There was a lot of information revealed about “The Boys” season 2 and beyond in the Comic Con @ Home panel on Thursday…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
Things are going to get absolutely diabolical during “The Boys” season 2.
On Thursday, the cast and crew from the Amazon Prime series appeared at Comic Con @ Home to preview what lies ahead when the show returns on Sept. 4.
Just as a refresher — at the end of “The Boys” season 1, the team had been exposed for going after the supes from Vought International after Homelander discovered their true identities and the connection to The Seven. Ultimately, Starlight saved Hughie from A-Train despite his betrayal to her personally — and then A-Train suffered a heart attack thanks to all of the Compound-V he’d been taking.
Butcher attempted to exact revenge against Homelander but instead he watched the sociopathic superhero burn a hole through Madelyn Stillwell’s head. He then took Butcher to the house where his supposedly dead wife was found still very much alive — and she was raising a son fathered by Homelander.
When season 2 begins, The Boys are the most wanted fugitives in the country, which forced them to stay on the run and get really creative while going after Vought International. Meanwhile, Homelander has come even more unhinged without Stillwell keeping him on a short leash but he soon faces a new challenge internally after The Seven adds a new member.
Much like the first season, “The Boys” season 2 will also tackle some real life issues including white supremacy and systemic racism, which will be two major stories tackled throughout the eight episodes.
With that said, let’s get to everything we learned from “The Boys” season 2 panel at Comic Con @ Home.
A Whale of a Good Time
It’s hard not to start with one of the highlights from the panel when a new clip from season 2 debuted and it’s safe to say no aquatic animals are ever going to be safe on this show.
After a dolphin went flying through a windshield before being run over by a truck in season 1, “The Boys” ups the game for season 2 with this clip where the team is trying to out run a pack of sharks and one giant sperm whale being thrown at them by the Deep.
If you thought the Deep was sad about that dolphin, just wait until you see his face with Billy Butcher aiming a boat at one of his favorite sea mammals.
The Deep will also have to deal with a character from his past reappearing during season 2.
One interesting side note to this scene — showrunner Eric Kripke revealed during the panel that this was actually done with practical effects rather than pure CGI. In fact, a giant 40 plus foot sperm whale model was built for this specific scene. Take that Bruce!
Butcher’s New Mission
For the entirety of “The Boys” season 1, Billy Butcher’s goal was to exact revenge on the superheroes from Vought International with an emphasis on Homelander after he believed the star-spangled sociopath raped and killed his wife, Becca
Unfortunately, Butcher received the surprise of a lifetime at the end of the season when he discovered Becca was still alive and she was raising Homelander’s son.
Once Butcher finds his way back to his team, he has a new purpose in mind as he continues to target Vought International and their drug-induced superheroes.
“The end of season 2 was a complete game changer for Butcher,” Karl Urban said about his character. “A real paradigm shift. It changes everything going forward for him. His objective through season 2 is to really to find Rebecca and rescue her, to get his wife back.”
Homelander Unplugged
A life filled with all the powers in the world and nobody to love him has left Homelander a little unhinged — and things will only get worse now that Madelyn Stillwell is dead.
After lasering a hole through her head at the end of season 1, Homelander discovered that he actually had a son but will fatherhood really change him?
According to Antony Starr, “The Boys” season 2 will see Homelander take an even bigger role with Vought International as he truly begins leading The Seven in the way he sees fit. While his homicidal tendencies will still be directed at Butcher and his boys, Starr also promised that Homelander will look out for those close to home as well — and that means anybody bullying The Seven will have to deal with him.
Oh and just because Stillwell is gone doesn’t mean she’s forgotten. The disturbing image of Homelander with his tongue in a bottle of baby’s milk — yeah, that belongs to the dearly departed former Vought executive that killed last season.
Starlight Goes Dark
Annie January got a lot more than she bargained for when joining The Seven a season ago but she’s starting to realize what it will take to become an actual superhero amongst a team filled with egomaniacs and psychopaths.
At the end of season 1, Starlight found out that Hughie Campbell had been lying to her as he attempted to get closer to The Seven to exact his own revenge. She eventually dumped him but that doesn’t mean her feelings for Hughie have gone away when season 2 begins. In fact, that dynamic between them will remain a constant push and pull as Starlight tries to survive in The Seven while clearly loving a fugitive in Hughie, who murdered a former teammate in Translucent.
Erin Moriarty added during the panel that Starlight has built up a “wall” that will keep her somewhat inaccessible to those closest to her as she continues to navigate her way around this strange new world.
And what about that confrontation with A-Train at the close of season 1? How exactly will they co-exist as part of The Seven in season 2?
According to Moriarty, Starlight will ultimately blackmail A-Train to keep him quiet as he continues to deal with his own issues stemming from season 1.
A Storm Rolling In
It’s been well documented that The Seven will be getting a new member this season as Aya Cash joins the show as Stormfront and she will definitely be butting heads with Homelander once she arrives.
Fans from the comics will likely remember Stormfront as a rather controversial character (originally a male in the source material), who was a neo-Nazi with extraordinary powers almost comparable to Homelander. It’s unknown how closely the Stormfront in “The Boys” season 2 will resemble the original character but with Kripke already revealing that white supremacy and white nationalism will be two issues tackled this season, it would make sense connecting that back to this new arrival.
Off the Track
Speaking of A-Train, he will still be facing a rough road ahead in season 2 after his addiction to Compound-V caused him to have a heart attack.
Jesse T. Usher, who plays the fastest man alive, says that his ability is a similar one shared by other superheroes around the world. That means he’s constantly defending himself as the fastest person on Earth and the moment that someone beats him is the day he’s no longer a member of The Seven.
So A-Train will be facing a lot of obstacles during season 2 as he tries to find his place in a group where his spot is always being threatened. He will also have to deal with the fallout from his Compound-V abuse, which will certainly play a major role for him moving forward.
The Boys Will Be Boys
As for the rest of The Boys, Hughie has finally started to adapt to his new life as a member of this team and he’s also going to let his voice be heard more often in season 2.
While he was often times an unwilling spectator to many of the missions that Butcher put the team on during season 1, Hughie will begin to display more leadership qualities of his own in season 2.
Meanwhile, we will also learn a lot more about Frenchie this season because at some point his origin story will be told as well. How did he meet Butcher and team up with him previously? All will be revealed with his backstory.
Season 3
Of course one of the biggest surprises to take place during the panel was an appearance from executive producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, who shared with the cast and crew that “The Boys” has officially been renewed for season 3 on Amazon Prime.
It seemed like a no brainer given the popularity and success of the series but it’s always a welcome surprise when a show gets picked up before the previous season even has a chance to debut.
Now here’s the catch — due to COVID-19 restrictions, there’s no telling when “The Boys” season 3 will actually get into production much less debut on Amazon Prime. The series shows primarily in Toronto, Canada but right now there’s no exact timeline when filming would begin.
The good news is no matter how long it takes, “The Boys” will be back for season 3.
Prime Rewind
One more piece of good news from the panel was the addition of a new after show that will debut in late August called “Prime Rewind: Inside The Boys” that will dig into each episode throughout the season. Aisha Tyler will host the show with the first episode debuting on August 28 — one week before the season 2 premiere — with a refresher course on everything that happened in season 1.
“The Boys” season 2 will debut with the first three episodes on Amazon Prime on Friday, September 4 followed by new episodes each Friday until the finale in October. We will have full coverage and recaps on Nerdcore Movement throughout the season!
