The Homelander is quite easily the strongest piece in The Boys‘ no matter the medium. But while the show is an overall better experience, I like the comic supe better. Long story short, the comic character was more tragic and… human. To oversimplify the TV character, he’s just Superman but evil. Don’t worry I’ll back up my thoughts.
Why’s The Show Better?
I’m not gonna waste time explaining why The Boys show is superior. People already explained why. Instead let’s summarize just about everything they said. The show balances its superhero industry critiques with great character writing. This is especially the case with Huey, whose only real big part in the comics is in Highland Laddie. But the mediums share problems of spinning their wheels.
Comic Homelander: The Masterpiece
In the comics, the Homelander is arguably the best written character. Yes, he’s still a prick who bullies just about everyone around him. But he’s very self-driven to be the best version of himself. But we need to go over Homelander’s idea of his best self.
Homelander was raised in isolation to be the ideal superhero. While he genuinely believed in that ideal, he became disillusioned by it as well. The only reason he sticks around with Vought is because he doesn’t know how to be anything else. Even if the company only considers him a product, as shown by how they never really taught Homey any social skills. It’s also why he admires Starlight for standing up to Vought; he sure can’t. This gives Homey a lot of insecurities, especially when it looks like he does bad things without realizing it.
Ironically, these atrocities offer Homey a perverse liberation. The only time he feels like he’s being himself without Vought over his shoulder. And yet he’s disgusted by these heinous acts. The only reason he continues on while becoming a sex pest is the same as before; he’s still Vought’s ideal superhero, good image and bad secrets. The tragedy is, while he secretly wants to stop, his slipping sanity and arrested development prevent him.
The Core
Now that we’ve got the fascinating mental complexity that is the Homelander out of the way, let’s read the meta-text. Homey’s creator Garth Ennis, despite being a superhero anti-fan is actually a fan of Superman. To a lot of people like Ennis, the Man of Steel is the model superheroes should follow. Superman is kind and compassionate, using his powers to help others, not indulge in hysterics. That’s all in conflict with a number of other people, especially corporate executives. Who’s their preferred character; the more profitable and neurotic Batman. It’s these paradoxical feelings that are the core of Homelander. This gives Ennis a very nuanced perspective on satirizing Superman. Please note that there will be spoilers ahead.
Homelander’s mental deterioration is revealed to be because of his teammate Black Noir’s gaslighting. Unlike the show, this Batman pastiche was created specifically to monitor and counter Homey. How? Because, he’s a more uninhibited clone of Homelander. But because he wasn’t the patient type, Noir jumpstarted his purpose to kill Homey if he goes rogue. By pretending to be him, Noir sets the conflicts in motion. The most notable (to the series) is raping Billy Butcher’s wife Becky. But he has done a lot worse.
This is probably the most significant piece of superhero satire in The Boys. Remember Batman is still the most profitable superhero of all time. A lot of creators and executives are still trying to profit off of him through other characters. Superman is no exception with Zack Snyder’s movies generally making him gloomy and pessimistic. Homelander’s disillusionment with his job and his character assassination by Black Noir is the biggest middle finger to these ideas.
TV Homelander: Great But A Drag
With how The Boys TV show was focused on satirizing superhero movies, mocking Snyder’s Superman should’ve been easy. Instead the Homelander is just an evil Superman. Now this isn’t necessarily bad, Homey is still a nuanced villain. For example, the show goes into how his sheltered life gave him parental issues. In fact, his personality comes from following Vought’s example, image and dominance focus. But at this point I’ll just repeat every praise writers make onto Homey’s arc.
All that I will say is that while Homey makes a good villain, he’s lousy satire. Okay so Homelander’s smart enough to know he can’t pull off some of Superman’s feats. But he doesn’t try to help his adoring public because he’d just get bored. As this and his The Boys: Diabolical episode say, Homelander’s just a propped up celebrity who’s too big to fail. If anything, the parody angles don’t add to his character, they’re gaudy accessories.
Homelander: The Biggest Fish In A Small Pond
So that’s everything you need to know about Homelander. A narcissist who while the best part of The Boys is because of different factors. Garth Ennis genuinely loves Homelander’s inspiration Superman and goes to great lengths to show how that downfall would happen. It certainly helps to show it in a way that mocks people who still don’t understand Superman. But I admit, it comes at the cost of the other characters and Ennis’ ranting.
Then there’s the showrunner Eric Kripke who emphasizes a greater narrative structure. He does this without ranting so much and actually giving a few characters more layers. But some of the satire doesn’t land quite as well. If anything, the Homelander overstays his welcome because Kripke puts so much lore into him.
Thanks for coming to the end and as always remember to look between the panels.