Barbary Coast
In the third episode of The Boys Season 3, 17 years ago, Annie does her pageant shows. She smiles through the pain and tries to keep doing what her mum wants. Behind her back though, she digs her nails painfully into her palm. This little tick in the episode sandwiches the entire episode together in a beautifully harmonious way. ..
Homelander is shot up with the public by 21 points. They loved his speech and how he’s not afraid to be himself. He’s on a rating of 98% too, which is higher than anyone else has ever achieved. Even higher than Soldier Boy!
Meanwhile, the boys reunite once more as Butcher roasts Hughie over Neuman. However, Hughie is worried about Ryan, but apparently he’s run off with the Colonel. So naturally, Butcher is going to track him down. ..
Hughie wants to join Butcher, but he needs to have his arm broken so he can phone in sick with Neuman for real. So Kimiko literally breaks his forearm in half. Jesus Christ. Anyway, Frenchie can’t go, given that he has a prior engagement. ..
The boys catch up with the Colonel and fill her in on what’s happening. Butcher speaks to Mallory and demands to know what happened in Nicaragua. ..
Reagan’s Operation Charlie was a secret project that involved smuggling cocaine into the United States in exchange for buying more guns. This project was part of a larger plan to help minority neighborhoods in America. By selling the cocaine to these neighborhoods, Reagan was able to contribute to the problems facing them today.
Supes were thrown into the battle zone, with Grace admitting that each were “more ridiculous than the last.” Grace is not happy about this develop but a young Stan informs her that these guys are on a trial run for Supes in the military to fight back against the communists.
The Supes are in a tight spot and their recklessness has brought the enemies right to their doorstep. It’s a bloodbath and even Black Noir – who happens to be part of the group – is a bloody, broken mess as a result.
The Crimson Countess has shown that she killed Soldier Boy, and that his body was taken away in a helicopter. Vought were granted full immunity off the back of this while she lost 116 men. This also explains why she wants to get back at Vought.
Elsewhere, A-Train’s brother offers him a chance to head back to the crib and do away with The Seven. Given his prior heart problems, A-Train can’t use his super speed anymore and admits that this is akin to playing Russian roulette.
With Vought HQ, Starlight and Homelander clash about the direction of The Seven. He wants to put The Deep back in the group as a surprise twist to the reality TV gig.
Homelander threatens to release a video that shows the crash of the flight and wipe out America if Starlight releases it.
Hughie urges Starlight to stick it out and continue fighting, given that they are looking for a weapon to kill Homelander. For now, she needs to put on a brave face and strap in.
Back at the house, Ryan tries to stop Butcher from leaving. Butcher loses control and tells Ryan he doesn’t want to look at the child after killing Becca. “I hate you.” Ryan bitterly rasps, running back into the house. ..
Vought’s Deep, the company’s top dog, is back in the spotlight after a long hiatus. However, he has to eat Timothy, an octopus that was begging for its life. This scene is difficult to watch because of the octopus’ cries for help. I was eating while watching this episode and I had to put my food down for the rest of it. Hopefully, people will have better luck eating seafood after watching this episode. ..
In the wake of this madness, Supersonic decides to join The Seven, but he’s mostly doing this out of loyalty for Starlight, telling her that someone needs to have her back.
While all this is happening, an old Russian woman by the name of Nina offers Frenchie a proposition. When Butcher finds out, he sees this as an opportunity to get closer to the Russians and find the weapon that killed Soldier Boy. He’s all in, even if it means putting Frenchie in a difficult position. ..
The episode closes out with the big American Hero finale. Homelander improvises, claiming that he and Starlight are in love. Starlight is shocked and digs her nails into her palm as a result. ..
The Episode Review
The Boys returns with its third episode this week and a harsh reminder of how Homelander is still calling the shots. The opening with the pageant is a great way of framing Starlight in this uncomfortable light, and how she’s always had to grin and force her way through uncomfortable situations.
This is a great way to write about the character and the other players.
The scene with The Deep eating octopus was one of the most disturbing and difficult to watch this season. I would argue it was worse than Termite’s inside-out destruction. ..
Another memorable scene comes from Kimiko and Ryan’s chat outside, bonding over neither of them really wanting their powers. This is a really nice inclusion and although there’s barely any dialogue, it actually frames both of these gentle souls in a really believable light. It reminds me of Android 16 from Dragon Ball Z; a man (robot) of few words but with a big heart all the same. ..
With the gloves off and Homelander flying completely off the handle, it’s anyone’s guess where this one is likely to go next. Regardless, this season is shaping up to be just as mental as the previous two. Roll on next week’s episode!
