Warning! Spoilers ahead for The Boys season 4, episode 6, "Dirty Business."
Summary
- The Boys season 4, episode 6, features Victoria Neuman and Homelander appealing to America's 1% to seize power from President Singer, with elements of the episode mirroring real life.
- Showrunner Eric Kripke acknowledges that some of the parallels are accidental and that's he's " really troubled " by it.
- Season 4's lean into specificity with its political satire has made it the most divisive season yet.
The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke addresses season 4, episode 6, "Dirty Business," mirroring real-world events. Based on the comic book series of the same name created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, the hit Prime Video series chronicles the exploits of corrupt superheroes and the group determined to take them down. The Boys season 4, episode 6, released this week, featuring Sage (Susan Heyward) and Homelander (Antony Starr) attempting to woo America's 1% to get on board with a plan to assassinate President Robert Singer (Jim Beaver) and replace him with Vice President Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit).
In a recent interview with TheWrap, Kripke addresses aspects of The Boys season 4, episode 6, mirroring elements of the 2024 American political landscape. Neuman's speech, for example, includes comments about democracy being a myth and that real power should lie with the billionaires, all in an attempt to win their support for her coup. According to the showrunner, he's become "really troubled" by the show's apparent prescience. Check out Kripke's comment below:
“This show has an increasingly disturbing track record of reflecting reality one way or another. There’s some throwaway dialogue, for example, in that billionaires are talking about how they have to stack the Supreme Court to get the decisions that they need. I’m not happy being Satan’s writers room. I’m starting to get really troubled by it. But there does continue to be a certain eerie similarity between the show and the things that are happening in the real world.”
The Boys Season 4 Mirroring Real Life Has Been Controversial
Season 4 Has Been The Prime Video Show's Most Divisive
The Boys season 4 reviews, overall, have mostly been very positive from critics, as evidenced by its 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The show also remains a major viewership success for Prime Video. The Boys has never been shy about its political leanings in the past, but there's no denying that season 4 has perhaps leaned more into specificity with its satire in regard to its plotting and its characters.
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Homelander, for example, has never been a figure worth celebrating, and he's always been used to satirize aspects of far-right politics, but season 4 has undeniably made the parallels between him and Trump more clear than they used to be. Season 4 leaning more into specificity when it comes to politics has resulted in the show not receiving as warm a welcome with all audiences. Season 4's audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is only 52%, a considerable bump down from previous seasons.
The Boys Season |
Rotten Tomatoes Critics' Score |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score |
|---|---|---|
1 |
85% |
90% |
2 |
97% |
83% |
3 |
98% |
75% |
4 |
94% |
52% |
At least some of this is undoubtedly due to review bombing, which isn't entirely surprising given how common the practice has become in today's entertainment landscape (thus continuing to delegitimize user scores across the board). It's also possible, however, that season 4 just isn't working as well for those viewers who appreciated earlier seasons' subtleties. In any case, though, the show's exploration of politics is sure to continue, meaning season 4 and The Boys season 5 will likely continue to be divisive.
Another recent show that was heavily review-bombed is Disney Plus' The Acolyte .
New episodes of The Boys season 4 release on Thursdays on Prime Video.
Source: TheWrap
The Boys
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The Boys is a superhero/dark comedy satire series created by Eric Kripke based on the comic series of the same name. Set in a "what-if" world that reveres superheroes as celebrities and gods who experience minimal repercussions for their actions. However, one group of vigilantes headed by a vengeance-obsessed man named Billy Butcher will fight back against these super-charged "heroes" to expose them for what they are.
- Cast
- Elisabeth Shue , Jensen Ackles , Goran Visnjic , Jessie T. Usher , Chace Crawford , Dominique McElligott , Laz Alonso , Nathan Mitchell , Aya Cash , Colby Minifie , Karl Urban , Erin Moriarty , Karen Fukuhara , Jack Quaid , Antony Starr , claudia doumit , Tomer Capon
- Release Date
- July 26, 2019
- Seasons
- 4
- Streaming Service(s)
- Amazon Prime Video
- Franchise(s)
- The Boys
- Writers
- Eric Kripke
- Directors
- Erin Moriarty , Karen Fukuhara , Karl Urban , Jack Quaid , Eric Kripke
- Showrunner
- Eric Kripke