The Boys: Season 4 - Full season review

I mentioned in my review of the first few episodes of The Boys: Season 4 that I thought the show was treading a very dangerous line. After four seasons, it doesn't feel as though we've made all too much headway in a narrative sense, as the same problems and issues that kickstarted this series are still the main focus. Now that we're at the end of Season 4, a season that is seemingly the penultimate season, I can comfortably add that this is still the case.

Now let me just pivot a moment and mention that The Boys is still effortlessly entertaining television that is well-produced and well-acted. Every time you start an episode of The Boys, you can be damn sure that you're getting an hour's worth of good quality television that engages and even makes you laugh, but that has always been the case, and some of the charm that makes The Boys special is evaporating as the years roll on.

This season feels like a season where very little is actually accomplished. Sure there's a bit of extra character development and growth, backstory for some of the more unexplained parts of the wider lore, but in terms of meaningful narrative moments, the questions we had at the end of Season 3 are pretty much intact at the end of Season 4. Yes, there was that moment in the final episode. Yes, that will have sweeping repercussions going forward. But otherwise, you could effectively jump from the end of Season 3 into the coming Season 5 and not really have missed a beat with Billy Butcher, Frenchie, Starlight, Hughie, Mother's Milk, Homelander, or the rest of the Seven.

To me, this is why The Boys: Season 4 has been one of the less impressive outings from The Boys yet. Don't get me wrong, Antony Starr still steals the show as Homelander each and every time he's on-camera, Chace Crawford remains a timeless, hilarious supporting star, Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Erin Moriarty, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, Claudia Doumit, Laz Alonso, Jessie T. Usher, and the rest of the cast all thrive and continue to deliver top performances too. The cast and performances in The Boys have always been excellent and Season 4 doesn't miss a beat here.

What is a little different this time around is the vulgarity. We're used to so many shocking and highly mature scenes that many of us are likely desensitised to it now, and perhaps that's precisely the case. Either way, it feels like The Boys: Season 4 has scaled back on the crude factor, only offering a few moments that stand out as the season develops, with the Tek Knight basement scene definitely being the cream of the crop here. To me, this actually works in the season's favour, although there is a distinct lack of compelling action throughout, perhaps due to the fact that Jensen Ackles' Soldier Boy is no longer around to go toe-to-toe with Homelander on a frequent basis.

It's still massively refreshing to see The Boys operate and act as a polar-opposite take on the overused superhero genre, a show that is unafraid to jab and poke fun at societal trends. But at the same time, this season feels lazier and slower than those that came before it, and there's no denying that it doesn't quite pack the same punch and deliver the same astonishing moments as we've become familiar with. Perhaps that's because showrunner Eric Kripke is saving all the best and biggest moments for the final season coming up? Hopefully that's the case, because The Boys is desperate for a major plot moment, and that's what this show has been lacking in Season 4 without a doubt.