We'll have to do some terrible things. For the greater good.

The Boys S4 — 3/5

This show is best when it’s a cartoon. Homelander and Billy Butcher might be the truest representations of comic book bigness put into a small square. With their combination of personality and powers, there can be no claim to them existing in the real world (while traipsing around in real world analogues). It’s real life, imagined anew, and what fun it is to see imagination run amok. They also might be the truest live-action representation of Garth Ennis as a writer. In the “perpetual second act” of serialized comic book stories that will never end, he is one of the most capable people I’ve read in the form who realize that comics aren’t about the endings, but about the moments. You’re not building up to a conclusion; you’re building up to a character moment. A person saying or doing something that feels true to the character, either exposing them or destroying what we think of them. It feels small when written out but trust me when I say that these are the things I live for. I probably love more single panels than I do any single issue. Combine that with his dislike of superheroes and his desire to push you away with his crudeness, and you have this show. It feels like him. If you can get over the disgusting little bits, it gives you a reward. I think season 3 ended with a great build-up and reward, and the problems with season 4 amount to having to start all over again back at ground level. I spent most of the season waiting for the build-up, and then I got excited all over again for the next season. There are few better moments on TV than the glint of inspiration in Billy’s eyes, or the sudden shift of Homelander’s quickly fading facade. The characters meet the moments. And I can’t wait to see those two big cartoons fight. On the other hand, the show is at its worst with everyone else, scrambling to find purpose when we only really care about the two people who will inevitably meet in the final issue to finish it off.