Editor’s Note: The below contains spoilers for the first three episodes of Gen V.
The Big Picture
- Gen V reveals that all Supes have overly sensitive hearing, making high frequency sounds an effective incapacitation and torture device for them.
- Homelander, the leader of The Seven, is an unsurpassable physical threat and has clear and blatant mental instability, making it nearly impossible to defeat him.
- Homelander’s unique superhuman hearing could be his downfall if Billy Butcher and The Boys can exploit his sensitivity to high-pitched frequencies and incapacitate him.
The first three episodes of Gen V have already proven beyond a reasonable doubt that it is so much more than a mere spin-off of The Boys. So far, the story of Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair) and her friends attending the Godolkin University school for superheroes has uncovered a vast conspiracy that could very well bring the institution’s reputation crashing down. In addition to the mounting controversy Godolkin University is facing, there are also certain events taking place that could have big ramifications on the rest of The Boys universe. This includes a potential new method at defeating and perhaps even completely incapacitating the terrifying entity that is Homelander (Antony Starr).
‘Gen V’ Reveals That All Supes Have Overly Sensitive Hearing
One of the many characters hoping to uncover the secrets of “The Woods” within the depths of Godolkin University is Andre Anderson (Chance Perdomo), despite his father Polarity (Sean Patrick Thomas) strongly advising against it. While searching forbidden parts of the school in Episode 2, Andre runs into some Vought goons who have just executed a civilian. One of the guards catches him, but before Andre can defend himself by using magnetism powers, the guard pulls out a surprising weapon.
The guard uses a device that emits an ultra-high frequency noise. The noise is entirely imperceptible for humans but not for Supes, as Andre is immediately in pain from the device’s noise. The guard taunts the intruder by telling him that all Supes have heightened hearing akin to dogs, making high frequency sounds like this an effective incapacitation and torture device for the superpowered individuals. Thankfully, Andre is saved from the noise in the most The Boys way possible. As the guard continues to taunt and torture Andre, another guard shows up and tells him to perform lewd and sexual acts with her. The guard is confused at first, until Andre’s friend Cate Dunlap (Maddie Phillips) pops up behind him and uses her mind control powers so he can engage in the perverted acts. As the two guards get it on, Andre and Cate take their chance to escape.
Though It may seem like a passing moment, the revelation that every individual subjected to Compound V has hyper-sensitive hearing is a big one. More than likely, Vought put this aspect into the Compound as a failsafe in case their intellectual property (otherwise known as the superheroes they created) ever go rogue. This begs the question, though, how come Vought hasn’t used this technology until now? Usually, when their heroes get embroiled in a PR disaster, Vought covers it up with money. Perhaps the company only likes to use this tech as a last resort or on Supes who are small fry in comparison to The Seven.
Why Is Homelander So Hard To Beat in ‘The Boys’?
Of all the vile and corrupt “heroes” in the world of The Boys, none are more intimidating and terrifying than Homelander. The leader of The Seven and the ultimate head of Vought following Stan Edgar’s (Giancarlo Esposito) removal, Homelander is a deadly man-child with an Oedipus complex, being willing to kill and maim wherever he pleases. The sheer number of heinous and unforgivable crimes is almost incalculable, easily earning him the reputation as one of television’s most notorious villains. It is no wonder why Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) and his companions have made Homelander their number-one enemy, but defeating someone with this level of power and influence has proven to be a borderline impossible task.
For starters, Homelander is an unsurpassable physical threat, being more powerful than just about every other Supe on Earth, save for maybe his father, Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles). Being a direct parody of DC Comics’ Superman, Homelander has virtually all the powers and physical characteristics of the character he’s satirizing. This includes superhuman strength and speed, flying ability, laser vision, indestructible skin, and more. The only key difference between Homelander and Clark Kent (apart from the homicidal tendencies) is a clear physical weakness. Superman at least has Kryptonite to keep him in check, but there’s almost nothing to stop Homelander from going on a worldwide rampage.
That brings us to the second reason behind the problematic method of defeating Homelander — his clear and blatant mental instability. Since the real heroes of The Boys have no feasible way of killing Homelander, the obvious solution would be to defame him and show a video of his heinous acts. That plan is no good, as Homelander has confirmed by his own admission that he is willing to destroy all life on Earth if his golden reputation is tarnished. Either way, Billy Butcher and his team will need to find a way to defeat Homelander before he snaps, which he’s already on the path to doing following his first public execution of a protestor in Season 3.
Homelander’s Superhuman Hearing Could Be His Downfall
So how does the information of heightened hearing in Gen V factor into a potential defeat method for Homelander in The Boys? Well, Homelander’s hearing is unique even from other Supes. Despite all Supes having heightened hearing that can be exploited — as seen in Gen V — they don’t all have superhuman hearing like Homelander does. In The Boys, another trait Homelander inherited from Superman is the ability to hear noises from massive distances. This generates a significant problem for the titular Boys on occasion, as they need to watch how much noise they’re making consistently, or they’ll attract Homelander’s attention.
Suppose Homelander has heightened hearing like other Supes and has superhuman hearing that can stretch across miles upon miles. This theoretically means that Homelander is even more sensitive to high-pitched frequencies than his peers. If Butcher and his team got their hands on a device that was able to emit a similar or even higher frequency, they could potentially stop their arch-nemesis dead in his tracks, possibly putting an end to the superpowered fascist’s reign of terror.
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Khushi Patel is a science fiction author who lives in Austin, Texas. She has published three novels, and her work has been praised for its originality and imagination. Khushi is a graduate of Rice University, and she has worked as a software engineer. She is a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and her books have been nominated for several awards.
