“ | Victoria Neuman, she was a great American. And a dear, dear friend. Murdered in cold blood by deep-state Starlighters embedded in our own government. Now that we have full legal authority, a veritable army of superheroes will be called upon to rout these traitors from our government and from our streets. America will be safe again. And to the Starlighters, whatever rock you're hiding under, we're coming for you. I'm coming for you.
―Homelander addressing the public at a news conference.[src]
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John, better known as Homelander, is the main antagonist of the Amazon series The Boys, a recurring antagonist of its spin-off series The Boys Presents: Diabolical and one of the overarching antagonists of the spin-off series Gen V.
Homelander is the leader of The Seven, the strongest Supe in the world, and the archenemy of Billy Butcher and The Boys. With the face of a movie star and the powers of a god, Homelander is considered the greatest superhero alive. Not only can he fly, but he possesses super strength and super durability far beyond the capacity of other superheroes, super senses (sight, hearing, etc.), X-ray vision and laser vision.
On the surface, he's affable, modest, and sincere; the ultimate boy scout, an American treasure, a God-loving patriot. But just like regular mortals, even superheroes have secrets.
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History[]
Background[]
Childhood[]
“ | You should've been raised in a home with a family who loved you. Not in a cold lab with doctors."
"And yet, I turned out great. ―Homelander's response to Jonah Vogelbaum's apology.[src]
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Homelander was born in the spring of 1981 from the semen of Soldier Boy, the first and greatest superhero of America, and a homeless runaway paid by Vought with two grand to carry the embryo to term. His birth was an incredibly violent event by his unbelievable powers, lasering his way out of the womb with heat vision, gruesomely killing his mother as her guts opened, and rising in the air with his umbilical cord still attached to him like a creature from myth or a nightmare. Additionally, he killed three doctors and a nurse while he was at it. Barbara Findley, one of the head scientists in charge of him, witnessed the horrific moment and knew it only went "downhill" from it, implying that the newborn Homelander had killed even more people after the initial birth. ("Wisdom of the Ages")
He was raised in a lab, surrounded by doctors like Jonah Vogelbaum, who named him John. In his early days, between the ages of 5 and 6, he was a sweet child who would cuddle up to Vogelbaum, loving hearing stories about Davy Crockett & Teddy Roosevelt and the idea of the woods manifesting destiny. However, Vogelbaum needed him to become the most powerful man in the world at the cost of turning "violent, aggressive, wrathful, and downright hateful". ("The Self-Preservation Society")
Throughout his childhood, John was put through painful and traumatic physical experiments and surgeries to test the limits of his abilities. Some of these tests included having his hand forced into a furnace, being boiled alive, and being forced to fight strength-enhanced Vought guards. ("One Plus One Equals Two") He was also put under long, strict, and tedious mental conditioning as he was forced to spend hours sitting in front of a projector that displayed images that were chosen to mold his personality with the American flag, Jesus Christ, and a baseball game into becoming patriotic, all-American and turn him into a symbol of the nation itself.
Despite these horrible abuses from Vought scientists and his power to easily escape at any time, John was elaborately manipulated to be obedient as he deeply craved love, affection, and approval from the scientists who were the closest thing he had to a family, could not stand the thought of them being disappointed in him. Vought made the achievement by bringing the best psychologists in the world and successfully developing the protocol to carefully engineer that need.
As a child, Homelander had accidentally killed countless female tutors, the most notable incident of which being in March of 1994, when he hugged a woman using far too much strength, breaking her spine and instantly killing her. While these behaviors were usually motivated by indignation, this time it was by isolation-induced depression.[1] At some point during this period, he also developed a sociopathic alternate personality that helped him "get through the bad room".
Growing up, Homelander was a fan of Soldier Boy, "watching all of his movies, hundreds of times". Homelander respected Soldier Boy for being the only other Supe in existence who was "nearly" as strong as him, and idolized the latter as his hero, not knowing at the time that they were father and son. ("Herogasm")
The Boys Presents: Diabolical[]
Joining The Seven[]
“ | They had a bomb. I covered it with my body, but the blast was too great. We searched the rubble. Sadly we're the only survivors. I failed you, all of you."
"No, no. What are you... You risked your lives for us. We're grateful to you." "Thank you. But those poor hostages, they were the real heroes. ―Homelander speaking to the press following his ill-fated first mission.[src]
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Years later, John became the new leader of The Seven; Vought's premier superhero team. Presented by Stan Edgar and Madelyn Stillwell to the public as "The Homelander". Following his introduction, Noir came onto the stage, immediately stealing much of the attention that John had garnered under the spotlight, to his and Stillwell's anger. Following this, Stillwell convinced John not to let Black Noir upstage him, and to simply go by "Homelander". ("One Plus One Equals Two")
Meeting Black Noir[]
Homelander is soon teamed up with Noir on his first mission; stopping a group of terrorists who have taken hostages at a chemical plant. Refusing to wait for Black Noir, Homelander immediately went inside and subdued two of the terrorists, breaking one of their noses in the process. He then confronted the rest. When they refused to back down, Homelander twisted their guns. However, one of the terrorists still held a hostage at gunpoint, despite the gun not working anymore. Homelander, horribly underestimating his abilities, used his heat vision to heat up the gun, causing it to explode, killing the hostage and destroying the man's hand. When the man's associate started screaming at him, he lost his mind and clamped his hand over her mouth, accidentally ripping out her jaw. This leads the hostages screaming at him and calling him a monster, resulting in him killing everybody in a fit of rage, leaving only one hostage still alive. Black Noir then appeared in the doorway. Thinking that he will rat him out to Vought, Homelander attempted to kill Black Noir with his heat vision, accidentally bringing down the entire plant. ("One Plus One Equals Two")
After pulling himself out of the rubble, Homelander saw the hostage crawl out of the wreckage towards a still-alive Black Noir. To Homelander's surprise, however, Noir coldly snapped the woman's neck while comforting her. Noir then helped Homelander come up with an excuse to cover up the failure of the mission. This event led to a mutual respect and eventual genuine friendship between the two. However, Homelander's lack of control deeply hardened him and possibly added to his already unstable mind. ("One Plus One Equals Two")
Meeting Becca Butcher[]
“ | My dad always said: 'Surround yourself with people smarter than you.'
―Homelander to Becca Butcher[src]
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Homelander met Becca Butcher in a Vought private Christmas party in 2011. He talked with Becca, the new Senior Director from the department of Digital Marketing of Vought and said that he loved the work she did with his official twitter profile. Before ending the conversation to see Queen Maeve, Homelander said that he would like to talk about her taking over the rest of his social media accounts ("The Self-Preservation Society").
Shortly after the two met, Homelander sexually assaults Becca, ultimately leading to the birth of Ryan sometime in mid-2012. This event also sparked the course of the entire series, as it fueled Billy Butcher's hatred for Supes and lead to him forming The Boys. Unbeknownst to Homelander and Butcher, however, Becca went to Madelyn Stillwell and Jonah Vogelbaum after getting pregnant. The two secretly kept Becca in witness protection, where she began to raise Homelander's son alone.
The Boys: Season One[]
Killing the Mayor of Baltimore[]
“ | ” |
After finding out that the Mayor of Baltimore had knowledge about the Compound V while spying on Stillwell, Homelander assured that the existence of the chemical remained a secret by destroying the Mayor's private jet, killing him and his son, who was excited after receiving an autographed poster of his favorite hero, Homelander himself. ("The Name of the Game").
After The Murder[]
“ | Have you heard about the Mayor of Baltimore?"
"Yeah... yeah. I heard the plane went down. ―Madelyn Stillwell and Homelander[src]
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In an informal meeting, Homelander asks about the whereabouts of Translucent. Stillwell gives a direct answer, saying that she hasn't located him. Afterward, Stillwell makes an observation about the Mayor of Baltimore. Homelander tries to play it cool, but she knows that it was he who took the jet down, mainly because of The Deep. The two of them have a discussion about what Homelander represents. The meeting ends with Stillwell calling the leader of The Seven "pure", then she successfully eases Homelander ("Cherry").
Homelander, unhappy about The Deep's choice of telling Stillwell about the jet's destruction, requests the presence of his fellow associate in the meeting room of The Seven Tower. There, they talk about the unfortunate choice of telling Stillwell about the scorching left by Homelander's eye beams on the jet that the Deep saw. Homelander makes his points clear: The Deep keeps his mouth shut, or there will be no Deep to sniff him anymore ("Cherry").
The Search For Translucent[]
Homelander goes to Crime Analytics and asks Anika the last known location of Translucent. At first, she is not sure if she can share that information with him, to which Homelander replies with a straight "I can do whatever the fuck I want". Anika gets the message and gives Homelander the information he wants ("Cherry").
Homelander flies to the ten blocks where Translucent is expected to be. There, he sees a van. Inside the van, there is one of The Boys, Frenchie. Homelander doesn't know he's an enemy, so he casually asks for his ID. Frenchie gives it to him, but refuses to let Homelander get a look at the back of the van. This causes him to be suspicious. Homelander decides to look anyway with his x-ray vision, only to see nothing there. An explosion then happens some blocks away, part of a plan to keep Homelander off where Translucent really is. Homelander then goes for it, flying in the direction of the fire ("Cherry").
Mission With Queen Maeve[]
“ | You guys are the real heroes!
―Homelander to a SWAT team leader[src]
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Queen Maeve and Homelander go to a high-rise building, where a sniper is hiding. A SWAT team is in position, but the arrival of two members of the Seven makes them step back. Homelander, with his impressive theatrics, praises the law officers and calls them "real heroes". Maeve and Homelander enter the building. Homelander kills the sniper by punching his hand through his chest. In order to keep up appearances, Homelander shoots the sniper's gun several times at Maeve's armor, just to make it look like they were attacked first ("Get Some").
The Race[]
“ | ” |
Homelander arrives at the Race when Queen Maeve is being interviewed, drawing all attention to him. He makes a speech to the spectators, and after that he says, almost whispering, "you fucking cocksuckers", showing his true feelings about everybody there that isn't a Supe. Then, he and Maeve start a conversation, and Homelander remembers the time when the two of them were dating. He looks back with sincere joy and a feeling of nostalgia. He even tries to get closer to her, with the attendance shouting "kiss her!", but Maeve steps back. After the conversation is over, Homelander sees that a weird man he vaguely recognises is looking at him in an odd way. They exchange stares ("Get Some").
After the Race is over, Homelander goes back to the Seven Tower. There, he and the Deep show Stillwell a box. She opens it and sees Translucent's remains. Homelander asks Deep what the box is made of, to which he answers "zinc", the only thing Homelander can't see through. Inside the box, there is a message, "COMING FOR YOU", which is basically a declaration of war ("Get Some").
Transoceanic Flight 37[]
“ | Homelander, are you going to save us?"
"Oh, sweetheart, of course I'm gonna save you. You betcha! ―A little girl and Homelander[src]
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When a Transatlantic flight for Paris-Chicago is hijacked by terrorists, Stillwell sees an opportunity to promote her agenda of getting supes into the military. While the plane is over international waters, she sends Maeve and Homelander to save the plane, believing that a successful rescue of the passengers means that no congressman will ever dare vote against supes in the military.("The Female of the Species").
Homelander and Maeve are easily able to board the plane and kill the terrorists to the applause of the grateful passengers. However, when they enter the cockpit, they find one more terrorist pointing a gun at the pilot, next to a dead co-pilot. Before the supes can stop him, the terrorist shoots the co-pilot. Homelander uses his heat vision to kill the terrorist. The beams pass through the man, destroying the plane's control panel. Maeve appeals to Homelander to try and save the plane, but Homelander points out that he could not carry the plane without a solid surface to stand on and that if he tried to stop it directly, the plane's internal structure wouldn't be strong enough. She also suggests to him to fly all the passengers down one by one, but Homelander says that will take too long. Homelander maintains that they can only abandon the passengers to die. Maeve then appeals to Homelander to save at least a mother and her daughter. Homelander refuses, saying that anyone who survived will tell the world that the two of the greatest heroes of the world did nothing to save the rest. Maeve, seeing no other choice, embraces Homelander, and together they get out of the plane and fly off. In the distance, they see the plane falling towards the ocean ("The Female of the Species").
Hours later, Homelander and Maeve are seen on a beach where the plane's wreckage is washing ashore. Maeve is truly grieving the loss of the passengers, meanwhile, Homelander decides to act up and gives a speech to the news crews there, appealing to the audience, saying that if super-heroes were on the chain of command of the military, the tragedy of Flight 37 would never have happened. By the end of the speech, everyone is cheering for Homelander. In the Seven Tower, Stillwell watches the speech on her TV with a smirk on her face, knowing that in a way, Homelander did his job ("The Female of the Species").
Aftermath Of The Tragedy[]
“ | We're here today to remember the victims of Transoceanic Flight 37, 123 brave souls lost in an instant, in a senseless act of violence.
―Homelander giving a speech in Flight 37's victims funeral[src]
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In the Seven Tower, A-Train tells Homelander that he killed his girlfriend Popclaw after she revealed details about Compound V to unauthorized people. Homelander tells his colleague that he did the right thing by telling him. Homelander comforts A-Train, but not before making an ominous remark like "I'll always be watching you" ("Good for the Soul").
At the memorial service for the victims of Flight 37, Homelander gives a speech, mentioning every victim by name and job. Homelander mentions Susan Lopez and her daughter Maya, the two people Maeve wanted to save. After that, she leaves. Homelander, after finishing the speech, finds her seated on a wood bench. Maeve justifies her leaving off the memorial early because she hates boring speeches. Homelander seats on her side and tries to talk to her. He says that the one thing he loves in Maeve is that she takes initiative. By the end of his pep talk, Maeve says one more time that she hates boring speeches. After the remark, a silence strikes the place ("Good for the Soul").
Believe Expo[]
“ | Wasn't I chosen to save you? It is not my God-given purpose to protect the United States of America? Psalm 58:10: 'The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance; He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked'!
―Homelander giving a speech to the audience of Believe Expo[src]
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Homelander arrives at the festival and seconds later, a huge crowd starts to follow him, asking for photos and autographs. The leader of the Seven just waves and smiles at them, and right after he enters a private place where he can be alone. There, he asks Ashley Barrett of Stillwell's whereabouts, Ashley responds that the Vice-President of Vought International isn't there ("Good for the Soul").
Homelander then goes to see Stillwell, who is taking her son Teddy to the pediatrician. Homelander wants to make a speech that appeals to the public of the festival, focusing on faith and a "John Wayne justice", while Stillwell wants a moderate speech that can make congressmen identify with. When Homelander doesn't get what he wants, he says that Stillwell is running off the discussion to "play a strong single mom" and that she is using the baby as an accessory. Stillwell just answers that they need boundaries. Before leaving, Homelander stares at the baby ("Good for the Soul").
Homelander then gets back to the festival and enters the VIP room. There, he talks to Hughie Campbell, a friend of Starlight. They talk for a short amount of time. Then, Ezekiel says that everyone in the room will be re-baptized by Homelander. One by one, the participants are re-baptized. In Hughie's turn, Homelander asks if something wrong with him, because his blood pressure is 150/90. Hughie just says that he's afraid of water. Then, Homelander proceeds to re-baptize him, but this time Homelander is taking longer to get the participant out of water. Afraid, Hughie rises, after almost drowning. When the ceremony is over, Homelander leaves ("Good for the Soul").
Homelander then gives the speech, but instead of following the script as ordered by Stillwell, he improvises, putting a speech biased in Christianity and patriotism, and everyone in the crowd rejoices. Homelander then flies low towards the crowd, making him look like a messianic symbol ("Good for the Soul").
Back at CCTV, Stillwell notices Homelander watching her through the wall. She invites him in, mockingly asking if he is lonely. She warns about the speech he gave and has him lay on the couch, suckling her breast, as a way to "tame" him ("Good for the Soul").
Super in America[]
“ | So what if I took you to a house you never seen before, full of photos of parents you never met, toys you never played with, books you never read, and then asked you how much that fake fucking bullshit meant to you. How would that make you feel?
―Homelander to Madelyn Stillwell[src]
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In order to further sell the idea of Supes in the military, Vought decided to make a reality show featuring members of the Seven. Homelander then was brought to a house he never seen before and he had to make up a story about his childhood there, so the Vought crew could shoot it and send the footage to the reality show. Homelander said a lot of things about his "childhood", from baseball trophies to cakes. When he reached the bedroom, he saw the blanket he really used in his childhood locked in a lab. Triggering some painful memories, Homelander became angry and asked who put the blanket there, leaving right after that ("The Innocents").
Stillwell found Homelander in a barn. Homelander explained to her why he didn't want to shoot the promotional videos, but Stillwell managed to make him change his mind using the sexual attraction Homelander had to her ("The Innocents").
Nothing Personal[]
“ | I'm sorry. The, uh, elevator was out. Um, you... you probably don't remember, um, we've met before. [Mesmer holds out his hand] Oh, I... I would never try and read you."
"Let's be clear. I don't know you, and I don't want to. A-Train said you had some information. ―Mesmer "greeting" Homelander[src]
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After meeting with the Boys, Mesmer called A-Train and asked to see Homelander, saying that he had useful information. With his request answered, Mesmer goes meet Homelander on a rooftop. There, he shows Homelander spy-cam photos of the people he was looking after, a French guy, a black guy, a skinny white guy and a British guy. Mesmer then proceeded to ask Homelander for a job at Vought, but Homelander just flew away without any promises ("The Innocents").
Reunion with the Seven[]
“ | ” |
After looking at the photos of the Boys, he stops and sees one photo in particular. He realizes that Billy Butcher was the same guy who was staring at him at the Race of the Century, who happened to be the man he met in 2011 when he talked to his wife, Becca, in a Vought private Christmas party ("The Self-Preservation Society").
The Seven, or at least the rest of it, was waiting A-Train. When he arrives, Homelander starts the reunion. Homelander criticizes The Seven for having been unreliable and sloppy recently, except for Black Noir, since he's been obeying orders very well recently. Homelander shows The Seven a picture of Hughie, declaring that Hughie is responsible for the death of Translucent, blackmailing Mesmer, Ezekiel, and Popclaw. He throws it over to A-Train, who doesn't recognize Hughie at first, until the photo is zoomed out to show that it was from when they shook hands in that very room. Homelander also says that Hughie is targeting The Seven following Robin's death, blaming A-Train for it, and seeking vengeance. Starlight, after she recognized Hughie, is the main target of Homelander. Homelander begins to suspect Starlight of any possible involvement in aiding The Boys. After a tense confrontation, in which Starlight feared for her life, Maeve was able to calm an angry Homelander, promising to take responsibility for Starlight and her future actions ("The Self-Preservation Society").
After the reunion, Homelander entered Stillwell's room. After Stillwell finished a call with a Senator, she reveals to Homelander that they only needed 3 votes to get The Seven into the military. Homelander questions if Stillwell remembers Becca Butcher, revealing that she is missing, presumed dead. Homelander asks what happened to her, however Stillwell says that she presumed Becca just quit, raising Homelander's suspicions ("The Self-Preservation Society").
Visiting Vogelbaum[]
“ | I'm the world's greatest superhero.
―Homelander to Jonah Vogelbaum[src]
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Homelander arrives at the mansions of Jonah Vogelbaum, a former scientist at Vought, and starts to talk with him. Homelander tries to be formal, he ask some irrelevant questions, but Vogelbaum is direct and asks Homelander what he really wants. Homelander then questions Jonah about Rebecca Butcher. Jonah reveals that eight years ago Becca came to Stillwell after conceiving Homelander's child, which baffles Homelander, who was under the impression he was sexually impotent. He reveals that both Becca and the child died on the delivery table due to the amount of blood loss. Jonah apologizes for how Homelander turned out, admitting that he was his greatest failure ("The Self-Preservation Society").
Aid In Syria[]
“ | Howdy boys. Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. How you guys doing? Good? Why don't you, huh, go out and smoke or something, okay? I got this.
―Homelander to a U.S. squad[src]
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In Tal Rifaat, Syria, US troops approach a drug warehouse under cover of darkness when Homelander arrives. Homelander tells the troops to go for a break, as he will handle the search. Inside the building, Homelander uses his laser eyes to kill all the assailants. Except for one he accidentally wounded, so Homelander approaches the man and crushes the terrorist's head under his foot. Homelander then exits the building, but one of the assailants gets out and tries to escape. Homelander use his heat vision to bisect him. After he's done, Homelander shows to the captain a vial of Compound V ("You Found Me").
Discovering The Truth[]
“ | You promised me. No more lies. You fucking promised me. You and Vogelbaum should've got your story straight.
―Homelander to Madelyn Stillwell[src]
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At a Vought fundraiser, Homelander confronts Stillwell over his findings from Vogelbaum. The two of them talk about Becca and Homelander's lost son. After that, Homelander admits that he planned for Naqib to show up just as they needed to sway the Congress into letting them in the military. Homelander admits that he and A-Train used Compound V to supercharge terrorists, much to Stillwell's shock. Homelander says that there are Supes that only The Seven can fight all over the globe now. Stillwell takes Homelander to her office, where the two have sexual intercourse, however Homelander seems to find the activity painful ("You Found Me").
Then, when Homelander and Stillwell are laying on the couch, spending some time together, Stillwell reveals to Homelander that Mr. Edgar offered her his job in the future, but Homelander worries whether Madelyn will still be there for him on the day-to-day. They both promise to not keep any more secrets from one another. Stillwell apologizes for not telling Homelander about his child, as she wanted to spare him the pain. Stillwell says that Becca died from miscarriage, a different version from what was told by Vogelbaum. Homelander realizes that, raising suspicions ("You Found Me").
Homelander arrives at his lover's house just to find Billy Butcher, after putting an array of C4 explosives on Stillwell. Homelander brings Teddy, however, believing that Butcher would not put the child in danger. Homelander pushes Butcher, boasting about the sex he had with Becca. Homelander questions Billy's endgame, to which he reveals he just wants to hurt Homelander. Questioning if Butcher has any proof that Homelander killed his wife, Billy goes quiet, with Homelander questioning Stillwell about Becca and his baby. Homelander goes on a rant, furious that Stillwell hid secrets from him again. Homelander then reveals that he went back to Vogelbaum, getting the real truth out of him - that Vought put Becca and her child into witness protection for the past eight years. Stillwell admits that she is scared of Homelander, to which he appreciates, kissing her one last time before shooting his laser vision through her eyes and head. Not so after, Butcher decides to release the trigger, detonating the explosives ("You Found Me").
After the explosion, Butcher awakes on a lawn. Confused, he sees Homelander standing over him. In a house near them, a woman and a kid appears and goes to see them. Butcher is shocked to see Becca alive, with a child. Homelander questions if the child knows who he is, however, he reveals that he doesn't. Homelander reveals to the kid that he is his father ("You Found Me").
The Boys: Season Two[]
Translucent's Funeral[]
“ | I will save you. I'll do it for you. For America... and for a dear, dear old friend.
―Homelander[src]
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Sometime after Homelander showed Butcher that his wife was alive and that he had a son with her, Homelander held the funeral for Translucent, along with Translucent’s family and his son, Maverick. Homelander lies to the nation that Translucent was killed by the Supe Terrorists and that he will kill them to avenge his death, doing it so for the people, for America and for his dear old friends, Translucent himself. He even cries after saying that, making everyone there applaud him, touched by his words. After the speech, Starlight sings a song at the funeral.
No Sympathy For The Crippled[]
“ | What made you think I would ever allow a cripple into the Seven? For fuck's sake, Ashley, don’t look at him look at me! Ashley! LOOK. AT. ME!
―Homelander to Ashley[src]
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At Madelyn’s former office, now an empty room, with little furniture, Homelander opens the fridge and finds a bottle of her breast milk. Homelander grabs it, then smells and warms it with his heat vision and then he drinks it. Ashley walks in on him awkwardly and thanks him for helping her get Madelyn’s old job. She says she’ll fill her shoes as best as she can. She says that they found them a new hero to replace Translucent.
At the gym, Blindspot, a blind superhero, is seen training. He is skilled, doing a lot of acrobatics and showing his skills with a staff. After the training, Ashley introduces Blindspot to Homelander, and explains to Homelander that Blindspot fits a specific demographic that will really serve The Seven’s image. Homelander greets him and tells him he’s a hero moments before bashing his ears in and asking a terrified Ashley why on earth he would allow a “cripple” to be a part of The Seven. He threatens Ashley to tell him every single thing that happens in her job and explains that he is the boss, not her.
Stormfront's Debut[]
“ | Great. Alright. Great!
―Homelander after receiving the news that Stormfront is the new member of the Seven[src]
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Maeve and Homelander shoot a commercial for their “Save America” campaign about defeating the Supe Villains. Stormfront comes to the set and introduces herself as the newest member of The Seven, shocking Ashley, Homelander, and Maeve. Stormfront explains the the guys on “82”, aka Stan Edgar, made it happen. Stormfront live streams the whole meeting to her fans on Instagram and Homelander fakes excitement but walks away in a huff.
History Lesson[]
“ | Well, this is a truly fascinating if not slightly condescending lecture, but uh... I don't think I see the point, Stan."
"The point is... You are under a misconception that we are a superhero company. We are not. What we are really is a pharmaceutical company, and you are not our most valuable asset. ―Homelander and Stan Edgar[src]
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Homelander pays a visit to Stan Edgar, where he asks to be consulted on the new additions to The Seven. Homelander threatens Stan that he might move on when his contract is up at the end of the year. Stan asks him what he knows about Frederick Vought, the founder of Vought. Stan explains that Homelander is under the impression that they are a superhero company when in fact they are a pharmaceutical company and Homelander is not their most valuable asset, but Compound V is. He accuses him of distributing Compound V around the world to terrorists and says that Homelander is not as significant as he thinks he is. Frustrated, Homelander flies to Becca’s house to see his son.
While Homelander and Queen Maeve were discussing about things while taking a break from filming a movie, Ashley shows Homelander footage of his "fight" against another Super terrorist in Africa, which results in Homelander killing the Super Terrorist with his heat vision, but also accidently killing an innocent teenage bystander, who succumbed to Homelander's heat vision as well. Homelander handwaves it and asks Ashley about how many views the video received Vought scrubbed it off the internet. He then goes to a demonstration where people are protesting against Homelander for his war crime. Homelander gives a speech about how freedom comes at a price, but this exacerbates the protest, to where Homelander has a vision of him using his heat vision on the protesters and killing many people, but then he decides to leave the protest and flies away.
Partners In Crime[]
Troubled by the results of the protest, Homelander goes to Stormfront for her assistance in helping him regain popularity. Stormfront helps him by churning out memes like "Better there than here" as well as denying the footage as fake. Homelander returns excited and breaks up the confrontation between Starlight and Stormfront. In one of the fewest moments of gratitude, Homelander thanks her for her assistance to which Stormfront socialites him by asking how he can repay her. The two go back to The Seven tower and have rough sadomasochistic sex. Homelander and Stormfront's relationship become official as the two even having public sex in the same area just moments right after they kill a criminal.
Ask And You Shall Recieve[]
“ | And you will be the man who will lead us. You are everything that we dreamed of. So I love you with all of my heart. How could I not? Everyone I ever loved is in the ground, and then I found you. We found each other, and now neither of us has to be alone ever again. And that is the truth.
―Stormfront complementing Homelander while simultaneously confessing her love to him[src]
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Homelander has a surprise for Stormfront however she tells him she can right now and she has a meeting at The Seven Tower with social guys that won't take no longer than 20 minutes, when in actuality, she ventures to Sage Grove Center to check on the patient results. Reluctant, Homelander lets her go. Eventually, Homelander gets tired of waiting and is suspicious that Stormfront lied to him. So Homelander visits the Seven tower but finds no information from anyone about her meeting or that she was even there.
Enraged from the lie, Homelander returns to the movie set and burns down his trailer. Stormfront arrives at the set, where Homelander calls out her lie. Incited further by her continued talking, Homelander grabs her neck with his fist and squeezes it. The two meet back at the Seven Tower where Stormfront apologizes for lying to him. Still raw from the event, Homelander dismisses her apology attempt. Stormfront then promises she will tell him the truth, starting with her real identity. She goes to a nearby chest filled with a Nazi uniform and a dagger, a Liberty costume, old newspapers and a stack of photos. Showing the photos to Homelander, she reveals that the old woman in the photo is not her "grandmother", but her daughter, Chloe. Continuing, she explains was born in 1919 in Berlin, where she became a member of the Third Reich and had her daughter with Frederick Vought, who also gave her the first successful Compound V injection. She continues to explain Fredrick's true intentions were not create a shallow superhero entertainment company that Vought is now, rather it was to create an army of “Aryan” super soldiers to launch a global race war. She congratulates Homelander, calling him the one to lead the army and he is Vought's true destiny while confessing her love to him. After she finishes explaining, Homelander grabs and passionately kisses Stormfront, simultaneously forgiving her.
Remember Who The Enemy Is[]
“ | But... That doesn't change the facts. This used to be a-a beautiful country. -Remember?"
-Crowd:"Yeah!" "One nation under God. Remember? Right before those godless, inhuman supervillians started pouring across our borders and dragging us down into their mud. ―Homelander and Stormfront addressing the most recent news[src]
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Homelander and Stormfront meet in the middle of a crowd and explain the most recent breaking news. Stormfront first addresses the recent supervillian paranoia leading to a shooting at a local convenience store as being unacceptable, and Vought will donate to Samaritan's Embrace in honor of Kuldeep Singh. Homelander than continues to fuel the crowd's paranoia and hatred by addressing the recent supervillian immigration. Stormfront attacks Victoria Neuman and the opposition by stating they can't just let the supes into their country, additionally, stating the superheroes are there to protect the citizens. She continues stating they will need more Compound V and need more Superheroes. The crowd begins chanting in support. Homelander stops the chanting and announces that Starlight is a traitor to The Seven and has been captured and contained where she can't harm anyone. Further earning Starlight negative publicly by stating that she conspired alongside the same people who killed Translucent.
After the speech, Homelander meets with Stormfront privately to discuss how they're going to deal with Starlight. Homelander think that it is a mistake to keep Starlight alive because he underestimated her once but not again. Stormfront assures him to trust her, by keeping Starlight alive it will cause the public to rally against a common enemy. He then notices Stormfront staring at a baby girl and asks her it reminds her of her daughter. To which she does. Homelander then says he wants to show her something thinking that he can be a family with Stormfront and Ryan. On their way there Homelander tells Stormfront a little bit about Ryan like how he's the first natural born superhero.
One Big "Happy" Family[]
“ | We all have Ryan's best interests at heart. Right?"
"Yes, we do." "I'm really sorry I haven't been here enough. Ryan, uh, I'd really like you to get to know Stormfront. I would. She's someone I care about very much, and, um... I think you will, too. So, I think, uh, we'll be around more. A lot more. I want us to be a family. ―Homelander stating he wants a family while simultaneously introducing Stormfront and scaring Becca[src]
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Homelander and Stormfront drop into Becca's backyard interrupting Becca and Ryan playing with Lego. Homelander introduces Stormfront to Becca and Ryan. Homelander then apologizes to Ryan for pushing him too far last time and promises never to do it again. Stormfront then meets Ryan and asks about his powers and tells him he is the first natural born Superhero. Becca, however, discourages her from talking about Ryan's powers and states Homelander should inform her next time he wants to visit. Homelander explains to Stormfront that Becca doesn't want Ryan to talk about or use his powers at all. Regardless, Homelander continues stating that he wants to be around more, and he wants a family.
He's My Son Too[]
“ | You could not possibly understand. I was raised the same way as him. The kid doesn't know anything about anything. When he sees the outside world, he's going to panic. Now, that's going to fuck him up. I do not want my son to have to go through what I went through."
"His life... -is different." -(sighs) "He has a mother. And I know that means something to you. I do. And if you take him away from me, this... this whole world will feel so confusing -and frightening." "Yes, but Rebecca, you... are lying to him. ―Homelander and Becca delivering their sides of the argument[src]
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Homelander, Stormfront, and Becca watch a Lego animation Ryan did of The Blindside, both Homelander and Stormfront pretend to be interested. They both then ask if he likes other "kid things" like video games, YouTube, or one of Homelander's movies. Ryan is then interested in one of Homelander's movies, however Becca says when he's older they'll talk, but Homelander dismisses her claim by saying Ryan is old enough for those movies. Homelander and Stormfront continue to urge Ryan by telling him about things he hasn't heard of, ignoring Becca's comments on talking later. Becca then demands Homelander to talk with her outside. Homelander agrees and leaves Ryan with Stormfront while he and Becca talk outside. Becca believes Homelander is trying to take Ryan away from her or trying to turn him into something he's not, but Homelander states he has Ryan's best interest at heart. He explains that he was raised exactly like Ryan is and he knows that if Ryan finds out about the real world too late that it will mess him up. Homelander doesn't want his son to go through what he did. Becca tries to convince Homelander that Ryan is different and won't turn out like him because Ryan has a mother. Homelander then points out a flaw in Becca's argument, that she is lying to Ryan and hiding the truth about the outside world from him. Becca states that it is for his own good and begs Homelander not to tell Ryan. Homelander thinks while Becca cries in front of him, nodding in response.
“ | Boy deserves to know the truth.
―Homelander admitting he told Ryan the truth[src]
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After Becca finishes making dinner, she finds Ryan outside with Homelander and Stormfront. Ryan calls Becca a liar, revealing that they showed him the truth: the neighborhood is fake and there is a whole world outside the complex. Homelander doesn't deny it, saying Ryan deserved to know the truth. After Becca fails to convince Ryan, Homelander then suggests that Ryan needs some space and to come with him, to which Becca refuses and grabs Ryan. Ryan runs past Becca and jumps into Homelander's arms as Homelander and Stormfront fly away.
How You Can Stay Safe[]
“ | -Flanagan: Unfortunately, the possibility that you will experience a supervillian attack grows more likely every day."
"But By having an action plan, you can drastically increase your chances for survival. And survival is all that matters. ―Homelander teaching school safety on an instructional video[src]
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Homelander reappears in What I Know, where he and Sheriff Ed Flanagan are on a recording teaching school students how to stay safe in case of a Supervillain attack. They teach students to fall a three step protocol, LAW: Lock (all doors and windows), Arm (yourself and uses whatever you can), and Wait (for a hero to arrive). They then close instructing to follow the protocol for your own safety.
Fact Check[]
“ | So, Noir's a vegetable, Lamplighter's a charcoal briquette, Starlight's in the breeze somewhere, and you're, -what, fine with it?
―Homelander[src]
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Homelander stands in The Seven Tower watching a news article about the recent events that have happened, until Stormfront walks in. He asks her about Noir, to which she explains Noir is alive but unresponsive, possibly suffering from brain damage. Homelander expresses concern over the recent events however Stormfront reassures him not to because of the congress hearings attack. Homelander then tries to deduce just who killed Vogelbaum. After narrowing down the search, he suggests that is could possibly be Mr. Edgar. Stormfront then tells him to relax because despite the sacrifices, they're close to accomplishing their goal of creating a Superman army. Homelander asks her about the "wrong people", to which Stormfront tells him that "Fredrick had a solution for everything".
Adjustments[]
“ | Hey Buddy. Sorry we had to leave you all alone. Dad's work can sometimes get pretty crazy.
―Homelander trying to spend time with his son[src]
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Homelander and Stormfront head into Ashley's office to check on Ryan. Homelander apologizes for leaving his son alone because his work requires him to very busy. Homelander then suggests they could play a game together but tells him he'd rather memorize the U.S. states. Homelander calls it unnecessary, but Ryan says something Becca taught him to do, to always be learning. Homelander's tone quickly changes when Ryan asks if he could call his mother. Before anyone could answer him, Stormfront intervenes by suggesting they go to a restaurant, Planet Vought. To which Homelander approves.
When they sit down at a table Ryan is initially overjoyed, until fans approach Homelander and Stormfront wanting to take photos with them. Ryan begins to panic and become overwhelmed by the crowd. Homelander stops the photos and checks on Ryan. Ryan begs for his mother, so Homelander carries his son out of the restaurant and flies away with him leaving Stormfront at the restaurant.
Learning Moments[]
“ | You know, I remember my first time I was in a crowd."
"Probably didn't bother you." "I was terrified. All these people staring at me and reaching out, trying to grab me, and egging me on to use my powers. I just-- felt like I was... drowning." "Well, what'd you do?" "Well, I took off. I flew away. They found me 80 miles down the I-9. Crying my little eyes out. ―Homelander comforting his son[src]
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Stormfront tracks them down to a cabin and asks where Ryan is. Homelander tells her Ryan is inside and wants to be alone, but Stormfront convinces him to go talk to Ryan by saying he's the strongest man in the world. Homelander and Stormfront enter the cabin and find Ryan curled up on the couch with his back turned towards them, naming the U.S states. Ryan apologizes for freaking out, but Homelander reassures him that he messed up and "should've known better." Ryan explains there were too many people, and Homelander still reassures him by telling his son the first time he was exposed to crowds. Homelander explains he knows that feeling of "drowning" in crowds, Ryan asks him what he did. Homelander admits he flew away, and Vought found him 80 miles away crying. Ryan then asks Homelander if he cries. Homelander admits he does but only once in a while because he's "a man". Homelander then suggests that maybe Ryan will fly away too next time. Ryan then says he can't be just like his father. Homelander then tells Ryan that he had no one to teach him how to uses his powers because everyone around him was too scared to get near him, so he had to learn on his own. Homelander then offers to be a teacher to his son and show him how to uses his powers. Ryan then hugs Homelander and Homelander puts his arm around his son. Homelander looks up to see Stormfront smiling at him.
“ | Keep going, you got it. That's it, don't give up. That's it, that's it. Keep going. Little more, little more, you got it. (Exhales) Oh-- hey, that's okay. You'll get it, you'll get it. Um... (mouths) I know what. Um, imagine, um... Well, sometimes it helps to imagine someone you hate. Okay? So, try that."
"But at home, when I say 'hate,' I have to put a quarter in the swear jar." "Well, there's no swear jar here. So, you can hate away."(chuckles) "But I don't really hate anyone." " ―Homelander trying to teach Ryan how to use his heat vision[src]
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Homelander and Stormfront appear outside encouraging Ryan while he tries to use his heat vision on an action figure of The Deep. When Ryan fails, Homelander encourages him not to give up and then tries teaching a tip that will help. He tells Ryan that it helps to think about someone he hates, but Ryan insists that he hates no one. Stormfront then intervenes and tells Ryan that he can't afford to not hate because they're "under attack". Homelander expresses a face of discomfort as Stormfront continues to lecture Ryan on "White Genocide". He tries to ignore it and encourages Ryan focus more so on using his heat vision to defend himself and the people he loves. Homelander then encourages his son the try again, but before he can finish his sentence, Stormfront interrupts him when she finds out information on her past was leaked to the public.
Separation[]
“ | Did I hear you say 'Butcher'? What's going on?"
Dispatch(over comm):"Do you have the boy?" "Where's my son? Where is my Son?"! ―Homelander demanding to know where Ryan is[src]
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Homelander and Ryan return inside the cabin and watch the news about Stormfront's leaked information. While they watch Ryan asks about the word "Malfeasance". Before Homelander can explain the definition, they're both stunned in pain when they hear the distraction Frenchie made that admits a frequency of over 190,000 Hertz. Homelander tells Ryan to stay in the cabin while he leaves to go stop the signal, leaving Ryan covering his ears in pain. Homelander approaches the frequency's source, a collection of Vought ultrasonic speakers, and promptly destroys it with his heat vision.
When Homelander returns to the cabin, he finds seven Vought mercenaries asking about Butcher. He then hears dispatch on their radios ask if they secured the boy. Homelander closes the cabin door and questions them "where's my son?" With no answer, Homelander then splits one vertically in half with his heat vision and shouts "Where is my son"?! After slaughtering the men, Homelander walks out of the cabin covered in blood, and he prepares himself to get ready to find Ryan.
Isolated And Alone, Again[]
“ | -Let's go. Come here. Come. Ryan... Ryan. Come here."
[Ryan moves behind Butcher]"No." (chuckling) "He's mine. What, are you gonna blow yourself up...to save the little shit who fucking murdered your wife?" "I promised." "-Have it your way. ―Homelander demanding Butcher give him Ryan[src]
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A blood coated Homelander flies in from the sky in the middle of the forest and sees the aftermath of Ryan using his heat vision. He finds a charred, unresponsive and critically injured Stormfront. Homelander kneels down and attempts to touch her but stops himself. He clenches his fists and begins to sob a little. Homelander then asks Ryan if he was to one who hurt Stormfront. Ryan explains he didn't mean to. Homelander stands up, motions and tells Ryan to come to him. Ryan walks away and moves behind Butcher, who refuses to let Ryan go. Homelander silently laughs and demands Billy to hand him over because "He's Mine." Butcher still refuses. Homelander sarcastically questions Billy if is going to blow himself up again, all to save the boy who killed his wife. Butcher still refuses, saying he promised Becca that he'd protect Ryan.
Before Homelander can attack them, Queen Maeve intervenes and demands Homelander to leave them alone. Homelander questions if he doesn't. Maeve shows him the footage of him abandoning the passengers of Flight 37 to die. She then blackmails him to let Butcher and Ryan go, to stop hunting Starlight, and to leave her and Elena alone, otherwise she'll release the video footage. Homelander then threatens to destroy everything and everyone if she does. Maeve challenges him saying for him to do it, because everyone will see the monstrous lunatic he really is, and no one will ever love him. Homelander starts to lose his mind as he starts hearing the crowds chanting his name in his head. He stands paralyzed and starts to cry as Butcher picks up Ryan and walks past him, leaving Homelander paralyzed by his emotions and thoughts.
First Step Into Madness[]
“ | Thanks to the heroism of Queen Maeve and Starlight, Stormfront has been neutralized, and is being held in an undisclosed location. I would personally like to apologize to Starlight, who was wrongfully accused of sabotage and conspiracy. Welcome back to the team. And I know you and Maeve are two of the best, most loyal friends I could ever have. We are your heroes. We are here to serve and protect you. (fading): Stormfront's violation of that special relationship, of that trust, is unacceptable and she will be punished. Justice will be served.
―Homelander begrudgingly giving the public address[src]
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Homelander appears at the public announcement after Stan Edgar address him. Homelander speaks on the stand and says that Stormfront has been incarcerated and wrongfully framed Starlight as a traitor. He then welcomes Starlight back into The Seven. He continues to thank Maeve and Starlight as his eyes twitch more and more violently with each word he speaks.
“ | I can do whatever I want. I can do whatever... I want. I can do... whatever I want. I can do whatever the fuck I want! I can do whatever the fuck I... want!
―Homelander[src]
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Later, Homelander retreats to the rooftop of the Chrysler Building and vents his frustration by masturbating pantsless, exposing his bare buttocks whilst muttering and groaning as he descends into madness.
Seven on 7 with Cameron Coleman[]
Sometime later, Cameron Coleman reported on the August 7, 2021, segment where fans of Homelander rallied against super terrorists, with some even going as far as to form a human gate at the Mexican border, resulting in them nearly dying of thirst and hunger. In the September 7, 2021, segment, Homelander was later seen returning to his normal state, where he made a grand appearance posing with civilians and fans in the opening of Vought-A-Burger. On the December 7, 2021, segment, Homelander was also seen live on Vought Tower where he gave a speech on trust and betrayal, swearing to rebuild the image of superheroes due to the Stormfront incident. He was also a recurring subject on the show and was featured in various footage and advertisements as well.
On the January 7, 2022, segment, Coleman reported that Homelander had given another public apology at the Vought International Shareholder's Conference through a keynote speech, regarding his former relationship with Stormfront.
The Boys: Season Three[]
Payback[]
Homelander does several interviews about how he fell for the wrong woman and didn’t foresee that Stormfront was a Nazi. These are lies as he still has some feelings for Stormfront and continues to visit her in the hospital.
Homelander grows increasingly tense and unstable- lashing out at those around him. At the studio, Homelander runs into The Deep who gives him a big hug. Homelander seems confused that The Deep had an interview slot on The Cameron Coleman Hour show before him but Deep explains it’s for his new book, Deeper. Homelander asks again, tensely, how he got a slot before him. The Deep tells Homelander he’s a nobody and that he never should’ve been before him.
Stan invites both Starlight and Homelander to a meeting at Vought to inform them that they will be co-captains of The Seven. Homelander is outraged about having to share the spotlight.
Homelander confronts A-Train about getting fatter - claiming he’s just eating his feelings and making The Seven, and him, look bad. Homelander seems to be taking out his bad mood from the co-captain thing on others. A-Train mutters "Fuck you." under his breath, triggering Homelander to grab him by the back of the neck and yell at him to repeat what he said, all the while threatening him with his laser eyes.
Homelander goes to see Butcher. He waits outside his apartment on his balcony. Homelander meets with Butcher for the first time in over a year. He asks Butcher if he can come in. Homelander and Butcher talk about what is to come. Homelander then leaves.
The Only Man In The Sky[]
It’s Homelander’s birthday and he goes to visit Stormfront, who can seemingly barely breathe or talk. He asks her to wish him a happy birthday but to no avail.
Later, he goes to help save a girl, Chelsea, who is about to kill herself via jumping off a building. He initially tries to explain how pointlessness her jumping is, because he easily could catch her. However, on a nearby building, a news clip airs announcing that Stormfront died via suicide. Homelander notices this, in shock due to the fact that the love of his life has seemingly killed herself, and on his 'birthday'. After a short while, he then rants to Chelsea about how he doesn’t have a real birthday because he was "Poured from a test tube". He only continues to spiral into his ramblings when he compares himself to Jesus, questioning how it is fair that "(Humans) get saved, while a beautiful and perfect God (referring to Stormfront) gets killed". Frustrated, he tells Chelsea that maybe she should jump after all, but Chelsea has a change of mind and says she doesn’t want too anymore. Blinded by his rage, he threatens her by shining his laser eyes at her, indicating that if she does not commit suicide; he will force her to, or give her a fate worse than death. A mangled body can be seen falling onto the pavement, exploding into blood after, implying that she may have been injured by Homelander before falling off the roof.
On ‘’American Hero’’, there is a big special for Homelander's birthday. A man in the audience at the special screams, “Homelander, your Nazi died!”, attempting to frustrate him. Starlight tells the audience that everyone, including Homelander, makes mistakes, and that he deserves a second chance, before transitioning to the Starlight House. She tells the audience that Homelander is going to donate 10 million dollars to the Starlight house, but he interrupts her, repeatedly saying No. Homelander states that audience that he doesn’t make mistakes, and that he is better than everyone else, going on a long rant about how the audience needs him - needs him to save them.
Barbary Coast[]
“ | Know who I've been reading up on lately? Doctor Martin Luther King. Well, my relationship with King has deepened of late. He was, uh, villainized. Persecuted. Spoke truth to power. Just like me. It's crazy. But... we've both been to the mountaintop, and we've seen the promised land. I showed people the real me, and they loved me for it. I mean, they fսcking loved me. If only I'd known that sooner. There's always been so, so many things I want to do, and now I can do them all, finally. And no one can stop me. Nobody. Free at last. Free at last.
―Homelander[src]
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Homelander finds out, much to everyone's surprise, that his polling numbers are up after his rant on T.V. His fans think he’s confident and unapologetic.
Homelander forces Starlight's hand to choose The Deep as one of the new members of The Seven. She concedes after a lot of back and forth. To celebrate, Homelander invites The Deep to a seafood feast much to his horror. Homelander tells everyone that no one can stop him now that he knows that people love him for him - “Free at last,” he says. He brings The Deep a live octopus, called Timothy. The Deep tells him that Timothy is his friend, and he can’t. Homelander tells him to eat Timothy, to The Deep's horror, but afraid of the repercussions of not following Homelander's orders, The Deep obeys, much to his wife's delight.
After the new members of The Seven are announced, Homelander unexpectedly announces that he and Starlight are also an item and in love- #HomeLight. They kiss on screen.
Glorious Five Year Plan[]
Ashley informs Homelander that Victoria Neuman is doing a press conference about him. He tells her to find out what’s going on. Homelander manages to convince Victoria to not turn on him, but rather on her adopted father- Stan Edgar. Victoria exposes Stan at the press conference and Homelander pays her a visit afterwards, commending her on her decision to stand by "her kind" - Supes. Stan is forced to step down, paving the way for Homelander to be the de-facto head of Vought.
The Last Time to Look on This World of Lies[]
Homelander is now in charge. He tells the board to promote Ashley to CEO, knowing she'll have his back.
When news of a supervillain (Soldier Boy) breaks, Starlight tells Homelander they need to handle this situation directly. Homelander tells Ashley to book the news channels to tell everyone there is nothing to worry about.
Homelander confronts Maeve about betraying him because he can smell Butcher all over her. She tells him he’s crazy and doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He asks her if their love was real and she tells him that from the start, she hated him - and beyond that, pitied him. She turns around and Black Noir attacks her.
Herogasm[]
“ | You really had me going for a minute there...
―Homelander while choking Soldier Boy[src]
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Homelander is in the Crime Analytics room reviewing camera footage which shows Soldier Boy walking away after killing Crimson Countess. He snaps at Ashley after she suggests giving a press conference to reassure the public that everything is under control.
Homelander opens up to Noir about his stress about Soldier Boy's recent actions. Receiving no reply, he pats Noir on the shoulder, praising him as his only friend, then leaves.
Alone in his private quarters, his reflection in a mirror starts talking to him. He expresses his fears about being defeated by Soldier Boy and asks himself if taking over the company was the right call. His mirror-self reassures him that "he" will get them out of trouble just like "he" always did when they were young. Homelander confesses to the real reason for rebelling against Stan Edgar: wanting to be loved and admired. "He" also blames Homelander's failed "relationships" and his need for affection on his human side that the reflection sees as a cancer that must be removed in order for Homelander to be free and pure.
Later, Homelander goes to the T&T Twins' house to find Soldier Boy to kill him. He confronts Soldier Boy and Butcher in the ravaged building, quickly incapacitating Butcher with his heat vision. Unbeknownst to him, Butcher has had a Temp V injection and is still alive. Homelander confesses his previous admiration for Soldier Boy due to his near-equal prowess, but Soldier Boy scoffs at him and brands him a "cheap fucking knock-off." Homelander calmly replies: "Oh no, I'm the upgrade," before attacking Soldier Boy.
Homelander soon gets the upper hand on his opponent, pinning Soldier Boy to the wall with prejudice. The newly awakened Butcher assists Soldier Boy, and with the arrival of Hughie, the tide of the battle momentarily turns, and they manage to pin Homelander for a moment. Homelander vigorously fights free, and escapes through the roof.
Here Comes a Candle to Light You to Bed[]
Concealer to cover up a bruise. Homelander explains how Soldier Boy is burning the V out of some Super’s bodies and that it could happen to any one of them. She tells him he’s the only one of them who cares about being a Super. He tells her he always dreamed of having kids with Maeve and that he plans to harvest her egg.
In a attempt to discredit Starlight and distract his fan base from her allegations against him and Vought International, Homelander makes up conspiracy theories about her during a rally, lying to the crowd that Starlight is using her charity Starlight House to traffic and abuse children. He also condemns the media and his opponents as biased and corrupt, claiming they are simply trying to destroy America’s greatest hero and last line of defense. During the speech, Homelander thinks he sees Soldier Boy and his eyes light up. He tells the crowd he loves them and leaves. He finds a cow in a farmhouse and milks it. He drinks the milk. Victoria Neuman finds and confronts him. She derides him for his speech and harshly advices him to get his act together. Overextending her hand, Homelander lashes out and seizes her by the throat, daring her to go on. She manages to convince him that she can be a worthwhile ally, after handing him a letter.
Homelander finds Starlight at Vought and tells her to recant everything she said on TV. He tells her that fame is the only thing protecting her. He warns her what will happen to Hughie now that she betrayed him. She tells him he’s been recording him to her 190 million viewers, and he tells her she’s not supposed to be recording while they’re “running lines”.
Homelander argues with Ashley on the phone about Starlight’s secret taping. He gets a call from Soldier Boy, who tells him that the situation has changed. He tells Homelander that he realized that Homelander is actually his son because back in 1980 he put his sperm into a cup in a lab. In 1981, a baby was born from that sperm- Homelander.
The Instant White-Hot Wild[]
Homelander finds Ryan using the documents obtained from Victoria Neuman and complements his rapidly improving fastball. Grace runs outside and tells him to stay away, but Homelander tells her he just wants to see Ryan. Ryan asks Homelander if he’s mad at him for what he did and Homelander, in a rare moment of genteel, comforts Ryan over his guilt. He tells Ryan that their incredible strength sometimes entails accidents, and that Homelander understands this and will always love Ryan despite them. Ryan embraces him.
Homelander sits in his room watching his numbers drop in response to Maeve's imprisonment until Ashley interrupts him to explain Maeve escaped. Black Noir then returns, and Homelander hugs him, relieved at his return. Homelander later meets with Noir as they prepare for Soldier Boy's arrival. Homelander confides in Noir that Soldier Boy is his father and asks what he was like. When Noir vaguely answers his father was bad, Homelander confronts Noir asking if Noir always knew who his father was. When Noir nods, Homelander cries that all this time, he really has been lied to all his life. Homelander punches Noir in the abdomen and rips out his intestines. Homelander remarks Noir should've told the truth sooner, before he leaves Noir to die.
Homelander then meets with his only remaining allies: Ashley, The Deep and A-Train. The Deep tries to plan that they could use Noir as bait, but Homelander reveals he killed Noir for keeping secrets. Homelander vents that he always wanted a family and team, but instead is stuck with them. When Deep offers to help, Homelander asks The Deep to kill Lamar Bishop, the VP nominee as part of his agreement with Victoria Neuman. He then humiliates Ashley by ordering her to take off her wig. He then turns to A-Train and questions A-Train's loyalty after he murdered Blue Hawk and how he could kill one of his own kind, his hypocrisy being displayed by Noirs mask propped upon the table. Homelander reminds them that Noir was worth more than all of them combined and that none of them are safe from his wrath should they betray him.
Homelander is confronted by Butcher, Queen Maeve and Soldier Boy in the Vought Tower news floor. Homelander reveals he already killed Noir, and he merely wants to talk. Homelander states the situation, that together him and Soldier Boy would be unstoppable. When Soldier Boy isn't convinced, Homelander brings out Ryan before the trio, to Butcher's horror. Ryan greets his grandfather, and Homelander insists the three of them could be a real family and never be alone ever again. Soldier Boy appears moved, wishing he could've raised Homelander to be better than him, but he harshly rebukes Homelander instead and restrains him for a blast, along with Maeve and Butcher. Homelander, seemingly unwilling to fight, is saved by Ryan, who attacks Soldier Boy with his heat vision. Homelander still does not resist Maeve or Butcher, instead urging Ryan to run upstairs, away from the fighting. Soldier Boy recovers and brutally hits Ryan unconscious against the wall, and Homelander rushes to tend to him. Soldier Boy prepares to blast both the distraught Homelander and injured Ryan, but Butcher attacks him, giving Homelander enough time to turn and violently blast Soldier Boy out of the room.
As fighting breaks out between Soldier Boy and Butcher's crew, Homelander finished tending to Ryan before turning to resolve the situation. He is punched by Queen Maeve, but he insists not to fight right now because Soldier Boy is a bigger threat, but Maeve only continues to attack him. He defends himself, while insisting that she stop with increasing malice. Eventually, she hits him hard enough that his nose bleeds. He's forced to incapacitate her, and promptly gouges one of her eyes out. Maeve then stabs Homelander's eardrum with a metal straw and stuns Homelander. She stops fighting when she tackles the dangerously nuclear Soldier Boy out of the building, ending the prolonged spectacle. Homelander regroups with Ryan after a silent confrontation with Butcher, and Ryan leaves with his father.
Homelander shows up to a rally and introduces the crowd to his son, Ryan. The crowd cheers for them both, until a vocal Starlight supporter loudly denounces Homelander as a fascist and throws a can at them. He hits Ryan, and Homelander immediately shields Ryan before locating the man. Enraged at the man's protest, Homelander splatters him on the spot. After a stunned silence, the crowd slowly begins applauding Homelander. Homelander looks uneased, but eventually smiles for the crowd.
Gen V: Season One[]
Guardians of Godolkin[]
After Marie stops Cate and her violent superhuman uprising against non-Supes at Godolkin University, Homelander flies down to confront them. Before Marie can explain, Homelander scolds Marie for attacking another Supe. Homelander then blasts Marie with his heat vision, knocking her out. Homelander reappears at Vought Tower and watches Cameron Coleman's broadcast. The broadcast frames Marie, Jordan, Andre, and Emma for the massacre. Coleman then praises Cate and Sam as the New Guardians of Godolkin, while Homelander smiles with satisfaction.
The Boys: Season Four[]
Department of Dirty Tricks[]
Six months after Soldier Boy's defeat, Homelander's mental state has rapidly declined, as he appears to be suffering from an extreme case of dissociative identity disorder and PTSD from his past actions. The trial over his murder of the Starlighter, the reconstruction of Vought Tower, and Starlight's further protests against Homelander's power all add to his stress and paranoia, threatening to completely fall into insanity. Furthermore, the scornful parting words from the father figures in his life, that being VogelBaum, Edgar and Soldier Boy, weigh heavily on his mind, and he experiences traumatic flashbacks to the painful experiments he endured as a child.
In the toilet, Homelander discovers a grey hair from his pubes, which visibly worries him. He later unexpectedly visits one of Victoria's campaign events with Ryan, where he talks with his son, who is uncomfortable with the crowds. It is shown that Homelander has been twisting Ryan similarly to himself, telling him not to be afraid of humans and regarding them as 'toys for our amusement'. He then talks with Victoria, who is off put by his presence. He explains he is simply there to support the next White House-elect, but she rejects him, refusing to have a murderer support her campaign. This sends Homelander into a quiet rage, who tells Victoria that their association will continue even when she becomes VP, which she sternly rejects, regarding their previous business as old history, to which Homelander chuckles madly. Ryan encounters Butcher once again, but Homelander intercepts the conversation, discovering with his X-ray vision that Billy has a large brain tumour from his using of V24. He leaves with Ryan
During a meeting of the Seven, Ashley attempts to discuss the idea of reinforcing the Seven's depleted ranks, presenting several potential members, but Homelander is completely unresponsive, aimlessly staring out the window. Ashley dismisses one candidate as crazy, to which Homelander expresses interest in them, causing Ashley to immediately change her opinion, angering him with her pandering. The Deep also praises him, further enraging him, to which he then cruelly orders The Deep to perform oral sex on A-Train. Just as the two are about to actually do it, Homelander furiously orders them to stop, storming off and remarking he has to carry the entire company on his shoulders.
In his apartment, Homelander looks over the candidates again, lingering on Sister Sage's profile (who piqued his interest during the previous meeting). He later pays a visit to her apartment incognito and asks her to prove her alleged title as the smartest woman in the world. She surprises but also annoys him by correctly deducing he is suffering a midlife crisis, brought on by his discovery that he is aging like a normal human. However, he spares Sage despite his annoyance, admitting he needs advice and everyone else fawns over him. He admits that despite gaining everything he's ever wanted at Vought, he's still not happy, and his life feels meaningless. Sage suggests that he drops his obsessions with control and let humanity tear itself apart, allowing him to swoop in and be the hero. Impressed, Homelander offers her a spot on the Seven, intending for her to act as his advisor.
Homelander and Sage orchestrate a plan to turn the public against Starlight. They arrange a meeting with three of Homelander's most vocal supporters: Todd, Dirk and Greg, where he thanks them for their devotion and their 'sacrifice'. He gives Deep, A-Train and the new Black Noir baseball bats and orders them to beat the three men to death, which they reluctantly do, while Homelander returns to his trial to hear the verdict. He is declared not guilty, to which Sage (disguised as a Starlight supporter) incites a violent riot between the Homelander and Starlight groups, during which A-Train plants the bodies of the three fans they murdered, framing the Starlight supporters. As the riot intensifies, Starlight arrives to try and break it up, while Homelander stands on the side and smirks at her.
Life Among the Septics[]
We'll Keep the Red Flag Flying Here[]
Homelander is later seen alone in his private quarters. When Ryan enters, Homelander asks where he has been. Ryan tells a lie, which Homelander sees through, as he knows that Ryan has been visiting Butcher. Ryan defends himself by saying that Butcher's going through a tough time, to which Homelander angrily rises from his chair, claiming that everything he needs is here at Vought Tower, that he's given everything to Ryan that he himself wanted as a child, and tearfully demands why Ryan is going behind his back and lying to him, accusing him of preferring Butcher as a father figure. Ryan denies this, but Homelander furiously throws one of his own sculptures at him, cracking a nearby mirror, causing Ryan to hastily run off in fear. Homelander wallows in despair, struggling to contain his anger, until he hears a voice from the mirror calling his name. He walks over to the mirror to see his reflection talking to him again, only this time it's several reflections, with the two main ones giving him conflicting advice. Finally, the top reflection tells him that he needs to abolish his 'sickness', his constant need for love once and for all, as he'll never become his true self unless he transcends his humanity. Homelander asks for advice, to which all the reflections tell him that he needs to 'go back to the start.’ Homelander dauntingly realizes that they are telling him to go back to the lab in which he was raised and experimented on as a child.
Wisdom of the Ages[]
At the Vought lab facility, the scientists realize that someone is arriving via elevator down to their floor. With no expected visitors and the phone line being dead, the scientists believe it to be an intruder breach. They tensely wait for the doors to open, only to find Homelander with a Fudgie the Whale cake in hand. Homelander looks around the lab and greets the surprised workers, claiming that it feels very surreal to be back where he grew up. He hastily corrects Marty when he calls him by his real name 'John,' asking Marty to refer to him as Homelander only. Homelander notes that he sees new faces amongst the workers, but he recognizes some of them, such as Frank and Marty, congratulating the latter upon becoming the new assistant director. Homelander asks for Director Barbara to be brought in for a catch-up reunion and invites the scientists to tuck into the cake.
Whilst the scientists eat, Homelander glares at the door of a giant oven cell. He invites Frank to play a game of first-to-three wastepaper basketball with him, saying that he'll let Frank clock off early if he wins. Whilst they take their shots, Homelander tells Frank a vivid memory from his childhood, where he remembers being locked inside the oven and looking through the door to see Frank successfully throwing a ball of wastepaper into the basket, celebrating with a fist-bump and then turning up the oven temperature to see if Homelander's skin could be burnt. Homelander reveals that although his skin didn't charr, the pain was agonizing, distinctively remembering his tears sizzling and screaming in agony, whilst the uncaring scientists outside the door simply took notes. Frank, unable to remember the incident, blankly states that he was just doing his job. Homelander, angered by his lack of empathy, remarks on the strange nature of perspective, as he had nightmares about that specific moment, whereas Frank, a key person in that memory, doesn't even remember it. Internally, Homelander's anger and trauma bubbles inside him, until he invites Frank to watch him take his last shot from inside the oven. Frank is bemused, until Homelander threatens to force his whole family in the oven with him if he refuses. Frank meekly goes inside and offers a half-hearted apology for what he did, and Homelander sarcastically echoes his earlier statement that he was just doing his job. Homelander then locks the door and, ignoring Frank's pleas, turns the temperature switch, and the heat incinerates Frank's body, reducing him to a charred corpse within seconds. Homelander looks on and misses his last basket shot, and whispers his acceptance of Frank's apology, whilst the terrified scientists look on.
In the lab, Homelander approaches Marty and apologizes for Frank's death, stating that he simply lost his temper. Marty echoes his sentiments, dismissing it as an accident. Homelander warms up to him, reminiscing that Marty was usually the nicest to him out of all the lab workers, which Marty nervously supports. Homelander then singles out one example where he wasn't nice, when he nicknamed him 'squirt,' an incident Marty doesn't remember. Homelander tells the story that, due to spending hours and sometimes days locked in 'the bad room,' he would masturbate when he knew that the scientists weren't watching him and Marty was doing his rounds, claiming that it was the only time in the day when he felt good. However, one night he couldn't finish in time, and Marty caught him in the act, letting out a 'really good laugh,’ nicknaming him ‘squirt’ from then on. Homelander remarks that he was deeply hurt by Marty’s behavior, and Marty fearfully apologizes. Homelander doesn't forgive him, instead forcing him to masturbate in front of him and all the scientists present. Marty reluctantly opens his fly and tries to masturbate whilst Homelander frequently taunts him, laughing erratically, but due to fear and embarrassment, Marty is unable to get erect and ejaculate. Homelander threatens to laser Marty's dick off if he fails to do so and Marty then starts to masturbate more aggressively in desperation, even resorting to use his saliva, but is still unsuccessful and gives up. Homelander makes a sarcastic remark before he lasers at Marty's genitals with a beam that penetrates through his body. Homelander laughs as Marty whimpers on the floor, blood streaming from his groin. He is then interrupted by Barbara, who, unperturbed, tells Homelander to put Marty out of his misery. Homelander then tells Marty that he forgives him and crushes his head under his boot, causing several scientists to puke in disgust.
Homelander later talks to Barbara whilst inside 'the bad room.' Barbara accuses him of pettiness for coming back just to torment the scientists who were simply following orders. Homelander interjects that what the scientists did to him was morally wrong and that none of them cared enough to realize it. Barbara reveals that she was present during Homelander's birth, where Homelander had brutally killed his surrogate mother and several other workers in a nightmarish scene, arguing that all the scientists were terrified of him from then on, which is why they never grew close to him.
Homelander then asks why she was the only scientist that wasn't scared of him. Barbara tells Homelander that he could have easily broken out whenever he wanted, but he didn't because he hated the idea that the scientists would be disappointed in him, recalling that Vought had brought in the world's best psychologists to develop and perfectly engineer Homelander's need for approval and love to ensure his obedience. Barbara coldly states that Homelander will never overcome that human psychological trait no matter what he does, and Homelander bluntly replies that he isn't human, and neither is his son. He then eerily tells Barbara that he wants to share why he calls this room 'the bad room.'
Homelander is later seen in the elevator, soaked in blood. A look into the bad room reveals that he brutally killed every scientist present save Barbara, and since the walls are painted with their limbs and blood, it’s likely that he ripped them apart with his bare hands. Barbara was locked inside the room alone, with scorch marks on the door hinges indicating that Homelander lasered the door shut to ensure she couldn't escape, forcing her to remain with the mangled corpses until she has died of starvation or malnutrition. As the elevator rises, Homelander smiles, finally free of his past.
Dirty Business[]
Homelander attends the V52 Expo, which showcases Vought's upcoming cinematic projects. Despite his efforts to shed his humanity, his mind flickers between his childhood memories at the lab, his recent massacre of those who worked there, and Ryan. When Sister Sage greets and reassures him, Homelander completely ignores her, his mind elsewhere.
The Insider[]
Homelander dismisses Ashley and reveals he found bugs planted by Butcher at Tek Knight's mansion. He assigns Firecracker to find the true mole, explaining to Sage that while she has brains, he has wisdom. Sage is upset about being upstaged by Firecracker, so she texts The Deep for a little fun time.
Season Four Finale[]
Meanwhile, Homelander instructs Ashley to compile a list of potential Vought dissidents, implying that those on the list are in danger. She gives him the list, which Homelander then tells The Seven to eliminate everyone on there.
Homelander sits down on the floor, upset and defeated since Singer's assassination was a failure, as he watches the news. Sister Sage arrives with a balloon and a congratulations to Homelander since their plan worked. Although it didn't go exactly as she originally intended, the end result is still the same. Homelander is confused since he'd assumed her plans had failed, but she explains that her true plan succeeded; she couldn't give him the full explanation at the time lest he ruin it. She has managed to get hold of footage of Singer declaring that he wanted Neuman dead, and as a result he has been arrested for conspiracy to murder, surrendering the presidency. She hands him the phone with the Speaker of the House Calhoun on the line, who is ready to pledge his support directly. Sage tells him he's the next in line to be President and that this is their moment. Homelander, initially shocked by Sage’s revelation, seems impressed and touched, especially given he pushed Sage away before. The season ends with Homelander giving a victorious speech on a presidential podium at the White House shortly after the inauguration of the new president.
Appearance[]
Homelander is a tall man with blond hair, fair skin, and blue eyes. He wears a suit reminiscent to Superman and Captain America's, echoing a blend between both drawn from the comics. Homelander wears red gloves and boots, and has gold shoulder pads and wrist protectors, as well as a cape that stands for America, symbolizing patriotism.
Homelander's suit is apparently the only clothing he wears, almost all appearances without the suit have shown Homelander completely nude further reinforcing his singular identity when compared to other Supes, who have lives and identities outside of their careers as superheroes, though he was shown to wear normal clothing while growing up. Only on one occasion has Homelander worn normal clothes as an adult, when he visited Sister Sage to recruit her but it was clear that he did this so he could be 'incognito'. His suit also gives him the appearance of being more muscular than he actually is, as when he is seen not wearing it, he is actually rather lean.
Personality[]
“ | I don't make mistakes. I'm not 'just like the rest of you.' I'm stronger. I'm smarter. I'm better. I am better! I'm not some weak-kneed fսcking crybaby that goes around fսcking apologizing all the time. And why the fսck would you want me to be? (...) All my life, people have tried to control me. My whole life. Rich people, powerful people have tried to muzzle me, cancel me, keep me impotent and obedient, like I'm a fսcking puppet. You know what? It worked. Because I allowed it to work. And guess what. If they can control me, then you can bet your ass they can control you. They already do. You just don't realize it. I'm done. I am done apologizing. I am done being persecuted for my strength. You people should be thanking Christ that I am who and what I am, because you need me. You need me to save you! You do. I am the only one who possibly can. You're not the real heroes. I'm the real hero. I'm the real hero.
―Homelander[src]
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Homelander's mission has always been to serve Vought International and on a deeper level, Madelyn Stillwell. Homelander is rational, initially worrying about Translucent's disappearance in Cherry while the rest of Vought, and the world, ignored it. He is a ruthless leader, doing whatever it takes to keep a high public opinion of The Seven, including threatening both Starlight and the Deep. Homelander portrays the true extent of his anger in You Found Me, killing Stillwell for lying to him about Becca Butcher his child, and her true feelings towards him . As a person, he is deeply narcissistic, disturbed, violence-addicted and sadistic psychopath. For a superhero, Homelander is incredibly and needlessly violent, brutal and aggressive, throwing a bank robber into the air and letting him fall to his death, punching a shooter in the chest, senselessly decimating a group of terrorists around the world. This also highlights his high intelligence as he set up a meticulous plan to get superheroes into the military by forcing A-Train to spread Compound V around the world and is also charismatic, easily swaying the public to give him support.
Due to being raised in isolation inside a laboratory, Homelander struggles to feel genuine love, empathy and understanding for other people and their emotions. This has rendered him callous, immoral and psychopathic often threatening, abusing and intimidating the other members of the Seven in order to keep them in line much like his father while also killing anyone who stands in his way.
“ | See, sometimes it's hard, Ryan, being... superior to every single other person on the planet. It's-it's... isolating. And gods... should not have to feel that kind of... yeah, pain. Because that... is what we are, Ryan. You and me. We're gods. Son, we can do anything we want. And no one can stop us. Now, that.. That's a good feeling. A really good feeling. And now you... and me... can share it together.
―Homelander[src]
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It is made clear that Homelander does not actually care about humanity, only the way Supes (but mainly himself) are viewed in their eyes. He is seen to be more than willing to let a plane full of families and children crash in The Female of the Species despite pleas from Queen Maeve to save the children but pretends to feel sadness about the incident while in the public eye. This act of negligent homicide was to cover up the fact that Homelander was completely unwilling to save the passengers after he jeopardized the mission and uses the crash to his advantage, as after Flight 37 went down and all the passengers died, Homelander manipulates the people into believing it was destroyed by terrorists and uses it to further both his and Vought's agenda of militarizing super-humans.
Homelander also suffers from an Oedipus Complex, which is projected onto Madelyn Stillwell who is the closest thing he has to a mother. However, after declaring her true feelings, that she fears him, Homelander burns her eyes and skull without hesitation but did feel sadness about it when he stares at a picture of them in her office during The Big Ride, even forcing the shapeshifting Supe to frequently take on the form of Stilwell and visiting her at night for intimacy before killing the Supe in a moment of anger. Due to his longing for a loving and maternal figure, women such as Stilwell, Stormfront, Maeve, Sage and Firecracker have all been able to manipulate or control him to some degree due to them being women, and they appeal to a certain part of his damaged psyche.
Ultimately, while Homelander is a damaged man and raised in a loveless environment, he is given extraordinary power and looks, and often told how great he is. Furthermore. the people raising him had a notable disregard for ethics, leaving him with a very similar mindset. This has left him with the paradoxical mindset of seeing almost everyone else as less than him, while at the same time having a deep desire for love. Maeve uses this desire to control him, often with a video of him leaving the plane crash victims of Flight 37, saying that if it went on the web, nobody would ever love him again. By the end of Season 2, Homelander is completely broken, having lost his son, his lover, and his power over The Seven.
In Season 3, Homelander's mental stability has significantly deteriorated even further, and he is now more deranged than ever. Due to his controversial relationship with Stormfront, he is desperate to be loved again by the public, putting on a relatable humane persona and saying he "fell in love with the wrong person." His mental state worsens when he finds out that Stormfront killed herself in hospital shortly after Homelander visited her and dismissed her Nazi ideology, causing Homelander to believe that, like Stilwell, Stormfront never truly loved him and merely used him as a pawn. He is also shown to be more intolerant and easily agitated by anyone or anything that threatens to damage his image and reputation, as seen through his growing dislike for Starlight (especially after she was made co-captain of The Seven), and when he nearly killed A-Train for simply talking back to him. Homelander displays a perverse and sadistic sense of humour, enjoying exerting his will as physical torture and emotional abuse onto others.
Since encountering newfound public scrutiny following leaked footage of him accidentally maiming a teenage bystander in Africa and the attacks against The Seven perpetrated by The Boys, Homelander has begun to develop a worsening persecution complex,[2] seeing himself as the maligned victim of sinister elites controlling his life and a "biased" media that seeks to only smear his name. This is perhaps best illustrated during the infamous seafood dinner scene, where Homelander comments that after recently reading on the life of Martin Luther King Jr, he claims he shares many similarities with the beloved historical figure, one of them Homelander alleges is that he is being unfairly persecuted for what he believes in, like King was in the 1960s. The reality is, he is not, because people love Martin Luther King, but in this series, people fear Homelander.
Homelander appears to have a childish tendency to embarrass people that he dislikes but either can't or won't kill, often putting them into humiliating or demeaning situations while simultaneously putting on the front of being friendly or earnest. Following Starlight's promotion to co-captain of The Seven, Homelander made several attempts to embarrass her, such as having her sing on his birthday while having women in skimpy versions of her costume dancing behind her or announcing that they were a couple by surprise while knowing that Starlight hates him. Other victims of his harassment include Queen Maeve, who he announced was a lesbian (even though she's actually bisexual) on live television without her consent, and The Deep, who he forced to eat a seafood dinner in order to rejoin The Seven. Homelander often coerces his victims to participate in these farces through a combination of false sincerity and thinly veiled threats.
Despite Homelander's strength, he has admitted to being afraid of a few individuals, such as Stan Edgar. Following Edgar's departure from Vought, Homelander admits to having been scared of Edgar at one point, though he asserts that this fear is now gone. Despite this, and the constant disrespect Edgar shows him, Homelander still refuses to kill him. It is implied by Edgar that this is because Homelander secretly sees Edgar as a father figure and seeks his approval. When Homelander realized that the unidentified Supe on a killing spree was actually Soldier Boy, Homelander was noticeably worried, fearing that Soldier Boy’s history with Vought would ruin the company and himself due to now being CEO, and after Black Noir tore out his tracker and fled, Homelander was genuinely afraid, briefly doubting whether he was strong enough to face Soldier Boy if even Black Noir was too afraid to fight him. Even after fighting Soldier Boy and managing to overpower him in a 1-on-1 duel, Homelander was still wary of him, remaining on edge when speaking to him on the phone and when facing him again in the Vought tower. Homelander likely feared Soldier Boy because he was the only Supe whose fame, status and strength rivalled his own, as well as being his childhood hero.
After learning that Soldier Boy was his biological father and that Vought had kept this from him for his whole life, Homelander appears to have become even more deranged. Despite his respect for Black Noir, he mercilessly killed him upon discovering Noir also knew the truth and kept it from him. Nevertheless, it hurt him to kill the one and only person he considered a friend and a reliable partner. He also became more hypocritical, as he condemned A-Train for his murder of a fellow Supe, despite having killed Noir only moments before and even informing A-Train, the Deep, and Ashley of it. Later, Homelander carelessly murdered a civilian in front of multiple witnesses because the man insulted him and threw something at his son, not seeming to care about this blatant act of brutality. His need for a family has also become worse and more dangerous, after his fight against Soldier Boy, he for the first time in his life feels desperate to have strong descendants with the perfect genetics, going as far as using Maeve to "harvest her eggs" to have those perfect children he always dreamed of.
In Season 4, Homelander's deranged mental state has become even worse. The accumulation of many of his actions of earlier seasons have begun to affect him, suffering from a clear PTSD, Dissociative Identity Disorder, and is evidently more paranoid, frequently suffering traumatic flashbacks of the experiments he endured as a child. Realizing Butcher, his archenemy, has only a few months left to live and their final confrontation they promised to each other may not happen, has affected him more than he expected, given it's the only actual thing that keeps him enthusiastic and Butcher, the only ‘non-Supe’ he genuinely likes and doesn't look down to. His mental issues are clearly seen when in a meeting with the remaining members of the Seven and Ashley for recruiting new members of the team he orders Deep to pull out A-Train's penis and "blow him" right in front of him, though immediately stops them when they actually agree to do it. He is sick and tired of having people around him that do not have the stomach to challenge anything he says and emphasizes on being surrounded by sycophants and imbeciles and having to carry Vought on his shoulders. Furthermore, he dramatizes on how his supporters and fans are martyrs to the greatest cause, so he orders to the rest of his teammates to beat them to death with baseball bats. Homelander is also going through a existential midlife crisis. This has, unwillingly, made him ask for advice. He confesses to Sister Sage that he's unhappy even though he's got all that he ever wanted in his entire career at Vought, which was to scale to its peak, and feels meaningless that regardless of whatever he does, like saving or killing people, everyone cheers him, and feels like unnatural to see humans control everything despite being, on his own words, less than anything and merely toys for his amusement. He has shown a more humble and fragile side of himself. He now seems to know when to put his ego aside as shown in his conversation with Sister Sage and admits he's smart enough to know when to listen and take advice.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
“ | Well, you know, I needed him to be the strongest man in the world. So I went to work on him.
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- Superhuman Strength: One of Homelander's primary abilities is his tremendous superhuman strength. He is stated to be the strongest man in the world according to Jonah Vogelbaum [3] and Stormfront. [4] As a child, he broke a woman's spine by hugging her. [1] After he and Queen Maeve intercepted a robbery, he threw the first thief far away and high into the air. [5] He also easily pushed open a door blockaded by scaffolding with one hand and embedded his fist in a shooter's torso. [6] Homelander casually knocked off the door of a pressurized plane, but he stated he was unable to carry the hijacked plane to safety, suggesting that he is unable to use his full strength in flight, requiring a solid surface to take full advantage of his power. [7] Another time he was unable to stop the full weight of a falling bus and concrete debris brought down on top of him when he was hovering during his encounter with Kenji Miyashiro, although he was distracted. [8] He was later able to throw a baseball from New York to Boston, having previously thrown a football into a small plane with so much force that an emergency landing was required, [4] threw another baseball high into orbit, [9] and slapped Blindspot's head hard enough to burst his eardrums and cause excessive bleeding. [10] He crushed a terrorist under his foot. [11] Homelander easily overpowered Starlight [12]and Doppelganger, lifting the latter off the ground and snapping their neck with one hand. [12] He later contended with Stormfront and casually crushed a man's head in one hand. [4] In a fit of anger, he overpowered A-Train and threatened to pull Billy Butcher apart limb by limb. [13] He casually killed Termite by crushing him under his foot. While initially appearing evenly matched with Soldier Boy, Homelander eventually overpowered him with his raw strength, nearly killing him in the process before the intervention of Butcher. Homelander continued to exert his superior strength against the combined might of Soldier Boy and Butcher, and only through Hughie joining the fight were the three able to finally bring Homelander to the ground, pinning him down with considerable effort. Homelander, seeing what could be his first ever defeat, was able to break free, knocking back Soldier Boy, Butcher and Hughie, giving him enough time to retreat. [14] Homelander is also able to physically overpower Queen Maeve and gouged out her right eye. [15] He was able to easily rip apart Webweaver.[16] Homelander can level a city within minutes.[17]
“ | There isn't a weapon on Earth that they haven't thrown at him. They've all failed.
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- Superhuman Durability: Homelander possesses extraordinary superhuman durability and is the most durable of the Seven. He is not only completely bulletproof [5][13] but also unfazed by explosions, such as when Billy blew up the Stillwell residence with him inside it [11] or the destruction of an entire power plant. [18] According to Madelyn Stillwell, there is not a weapon on Earth that has not failed against him, implying that he could also survive nuclear explosions. [15] This was contradicted by Homelander himself when he dared Starlight to release the Flight 37 video: he said that he would take out air defences first, implying he may be vulnerable to anti-aircraft fire or heavy artillery. If he were truly invulnerable to conventional armaments, he would not need to eliminate them. There is the possibility that he simply views them as an annoyance or distraction, however. While pursuing Kenji Miyashiro and the Boys, Homelander survived having a bus and several large pieces of concrete dropped on top of him without any signs of injury save for being dirtied from the incident. Billy Butcher theorized that the force of a thermonuclear bomb would be the only thing capable of killing Soldier Boy, who was nearly as strong as Homelander. [13] Maeve even described him as invincible, something he believed himself to be as well, as he dared Victoria Neuman to attempt blowing him up. [19] However, it has been shown that his immense durability does indeed have limits. After a brutal fight against Soldier Boy, Butcher, and Hughie, Homelander was shown to have a large bruise on his face. [14] While Homelander was able to take numerous punches and kicks from Maeve, they still caused him some degree of harm and even gave him a nosebleed, something she would follow up by jamming a metal rod into his ear, drawing blood and causing his ear to ring.
- Vacuum Adaptation: During his conversation with Stan Edgar, he states that the view of New York City is better from space, implying that he has flown beyond the Earth's atmosphere without oxygen or protection from the cold and solar radiation[19].
- Heat Resistance: Homelander’s durability grants him an incredible ability to withstand extreme temperatures that would instantly incinerate normal humans, but he still experiences excruciating pain from the heat, as his invulnerable skin does not burn while subjecting him to the sensation of agonizing thermal discomfort. It is possible that he only felt pain from his skin burning due to not being fully developed. Considering his previous comment about seeing New York City from space, Homelander can likely withstand the burning caused by the friction and pressure of the atmospheric gases that happens when entering the Earth's atmosphere[19].
- Superhuman Immune System: Homelander likely has an immune system far more superior than any other known supe and human on the planet. According to him, anthrax wouldn't be able to hurt him and Ryan.[20] More notably, according to Sameer, a highly skilled scientist, a virus capable of killing Homelander would need to be so potent that it would lead to a global pandemic and kill all other supes in the process[21][16].
“ | ” |
- Superhuman Speed: Homelander can move at very fast speeds. While Homelander can fly at extremely fast speeds, enough to keep up with an airplane so he could destroy it [5], John can also move on the ground at supersonic speeds. As a child, Homelander could already break the sound barrier. [9] Homelander is fast enough to dodge bullets and disarm multiple gunmen before they could even react. Later, after Butcher decided to detonate the bombs strapped to Stillwell's body, Homelander was able to save Butcher from the blast unharmed (The blast of a C4 bomb moves with a speed of around 8.000 m/s or 23 times faster than sound). [11] He was able to disappear from Billy Butcher's apartment without the latter even realizing it, implying that he can move faster than the human eye can see while making little to no noise. [13]
- Superhuman Stamina: Homelander possesses extraordinary stamina, as his muscles are able to withstand the stresses of moving at superhuman speeds or performing other superhuman feats for extended periods of time. The Legend, who once was the Senior Vice President of Hero Management, claims to have never seen him sweat.[22] However, it appears that Homelander still requires sleep, suggesting that his endurance has limits.
“ | Madelyn, I heard him through the wall of this-- he was blackmailing you.
―Homelander[src]
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” |
- Superhuman Hearing: Homelander possesses tremendous auditory awareness, of nearly 200,000Hz, allowing him to detect sounds from miles away. He can also use this power to detect a person's heartbeat and blood pressure, and can tell when they are excited or anxious, such as when he detected Hughie Campbell's blood pressure to be 150/90. [23]He also heard the mayor of Baltimore through a wall and can also spy on Madelyn in her office. [5] He heard Starlight's heartbeat racing [24] and Butcher's heart pounding. [11] His hearing also allows him to tell when someone is lying. Starlight told Stan Edgar that he could hear him through the wall, and he heard A-Train quietly curse him out. [13] He later heard Roger from across rows of seats in the sound studio [25] and Grace Mallory surreptitiously typing on her smartphone in her pocket from a significant distance outdoors. Furthermore, it appears that Homelander is immune or at least resistant to the debilitating effects other supes experience when exposed to high frequency noise, likely as a result of having grown accustomed to it all his life. He may have, at least partially lost this power after Queen Maeve stabbed him in the ear with a metal rod.[15]
“ | William Butcher... I can smell him all over you.
―Homelander to Queen Maeve.[src]
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” |
- Superhuman Smell: Homelander possesses an amazing olfactory sense. For both Hughie and Starlight, he was able to tell they were nervous by smelling that their adrenaline had increased. He can use his sense of smell to locate explosives. He is also able to identify individual humans by scent, smelling Billy Butcher's scent on Queen Maeve, and identifying Hughie by a drop of sweat.
“ | You know what's interesting? The Deep told me, and only me, that there were, uh, scorch marks on the mayor's engine. Almost as if from two small, high-intensity beams, roughly the width of human eyes.
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” |
- Heat Vision: Homelander is capable of projecting highly concentrated beams of energy from his eyes. These blasts of energy are so powerful that they can cut through almost anything, such as airplanes.[6] He also used his heat vision to melt a thief's gun into his hand. [5] However, Homelander is most notable for using his optical beams on people, melting flesh and bone with ease and causing people to burst into gore. [18][7][11][26][27] His heat vision can also likely cut through most Supes, shown in Homelander's hesitation to use them on Stormfront. [9] He is able to control the intensity of the beams, as shown when he used his heat vision to warm up a bottle of Stillwell's breast milk without damaging the bottle,[10] and likely seen when he uses lasers on Marie Moreau to incapacitate her. When confronted by Billy Butcher and Soldier Boy, he struck Butcher's chest with his optic beams, but rather than bisecting Butcher or even burning him (as would be expected from Homelander's heat vision), the energy beams caused Butcher to fly backwards and into a wall, leaving him momentarily stunned by the impact, due to Butcher having given himself temporary superhuman powers via Compound V24. However, against highly durable Supes such as Queen Maeve, Homelander's blasts do not seem to have a significant impact. With Butcher's heat vision leaving a wound on Soldier Boy's face using a continuous beam, Homelander's heat vision would likely have the same effect on Soldier Boy.
“ | He could see us. He's got X-ray vision. He can see through the fucking roof.
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” |
- X-Ray Vision: Homelander can see through any solid object or surface,[28] with the exception of objects and surfaces that are lined with zinc, implying that he only has low energy photon x-ray vision[6]. He X-rayed Stan Edgar, stating that he is very close to a coronary because his blood is like engine oil.[6] Stillwell acknowledged that he used his X-Ray vision to spy on her, [23] and Butcher knew he could see through the ceiling.[11]
- Flight: Homelander is able to levitate and propel himself at supersonic speeds, allowing him to cover vast distances in a matter of minutes. He reached a hijacked flight before F-16 fighter jets; top speeds of the F-16 jets are just under 1,500 mph/Mach 2. [7] Him being faster than a F-16 Jet is also futher confirmed by Stillwell. While he was out canvassing the city for Translucent, Frenchie's neural networked CCTV ID's Homelander flying at sea level at speeds close to 1,874.482 kph/Mach 1.53. [28]
- Regenerative Healing Factor: Homelander possesses a powerful healing factor, like his father Soldier Boy, who healed a cut on his cheek after being subjected to a prolonged Heat Vision blast by Billy Butcher; Homelander did receive a bleed in his ear after being stabbed with a metal straw by Queen Maeve. However, when Homelander introduces his son Ryan to his and Stormfront's supporters at Vought Tower the next day, the wound in his ear had already disappeared. [29]
Abilities[]
“ | You see, companies, they come and go, but talent... talent is forever.
―Homelander[src]
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” |
- Charisma: Homelander is very charismatic, being able to get public support by giving them impressive speeches which most of the time are improvised by himself. He can easily attract people with his charm and confidence and give them the image of an ideal patriotic hero. It should be noted that his ability to win over others has its limits. After inadvertently killing an innocent teen with his heat vision while stopping a terrorist, his efforts to placate a crowd of protesters was a PR disaster.
- Gifted Intelligence: Homelander is a very cunning individual. He knows how to manipulate and coerce most people into doing what he wants. He was able to outsmart Stan Edgar and get himself out of trouble multiple times. After the botched rescue mission of Flight 37 (which led to the Crash of Transoceanic Flight 37), Homelander managed to manipulate the situation to make the public support superheroes in the national defense, as well as convince Sister Sage to join The Seven, a supe who's powers make her the smartest person in existence and is wise enough to listen to and heed her advice, allowing her to come up with strategic plans that will help him to gain complete control of the federal government and takeover the country. However, his impulsive behavior and his inability to make long term plans have allowed multiple people to outsmart him.
- Acting: Homelander is a very skilled actor. His heroic facade is capable of tricking most people that he is an ideal patriotic hero, causing them to lower their guard and trust him. He has also participated in the production of many films, including Dawn of the Seven.
“ | You're fucking scared."
"I'm fucking terrified. And you should be too. |
” |
- Intimidation: Homelander has a very imposing presence. He uses his intimidation to control the members of the Seven, who recognize that he is the most powerful member of the group, and that he is completely without conscience and has no moral reservations about killing anyone he chooses. As a result, most of them are scared of Homelander. He also intimidates to get whatever he wants. According to Starlight, she felt like he was waiting around every corner of the tower to kill her, like living with a loaded gun in her face.[12]However, this ability seems to have its limits, as he was unable to intimidate Billy Butcher and Stan Edgar, both of whom showed no fear toward him.
- Skilled Combatant: Homelander was able to put up a fight against both Butcher and Soldier Boy, despite both men being ex-military and having years of combat experience. In his childhood, Homelander once fought against a huge man, indicating that Vought gave him some combat training at some point in his life.[18] However due to his superior strength always giving him the advantage, Homelander never actually needed it and therefore has never improved his combat skills. Consequently, he has been overpowered by the weaker foes, such as Billy Butcher, Hughie Campbell and Soldier Boy, who were able to subdue him by working together, forcing him to flee. Homelander was also able to fight Maeve on even terms, though Maeve's superior fighting skills allowed her to hold her own, with Homelander having to resort more to his strength than his combat skills to overpower her.
Weaknesses[]
Psychological[]
“ | Or maybe you're just a paranoid, malignant narcissist who thinks everything is about you.
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” |
- Mental Illness: Homelander’s mental instability is rooted in his traumatic upbringing and the lack of emotional support during his formative years. Due to being raised in a lab with little to no human affection, Homelander has grown up to be a mentally unstable man. His obsessive need to be adored coupled with his lack of empathy and lack of moral reservation about harming and even killing others suggests that he is afflicted with Malignant Narcissism. It is revealed in Wisdom of the Ages that Vought, under Stan Edgar and Madelyn Stillwell, hired the best psychologists to intentionally mentally condition his intense need for love, forever leaving him with something that would always make him human.
- Carelessness/Clumsiness: Homelander has very little regard for the lives of others (although rare exceptions exist, such as Stormfront). Consequently, he is not careful with the use of his powers, particularly his heat vision. His carelessness could be seen even during his first mission; when he used his heat vision to heat up a gun to get a terrorist to drop it, which ended up causing an explosion that killed a nearby hostage and blew off the gunman's hand. While thwarting a terrorist on Flight 37, he accidentally destroyed the controls to pilot the airplane, leaving the passengers behind to die on a doomed aircraft. On another occasion, when he was bringing down a super-terrorist with his heat vision, he inadvertently killed a local teenager who was standing behind the terrorist. On another occasion, he and Queen Maeve were sent to apprehend a fugitive, Homelander accidentally used too much force and punched his fist through the criminal, killing him rather than capturing him. In fact, Homelander has never successfully apprehended a criminal (without killing or seriously injuring the criminal) nor rescued a victim, the victims of Flight 37 being a case in point.
- Insecurities: Although Homelander presents himself as a strong and confident man, in reality, he has very little self-esteem. He has a obsessive need for everyone to love him, likely due to the lack of human affection that he should have received during his childhood. As a result, he quickly becomes more aggressive and mentally unstable every time he feels like his image and reputation might be in danger. When Stormfront starts to bash on his image and become more popular than him, Homelander quickly becomes intimidated by her.
- Need for a Family: Having grown up alone in a cold and brutal environment, with zero compassion or love, Homelander is always on a search for a real family. However, this can be his undoing. His need to prove himself to his “father figure” Stan Edgar nearly destroyed Vought, and as soon as he found out Soldier Boy was his biological father, he was so desperate for connection, it nearly cost him his powers and life, during their second fight. His connection to his son is also a big weakness, it can make him careless, erratic, and paranoid. He was nearly depowered by Soldier Boy, due to focusing on his injured son instead of Soldier Boy. As implied by Homelander, despite treating the other members of The Seven horribly and constantly abusing and degrading them, Homelander in truth has a strong level of attachment to them and may see them as his genuine “friends” or even “family”. As shown, after it was revealed that A-Train was the leak, Homelander was notably distraught and even began to cry at learning this information.
- Oedipus Complex: Homelander, due to his traumatic childhood and growing up with little emotional or psychological support as a lab rat under Vought’s supervision, had developed a deep desire and need for a maternal figure. This could notably be seen in his childhood where he had accidentally killed many female tutors by hugging them to death by accident. As an adult, this need was noted to have made Homelander manipulatable by women, specifically those who can take on a motherly role to him. This was first seen in his relationship with Madelyn Stillwell, who managed to reign him in to a degree and act as an authoritative figure to him as the manager of the Seven. Further evidence of him being psychologically vulnerable and controlled by “motherly” women could be seen with his previous romantic relationships with Stormfront and even Queen Maeve. Later, Firecracker was able to exert influence over him by offering to nurse him with her breastmilk, causing him murder Webweaver when she pointed him as the leak and fire Sister Sage (the brains of his operation and the one in charge of planning and running his “plan” to “make Supes on top” without a hitch) under her influence and make her his new number two without thinking of the long term consequences.
- Superiority Complex: Due to his incredibly immense power, Homelander has a big superiority complex and thinks of himself as superior to all humans and Supes alike. Due to this, his ego was fractured, and Homelander fell apart when Soldier Boy beat him into submission in their first match. As shown, whenever Homelander is put into a position where the image of his supposed “superiority” is questioned, his mind becomes increasingly erratic and unstable. Evidence of this can be seen when he took over Vought International and Tek Knight’s party where he attempted to gain political support for his “plan” to put “Supes on Top”. As shown, when he was faced with the true reality of the requirement to run a multinational billion dollar company and when he was questioned how exactly he was going to properly run the country of when he overthrows the government, Homelander had no idea how to address, answer or even where to start handling, these questions about specific concerns and issues, as he was never trained or educated on how to do either, causing his mind to fall into panic and mental instability as his supposed Superiority and God Complex is compromised by these realities.
- PTSD: During his mission on rescuing hostages from terrorists in a factory, he suffered from flashbacks to his traumatic childhood which came at the cost of his self-control and killing everybody around him. These flashbacks occur the most on the site and premise where they occurred, worsening Homelander's emotional and mental stability. In season 4, he began to experience nightmares about his confinement during his infancy and the torture at the hands of Vought scientists during his teenage years where he was burned in a human oven to test his resilience.
- Dissociative Identity Disorder: Homelander has been hallucinating voices and faces of multiple self-states. This is indicative of dissociative identity disorder.[30] Antony Starr and Eric Kripke have also discussed Homelander having "multiple personality disorder" however that term is outdated and harmful.[31] Additionally, people with DID are frequently misdiagnosed as schizophrenic. Though Homelander does present other psychotic symptoms, his other self-states do not fall under that banner.
- Lack of Real Challenges: As Homelander is by far the most powerful supe on Earth, he has never faced a challenge that forced him to improve his skills in combat, despite apparently receiving combat training in his youth. He usually prefers to take on foes with his heat vision, which brings most confrontations to a quick and decisive end. Consequently, he has been overpowered by the weaker foes, such as Billy Butcher, Hughie Campbell and Soldier Boy, who were able to subdue him by working together, forcing him to flee. Maeve was later shown to be able to fight him on relatively even terms and even overpower him during their fight, due to her superior fighting skills.
Biological[]
“ | You got to go out there, lift the plane up."
"Lift the plane? How? There's nothing to stand on. It's fucking air. ―Queen Maeve and Homelander[src]
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- Blunt Force/Limited Durability: While Homelander is the most durable Supe in the world, he is still far from being invincible. Despite most attacks failing to cause a visible injury on his body, some individuals have managed to hinder him through extreme force, while others have managed to injure him. For instance, Kenji Miyashiro has used his telekinetic power to bury him under several tons of rocks and debris, including an entire bus, leaving Homelander apparently unable to free himself for several minutes (despite not showing any visible injuries after freeing himself). Certain beings, such as Stormfront, Ryan Butcher, Queen Maeve and Soldier Boy have shown themselves capable of at least knocking him down. Soldier Boy and Butcher were strong enough to greatly stagger and harm Homelander with blunt force, ultimately leaving a large bruise on his face. During their fight, Maeve was even able to draw blood from Homelander, proving he can be beaten to death with enough force. Likewise, a young Homelander experienced excruciating pain during the various tests he was subjected to by Vought - enough to permanently traumatize him in spite of the lack of visible damage or permanent injuries.
- Ear Injuries: Maeve was able to stab a metal straw into Homelander's ear, not only was it able to penetrate his ear, but it was able to incapacitate him and cause his ear to bleed. If she wasn't in a weakened and injured state, it's possible she could have struck it right through his brain.
- Power Loss: Although his ear regenerated a day after Maeve stabbed it, Homelander may have partially lost his superhuman hearing in this ear. In season 4, his super hearing is not nearly as effective as it is in previous seasons, not being able to hear Hughie Campbell in a vent above. It is also possible that he merely needs more focus to use this ability than he previously did.
- Ear Injuries: Maeve was able to stab a metal straw into Homelander's ear, not only was it able to penetrate his ear, but it was able to incapacitate him and cause his ear to bleed. If she wasn't in a weakened and injured state, it's possible she could have struck it right through his brain.
“ | Hey Deep, what can't I see through?"
"Zinc." "Correct" "And what is the box made of Deep?" "Zinc." "Correct again. ―Homelander and The Deep
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- Zinc: Homelander cannot see through zinc. It is very likely that he has only low energy photon x-ray vision, being that a possible reason over why he cannot see through the metal. This weakness was exploited by The Boys once, when they placed Translucent's remains in a zinc-lined box, so that Homelander would be unable to find it. This also means he cannot see through galvanized steel products, such as certain airducts and reinforced concrete.
- Bright Lights: Despite seemingly being able to see while using his heat vision, he averts his eyes when flashed with bright stage lights, throwing off his aim.
“ | You got a lot of power, but you do age.
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” |
- Aging: Despite his immense power and being the strongest supe alive, Homelander is not immortal and like any human, he's getting old with passage of time. This is evident from him recently starting to lose hair. His stylist is dying his hair more often, doing it every 2.4 weeks when it used to be every month, to hide his greying hair. According to Sister Sage, his prostate is enlarged, having to wash his hands due to him urinating more often.
Equipment[]
- Super Suit: As the greatest superhero in America, Homelander has a costume that reinforces his image as a symbol of American Patriotism. The uniform is very durable, allowing Homelander to take explosions head on and fly at Mach speeds without worrying about his clothes.
Relationships[]
Family[]
Allies[]
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Enemies[]
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Victims[]
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Valued Relationships[]
Madelyn Stillwell[]
Queen Maeve[]
Ryan[]
Homelander does show some genuine emotion when he's with his son. In What I Know, as soon as Ryan becomes overwhelmed by crowds, Homelander immediately takes him away. He also has a genuine heart-to-heart chat with him about feeling afraid and learning to fly. He wanted to make sure that Ryan didn't grow up with the cold and lonely childhood he did, with no role models and no knowledge of the outside world. Despite this, he is still rather selfish and forceful, callously throwing his son of a roof to get his powers to manifest He was also visually disappointed and sad when Ryan was afraid and ultimately chooses Butcher over him. Despite this, Homelander continues to search for his son. After he finally found him, Homelander proved to love his son, in his own way, and cares for him as seen when Soldier Boy attacked Ryan. Overall, Ryan seems to be deep down the only thing he actually cares for.
Stormfront[]
His relationship with Stormfront is rather passionate and at the same time reluctant. While they both to some degree care for one another, their love for each other has limitations. For instance, Homelander does not completely buy into Stormfront's racist ideology: When Stormfront teaches Ryan about "White Genocide", Homelander's face cringes slightly and he tries to shift Ryan's focus away from her. His disdain for Stormfront's discriminatory tendencies is explained by his view that there does not need to be a master race, as he sees himself as the master race. However, he goes along with her plans due to the position of power she promises him. When Stormfront reveals her Nazi past to Homelander, he broods while looking away from her, until she claims that he will be the man to lead their future army, at which point he becomes interested. However, this does not mean Homelander is free of prejudice himself; as seen when he, behind closed doors, called a contestant for American Hero "Captain Al-Qaeda" after rejecting her for being Muslim. Homelander is also prejudiced towards disabled supes and is against including them on the Seven, shown as to how he grievously injured Blindspot and mocked him right after calling him "another useless fucking blind guy" and a "cripple" he would not allow into the Seven and angrily berated Ashley for suggesting him as a recruit.
Butcher[]
Despite being archenemies, Homelander has an odd respect and even liking for Billy Butcher. When they finally confronted each other, Homelander is both intrigued and impressed that Butcher is not afraid of him, but hates him with a passion, addressing the amount of time the latter spent leading up to their standoff. Homelander respects that Butcher is the only person who actually acts like himself around him. Butcher doesn't put up a fake persona or a mask of fear. In their reunion in Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men, Homelander is actually happily surprised to see Butcher again, playfully taunting him about his wife, and even allows Butcher to call him a 'c*nt' something he would never allow anyone else to do. During their standoff in the woods, he even gives Butcher the chance to give him Ryan and leave, however, he goes to kill Butcher as soon as he refuses. It is only due to Maeve's threats of releasing the Flight 37 video that he allows Butcher and Ryan to leave peacefully. Their conversation in Payback shows the respect and leniency Homelander gives Butcher compared to all others. He politely asks and waits to enter Butcher's apartment, a courtesy he gives too little to no one else, and allows Butcher to mock and insult him right to his face when he nearly killed A-Train for doing it behind his back. He also opens up emotionally to Butcher during this conversation about his growing frustration and even compares the two as equals, which is shocking considering Butcher is a normal human, and Homelander considers himself above everyone (except Ryan, Maeve, and Stormfront). Homelander obviously knows that Butcher wants nothing more than to kill him, but rather than instantly act, he fully admits he is looking forward to their eventual confrontation and is ready to wait for it. His tolerance for Butcher's interference, and continuous refusal to kill him, can also be attributed to the fact that Homelander appears to take amusement in toying with Butcher. When Butcher prompts Homelander to "laser my fucking brains out," Homelander states "Where's the sport in that?". Homelander also shows some sympathy with Butcher, which is impressive considering he's deeply narcissistic, and knows that both him and Butcher feel exhausted of following the rules imposed by Vought and, the FBSA, and offers him to change their fates by destroying absolutely everything and fight to death until one of them is left standing, an offer Butcher accepts with pleasure.
The Deep[]
Homelander arranged The Deep's return to the Seven, knowing full well that his co-captain Starlight's despises him due to their negative history. But despite The Deep's usefulness in galling Starlight, The Deep is not spared from Homelander's twisted games, as Homelander also arranged a welcome back dinner for The Deep and made sure the dishes served were seafood, and then compelled The Deep to eat his pet octopus Timothy.
Generally speaking, Homelander does not regard The Deep as someone of note, very rarely relying on him for anything important. Because of this, The Deep is usually spared from doing Homelander's dirty work.
A-Train[]
Similar to The Deep, Homelander sees A-Train as someone lesser. However, due to the fact that A-Train is stronger and smarter than The Deep, he relies on A-Train more frequently to carry out his requests. Homelander trusted A-Train to the point of asking him to give Compound V to terrorist organizations, in a blatant act of treason towards both the American government and Vought. Despite A-Train doing everything that Homelander asks of him and more, whether it be killing his own girlfriend or ratting out traitors, Homelander ultimately only sees A-Train as a tool.
The fact that Homelander truly does not care about A-Train becomes obvious after he becomes incapable of using his super speed due to his heart condition. During this moment of vulnerability, Homelander verbally abuses him and even threatens to kill him, revealing that he only values A-Train as long as he remains useful to him. After A-Train's heart transplant and his recovery, Homelander does not apologize to him.
When A-Train finally betrayed him and left Vought for good, Homelander cried in sadness over the loss of one of his "friends", refusing to acknowledge all the abuse and bullying that he put A-Train through.
Sister Sage[]
They have a professional relationship. Homelander genuinely respects Sage for her intelligence and her confidence in telling him the things others are too afraid to say and is not a sycophant like his colleagues. Sage is one of the very few characters Homelander treats as an equal, and he's mentioned he is capable of listening to her even if it's not something he likes or wants to hear. Like with Butcher, Homelander showed up on Sage's door and politely asked her if he could go inside, although this time he acts more humble, as he is seen wearing civilian clothes an act he'd never done since his debut as Homelander, and generously offered her a place at The Seven, a courtesy he never gave to anyone, and even promised her he'd listen whenever she has an advice for him. After recruiting her, Sage becomes his de-facto second in command being in charge of creating a plan that would make Homelander be the number one again and worshiped as a god.
Firecracker[]
Trivia[]
- Homelander is a pastiche of DC's Superman and Marvel's Captain America.
- Homelander was originally an orphan like Superman.
- Homelander's faux origin story from the comics is the same as Superman's, while his real backstory is similar to Captain America as they are both super soldiers given powers from chemical formulas.
- Homelander's inability to see through zinc is similar to Superman's inability to see through lead.
- Homelander is the leader of the Seven, a pastiche of the Justice League (led by Superman).
- Homelander's superficial patriotism and appearance are a reference to the status and reputation of Superman and Captain America as all-American icons.
- Unlike the comic series, Homelander raped Becca instead of Black Noir.
- Homelander was featured in Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare II and Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare III as a playable operator.
- Homelander made his debut as a playable guest character in Mortal Kombat 1 although he was voiced by Jake Green. Antony Starr admitted that he wanted to take part in this, but extenuating circumstances not yet revealed had prevented him from doing so.
- Homelander was named "Superhero of the Year" by TIME.
- Homelander has done an AMA on Reddit promoted by the Vought International twitter account, the real life analogue to the show's company. However, the canonity of the AMA is unclear, as it is metatextual at several points.
- John's birthday appears to be a matter of uncertainty. Vought International states that his birthday is February 22 [32], a winter month, but Soldier Boy claims that he was born some time in the spring, while the show has implied his birthday to be on July 4, a summer month.
- Homelander himself does not believe he has a birthday because he was not naturally born. This appears to be inaccurate however, as Barbara states that he was carried by a surrogate mother and tore his way out. Furthermore, he also doubts July 4 is his real birthday, believing Vought coopted independence day for marketing purposes, much like the early christians coopted the winter solstice, to "market" Jesus to european pagans.
- Homelander mirrors Julius Caesar of the Roman Empire.
- Sister Sage openly alludes to this during their conversation about democracy, where she suggests that he should let the people destroy each other and then seize power and save them "like Caesar", referring to Caesar's rise to power during the first civil war of Rome.
- Julius was born in the Julian clan, who claimed descent from the God Venus. As a result, he would commonly come to be be associated with divinity among mortals in roman society; statues of him were erected, he would often wear a laurel crown and purple colors (as Jesus did), and his face was minted on coins which was normally reserved for deities. Similarly, Homelander has often likened himself to a God, and his representations (such as his statue at Godolkin University) in mainstream media reflect his perceived holy connection.
- Caesar began his campaign by serving in the military and later became pontifex maximus (chief priest) and pater patria (father of the fatherland), just as Homelander served as law enforcement and a military contractor, was an ordained Christian minister in the Capes for Christ organization, and later the de facto CEO of Vought International.
- Caesar was noted to be a very popular figure who attracted the loyalty of both soldiers through his charisma as well as the plebeians (common people) by appealing to their concerns. Homelander is similarly, a very charismatic, attractive, and powerful individual, and as such is able to readily recruit supes as soldiers to his cause and command unwavering respect from many citizens, particularly by playing on their fears.
- Caesar aligned himself early on with a powerful politician named Pompey. Pompey later turned against Caesar, fearing the power he had accumulated, and was executed after fleeing to another country to seek refuge. Pompey would essentially be the analogue of Victoria Neuman, a congresswoman who Homelander allied with to increase his political influence. Victoria later fled for the same reason, and was executed while trying to seek refuge with the CIA.
- Caesar was aware of the growing discontent in the Senate and was reportedly faced with numerous warnings and omens of his impending death, though he ignored them out of arrogance. On the famous Ides of March, he was finally assassinated by vengeful senators, and among his most famous assassins was a young man named Brutus, who was rumored to be Caesar's own illegitimate son. Such a fate would poetically parallel the long held theory that Homelander's downfall will be the result of his own pride at the hands of his own illegitimate son Ryan (Brutus) with the support of The Boys (The Senate).
Commentary[]
- As many fans of The Boys compare the series to Game of Thrones for their similarity on politics and real-life situations, Homelander is more often as not compared, as well as shown to be extremely similar, to Joffrey Baratheon. Both of them are highly powerful figures who are part of a powerful empire (Homelander being apart of Vought and Joffrey being a member of House Lannister and House Baratheon) who put up a façade of being charming and caring people when in actuality, they are ruthless and sadistic monsters. Both of them consider themselves superior to those they consider "lesser" then them, and both of their psychopathy was a result of a need of love and care from a parental figure (In the books, Joffrey's actions were out of wanting to be acknowledged by his (legal) father, Robert, while Homelander also wants to receive love and compassion from Stillwell). However, while Homelander is considered more competent in regards to being a genuinely threatening figure, in regards to evil, Joffrey is arguably far worse than Homelander, because unlike Homelander, Joffrey isn't given any redeeming qualities and doesn't care for his family the way Homelander does.
- Antony Starr, Homelander's actor, even once made a comment about the comparisons by calling Homelander a "likable Joffrey", since Homelander is given moments in the series that lets viewers empathize with him, while Joffrey isn't. Furthermore, Homelander is an extremely smart man who uses his charisma and mastery of manipulation to get his way. He's also able to realize when he's being lied to, partially due to his powers and due to his cunning intelligence. Joffrey, on the other hand, has minor cunning at best and is an incompetent, blithering idiot at worst. Joffrey is also extremely cowardly and pathetic, while Homelander has little to no fear of anyone.
- Homelander is very similar to Lord Voldemort from Harry Potter for the following reasons; Both like to surround themselves with sycophantic people who have similar, though not as strong, powers, and collectively look down on those lacking powers. Homelander's use of the term 'mud people' to describe non-supes is remarkably similar to Voldemort referring to half-bloods as 'mudbloods.' Also, Homelander and Voldemort both grew up without parents and seek to become all-controlling, god-like figures to claim some sense of control. Of course, there are major key differences; Homelander deeply needs to convince the world he is a benevolent person and takes pride in his fabricated image, while Voldemort does not care whether or not he is loved, only that he has control.
- Homelander's takeover of Vought International and reputation parallel Donald Trump, the President of the United States from 2017-2021 and CEO of the Trump Organization, as well as his politics, behavior, and some features of his visual appearance, such as Homelander’s blonde, wig-like hair.
Gallery[]
Promotional[]
Screencaps[]
Videos[]
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TV series The Seven members |
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Current Homelander • The Deep • Black Noir II • Firecracker • Sister Sage Former Mister Marathon • Translucent † • Lamplighter † • Stormfront † • Supersonic † • Starlight • Black Noir † • Queen Maeve • A-Train |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Flook, Ray (November 15, 2019). "The Boys: Eric Kripke Celebrates Season 2 Wrap with Young Homelander Short Film (VIDEO)". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
- ↑ Brusie, Chaunie (June 27, 2017). "What Are Persecutory Delusions?". Healthline. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
- ↑ Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 The Bloody Doors Off
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 The Name of the Game
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Get Some
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 The Female of the Species
- ↑ Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Proper Preparation and Planning
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The Big Ride
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 You Found Me
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Nothing Like It in the World
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Payback
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Herogasm
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 The Instant White-Hot Wild
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 The Insider
- ↑ The Art and Making of The Boys
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 One Plus One Equals Two
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Glorious Five Year Plan
- ↑ Department of Dirty Tricks
- ↑ Dirty Business
- ↑ The Last Time to Look on This World of Lies
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Good for the Soul
- ↑ The Self-Preservation Society
- ↑ The Only Man in the Sky
- ↑ We Gotta Go Now
- ↑ What I Know
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 Cherry
- ↑ The Instant White-Hot Wild
- ↑ Dissociative Identity Disorder
- ↑ Meenan, Devin (July 30, 2023). "The Boys Creator Eric Kripke's Take On Homelander's Chilling Mirror Scene". /Film. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
- ↑ https://x.com/VoughtIntl/status/1628409943060512771