The Boys Season 5 Episode 3 Review: Every One of You Sons of Bitches

As expected, on The Boys Season 5 Episode 3, “Every One of You Sons of Bitches,” Soldier Boy is alive and well. However, Homelander is clearly struggling with his father’s resurrection. 

Homelander turns the spotlight on himself when Soldier Boy officially becomes part of The Seven and is given the first-ever Democratic Medal of Patriotic Freedom. Homelander reveals to the press that Soldier Boy is his father, and the reveal is quite hilarious because Soldier Boy couldn’t care less.

Soldier Boy is far more agitated at Homelander for nearly leading him to his own suicide. 

It’s revealed that Soldier Boy is immune to the virus because he carries V1 in his bloodstream. V1 is Frederick Vought’s first iteration of Compound V, which hasn’t been in circulation since the 1950s. Thus, Homelander, despite his relationship to Soldier Boy, is not immune. 

Homelander’s lack of immunity serves to ramp up his insecurities and heightens his exposure to the real possibility of death. 

He continues to experience flashbacks of people calling him weak and a disappointment. As much as he tries to conceal his anxieties and self-doubt, his lack of protection is getting to him. 

Whenever Homelander interacts with Soldier Boy, he doesn’t even come off as a menacing Supe. Rather, he becomes a shell of himself.

It’s interesting to watch and to know there is at least one person out there who makes Homelander think twice about himself.

It’s assumed Vought destroyed all the remaining V1S, but neither Homelander nor The Boys is buying into that narrative.

Butcher also comes face-to-face with Homelander’s son, Ryan, and attempts to convince him to go after his father. 

The scene takes place in a pub, which is indicative of Butcher’s somewhat careless behavior and rash decision-making. He goes so far as to order Ryan a beer, which one could suppose is his convoluted way of connecting with Ryan, though it’s still just plain wrong.

Initially, Butcher tells Ryan that he’s the only one who can get close enough to Homelander to inject him with the virus, to which Ryan responds with, “is that all you think I’m good for?” 

It’s sad to witness because, at the end of the day, Ryan is a kid. Why should he have to participate in any of this, let alone be the one to kill Homelander? 

Sure, Butcher tells Ryan how much he believes in him, but it doesn’t make the circumstances any better or justify them for that matter. 

Like Zoe, Ryan is a deeply traumatized kid, and Butcher sees him as a means to an end. Butcher recognizes this isn’t what Ryan’s mom would’ve wanted for him, which emphasizes that Butcher knows what he’s advocating for isn’t right, but chooses to continue with it. 

However, this deep into The Boys, should one expect Butcher to suddenly act any differently? He’s always been steadfast, unapologetic, and brash.

Even though Ryan voices his very real concerns about turning into his father, he decides to help Butcher. 

For his entire life, Ryan’s been trying to grapple with the existence of his father and what that means for him and his own identity. They share the same powers, but by no means does Ryan harbor the same malicious intent as his father. 

In a turn of events, Zoe unexpectedly reunites with her father (Sameer) and tells him the truth about her mother’s death, which leads them to destroy all remaining vials of the virus. 

While it acts as a cathartic scene for Zoe and Sameer and the two seemingly escape together, it leaves The Boys to fend for themselves as Frenchie is left to remake the virus on his own. 

Ryan has been wracked with guilt and instability ever since his mother’s death on The Boys Season 2 Episode 8, “What I Know,” 

His perception of authentic familial bonds has long been destroyed. He’s somewhat connected to Butcher because he knew his mother intimately, but Butcher’s presence in his life, at least for now, is not necessarily a father figure. 

Ryan goes to Homelander not because of their biological relationship, but because it gives him a purpose and some semblance of autonomy to cling to that he’s been desperately trying to rebuild. 

Their encounter, where they’re surrounded by Homelander merchandise, reflects Homelander’s continued desire to be perceived as an all-powerful entity. 

Homelander deflects when Ryan asks him if it’s true that he raped his mom. Unsurprisingly, it leads him to beat up his own son. He repeatedly punches him in the face until he’s bloodied and bruised, and the absolute cruelty is devastating to watch. 

Even though blood and gore are the norm on The Boys, it’s chilling to watch the ease with which Homelander bashes his son’s face. It’s arguably one of the scariest scenes of the series thus far. 

Somehow, Ryan survives Homelander’s wrath, but what will this mean for him moving forward, and will he try going after Homelander again? Only time will tell.    

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New episodes of The Boys air Wednesdays on Prime Video.

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