How They Did It: Homelander's Season 2 Character Arc
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What's the old rule of the universe? You only find your spelling errors after you upload something? Its either that or 42.
You're close.
The rule is you find 42 spelling mistakes only after you upload
The audio is a bit low with this video.
Hey man love the video, I wish you pointed out more of how that character arc is parallel with Butcher's too! I find it really intriguing how butcher and homelander are so intertwined. Seeing Butcher so close to snapping as much as it seemed homelander was to doing the same really pitted their two stories together. You'd be better at wording it than I ever could so I'd love to see a video!
why not both?
It's called Muphry's Law
I didn't think HL was on board for being a Nazi. I thought it was more "oh thank god you're only a Nazi, I thought you didn't like me"
What Homelander really wanted was to be adored, both by Stormfront and by those millions of followers she talked about. He doesn't care enough about non-powered humans to give a crap what color they are, all that matters is they adore him.
@@Kevin_Street And don't forget that he sees people with superpowers as superior to normal people. Why would a being that can level an entire city with enough effort care about what color skin normal people have?
@@MultiNaruto900 But racism is not exactly a rational thing. He's clearly ableist, as depicted on how he reacts to Blindspot, when "why would someone that powerful even care?" He's not particularly racist, but there's no rational reason for it. Bias and prejudice are never rational.
@@theyneverknow You're missing the point here. Evil groups tend to recruit people by offering what prospective members want. This is a similar tactic used by Satan when Satan tempts Jesus.
Homelander, before joining their cause, considered those without superpowers lesser than those who do. This likely stems from when he was younger, as:
"He had a motherlike figure, a female doctor, but she was killed by Homelander himself when he was young and innocent after he hugged her strongly, accidentally breaking her spine. Prior to her death, he had caused similar incidents to countless other tutors, a behavior that was usually motivated by indignation, but this time caused by isolation induced depression."
Being a kid and outright snapping a person's spine by accident HAS to be a little traumatizing.
Though at the same time, he cares about what the public thinks of him despite looking down on them.
He craves being idolized and seen as something great because he does not want to admit how fucked up he is on the inside. He refuses to acknowledge that maybe he is doing it wrong or see the world differently.
Because he is scared. That isolation induced depression is what fuels his drive to be seen in the right by crowd of people. It doesn't matter if he himself calls those without powers "cocksuckers" because in the end, it's their praise he desires most and won't easily let them die. Why? Because isolation is his greatest fear.
Stormfront (as an agent of the group she belongs to) fosters in Homelander the idea that by joining the same group will allow him to find the solution to all his insecurities and flaws he has.
Is she evil? Well, she is recruiting Homelander into a racist organization, but from a narrative perspective, she represents a part of what Homelander greatly desires.
He fears hurting the ones he genuinely cares about (again, a child who literally killed someone because that child is unaware of their own strength is traumatic) and Stormfront's powers allow him to feel safe.
Thus, Homelander is lured into becoming evil because he gives into his own desires (beyond carnal pleasure). He gives into evil because as far as he is concerned, he was too blind to understand how to live happily and cope with his personal issues - to which Stormfront's group presented the offer of helping (of course with ulterior motives).
Furthermore, Homelander wasn't raised normally like you or me.
"Homelander was raised in a lab, surrounded by doctors like Jonah Vogelbaum, who called him John. For not having a motherlike figure, Vogelbaum remarked that Homelander turned violent, aggressive, and downright hateful. In his childhood, he was subjected to hours sitting in front of a projector, seeing images that were chosen to mold his personality, like the American flag, Jesus Christ, and baseball."
Would he have turned out differently if he was raised in a normal human family? Your guess is as good as mine.
He was not given the chance to develop naturally (in sense of how normal people attend school with other peers and have the opportunity to grow up with many different people) which seems to have severely messed with his development.
*He doesn't understand what a normal childhood is because he never experienced it properly.*
His personality was picked out by somebody else to make him be perfect with no real agency on his part.
Seriously, his time in the lab was legitimately traumatizing:
"When he reached the bedroom, he saw the blanket he really used in his childhood locked in a lab. Triggering some painful memories, Homelander became angry and asked who put the blanket there, leaving right after that." - during a commercial for a reality tv show
@@theyneverknow TL;DR I was explaining that due to how Homelander was raised likely made him more of an easy target for evil groups who appeal to people's weaknesses in order to recruit them. Since good groups couldn't properly deal with Homelander and help him, evil groups become more attractive.
Homelander may be inherently good, but is effectively crippling himself in utilizing it for good because he refuses to see his problems properly.
Homelander terrifies me because he always seems likes he's on the verge of snapping. He has the impulse control of a child but he also has lasers, horrifying.
Just goes to show how phenomenal Anthony Starr is in this role. He deserves an Emmy
@@GabesEdtiz ikr
honestly will never understand how people find this character horrifying most of the scene in which he’s doing horrible things have a deep layer of brokeness behind them he’s like such a sad quite frankly heart wrenching character
@@nothingbutintroverted4372 yeah i csn see that...but then you rembmer he'superman, and if you factor in his everything else. it equals a very horrifying person.
Literally!!! Him with that shape shifting supe scene was terrifying
I love how subtle Homelanders selfishness is after Ryan pushes Homelander and he responds "i'm not mad".
Right? The first time I watched that scene, I was confused for a second, like "Homelander, that's not the problem - ohhhh. That's the only problem he thought there could possibly be."
I didn’t realize this until you mentioned it, wow you’re absolutely right
@@pance_9912 I didn't even catch that. Holy shit
What scene is that?
I dont get it
I think they never show homelander in normal clothes on because it would make him look too human.
it's also because Homelander himself said it: he has no other life outside of his suit and cape
Well the trailer he wore some normal clothes--
Im not sure HL would Want to be seen in anything other than his suit tbh
@@seishonagon8468 What trailer? I missed it. Thanks.
@@laithharisha1631 Exactly. He dropped the John alter ego because to him HE is Homelander. He thinks he's better then humans, so he wouldn't dress like them.
One of HL's most important character traits: he's lazy.
He doesn't have the experience of putting in some *effort*
He's sloppy and tends toward the path of least resistance.
Exactly. He doesn't perform feats of strength to save people simply because he doesn't want to, he just opts for lasering everything with minimal effort. The plane scene shows that, as he just makes a bunch of excuses as to why he couldn't save them. He could have, but he would have had to actually put in some effort.
The face he made when he realized he broke the cockpit and would have to do something other then what he is used to reminded me of myself when I realized I had to lift weights and train to get bigger.
@@Hey_Loser after he lasered the cockpit he couldn't save them anymore
@@Hey_Loser how do you hold a plane, it is not made of solid steel, it will just crumble
@@tedarcher9120 couldn’t he hold it from the bottom and hold it up?
One of my favorite things about Homelander's writing in season 2 is how utterly tied to selfishness all of his actions are. Every single one of his major character moments and scenes are tied to at least one of his deep rooted selfish desires. Except for one scene with Ryan not the cabine in the woods but right before, when they were at Disney Lan- I mean Vought World at that moment when he picked up Ryan to move him away from the crowd that was pure parental concern. That's how you write dichotomy.
To be fair it's not selfish to want to be loved and accepted. But in Homelander's case he just takes it way too far. He lashes out when he feels powerless which is something we all do but here's what I like about this when people compare him to Superman. Superman was raised to believe that all the power in the world means nothing if not used by a good person. Essentially like Tony told Peter with the suit except in this case If you're nothing without these powers then you shouldn't have them. Homelander was raised TOTAL opposite. He was made to believe that his powers are what make him better then others. That they are what make him great. He doesn't know how to be a better man because he's never had to be one. In short Homelander is in my opinion what happens when someone like Lex Luthor gets the power of Superman. In fact I'd argue that Homelander is EXACTLY what would happen if Lex did get Superman's power.
Possibly that was a selfLESS act, however you could argue that he did it to not look like a neglectful guardian to the fans.
I actually think he did the Ryan thing because he wished to further Ryan's trust in him while simultaneously proving to the public how "caring" he is. Just my thoughts though.
@@talpho3301 Idk that moment and the way he acted felt way too real to me to be an act or a ploy to gain Ryan's trust. Plus the public didn't even register Ryan its Homelander who noticed. Plus he was way too cold to the audience for me to believe that he was doing it to look good. I mean he even left Storefront there.
I think the bits of parental concern he shows for Ryan do come from selfishness in a way though. He see’s Ryan as an extension of himself and only cares about him because of that. He doesn’t care about Ryan, he cares about his blood.
I love all of the moments in the final ep when Stormfromt says some insane shit that Homelander is shown with iffy reactions. It’s so fucking nuanced.
His reaction to the white genocide speech is hilarious, but the best iffy reaction is to her being like "no more screaming fans". Antony Starr perfectly conveys how they're not on the same page and he's now re-thinking everything with the subtlest of facial expressions. She misread him bad with that line.
Its called white genocide
I really enjoyed that scene. I mean he’s a entitled and selfish person but he’s no Nazi sympathizer.
@@SukhberS it ain't that, homelander is a fucking monster but he is a populist he wants everyone to love him and if you killed off people of color he wouldn't have those people around to worship him
He’s more like “They’re all hamsters, I don’t care what their color is.”
Homelander mentions how he gave up a secret identity years ago, we know his real name is John, and we know he had severe social anxiety upon entering society. I think he tried to be a human for a small time, very similar to Clark Kent. He went by his given name John. I think he genuinely wanted to be apart of society, build relationships, and find people to care for. But after years of isolation he couldn't relate to people or build relationships. He was a social outcast, a twisted image of Clark Kent. This repeated denial made him build himself up as being even more superior than he originally thought. He gave up being human due to rejection and isolation. It twisted him further and further to what we see now.
I doubt it. But maybe.
Young Homelander Fridays This Spring on Peacock!!!
@@Matter-Dark I mean.. That makes a lot of sense in a fair few ways. Homelander is somewhat like an arrogant genius in some ways; He doesnt know how to actually interact with people in a healthy way, how to form proper attachments or bonds, so he retreats into the one thing he has, his power.
Its a fascinating interpretation, at least.
Pretty mad at a reviewer saying this season doesn’t hold up because nothing much happens. I’m actually happy that this season took its time to actually develop the characters more.
Mr. Chopsticks I can see why. This season moves at a slower pace than season 1 and has less urgency. At least thats what I heard from Sean chandler
There's so many good reviews, why focus on one of the few bad ones?
I think one of the main things that hurt this season is them dropping only one episode a week. Combine that with a slower pace and it felt like nothing happened at all the whole season.
@@JarinXeno That actually helped them to get a lot of traction
Chris Joshua Perez The show did go back to a sort of status quo. Becca is dead and Billy is enraged, again. MM has his family back (although we never see his wife so she may still be mad), and Starlight, Maeve, and A-Train are all back in the Seven with Homelander. Aside from Hughie and Frenchie every main character is back to where they were at the start of the show.
Don't forget to appreciate anthony starrs amazing performance that made it all possible
Yep, he said a whole lot when he wasn't talking than when he did.
He didn't really have that much important things to say but his acting said a lot.
I love Anthony’s face twitches and micro expressions. HL feels like a real person (aside from powers and stuff).
I'm impressed you managed this entire video about Homelander's character without uttering "mommy issues" even once, bravo 👍 Great breakdown of his trajectory this season.
Well, "Mommy Issues" is kind of covered by "Need for affection". It's all just a part of defining his emotional immaturity to the viewer.
It's so apparent it's unnecessary to actually voice it, lol.
he’s sad and nuanced it goes much deeper than mommy issues for sure
Homelander is basically
The Most Extreme and Most Messed version of the
"Manchild" trope
Can’t have mommy issues if you have no biological parents 🧠
*hears "organic writing"*
*side eyes Arrow and Marc Guggenheim*
Lol why must you dig up that repressed memory
oh, Troyoboyo 17 was talking about that.
I like the way stan edgar talks it makes him look like he is always in control
That’s Giancarlo Esposito for you. Such a commanding presence.
@@FreerunTMac gus gus gus gus
Los Pollos Hermanos
Alternate universe version of Gus from Breaking Bad
@@yoloco231 I wish
It shows good writing when an utterly deplorable character can be empathized with in some aspects. Good antagonists/anti-heros aren't cookie-cutter into villainy for the heck of it. For the sake of evil...etc. They have justifications and motivations that make sense to them. Even better when it makes sense to the reader or watcher.
Reluctant empathy.
I think it's also worth noting that we start with hating him and then we learn more about him and get that feeling of reluctant empathy you mentioned.
Meanwhile, with Stormfront, we are primed to like her at first because she comes across as the anti-Vought super with her deriding their PR and fake-feminist bullshit. Then we start to see her bad side and for me, I started to feel a reluctant dislike. On the one hand she supports an evil ideology, but on the other hand we've seen her sharing our stance on Vought's corporate take on supers and her earlier conversations with Starlight make it feel like she's what we wanted Starlight to be in season 1, someone willing to stand up to Vought from within the system instead of caving to their every demand.
@@MoffatLee Stormfront is definitely a confusing one. I'm surprise she listens to anything Edgar says, seeing as he is black. Her knowing about that facility where those "rejects" for the Compound V were kept leads me to think maybe her daughter had a child and the grandkid was there? I don't know, lots of her past between Nazi and current day is slightly vague. Someone fluent in German told me that at the end she was telling a story about a picnic under an apple tree and her daughter ate an apple for the first time.
@@MoffatLee You had a "reluctant dislike" for a nazi that wanted to eradicate over half of the worlds population?
@@UkGhostzZ I think what they meant was that when her character was first introduced she had that tough, no-nonsense attitude that was anti-Voght. We had no idea what she was at first (I kinda did balk at her sharing a name with a notorious website).
@@Flufferz626 I wonder if being Vought's wife gave her any special influence within the company? I got the impression that hospital was a secret Vought operation and there was some sort of conspiracy within the company to create her white army. Edgar was probably willing to go along with it because selling all those Compound V injections would be great for their profit margin.
The writing on Homelander's character is so good that I had shivers down my spine when he took him off flying when the crowd was too noisy, since it was the first time in his life that he helped someone else because he understood their pain
Giancarlo Esposito as the head of a company that claims to be about one thing but is secretly about.... "pharmaceuticals?" And their chief "pharmaceutical" has a distinct deep blue color?
You love to see it.
Pfizer?
@@erikfinkel2717 meth
@@savagetwinky2606 pfizer sells meth? shiiiet!
wait are you saying The Boys is an allegory Reagan's war on the drugs?
@@erikfinkel2717 Breaking bad, gus, blue meth
@@savagetwinky2606 I'm confused but i'm connecting the "Dots" thx. i've seen some memes
His development in S3 has been so good. He continues the downward spiral until he finally snaps. But instead of being met with rejection, his met with acceptance by the community. That was his true rebirth. Now he's in complete control of everything and everyone and it's absolutely terrifying.
The creators confirmed that Stormfront is still alive and will most likely remain crippled. It will be interesting to see how Homelander thinks about that.
He knows she is alive he said it the last episode near the end
@@Jack-sr2rk i personally thought it was a lie to the public, y’know, “heroes don’t kill villains” and shit
@@chicken0w044 that would make sense but the director did confirm she is alive. Shell prob come back Vader style after a season or so
welp youre certainly right about cripple
She was alive... for a lil bit. xD
If you were raised in a laboratory with 0 love or affection, 0 control, were told your one purpose was to become nothing but a weapon for a corporation, and were lied to your entire life, you'd turn out just like homelander. Its human nature 101
if you didn't experienced love in your childhood and experienced cruelty you can turn just like homelander. No need for lab amd stuff
More specifically, being constantly told you're one of, if not the most powerful and important person in the world.
I was going to say they should have given him a puppy but it's probably good they didn't😂😂😐
oh chill out with the "its just human nature bro" narrative shit.
genes and instincts aside (both of which they probably controlled as well), he literally did not have any input or knowledge to work with to be different. it's like trying to make a physicist out of a medieval european peasant with 0 training or education after the fact. that's not human nature or w/e weird nihil-fatalistic interpretation of such, that's just simple math.
Kinda off topic but when you put it like that it completely applies to sephiroth aswell
I mean, no love, always lied too, made as a weapon for a corporation it’s all there
"Homelander sees blindness as weakness"
*Toph has entered the chat*
And Toph gets her ears clapped and now she's blind and deaf.
See what I did there?
@@Skycrusher Yahh I don't think earth-bending will help that much against Superman
@@Skycrusher doesnt Toph actually use earthbending to "see"? It's not hearing like a bat, she "sees" through her feet. That's why when Zuko accidentally burns her feet she is "blinded", why she took the soles out of her shoes in Ba Sing Se, and why in her fight against Aang she couldn't "see" him when he floated through the air but "saw" him as soon as his toe touched the ground
I find it very fascinating that Homelander’s twisted fixation with honesty is a dark mirror of Superman’s respect for what perhaps is his most cherished ideal: Truth.
Most people who had the misfortune of being surrounded by liars and cheats their whole life will end up with a twisted fixation on honesty. Dishonesty being literally the root of all evil probably doesn't help.
I thought homelander was pissed about blind spot because despite superpowers blind spot had to actually work for something and overcome something other than homelander who’s had everything handed to him with little to no effort.
captain mindnight
Stop copying midnight
I'm surprised of no mention of The Deep's attempt at rebirth and A-Train's death and rebirth paralleling Homelander's and possibly foreshadowing something darker. The Deep's attempts were lazy - follow a cult and hopefully the magically give him a rebirth - it failed. A-Train got replaced by a rival and instead of just blindly waiting for the Cult and Edgar's meeting and hoping for the best, he actually decided to investigate and took the risk of sabotaging one of Vought's most popular and easily most influential Supe by working with his enemy Annie. It was such a ballsy move even the Cult man was impressed and he was rewarded, unlike The Deep's lazy moves. Now back to Homelander. If he sinks further, would he risk more then Vought's reputation? Would the world be next? (Obviously not referring to the graphic novel because I know how that turned out)
Good point.
The Deep is mostly cut off from the main action but the thematic connection with Homelander keeps him relevant.
I’d say Vought is more like Disney than Amazon, partially because the marvel tie-ins but partially because they haven’t touched any subjects similar to Prime yet
There’s a video of Vought saying they want to be in everyone’s town while advertising Amazon like services.
Look up “vought corporate video” on youtube
And Warner bros
@@elenasmith3941
They're actually DuPont, if DuPont had decided to branch into the entertainment business.
The are Pfizer, Disney, Amazon, Netflix, and Facebook all rolled into 1.
This is because Vaught is a satire of real world megacorps, so anything any megacorp in our world does will simply be done by Vaught in the show. (Its easier than making other companies within the show, and is both believable and futher builds up Vaught as a megacorp of doom)
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who liked to watch an episode per week
Why did u like that lol
@@neferpitou. Because it gives more time for the episode to settle and to build excitement for the next.
@@SuperPianogirl123 yeah I understand plus mute publicity but now I just want to forget about the episode as quickly as possible
I absolutely loved seeing the girls beat the crap out of Stormfront. It was so satisfying.
"girls get it done"
I think at first, Homelander thought it was more about supes vs. normies than about white supremacy.
Agreed. I think one of the main themes of the season, and especially Homelander's story, is how easily one can fall when someone believes themselves superior to another (whether it be race, gender, social status, etc)
That's the beauty of it. It is a beautiful portrayal of how so many hate movements consist of incels and man-babies being controlled by politicians. The social media radicalization scene (the guy who kills the store clerk for no reason) is a great hint to what this season is about.
@@maskingtables It was a sad end for not-black, not-bald Neil.
Amazing. I love writing/phycological videos like these. Well done!
Eyyy, fancy seeing you here
Phycological..?
Raviol
Dante! Hope you're well, man.
You guys are the real heroes
LMAO what an eloquent line
This is genius and the fact that you can see all of this in their writing is amazing.
Homelander is just a textbook narcopath.
@@tedarcher9120 I should read more.
"A quas immortal super-nazi starts to work with Amozo--- I mean Vaught"
I always thought stormfront was actually attracted to HL because of hitler’s idea of the Arian übermensch.
Very likely
Haven't enjoyed a show this much in a while. So happy to hear you talk about it
Have u seen What We Do in The Shadows?
@@clkgtr12 It's a funny show. Also If you like Antony Starr, then you will like the series Banshee. It's very brutal show with Antony Starr on lead role.
@@MegaAndyGG Now that my fav shows ended their latest seasons, im going back to watching movies, and ill check banshee out later
@@clkgtr12 Nice! 👍 It's amazing series! 👌
@@MegaAndyGG what site is that on?
I love the mix of humor and dark in this show. And how poignant the messages of commercialism and superiority complexes are.
Another Thing about the Blind Supe incident is that Homelander likely felt angry because the blind supe got to where he was by hard work and effort so while Homelander is the most powerful man in that earth so far, The blind supe was everything he wasn't and he couldn't take that so he get's rid of him.
The writers actually confirmed that for next season we will see Homelander go off the rails so Alex is actually right in his assumption. Kudos to you my guy! Great video as always
He was... On the rails?
That is not even an assumption, this is obvious If you are a writter. The same way Ryan killing Becca AND Stormfront making Butcher have to decide to protect a super was obvious if you are a writter and now story structure. Homelander WILL get unhinged because he is the "villain" of this story and he have to get crazy and finally snap Someday. The Boys is too predictable
@@KKarkatVantas So do you want a cookie or something?
@@landendrake1696 Why dont you say the same to Savage then?
@@KKarkatVantas dude why does 6 months feel like a long ass time
and btw id love to see him snap
I wish they did that with Daenerys.
She had some moments but they never went deeper.
Daenerys wanted absolute authority, respect...
The boys did in 2 seasons what game of thrones couldn't in 8
I actually think they would've needed 2 seasons for Daenerys' downfall, but you're right. Without digging deeper into her thought process, having REAL & ORGANIC consequences, and CLEAR reactions to those consequences...all we ended up getting was a bunch of plot holes, confusing multiple-choice, and an empty message. It's okay for a viewer to disagree with a character about their choices or goals, but Dany had clear DO's, DONT's, and WHY's established in earlier seasons that were never TRULY compromised in a serious and undeniable way. Her flaws never grew or expanded (not in my opinion anyway). As a Dany fan, it was insulting. I deserved to have my heart broken the RIGHT WAY.
@@thedifferent14 Dany had power for a long time and clearly didn't abuse it anymore than any other ruler would, showing she was sincere about her intentions. The writers wrote themselves into a corner, and decided to get out by writing "she had the wrong genes to rule, actually".
That's why people hated it, so a few seasons before stannis tried to sack that same city no dragons lost, dany had dragons and won, why was having better weapons making someone crazy, fighting with arrows vs a gun sounds more crazy....
@@yuna48910 Well, Stannis ALMOST won
You know, it never occurred to me until right now, but there's a bit of irony in the fact that the show is about a heartless mega-corporation that will do any fucked up thing you can imagine in the name of profit - and it's owned by Amazon.
Transforming season 1 Homelander, a narcisist that already believes to be superior to everyone else, isn't difficult to explain, it's almost a logical step. It takes much more effort to explain why Superman is still a humble and altruistic person.
Home lander was raised in a lab. Superman was raised with good parents that actualy cared about him, and not just his power. Pretty good reason for Superman is still a good person.
Basically the plot of Injustice
No it doesn’t he had a healthy family and upbringing along with know pre diagnosed mental disorder lolz it’s really not that hard THERE ARE NATURALLY GOOD PEOPLE ya know hahah lolz
You gotta complement Antony Starr though for his incredible performance as homelander. As good as the script is it could have been terrible with a bad performance.
He need a therapist
Who's durable enough for the job tho
NPD is rarely treatable
@@alainapowerchick2025 Another supe maybe. We saw from Annie and the congresswoman Victoria Neumann that there are Supes who can live and integrate healthily. It’s not a stretch to think that supes could live normal lives and become amongst other things a therapist. Would have to have Super durability though to withstand homelanders possible outbursts.
Nah, he needs to be sent back to hell.
No he needs 30
What a beautiful analysis. You actually managed to make me feel sorry for Homelander too. It makes so much sense. Great writing.
Something that came to mind while watching what is Homelanders real name? Annie is Starlight, Queen Maeve is Maggie, A-Train is Reggie. I think this just shows off how Homelander isn't real it's a character he is fully absorbed by.
His name is John
His name is John, but no one but vogelbaum has called him that
His name is John
@@evelife915 The most steryotypical American name you could find.
He's also one of the only ones to never be seen out of costume for the same reason.
Honestly, while I don’t think Homelander buys into Stormfront’s whole Nazi ideology completely, he still is an incredibly ignorant and bigoted person who very willingly goes along with it because of his own need for validation. Just like in real life, ignorant people are often willing to condone or at least ignore bigotry once it suits them. Homelander doesn’t agree with Stormfront’s Nazism, but he still understands that he benefits from it and is perfectly okay with that so long as he benefits from it. That in itself is a form of racism that he exhibits.
There are plenty of moments where Homelander embodies the ignorance and self-centeredness of Americans with good old-fashioned American-centric bigotry. Homelander goes to Iraq and destroys a whole building indiscriminately, kills an African bystander while fighting a villain, mocks a blind guy whose worked harder than Homelander ever has in his life before crippling him further, and in season 3, calls a Muslim woman “Al Qaeda”, and feels entitled to the time and emotions of any woman he’s interested in. Homelander, while less apparent, still has America’s patriotic fervor which affects how he treats people different from him, which does make him a bigot, even if it’s due to selfish ignorance rather than an outright malicious agenda like Stormfront’s ideology is.
While Stormfront is a first-era Nazi and has a more clinical and direct agenda to follow, Homelander embodies the subtle bigotry that can stem from American ignorance and pride, where racism is not born of hatred but of social convenience. While Homelander looks down on everybody, black OR white, being an American figurehead has not given him any perspective or empathy to understand social conflicts and class divides, yet he is still willing to compromise those divides to get what he wants. It’s no wonder that in Season 3, even if he doesn’t really care or understand it, he knows on some level that he greatly appeals to a far-right demographic of white men who idolize him and rejects the idea of having a Muslim woman as part of his team for this very reason.
The bind spot scene got me few shows have ever made me gasp and recoil back in my chair I had to pause because I almost cried
Garth Ennis explained Homelander perfectly, he said that Homelander's terrifying aspect is his ability to have a warm, kind face and voice but could easily lazer someone without warning. I think he said it's the same reason he dislikes Superman, yeah he's kind and soft spoken but he could kill you by simply moving his eyes in a particular way
I was confused by something this season. In the episode when Homelander killed Doppleganger, I was under the impression that he came to the realization that the admiration of others did not matter to him, and he was all he needed. In the episodes afterwards, he went back to being crippled by his need for outward affection.
I accept that I could have read the scene incorrectly; I was inebriated on both viewings. Can anyone offer some clarity?
Nah, I had the same issue , so this was a reassuring comment.
@@adamcatherwood4087
I'm glad I'm not alone. Thanks Mr. PoopyButthole
He convinces himself that he does not need the admiration of others, because he sees that the "old him" needed that and he associates the "old him" with weakness.
However, Homelander hasnt really changed and still needs this, as it is a fundamental aspect of his character.
Yeah ur right but it’s part of his arc he realizes he can’t live without people love
@@wanderingshade8383
That seems reasonable. I didn't really trust that realization when he said it. It felt a lot like how people with anxiety try to rationalize a stressful encounter by deluding themselves into believing an empowering narrative just to overcome those feelings for a spell.
Thank you
Everytime I see your notifications pop up in my feed it makes my day. I love your videos so much and they are so insightful.
Savaggeee- it’s Armand buddy! This show is really good, glad you’re doing some content on it (didn’t even watch your vid yet lol, but I’m sure it’s great) Hope you’re well. 🙌🏾
Haha thanks man!
This is extremely well thought out and I really appreciate the writing in season 2 more after watching this vid. Keep up the excellent work!
Great video!! You broke it down in such a thorough yet simple way. Thank you.
I'm confused about one thing- first he kills doppleganger saying he doesn't need anyone then he cries after public outrage then he falls for stormfront and at last he again says I can do anything I want in front of the moon. If someone saw him during that time and uploaded it he would be finished no?
If he doesn't care about that then why let Maeve walk away?
Him saying 'he doesn't need anyone' obviously isn't how he really feels, it's him trying to convince himself and/or others of that fact because genuine connection is something he keeps failing to attain. Failure/weakness is something he hates in others and can't stand to see in himself either, so he tells himself he doesn't need other people in an attempt to maintain his self-image and self-esteem. You'll notice it doesn't really work though, because he keeps trying to connect with other people and then needing to tell himself he doesn't need them again when the relationship doesn't meet his expectations or fails in some way. And clearly he isn't expecting someone to see him jerking off at the top of a sky-scrapper at night, so it's irrelevant to his image. He's also overconfident and doesn't often think through his actions, reacting on emotion or instinct unless forced into a situation when he can't. So even if doing that was a bad idea he's probably not in the right mindset at the time to realize it's a dumb risk, he's just trying to comfort himself.
Anyone else kinda notice they cut the scene to suddenly when Homelander screams"where is my son" like there was more to the scene? I feel like the scene was to gruesome for American TV if not hopefully they show us the whole scene of Homelander tearing apart the vought mercs.
why must giancarlo play the same character in every role now :(
He played the fucking Mirror in OUAT
Because he's hella good at it.
This season was enlightening. I used to admire the "authenticity" of people like Stormfront. When she was first introduced, I thought she was gonna be a new ally of The Boys. This teaches me not to easily trust any public figures however "authentic" they try to show themselves in the media.
Oof same. Plus it scared me how I could look up to someone who piss on my dead body for just existing. I hate it.
i made a loud noise of excitement and anticipation when i saw your notification. I love your perspective AND i love the boys!
Came from the future watching season 3 right now, and your intuition was in the money about Homelander's arc. You know your stuff man! Love your channel
This is the video for you.
Sceptical First Time Viewer: We’ll see about that.😒
At the end of the video: Ah I see.😁👍
Aaa thank you so much for making this vid, i was thinking the same thing at the end of season 2 and I can't wait to see him go absolutely batshit crazy in the next season! This was such a good analysis of his negative character ark
Homelander is now my favorite super villain! Even more than the Joker, and Thanos!
No way is Stormfront dead, so I wonder if her lightning is dependent on the use of her hands. Which she no longer has. Calls back to her murdering Kimiko's brother.
Also, Butcher is 200% going to die by the end of the show. I was only 100% sure until the necklace scene.
She gonna comeback like Darth Vader yall!
So awesome dude. I haven’t even watched S2 yet. Super stoked. Cheers❤️👍
This is amazing! Thank you for the content!
The inverse effect of providing a clear reference of where the character began, despite it already being established in season 1, is it emphasizes that he hasn't happened to change in the time gap since the end of season 2.
Another storytelling method that could be used is showing that a character IS different than where we left them and then explaining how they got that way. So even if a character has been established in previous installments, reestablishing that they HAVEN'T changed is still important.
you are the only channel ive seen that actually knew what was going on! great job, great content, i learned a lot!
A compelling analysis that rings particularly true now that we’re into season 3. Thank you.
Incredible breakdown, can't wait for more!
This video popped up in my recommended section and I’m glad I clicked it, this video essay is awesome
Anthony Starr basically confirmed that Homelander will hit new lows in season 3.
After seeing what Homelander gets up to in just the first half of season 3, Starr was not joking.
This is an excellent breakdown. Many of the things you speak of, I recognized while watching -- but I missed a few elements that you caught.
This was such a great breakdown. Instant subscriber now. Looking forward to more vids like this.
Thank you for that video, i really enjoyed it! Love your Anakin examples!
The beginning was one of the most legendary intros i've ever saw, the "diabolical" cracked me up so much, is especially effective if you didn't watch the show, like me.
This video is going to be taken down when stormfront realises that the hand writing "savage books" in the beginning and end is anything other then white
Dude, you are really good.
The analysis, the way you explain with examples and sruff.
Sounds really smart, cause it is.
Good job, thank you, have a wonderful day and please continue making content)
Not he kinda reminds me of a Azula in a weird phsycholy way
The destruction and rebirth cycle is a powerful, real phenomenon...and it’s kind of intimidating when you think about it. When you were talking about examples of this I recalled that episode of Mr Robot where Vera attempts to use this strategy to bring Elliott to his side. That’s a particularly interesting example too because the show tells you that they’re going to do it, then they show the process. This narrative really does make for great television. Anyways, great video boss, thank you.
I just love seeing Homelander in pain.
Great video, Alex! Very helpful!
You are a gem in writing advice.
I love that they keep us on a rollercoaster of emotion with homelander!!!
The nazi trait is also eased into Homelander, the "American patriot" by Edgar who told HL that Vought was originally a nazi and they covered it up in favor of corporate interests, disregarding the patriotic notion that America fought those ideals and fully stand against them.
Precisely! While I don’t think Homelander buys into Stormfront’s whole Nazi ideology completely, he still is an incredibly ignorant and bigoted person who very willingly goes along with it because of his own need for validation. There are plenty of moments where Homelander embodies the ignorance and self-centeredness of Americans joining conflicts they don’t understand and still being seen as the “good guy” (like when Homelander goes to Iraq and destroys a whole building indiscriminately, or kills an African bystander while fighting a villain, mocks a blind guy whose worked harder than Homelander ever has in his life, and in season 3, calls a Muslim woman “Al Qaeda”).
While Stormfront is a first era Nazi, Homelander embodies the subtle bigotry that can stem from American ignorance and pride. Homelander looks down on everybody, but being an American figurehead has not given him any perspective or empathy to understand social conflicts and class divides.
Homelander has a god complex, and vought has set him up to be worshipped by Americans, but he is also a perfect icon to be worshipped by nazis, so he is fine with supporting whatever ideology is most likely to rever him as the god he thinks he is.
Starlight is the actual superman figure of the show (in the character department, homelander has his powers but starlight has his heart), and as such better represents what Americans think ourselves to be. (We got problems, but Starlight represents out best and Homelander represents our worst, and of course neither is allowed to win until the show is cancelled and they can finally end the main plot)
The power you wield, Savage One. The excitement engendered by the thought of a Savage Analysis has shooed me on to binge Season 2 just now.
Agreed, quite organic.
Oh, and i *have* ask - is no one going to mention the anakin reference re: stormfront? Is that why you used him in this video? :-D
Awesome analysis!
This video is sooooo good, i hope you get a lot of viewers soon
And here i was about to go to bed, now I gotta watch this 3 times
Great analysis! Thank you:).
I just binge watched what’s out. While I felt like I understood his character, I was genuinely confused by the, “You guys are my family” scene. It made sense narratively, I just couldn’t grasp the psychology. Your analysis makes a lot of sense! Subscribed :)
Thank you, I have been stuck on a project for FAR too long, and I couldn't find how to make my Protag 's story hit. It wasn't him, I needed to make those around him challenge his view more, make him question his stance. Time to redraft and rewrite. Thank you again...
Ay! I see you with the Hellenic Roman Empire in CK3! Well done!
I would absolutely love to see your thoughts on Season 3 Episode 1, the scene with Homelander and Butcher. Maybe even a dialogue dive. I've never had a scene get me so excited for the future of a show.
Amazing work
Really great story. Thanks for looking at it.
Well this was one hella great analysis on Homelander
Damn, that`s some good voice
and great content dude
Amazing video!!!
This was so good! I really loved this so much. Thanks for all the research and time you put into this! (as someone who has binge watched into S2 for the very first time, over the last 3 nights. ) 😅
Something that I noticed throughout the episodes of S1 were subtle costume changes and mannerisms…
Such as:
When he sits, he sweeps his cape behind and to the left of him. He reversed this when he sits on his son’s bed and sweeps it to the right. I can’t help but wonder if this is a subconscious way of displaying him (somewhat) taking off his mask.
Costume changes throughout S1 were:
The flap on his chest. When we first met Homelander he wore the flap down. Somewhere along his character development he begins to wear it buttoned up. S2 his hair is much more blonde. Also, styled a bit higher.
Man I'm thankful that I finished season 2..... Ahhhh.... The subtle movements and the details of the characters and the dialog was just beautiful..
Savage. Thank you for touching on destruction and rebirth. I'm seeing some of your points minutes before you talk about them and I'm just *chief's kiss*😎👌🏾
Also Edgar reminds me of you (just a bit) 🤣🤣🤣🤣
I will take any comparison to Giancarlo Esposito as the honor of my life
Great video!