Unlike Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ms. Marvel, The Boys pulls no punches when it comes to telling its twisted story about superheroes. Its third season is proof of that and catapults the series into a new direction Homelander, Butcher, Soldier Boy, and the others come together for an explosive conclusion to this season. We take a deep dive down below into The Boys season 3 episode 8 ending explained.

The Boys season 3 episode 8 ending explained

The Boys final episode of season three opens with Homelander discovering the location of Ryan and Mallory. Even though the latter tells him to stay away from the boy, the hero bonds with Ryan and gains his trust from that point on.

Shifting to Vought Tower, a big protest takes place as Starlight's supporters push for the release of Maeve as Deep and Ashley visit the imprisoned heroine. Butcher, meanwhile, confers with Soldier Boy to see if he's still up to the task of killing Homelander and Noir.

After waking up from being gassed, Maeve sees herself being transported to a new location. She takes this opportunity to escape. Ashley and Deep try to inform Homelander of Maeve's escape but Black Noir barges in and says they'll kill Soldier Boy when he comes. The pair hug it out and Homelander expresses relief that he came back. While this is happening, Butcher knocks out Hughie and leaves him in a gas station restroom. He goes away with Solider Boy to fulfill their mission of killing Homelander. He is later picked up by Starlight and the pair realize that Butcher knocked Hughie out to prevent him from taking more Compound V24.

In MM's residence, Maeve contacts Starlight and finds out the connection between Soldier Boy and Homelander. Starlight then tries her best to evacuate Vought Tower before Soldier Boy arrives but fails. But before the hero does, he and Butcher have a sincere conversation about fathers and sons. The latter even tells Soldier Boy that Homelander isn't his son after realizing he is trying to avoid killing him.

Meanwhile, Homelander goes off and kills Black Noir after he chose not to tell him that Soldier Boy was his father. The Boys, Starlight, and Maeve corner Butcher with the hope of stopping him from killing Homelander with Soldier Boy. Maeve changes her mind, throws the nerve gas out, and agrees with Butcher's plan. At this point, Soldier Boy arrives and locks Hughie, Starlight, and The Boys. He goes away with Butcher and Maeve to Vought Tower.

Over in Vought Tower, Deep and Ashley receive Starlight's message to evacuate the building because Soldier Boy is coming. Homelander then tells the pair, along with A-Train, that he doesn't need any of them and they're not evacuating the tower. Deep, for his part, kills Lamar Bishop, a potential candidate for the vice presidency.

Butcher, Maeve, and Soldier Boy arrive and they are met by Homelander. He presents Ryan to them and persuades Soldier Boy to be a family once again. He refuses and calls him a disappointment as the attack on Homelander starts. Just as Maeve and Butcher try to restrain their target so Soldier Boy can de-Supe him, Ryan enters the fray and knocks Soldier Boy away.

Ryan's interference causes Soldier Boy to lose his temper on the boy. Just as he was about to eliminate both Homelander and Ryan, Butcher switches sides to confront him. As the two slug it out, Maeve takes on Homelander. Starlight and MM arrive to distract Soldier Boy while Frenchie and Kimiko enter the lab to create more nerve gas. Hughie, meanwhile, does his best to evacuate the tower.

The fight between Maeve and Homelander turns ugly as the latter takes out an eye from the former while Butcher gets the upper hand by breaking Soldier Boy's shield. Kimiko, meanwhile, receives the finished nerve gas from Frenchie to use on Soldier Boy before he obliterates everyone. Instead of being stopped, the hero starts to charge up with the intent to kill everybody. Breaking away from Homelander, Maeve takes Soldier Boy down the window as the latter explodes mid-air, seemingly killing them both.

After the incident, Butcher faces off against Homelander until Ryan intervenes by saying he wants to go with the hero. For his part, Butcher faints due to the use of V24, which can be seen coming out of his nose.

The following day, Vought spins the incident to make Maeve a hero who sacrificed herself. Butcher learns that he only has 12-18 months to live while Annie discovers a badly wounded and powerless Maeve in MM's house. At this point, Annie burns her Starlight costume as MM welcomes her to the team. Butcher also names their next target – Victoria Neuman, Bishop's replacement to run as the vice-presidential candidate.

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A crowd of Homelander and Stormfront supporters bring Soldier Boy's statue down and slander Starlight. Homelander arrives and introduces his son to them. A lone Pro-Starlight supporter protests the hero, an act that catches the ire of Homelander, who then proceeds to kill him. The crowd cheers as Ryan realizes that he can do anything he wants

What just happened? A The Boys season 3 episode 8 recap

The Boys episode 8 fully brings a resolution to Soldier Boy's part in the series by killing him off in the end. In the process, The Seven are now gone as Homelander has finally found a worthy companion to his plans – Ryan. This development will surely play out more in season four and fans will see how the hero's influence on the boy will truly twist and corrupt him.

And while the group gains Starlight, the overall state of the Boys is in dire danger, especially with Butcher slowly dying. This will be an essential plotline to monitor as Ryan takes a bigger role soon. With Soldier Boy gone, Maeve depowered, and Homelander's influence growing stronger, the odds will certainly be against the group when the series comes back.