodes, I can’t even count the number of times I started swearing out loud “OMG how could they be so spot on?!” or “This is impossible, Kripke how did you anticipate THIS??”   It’s certainly not a good thing that a show meant to be an over-the-top parody of all that’s gone wrong in modern (especially American) society ends up feeling so realistic and relevant, but it makes me feel better that someone else is seeing it too. That’s a first step to maybe stopping it, right? Right??

And yes, that’s a theme in the show too. You see why I love it so much?

Season Five Premiere – Fifteen Inches of Sheer Dynamite

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!

Prime Video released the first two episodes of the new season on Wednesday, so what follows is a spoilery review of how the new season kicks off and how our favorite (and not favorite) characters are doing. If you haven’t watched yet, you may want to come back when you have – I love this show and I love digging deep into it and its complicated characters, hence the spoiler warning.

Homelander’s Crisis Continues

The season premiere kicks off with spectacle, which is fitting for The Boys. It’s a full on mega church moment as Homelander appears at the Vought shareholders meeting to the religious ecstasy of his followers – I mean, shareholders. Promises of a safer, more God fearing nation…. Does this sound familiar yet? Meanwhile, Starlight disguised as a Firecracker backup dancer is hacking into the system – suddenly the footage of Flight 37 appears onscreen of Homelander callously threatening the doomed passengers as he looks on horrified in the present.

His eyes start to glow ominously, and then Sister Sage shakes her head to calm him down. I immediately thought, they’ll probably just say it’s AI – and sure enough, that’s what they do. Remember, this was written years ago, but they get it right anyway, solidifying people’s willingness to disbelieve what their own eyes see if it’s an inconvenient truth. Memes making fun of the “AI altered footage” hit the internet; Homelander points out that he has seven fingers in the altered footage. How did they know that would be such a thing?

Peter Thiel gets a shout out as calling Sage for advice, the little bits of reality name dropped just making it all more eerie. She’s fine with the ongoing conflict the leak caused. Homelander, predictably, is not. What he cares about is being worshipped – he’s more pressed about the unflattering memes about him than how his ratings are.  In fact, he says, posting those kind of critical memes should be a crime. (Yes, I was yelling about how spot on the show is once again at this point).  Homelander can’t stand being disrespected, his fragile ego too brittle to withstand it.

“I need people to be devoted to me,” he whines.

I can’t help but feel a little bad for him even as I’m horrified by him. He’s so DAMAGED. In the season opener, Homelander continues the psychological crises that plagued him in Season 4, knowing everyone around him has their heart rate skyrocket when they’re near him because they’re all afraid of him. His handy dandy little maternal fixation with Firecracker has dried up too (as did her milk once she stopped taking the drug that was damaging her heart to make her lactate).

Antony Starr is brilliant in making the strongest man in the world look exactly like a petulant toddler who’s been denied his favorite toy.

Homelander isn’t too happy with the other supes who are still loyal to him either. The Deep has a podcast because of course he does, along with Black Noir version 2. He’s all about the “men’s lives matter” and staying away from women because “bitches like Starlight make you weak”, claiming he’s never felt manlier.  Later he spreads his bare legs for an overhead camera to sell his red light for the perineum contraption, which if you recall was a real thing on the internet for a while with guys out there sunning their perineum. Homelander calls in the Deep and Black Noir after the Flight 37 video debacle, demanding to know why they let Starlight get away and haven’t found A Train or Butcher. He wraps his hands around their throats as he hovers over them like a predator, the stage manager who was working the shareholder meeting dead (and decapitated) beside him as a visual warning. Antony Starr is very very good at making Homelander very very scary – the fact that he’s unhinged combined with all that power and the sadistic desperation is a terrifying combination. Apparently the stage manager liked some Starlight posts, and that’s why he’s dead.

(The whole liking social media posts can get you killed thing, btw, is too close to home right now, but spot on once again).

The Deep doesn’t hesitate to offer up his phone to have his social media posts checked, sycophantic to the end (or at least so far).   He’s not pleased with Noir not backing him up, reminding him that he’s not the real Noir, he can talk! Noir remains both silent and mysterious. Ominously so.

Back home, Homelander stands in front of the capsule holding his bare-chested underwear-clad sleeping father, which is in his living room. He sighs. (Yes, that description is relevant, as are the many Soldier Boy photos and gifs that will inevitably grace this review – this is originally a Supernatural website, after all…)

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Happy Birthday Jensen Ackles! (2025 Edition)

Happy Birthday Jensen Ackles! (2025 Edition)

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I often write a birthday post for Jensen’s birthday looking back in gratitude for all the ways he brightened my year (and of course for bringing Dean Winchester to life so brilliantly). This year is no exception in terms of gratitude – I am as in love with Supernatural as ever, five years after the show ended, and I am still endlessly grateful for the show and for Dean. In spite of being not the most prolific social media user, Jensen’s occasional posts have invariably been bright spots in the year too. His con appearances never fail to warm my heart, whether I’m there or watching from afar, and I feel incredibly lucky to have been in the audience for another Radio Company show and some Saturday Night Special performances. I had a few special moments with him in the past year that I’ll forever be thankful for, including a little time with him and his Baby and some serendipitous Disney World chats.

That’s alot of joy – and I’m very very grateful.

But I also really REALLY need some things to look forward to right now, in the midst of these difficult times. So I thought I’d look ahead instead of behind for this birthday post, because I’m also very grateful that we have SO much to look forward to from Jensen coming up! He’s been working hard filming multiple projects, and I can’t wait to see all the fruits of his labor – because we know they’ll be awesome.

I enjoyed Jensen’s guest turn as Russell on Tracker and was happy to hear that they want him back (when he can fit it into that busy schedule). They left Russell’s history mysterious enough that I want to know more about him, and I loved every moment of Russell onscreen. Jensen and good buddy Justin Hartley make believable brothers, and they clearly enjoyed being able to act together after so many years of friendship. So, one of the things we have to look forward to – more Russell!

Hopefully we’ll find out more about the family mystery with all three siblings in the new season.

Russell had that cockiness to his personality, and that sense of humor, that we all know Jensen can pull off so organically – part of what makes us fall a little bit in love with all his characters.

Even when we don’t want to! (We’ll get to Soldier Boy in a minute…)

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We also have the brand new show ‘Countdown’ to look forward to – a starring role for Jensen, and a new partnership of Chaos Productions with Prime Video. We don’t know alot about Mark Meachum yet, but the little hints we’ve gotten are intriguing.

Most exciting for me, every time I’ve asked Jensen about how it’s going, HE has been excited – and generally when he thinks something is gonna be good, it’s something I end up loving! Meachum will be complex for sure, and there will apparently be plenty of tension and action and interpersonal complications, all of which should make for a compelling new character.

What bodes even better is how much fun they’re having behind the scenes on the set, including Jensen serenading the cast (with some harmonizing) – and even sharing it with us!

Cannot wait to meet you, Mark Meachum!

And then of course we have the return of Soldier Boy, my beloved. (I angst alot over how much anticipation I feel for his return, considering what an absolutely awful person/supe he is, but honestly I really cannot wait – I wrote a whole chapter about why in ‘Supes Ain’t Always Heroes’ and I’m standing by it…)

We missed him in Season 4, in all his glorious complexity. Part lost little boy, part violent rageful supe, part anguished father, part damaged son. Give him back to me!

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Of course you’re not!

I mean, look at him…

I was already very VERY excited about Jared Padalecki joining Jensen on The Boys for the upcoming and final season, which I first talked to Eric Kripke about literally years ago. I’ve been fairly sure it would happen barring some unforeseen circumstances for a while, and anticipating it all that time.

They took this photo for me a long long time ago – and it’s going to come true!

Jared and Jensen being back onscreen together for the first time since Supernatural ended is enough to keep me in anticipatory joy for the entire next year. Who will Jared play? An ally for Soldier Boy – or an antagonist? Jared has said he’d like to play a villain, and Jared and Jensen have both said they’d really enjoy their characters fighting it out (perhaps with an unexpected sense of alignment anyway) or maybe they’re enemies who have to work together… so many possibilities! Anticipation is good for us, and The Boys Season 5 is really bringing it. Last week The Boys officially announced that Jared would be guest starring in Season 5 – and so would Misha Collins!

Just the announcement nearly broke the internet, so you can imagine what the actual onscreen reunion (yes, they will be onscreen together per Eric Kripke) will do!

I love you, Eric Kripke. And I cannot WAIT to see what you come up with for some of your favorite actors for the final season of one of my favorite shows!

In addition to all of THAT to look forward to, we’ve got more a dozen conventions where Jensen will be appearing, so there will be plenty of moments to put a smile on my face from those too. And who knows what else might get added?  I’d say, all in all, Jensen fans are pretty damn lucky.

Jensen thrives on being productive and busy and fulfilled, doing the work he loves and spending time with the family he loves – and spending time with the fans he appreciates too. That all bodes well for the coming year, for all of us. And I’m grateful.

So Happy Birthday, Jensen Ackles – keep kickin’ it in the ass!

— Lynn

You can read Jensen’s chapters in Supes

Ain’t Always Heroes, Family Don’t End

With Blood, and There’ll Be Peace When

You Are Done – links and info on the home page!

The Cast of ‘The Boys’ Dishes on Those Complex Characters and What They Hope For in Season 5!

The Cast of ‘The Boys’ Dishes on Those Complex Characters and What They Hope For in Season 5!

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Last month was the first Creation Entertainment convention for Prime Video’s hit streaming series, ‘The Boys’ – which, as I write this, somehow seems more prescient than ever. Filming for Season 5, the final season of the show, begins in a few weeks, with Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy returning for hopefully every episode (and maybe being joined by his former Supernatural costar Jared Padalecki for some episodes too!)  As filming draws near, I couldn’t wait to hear what the actors were hoping for and what might be next for their characters.

Lucky for me, the convention was held in Whippany, New Jersey, so I was able to drive up and join the fun. It was the cast’s first Creation convention, which are modeled differently than multi-series Comic Cons or Fan Expos. The entire con was devoted to ‘The Boys’, so they had a great time getting to interact with fans of the hit Prime Video series. The cast is clearly as excited as we are about the upcoming final season of the show, as well as its spinoff Gen V and the prequel starring Jensen Ackles (Soldier Boy) and Aya Cash (Stormfront), Vought Rising. Here are some highlights of the convention and what the actors are hoping for for their characters in the final season.

I brought copies of the new book that takes a deep dive into ‘The Boys’ and all its complicated characters, Supes Ain’t Always Heroes, to give a copy to the actors, most of whom contributed interviews to the book, including in depth exclusive chapters from Jensen Ackles and Aya Cash, the stars of Vought Rising.  There are also chapters devoted to figuring out what makes all the characters tick, written by people who can do that – psychologists, sociologists and media experts. The Boys is such a smart show, I love digging deep and analyzing what makes IT tick too! Turns out, the cast is just as thoughtful about the show.

Colby Minifie, who plays Ashley, was as delightful onstage as she is onscreen. Yes, I know she’s not exactly one of the “good guys” but I love her character and she plays Ashley with such wit, I love watching her. There are several chapters in Supes that analyze her character, and she was excited to get a copy of the book. In fact, she could hardly believe there WAS a book about the show!

Here are some highlights of her panel and the others. She puts a lot of thought into her character, which is clear in her answers to some fan questions.

Colby: The dominatrix scene made sense to me because Ashley needs control somewhere in her life. We had lots and lots of meetings to be sure everyone felt safe.

We had lots and lots of meetings to be sure everyone felt safe. We have an intimacy coordinator on set. For example, I asked Jack if he was okay with it before I licked his feet.

Something you can only say on a show like ‘The Boys’ and just have everyone nod.

Another fan asked, what didn’t happen that she would have loved to see?

Colby: I would have loved to see what would’ve happened if Ashley did go escape with A Train. But I trust the writers.

(I for one was hoping Ashley would take A Train up on it when he suggested that things were about to go to shit and they should just get the hell outta there! I may have been yelling ‘run Ashley run!’)

It’s hard to answer a question about the “most shocking scene” in a show that’s known for its shocking scenes, but Colby weighed in.

Colby: The salad tossing human centipede… and the dick explosion. There are also simple things that are shocking in The Boys. I really do think the commentary on celebrity and the entertainment industry is quite out there and bold in its satire. It’s interesting from the tiniest thing to, you know, dick explosions.

(I told Colby that there’s a chapter that delves into the show’s commentary on celebrity and industry in Supes – I’m guessing she’ll read that one first!)

Some of Colby’s insights at the con were hilarious – and on point for the show. She told a story about how she pitched that Ashley’s super power should be that she has acid pee.

Me: I can’t believe you didn’t go for this, Kripke!

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‘The Boys’ Gets It Right – Eric Kripke on Mirroring Reality, Soldier Boy and Supernatural Reunions

‘The Boys’ Gets It Right – Eric Kripke on Mirroring Reality, Soldier Boy and Supernatural Reunions

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This has been a week of exciting news for ‘The Boys’, with announcements at Comic Con that there will not only be a Season 5 (with Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy as a regular), but also a prequel coming up starring Ackles and Aya Cash! Vought Rising will be all about the early adventures of Soldier Boy and Liberty aka Stormfront.

The season 4 finale set up Soldier Boy’s return in the original series, as Homelander was reunited with his (unconscious) dad.

I was fairly certain that was happening but even so, when I watched the screeners, I squealed at that reveal. And I was definitely not alone!

Now we know we’ll be getting A LOT more of this fascinating character, including a focus on the complicated (understatement) father-son relationship between Soldier Boy and Homelander in Season 5. (Jensen and Antony Starr have a lot less complicated relationship – the two were overjoyed to see each other at Comic Con last weekend).

Kripke has also teased that father and son might be more allied than at each other’s throats, since they have  a mutual gripe with Butcher. I’m guessing Soldier Boy is gonna wake up mighty pissed, and honestly? I am here for it.

We’re also getting a 1950s era deep dive into what sculpted Ben into Soldier Boy and Clara into Liberty (and eventually Stormfront). The fact that Vought Rising is described as a “lurid pulp saga prequel” set in 1950s New York makes the prequel sound even more enticing – just imagine the LOOK of it! The costumes alone will have both Jensen Ackles and his entire fandom beyond happy.

And Season 5, which will be the final season of the original series, is sure to be as spot on with its parodies and as entertaining with its action, depth and surprising emotionality as the previous four seasons.

As if that wasn’t enough fantastic news, Creation Entertainment also announced its very first The Boys convention, in New Jersey in October!

Clearly the show continues to be a phenomenon, and I’m endlessly fascinated about all the reasons why it has captured so many people’s imagination. When I spoke with Eric Kripke before Season 4 had aired, we had a chance to talk a bit about the show as an eerie mirror of our real world, the power of its nuanced characters, and what Supernatural reunions might be on the way. Here’s some more of our conversation now that we’re not in worried-about-spoilers territory. You can read lots more about The Boys and its complex characters – with input from Jensen Ackles, Aya Cash, Eric Kripke and many others – in Supes Ain’t Always Heroes, including more of the psychological questions I can’t resist asking, to which they all have always given such incredible answers.

I asked Eric how it felt that the series keeps veering closer and closer to reality and being more explicit about being a mirror of some disturbing parts of our actual world. Was he worried that it was going to get a little too real for some people?

Eric Kripke: I never know whether something will work or not or what the response will be, I’m just trying to do something that means something to me and entertains me. It’s for sure a more explicit season, but like we’ve never been particularly subtle.

Lynn: That’s true!

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The Boys Season 4 Wraps Up With a Bang – Can’t Wait for Season 5!

The Boys Season 4 Wraps Up With a Bang – Can’t Wait for Season 5!

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The aptly named season finale, Assassination Run, kicks off (in universe) on January 6 – because of course it does. Honestly this season is hitting almost TOO close to reality right now, as the real world gets more and more terrifying. And yet I still find it validating to know someone else is seeing the chaos going on and reflecting it back to me.

So, here’s all the twists and turns and surprises the season ended with – SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE SEASON 4 FINALE!

Directed by none other than Eric Kripke himself.

The story lines all converge in the finale, as they should. It’s January 6 and the news about A Train comes out (and the cancellation of that fabulous film Training A Train alas…)   Vought puts out a PSA with supes saying they take responsibility… which is exactly what they don’t. Congress counts the electoral votes as Frenchie works with increasing desperation on extracting the virus.

Torn Between Two Identities

The shapeshifter pretending to be Annie surprised Hughie by asking him to marry her, and he surprises her back by running to get his own ring and asking the same, and….yep, back in bed.

Hughie: Wow, that was great… two fingers was a lot…

Next season I hope Hughie gets to really open up about all the assault he’s endured this season.

The show has been able to say some nuanced things about female sexual assault in its four years, and it’s certainly had plenty to say about the trauma every single male and female character have endured, but Hughie’s sexual assault is an opportunity to say/show more about something not often talked about enough.

In between sleeping with Hughie, the shifter goes back to real Annie to recharge, confiding her own rather sad story. Sure, she’s a sociopath, but what did anyone expect?  She’s the ultimate example of the identity crisis every single character is having this season, literally not knowing who she is.

Shifter Annie: I barely remember what I look like. One minute I was me and the next I was Miss Jamison, my preschool teacher, and I could see every memory she had. She felt justified in doing all those shitty things…you all do. You all think you’re the hero of your own story.

Another major theme of The Boys. Erin Moriarty did an amazing job with this story line – it has to be, always, so difficult to play two versions of yourself!

While Shifter Annie is gone, Hughie calls Butcher, who tells him a story about a steakhouse in Nevada where he was gonna go with Lenny. The kind of memory you bring up when you know you’re running out of time.

Butcher: Funny what you think about when your time’s up.

He asks Hughie to go there, and to tell the Boys he’s sorry. Tears in his eyes, he hangs up.

Hughie and not-Annie and MM take Robert Singer (Supernatural’s Jim Beaver) to a secret bunker where they hope to be able to defend him and that they hope the shifter won’t get in. Oops, too late…

Singer: If you’d killed Neuman like I’d ordered, we wouldn’t be stuck underground playing pocket pool… ya idjit.

Every Supernatural fan everywhere: YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS HE SAID IDJIT!!!

To make it even clearer, he adds: Balls!

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The Boys Season 4’s Penultimate Episode ‘The Insider’

The Boys Season 4’s Penultimate Episode ‘The Insider’

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Suddenly we’re almost at the end of The Boys season 4 – it seemed to go by very quickly, didn’t it? This season’s reception has been a bit more uneven than the nearly universal kudos for the previous season, especially for the last episode and the treatment of Hughie’s assault. It’s undoubtedly challenging to keep upping the game with a show that started out with such high levels of shock, sex and especially violence right from the jump. That may be the source of some struggle this season, but I’m still thoroughly enjoying what this show does best – hold up a mirror to some of the worst parts of our real life and poke at them. There’s so much that’s over the top in reality right now, sometimes The Boys feels a little too real – but mostly for me it’s validating to see the reflection and be assured that yes, someone else sees the insanity too!

I also enjoy watching the show through the lens of what it’s trying to say, which is slightly different each season. It’s why my colleague Matt and I edited a book on The Boys, examining those themes with input from actors, psychologists and media experts. I was fascinated then, in Season 3, and I’m still fascinated now. (You can find Supes Ain’t Always Heroes at your favorite bookstore or on Amazon)

We have one more episode that will air in the wee hours of Thursday morning this week – and believe me, you do NOT want to miss it!

So, what happened last week in Episode 4.07? A lot!

The Life of Ryan

The theme of this episode – attempting to be your own person and who you really are — is expressed in a biting parody of one of my favorite shows of all time, Avenue Q, which I saw on Broadway with my kids a long time ago – and adored.  Vought Studios presents, of course, Avenue V, complete with puppets of all the supes and poor Ryan looking uncomfortable with every single thing they sing about.  Most of that is encouraging kids to rat out their parents and teachers and neighbors for anything that might be ANTIFA or Christmas hate.  Ryan keeps calling ‘cut’, though the director insists his dad approved the lyrics. Homelander, overwhelmed with issues of his own, leaves Ryan a snippy message to just suck it up and do it, but that doesn’t go over too well.

Ryan eventually stops the filming and addresses the camera, much to Homelander’s anger and disappointment (though he’s taking his father’s previous advice not to let anyone else prevent you from speaking your mind…Be careful what you wish for, Homelander)

(I feel like Cameron Crovetti had a blast filming this…)

Ryan: That song isn’t cool, none of this is cool. Your family isn’t your enemy, your family is all you’ve got. I’ve been thinking about my mom a lot. She died but she loved Christmas…and Terms of Endearment…and her husband Billy. But she wouldn’t love this and she wouldn’t want me doing it. My mom always told me to tell the truth.

Ryan is as torn as everyone else this season – in his case, between two dads.  At Homelander’s place, Ryan sees a package under the Christmas tree and recognizes the return address as “dontbeacunt”. It’s a photo of his mom and Butcher and their dog.

Butcher, watching Ryan’s speech on a TV in a bar, tells Kessler aka himself that’s why he’s got faith in the kid.

And then he collapses on the floor of the bar.

Butcher also reunites with the Boys in this episode, telling them about the virus Sameer is working on and that it would cause global pandemic and a supe genocide. They all notice for the first time that Butcher is sometimes talking to no one (as Kessler calls him an asshole and warns him that he’s pissing away their best shot).  Butcher agrees that they’ll only use the virus on Homelander and Neuman, much to his alter ego’s disgust.

Kessler confronts Butcher, aka Butcher confronts himself. Why does he have such a soft spot for supes? Is it because he fucked Maeve? Cares about Ryan, who’s not even his? Butcher says he gave Becca his word, but Kessler scoffs that if their love was so perfect and pure why did he go around fucking waitresses?

Nobody is better at convincing Butcher that he’s a fuck-up than Butcher himself.

The Boys are starting to pull together again, though. Butcher also got Mallory to pull some strings and free a reluctant and still guilt-stricken Frenchie. MM asks Butcher to be back in charge, saying he’s better off doing research instead of being the skipper – and trying to follow doctor’s orders. Hughie, Butcher and Annie start to figure out the assassination plot for January 6 (of course) and also find a supe shapeshifter that Sister Sage put on the job. Uh oh.

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