With The Boys Season 5 marking the show’s last hurrah, we can expect it to shake up the series’ cast of characters from episode to episode — both in terms of who’s still alive and who’s the most powerful based on major reveals and face-offs. SPOILERS ahead for The Boys Season 5, Episodes 1-3. The series wastes no time claiming casualties in the war between The Boys and Homelander, killing off A-Train in its premiere, taking out two new supes in Episode 2, and having Starlight ruthlessly kill Cindy in Episode 3.
For now, The Boys‘ strongest supes are mostly still in play. However, The Boys Season 5, Episode 3 warrants a reconsideration of where they rank on the series’ power scale. The show’s top five are all likely to be involved in the looming final conflict, and they’re close in terms of raw power and extraordinary ability. Yet given Ryan’s return, Soldier Boy’s survival, and Marie Moreau’s continued absence, some are coming out slightly ahead of others.
Previously, Butcher seemed likely to beat Ryan in a fight — not because he has more raw power, but because Ryan has rarely shown that he can use his abilities in combat. That changes in The Boys Season 5, Episode 3, which reveals a more skilled and ruthless Ryan, even if he’s still inexperienced. Considering that he’s Homelander’s son and has all the same abilities — and is now unafraid to wield them, even if it means killing people — he’s higher on the list. Butcher remains in the top five still, as his combination of merciless determination, strength, and tentacles make him a force to be reckoned with. He’s the most likely character from the main show to hold his own against any of the supes from Homelander’s bloodline. I’m still convinced that one Gen V character can do more damage to Homelander’s ilk, however: Marie Moreau.
Marie Moreau ranked at number two on our previous list, and I’m still on the fence about whether she belongs there. Although she doesn’t pack the punch that Ryan, Soldier Boy, or Homelander do in battle, she has unique abilities that give her an edge against most opponents — and potentially put her ahead of those three, though we’ve yet to see proof of it. Marie is the only supe we know of who can raise the dead, and her blood manipulation can likely be used to strip other characters of their powers. She’s also an Odessa supe, pushing her to the top of the series’ lineup by default. The potential to climb back to the top of the list is there, but The Boys doesn’t seem as interested in using it, as it’s keeping Gen V‘s major players on the sidelines. If Marie can mess with the V in supes’ blood, she’ll be climbing back to the top of this list. As of now, she’s closer to Butcher, as she has similar long-range attacks and strengths.
After The Boys Season 5, Episode 3, Ryan jumps ahead of Marie and Butcher on this power ranking — mostly because we finally get to see him fight, and he even manages to make Homelander bleed. It’s an impressive feat that only Queen Maeve has accomplished before. We’ve known Ryan has incredible raw strength and can do damage with his heat vision, but this is the first evidence that he’s willing to. Butcher suggests he’s one of the few supes who stands a chance against Homelander, and while he claims he doesn’t actually believe it — and Ryan clearly has a long way to go on that front — with time, he might match his father. Not many characters could survive such a brutal beating from The Seven’s leader, and Ryan’s one of the few to land a hit on him. His age and inexperience still place him beneath Soldier Boy and his father, though.
In terms of strength, Soldier Boy is basically as powerful as Homelander. He can kill other supes with minimal effort, take their powers with his radiation blasts, and defend pretty well against incoming attacks. And after The Boys Season 5, Episode 3, it’s tempting to put him ahead of Homelander, as the V1 in his blood gives him protection from Butcher’s supe virus that the other villain doesn’t have. When it comes to defense, Soldier Boy might be the best off of all the supes in The Boys. Yet he doesn’t have the influence Homelander benefits from, nor has he proven he can kill The Seven’s leader. Realistically, they’re close to being tied, with one having better offense and one boasting better defense. And if Homelander gets his hands on V1 or Marie manages to remove it from Soldier Boy’s blood, his place on this ranking is likely to shift again.
Homelander still tops the list of The Boys‘ strongest supes after Season 5, Episode 3, as he remains unbeatable. Ryan and Soldier Boy are no closer to one-upping him, Marie has yet to prove she’s capable of it, and Butcher doesn’t stand a chance of killing him in a 1:1 fight. The only thing likely to bring Homelander down, at this point, is the supe virus. And if he finds V1, he’ll be able to survive it, rendering him the most powerful supe through Season 5 and beyond it. It’s consistent characterization for him, and it makes him a more daunting villain. After all, if he was easy to beat, The Boys wouldn’t be nearly as gripping.
Where would you rank each supe after The Boys Season 5, Episode 3? Leave a comment and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
