Butcher’s Last Scene Mirrors Hughie’s First Steps with the Team

Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) has always walked a fine line between hero and anti-hero. While he’s on a mission to eliminate the villains, he carries a darkness that makes him far from saintly. In the series finale, titled “Blood and Bone,” Butcher embarks on a grim journey that sees him fully embrace his role as a villain. After killing Homelander (Antony Starr) and finding his beloved dog Terror dead, he resolves to eradicate all superhumans.

This decision culminates in a tense showdown at Vought Tower, where Butcher faces off against Hughie (Jack Quaid). The scene echoes the early episodes of “The Boys,” where Butcher’s plan involves unleashing a supe-killing virus throughout Vought Tower. This virus, once released, would spread rapidly worldwide, targeting anyone altered by Compound V.

Butcher’s method of using a detonator to disperse the virus is a nod to the first supe Hughie ever killed, Translucent (Alex Hassell), a character who doesn’t exist in the original comics. Frenchie (Tomer Capone) had planted an explosive inside Translucent, which Hughie detonated. By sticking with a familiar tactic, Butcher’s final plan mirrors his initial one, adding layers of meaning to their confrontation.

There are subtle callbacks to the series’ beginning in this finale. The tragic event that set everything in motion was when Hughie’s girlfriend, Robin (Jess Salgueiro), was killed by A-Train (Jessie T. Usher) in a high-speed collision. This incident led Hughie to join Butcher’s crusade against the supes, starting with Translucent. While Hughie once might have shared Butcher’s belief that all supes must die, much has changed since those early days.

There’s plenty you might not have noticed in the first episode of “The Boys,” but the catalyst of the entire series is when Hughie’s girlfriend, Robin (Jess Salgueiro), is killed by A-Train (Jessie T. Usher) when he runs full force into her. Hughie gets recruited by Butcher in his mission to kill all supes, which starts with Translucent. Back then, Hughie probably would have agreed with Butcher in the finale that they all have to die. But a lot has changed since those first few episodes.

Obviously, Hughie’s in a relationship with Starlight (Erin Moriarty), so for no other reason, he doesn’t want the virus released because it’ll kill her. But Hughie has clearly learned that violence only begets more violence. Earlier in Season 5, Hughie meets Translucent’s son, Maverick (Nicholas Hamilton), and apologizes to him for killing his father, saying that it wasn’t the answer to his anger. 

Some supes, like Homelander, are so villainous that there’s no choice but to kill them, and there’s been ample bloodshed throughout Season 5. But it seems Hughie wants to pursue a better path in living with superpowered individuals that goes against Butcher’s genocide. In that moment, Butcher’s no better than Homelander in wanting everyone different than him dead — so Hughie kills him. 

Bad supes will undoubtedly still be out there, but luckily, heroes like Starlight are around to combat them. The finale brings Hughie’s arc full circle, from being totally driven by vengeance to seeking a way to work and live alongside supes. And if you go back and rewatch the entire series, there may be a lot more callbacks and foreshadowing that you notice.