Airing its first season back in 2019, The Boys has come a long way as its fourth and penultimate season debuted a little more than a week ago. The current season has brought with itself a plot that no longer tries to be subtle as the politically charged narrative in-universe starkly mirrored some of the most recent developments in America.
To thrust forward that storyline is Antony Starr’s Homelander, who after facing a multitude of scenarios regarding his very existence, has turned to seeking help.
The show thus made way for the introduction of fresh faces- Sister Sage and Firecracker. The characters have brought along their own set of surprises and skills and now showrunner Eric Kripke opened up on his thought process behind settling for the new entrants and surprisingly disclosed a detail that fans now find hard to look past.
The unexpected truth behind Firecracker’s creation
Susan Heyward’s Sister Sage and Valorie Curry’s Firecracker became the two new additions to season four of The Boys with no comic book precedent and were created from scratch entirely for the purpose of the show. While the former boasts of being the world’s smartest person and the one who can hold her own against Homelander, the latter has settled to be just a pawn for the Supe to push forward his twisted vendetta.
Firecracker can produce sparks from her fingertips but her major power is being a right-wing YouTuber, author, and political activist leading the “Alt-supe movement.” In a startling revelation, Eric Kripke, in talks with Variety, opened up that the gun-wielding conspiracy theorist had a real-life inspiration, none other than Georgia representative Marjorie Taylor Greene aka MTG.
Describing his idea, the showrunner stated,
Firecracker came from like, “Hey, isn’t Marjorie Taylor Greene scary?” And just that type of personality.
He also added that for the show, the character represented something much more sinister.
And just that idea — it wouldn’t just start and end with Homelander, he would start to create these spores that would grow into these other characters, and she’s a version of that.
Thus, Firecracker’s true motives are to further Homelander’s agenda of dividing the world further and swooping in to handpick the few he deems as his favorites.
Fans believe the show has become too political
The latest season of the social satire debuted to its all-time low audience ratings of 49% against a whopping 95% critical approval. While slow pacing, changes in cast appearances, and a shift in storyline priorities have come forth as the prime reasons, the show’s political themes oozing out and not trying to be subtle anymore has become a major concern for fans and has reached the ears of Kripke as well.
![One Nerve-Wracking Homelander Scene From The Boys Season 4 is Eerily Similar to a Sequence From Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man [Spoilers]](https://fwmedia.fandomwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/16055623/homelander-the-boys-1-1024x576.jpg)
In the same round of talks, he confirmed that the show had decided “very early” on to go increasingly political but he ultimately tossed the ball in the viewers’ court to decide the show’s fate,
I’m just going to lean into it, and then the audience can sort of decide whether they want to watch or not.
Fans, too, have taken note of the parody of real life, now mirroring it. Meanwhile, the Firecracker revelation also left the fandom divided with many now unable to look past it and several others questioning the need for such realism.
I won’t be able to unsee this now. Literally pound for pound MTG
— Byrd (@Byrdman778) June 19, 2024
They are no longer subtle with it are they? 😅😅
— Ron Oliver (@RPOIII) June 19, 2024
It’s obvious
— Brittany (@Bedsyboo) June 19, 2024
what smart, biting political commentary 😫
— Adolf Rizzler (@duttiespeaks) June 19, 2024
Whatever, I think a showrunner should shut up about making this more like real life, it’s really weird
— herotime (@Hero9269Bryan) June 19, 2024
Early life check on (((Kripke)))
— Osborne Cox (@Christo22862758) June 19, 2024
Season 4 of The Boys, however, is expected to improve its faring in the coming episodes as Kripke teased major arcs and action incoming. Furthermore, with Victoria Neuman on the verge of clinching vice presidency, the show looks to set up a massive power battle ahead of its impending culmination with season five.
The Boys is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
