This submit incorporates spoilers for Season 5, Episode 6 of “The Boys.”
Morality has by no means been black or white in “The Boys.” However even inside such ethical complexity, some characters, like Homelander (Antony Starr), have unambiguously been the best of all evils. And within the present’s fifth and ultimate season, those that have been too spineless to problem Homelander’s regime have been put underneath scrutiny. Some, like A-Practice (Jessie T. Usher), have heroically redeemed themselves at a steep price, whereas others, like Firecracker (Valorie Curry), have been brutally discarded regardless of aiding fascism at each flip. Season 5’s sixth episode lastly tightens the noose round probably the most despicable characters within the present: The Deep (Chace Crawford), who has managed to slide via the cracks of retribution up to now.
Episode 6 must be contextualized towards Deep’s actions within the newest season up to now. After wrongfully taking credit score from Black Noir II (Nathan Mitchell) for the mission to nab Stan Edgar (Giancarlo Esposito), The Deep momentarily gained Homelander’s favor. This clearly did not go nicely with Noir, who undermined his fellow Seven teammate in retaliation. In a merciless flip of occasions, Deep killed director Adam Bourke with an eel to rattle Noir and shatter his Broadway desires.
In Episode 6, Sage (Susan Heyward) asks The Deep to movie a PSA in favor of a Vought underwater oil pipeline in a bid to subdue protesters. This PSA is expectedly stuffed with lies, as Deep claims that his aquatic pals are okay with such a venture. Noir takes this chance to enact revenge by bursting the pipeline, which kills thousands and thousands of sea creatures. After studying the reality, The Deep kills Noir in a match of rage.
So what is the path forward for essentially the most sycophantic member of the Seven?
The Deep deserves no mercy for what he is accomplished in The Boys
It is troublesome to assign gentleness to somebody like The Deep, as his affinity for sea creatures has at all times been tainted by selfishness. Nonetheless, sea creatures have at all times been loyal to him regardless of turning into unwitting casualties (you would possibly keep in mind the titular Boys ramming via an enormous whale in Season 2). The oil spill disaster, nevertheless, turns into some extent of no return. Within the episode, we see a genuinely perturbed Deep making an attempt to save lots of a fish, who blames him for the catastrophe earlier than respiratory its final. Untold quantities of sea life have died on account of his energetic endorsement of the oil pipeline, and for the primary time, the guilt is inescapable. Even when Noir hadn’t burst the pipeline, an accident of this magnitude was inevitable.
When Noir laughs off these deaths, Deep kills him with out thought. This could be his first occasion of impulsive violence towards one other human, however his lack of impulse management might be traced again to season 1. The Deep had cemented what sort of particular person he’s by assaulting Starlight/Annie (Erin Moriarty) and refusing to apologize for his crimes. His willingness to take pleasure in misogynistic violence runs parallel to the cowardice that forestalls him from ever standing up for what’s proper. Deep gleefully takes benefit of the susceptible, however lacks the braveness to face as much as folks like Homelander, who’ve gone so far as force-feeding him his aquatic pals. Will any of that change now?
Though Noir’s mass homicide of sea life can’t be justified, Deep’s revenge comes with penalties. Sage has already defected, and Homelander has injected himself with V-One. The specter of the Supe Virus looms massive. What’s going to The Deep do subsequent?
A redemption arc for The Deep within the ultimate season would really feel hole
A person’s trauma can clarify their habits, however it would not at all times excuse it. For instance, each Homelander and Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles) have been subjected to horrific experiments, which partially formed their worldviews. That mentioned, each males are strolling the identical ethical path in the mean time regardless of their variations.
Though Soldier Boy is not a violent, petty megalomaniac like Homelander (having displayed restraint and regret at occasions), any disdain he had in the direction of Homelander is now tempered by a twisted familial fondness. The turning level is their shared love for Stormfront (Aya Money), which is why Soldier Boy fingers over the one vial of V-One to Homelander in Episode 6. As Soldier Boy has no qualms about making somebody like Homelander immortal, he is now not the Impartial Evil he was launched as. In any case, anybody who emboldens evil needs to be held accountable to the identical diploma. This rationale additionally applies to The Deep.
It is too late to redeem The Deep. Though A-Practice’s reverse heel-turn occurred in later seasons, the seeds for this modification have been planted with nice intention, ultimately resulting in a significant payoff. The Deep’s inherent lack of regret prevented him from any type of self-rumination up to now, however the oil spill incident has lastly jolted him awake. With Homelander on the peak of energy (and conceitedness), it is sensible for Deep to both swear allegiance or go into hiding. Will he nonetheless be determined for male approval and find yourself dying a horrible demise within the course of? Will Starlight kill her assailant in a cathartic show of poetic justice?
It doesn’t matter what the upcoming episodes maintain, The Deep has been backed right into a nook he can not slither out of. His aquatic pals will endlessly keep in mind his betrayal, which primarily strips him of his powers. Our so-called Lord of the Seven Seas should both discover a approach to keep afloat or sink underneath the burden of his personal ethical ineptitude.
“The Boys” is presently streaming on Prime Video.
