The Boys S04E04 Recap, Spoilers & Episode 5 Theories

In The Boys S04E04, the Amazon Prime show quickly burns through a lot of plot. We learn about Homelander’s harrowed past, see the machinations of Firecracker and Sister Sage in taking down the Starlighter movement, and watch Hughie struggle with his father’s condition. Meanwhile, the rest of the gang, especially Kimiko and Frenchie, continue to deal with their own guilt. Here’s a quick recap on The Boys Season 4 Episode 4, with heavy spoilers and some theories on what might happen in Episode 5.

What happens in The Boys S04E04?

Here is a scene-by-scene recap of the most important events that occur in The Boys S04E04.

• Homelander arrives in the secret Vought lab where he was created. (A memo on the board reveals that these scientists are part of something called Project Odessa.) He pretends to be kind to them by bringing a Fudgie the Whale ice cream cake. When the scientist Marty attempts to call him John, he says that his name is “Homelander,” suggesting that he’s trying to strip away his humanity.
• In the shower, Butcher is shown with a worm slipping beneath the skin of his back, and he faints, hitting his head on the shower knob. A vision of his wife Becca tells him to get off the floor.
• Hughie is told that his father is experiencing brain death and will be dead within a couple of days.
• Annie January visits Bob Singer, offering to tell her followers to help with his anti-supe bill to take down Vaught.
• Frenchie learns about Colin’s recollection of his family dying, which only makes Frenchie have more guilt of what he did in the past.
• Annie learns about Firecracker launching a live show called The Truthbomb across from their headquarters. Sister Sage explains the propaganda campaign against Annie and dismisses The Deep’s advances despite having intimate relations with him in episode 3. She also gives Firecracker secret information about Starlight.
• Mother’s Milk brings Frenchie and Butcher to the Starlighters’ headquarters. Annie doesn’t want Butcher on the team, but MM says that it’s his call. Butcher asks for $50,000 to get dirt on Firecracker.
• Homelander reveals why he’s really visiting, to get revenge on all of the scientists that raised him. The first victim is Frank, who once tortured Homelander by burning him alive.
• Hughie and Kimiko meet with A-Train, and he convinces him to get Compound V from Homelander’s room to save his father from brain death. A-Train agrees, but Hughie and Kimiko face gunfire from the Shining Light Liberation Army. They head inside the office to take cover.
• Butcher and MM attempt to blackmail Firecracker with a video about her sexual relations with an underage boy. Butcher also has MM promise to get Ryan away from Homelander if anything happens to him. But Firecracker sends out the Tweet about what she did herself, later confessing her crime to Ezekiel on stage to get ahead of it. She also reveals that Starlight killed some innocents while first learning her powers.
• A-Train learns about Homelander’s white hairs and breast milk bottles. He takes a vial of Compound V. He learns that Ashley is also in the room, but they both agree not to say anything about why they are there.
• Homelander forces Marty to masterbate in front of his colleagues and then kills him using heat rays. Director Barbara arrives to stop Homelander.
• Hughie and Kimiko successfully fight off their assailants. We learn that the female terrorist that Kimiko recognizes was brought into the Shining Light army because of what she did. They let her go.
• Frenchie, using keys Butcher nicked earlier, breaks into Firecracker’s trailer. (He finds a pill bottle for Metoclopramide, which is primarily used for GERD and to control nausea and vomiting in chemotherapy patients. We’re not sure if this will be relevant later.)
• Firecracker reveals information on the abortion Annie had, leading her to assault Firecracker on live TV.
• Ezekiel catches Frenchie in the trailer, and Butcher arrives to save him. Ezekiel chokes him out, but he blacks out as the worm crawls beneath his forehead. He wakes up with Ezekiel splattered about with no recollection of what he did.
• Barbara tells Homelander that he is small for being petty. She reveals that he inadvertently killed many people when he was born and the best thing that the scientists did to control him was to give him a deep psychological need to be loved. Homelander counters by saying that he’s not human.
• Colin helps Frenchie with his wounds, but he reveals what he did to his family. Colin reacts violently, but doesn’t kill Frenchie and leaves.
• Sister Sage explains to The Deep that the metal bar shown in Episode 3 is used to give herself a lobotomy. Since her brain regenerates, it provides temporary relief so that she can relax and enjoy more carnal pleasures.
• The political fallout of Annie’s assault makes her a pariah, and her deal with Singer breaks down along with his anti-supe bill.
• Hughie receives the Compound V from A-Train and says he’s all square with him now. Butcher watches the deal and learns Hughie is going to give Compound V to his dad. Butcher says it’s a bad idea and reveals that he tried taking the drug himself, but it didn’t do anything (he might be lying here).
• At the hospital, Hughie decides not to use the drug. But when he gets back, it looks like his mother administers the drug and his father awakens.
• Homelander slaughters the remaining scientists in the “bad room,” keeping Barbara alive inside. (It’s not clear if anyone will be able to get her out.)

Are there any Episode 5 theories for The Boys Season 4?

The most prominent Episode 5 theory for The Boys Season 4 concerns Hughie’s mother, Daphne. It’s clear that she is the one that administered Compound V into his dad’s IV bag. This means that she knows what the blue drug does, which falls in line with her selling various tinctures and remedies created by Vought.

With the Starlighter movement losing legitimacy, Annie January may look to becoming Starlight again now with a new suit. It might take an episode of her being depressed and forlorn about her situation, but she may feel the need to save people again as a superhero to redeem her name and reputation.

Hopefully, we will learn more about this parasite that is crawling through Butcher’s skin and whether the Compound V he took actually gave him powers (perhaps the visions he sees of Becca?). Butcher also mentioned a virus that isn’t ready yet in his talk with Victoria Neuman in the first episode, so we might get information on how this might impact the rest of the season.