Warning! Major spoilers for The Boys ahead!Amazon’sThe Boysis heading into its final season and while it’s undoubtedly cooking up a big finale, it won’t come close to the unexpected ending of the original. The hit TV show has made a lot of changes to the source material, and its biggest change deprived the show of a shocking twist ending.
In the comics,the Seven’s Batman pastiche, Black Noir,is actually a Homelander clonewho was made to kill him. But as fans ofThe Boysshow are aware, Black Noir is his own person, a major departure from the comics. Unfortunately, that change means whatever end the show has planned will pale in comparison to the original series.
The Homelander/Black Noir Reveal TurnedThe BoysUpside Down
A Shocking Twist That Changed Everything Fans Knew About the Series
InThe Boys #65by Garth Ennis and Russell Braun, Homelander has taken the White House as part of his plans to overthrow the United States government in the name of Supe supremacy. As the Boys’ leader, Billy Butcher, confronts the mad Homelander, Hughie hears what Mother’s Milk has discovered about Homelander and Vought-American’s attempts to keep him in check.
With Homelander being one of the most powerful Supes on Earth, Vought-Americandesigned Black Noir withthe intention of taking Homelander down in case he ever goes rogue. What no one expected, however, was that Homelander never went rogue. The only thing Black Noir was meant to do was kill Homelander,but Vought-American never gave him the order.
Hughie, of course, doubts Mother’s Milk’s story, given that they have photographic evidence of Homelander committing horrific crimes. But everything comes to a head when Hughie realizes that Black Noir once tricked Queen Maeve into believing he was Homelander. At the same time, in the White House, Black Noir removes his mask and reveals he’s actually a clone of Homelander.
…Black Noir removes his mask and reveals he’s actually a clone of Homelander.
Black Noir reveals that he posed as Homelander and committed atrocities on camera to gaslight Homelander and push him off the deep end,all so Black Noir could finally fulfill his duty. With his life completely ruined, Homelander loses control of himself and tries to kill Black Noir, only for Black Noir to end up decapitating Homelander.
The BoysShows Made This Ending Completely Impossible
The Adaptation Traded a Shocking Ending for Something Different
While the ending of the comic is infamous, the show has veered wildly away from the original series’ canon to the point that making this ending is impossible. For one, Black Noir wasn’t revealed to be a Homelander clone and, instead of being a founding member of the Seven, the original Black Noir began as a member of Payback.
The show has taken a lot of liberties in bringing the original comic to life.
Also, rather than being antagonistic with Homelander, the two actually got along the most out of all the Seven’s members, at least until Homelander murdered Black Noir in season three. Despite the death, Black Noir did return with a new Supe under the mask, but again,it wasn’t a clone of Homelander.
The show has taken a lot of liberties in bringing the original comic to life. And while it does appear to be adaptingThe Boys’final arc with Butcher attempting to genocide the world’s Supes, there’s no conceivable way for it to pull off the comic’s twist regarding Black Noir and Homelander’s secret connection.
Meanwhile, the Show is Slogging to a Predictable Conclusion
The general consensus among fans is that the show restrains itself from some of the comic’s more unseemly elements. That’s fair considering the comic is incredibly graphic in its depictions of brutality and sexual assault. But while the show improved onThe Boysin a number of ways, the comic’s ending may go down as more satisfying than the adaptation’s.
Black Noir being a Homelander clone doesn’t come from nowhere. It’s hinted at multiple times in the series and, in retrospect,it makes Homelander and Black Noir’s actions a lot more clear. It’s a real gut punch, but one that feels satisfying and, honestly, may be the most interesting plot point in the entire comic run.
…it really doesn’t seem likeThe Boyscan do anything to surprise viewers.
The show, on the other hand, has deviated so much from the source material, it hardly stands a chance of delivering an ending that shocks viewers the way the comic shocked readers. That’s not to say it can’t give viewers a decent ending, but at this point, it really doesn’t seem likeThe Boyscan do anything to surprise viewers.
Who knows, maybe the adaptation does have a final twist up its sleeve. But it’s obviously not going to be the Homelander/Black Noir twist from the comics. The Amazon Prime show may end up delivering a decent ending to wrap everything up. Unfortunately, it doesn’t stand a chance of toppingThe Boys’unexpected twist ending.
