Recaps

Ryan and Homelander’s battle tore through cities and countryside as Ryan tried to limit the damage, while Homelander deliberately endangered civilians. After Homelander destroyed a fighter jet sent to stop them, Ryan ambushed him with a road roller, but Homelander survived and emerged ready to continue fighting.

• Maeve and A-Train watched the destruction from the Seven Tower, while Madelyn received the military’s demand that Vought stop the battle or face military intervention.
• Ryan and Homelander exchanged eye beams and fought through the city, with Ryan trying to keep the battle away from civilians and Homelander relishing their fear.
• Ryan warned Homelander that people would question his claim to be a hero, but Homelander said he would portray Ryan as a villain after killing him.
• The fight moved from the city to the countryside and then another city, where Homelander destroyed a fighter jet that had fired missiles at him.
• Ryan used a road roller to block Homelander’s view and drive him into the ground, but Homelander cut his way out and survived the attack.

After his fight with Homelander ended without a winner, Ryan considered how to strengthen his powers by studying Compound V. He helped Starlight get a more modest costume, searched for Compound V with A-Train, and was left wary when Homelander returned with an almost maternal look.

• Homelander and Ryan stopped fighting, discussed their backgrounds and Vought International, and flew back to Seven Tower.
• Ryan decided Compound V might help him strengthen his powers and went looking for A-Train, but found no vial in A-Train's locker.
• Ryan asked Ashley to have a more conservative costume made for Starlight, who thanked him and left to change.
• A-Train told Ryan he was going on a date with The Female and asked him to keep it secret; Ryan agreed and parted ways with him.
• As Ryan considered visiting a video store, Homelander appeared and looked at him with a warmth that reminded Ryan of Becca.

Ryan walked with Homelander after their fight, then investigated the wrecked video store and suspected Translucent was missing. He tracked Hughie’s phone through Vought International’s Technical Department and asked Hughie where he was so he could meet him.

• Homelander followed Ryan, explained Vought International was covering the damage from their fight, and told him Madelyn planned to present their aerial battle as Ryan’s debut with The Seven.
• Ryan found the video store trashed and noticed a charred wire, leading him to suspect something had happened to Translucent.
• Homelander flew off to search for Translucent, while Ryan returned to Vought International and tried unsuccessfully to call Hughie.
• Ryan went to the Technical Department and had an employee keep calling Hughie until the call connected and the staff began locating his phone.
• Ryan spoke with Hughie, who sounded exhausted, and asked where he was so they could meet.

Hughie and Billy kidnapped Translucent and tried to find a way to control or kill him, while Ryan tracked them to their hiding place. When Translucent escaped and threatened Billy, Ryan confronted Hughie, who pressed the bomb remote.

• Ryan flew from Vought International toward Hughie's tracked location after Hughie abruptly ended their call.
• Billy and Hughie hid Translucent in an electrified cage, but Billy's armor-piercing rifle could not hurt him.
• Billy devised a remote-controlled bomb and Hughie placed it inside Translucent, while Billy decided Ryan might be a valuable ally.
• Billy went upstairs to distract Homelander, and Translucent short-circuited the cage before persuading Hughie not to detonate the bomb.
• Ryan arrived as Translucent headed for the stairs, and Hughie pressed the remote after Ryan warned him that taking a life would change him.

Ryan confronted Hughie after Hughie killed Translucent, but Hughie refused to turn himself in. Billy arrived and revealed that he was searching for his missing wife, and the chapter ended with Frenchie joining them as Billy’s creditor.

• Ryan took the detonator from Hughie and told him to turn himself in or Ryan would report him.
• Hughie refused, insisting that killing Translucent was the right thing to do.
• Billy entered the basement, said he had diverted Homelander, and refused to let Hughie turn himself in because Hughie could expose them all.
• Billy told Ryan he was searching for his missing wife and that Homelander was his only lead.
• Frenchie arrived, and Billy explained that Frenchie was his creditor and that he owed him forty thousand dollars.

Ryan helped the Boys conceal Translucent's body and learned that Hughie planned to investigate A-Train through The Female. Back at Seven Tower, Ryan avoided choosing between Starlight and Ashley, then Homelander warned him that Vought's push to put superhumans in the military could provoke attacks on superheroes; Ryan kept Translucent's death secret.

• Billy put Translucent in a Zinc Box to block Homelander's X-Ray Vision, while Frenchie explained how Billy had drawn him into the scheme.
• Frenchie told Ryan and Hughie that Translucent had revealed A-Train often visited The Female, and Hughie proposed investigating their affair to damage A-Train's reputation.
• Ryan left Hughie free and asked him to report anything useful beyond the affair, hoping the investigation might reveal a source of greater power.
• At Seven Tower, Ryan refused to take sides in Ashley and Starlight's argument over a scripted patrol, even when they each tried to sway him.
• Homelander warned Ryan that Madelyn was pushing for superhumans in the military and feared opponents might attack superheroes, urging him to help find Translucent.
• Ryan concealed that Translucent was already dead and trapped inside the Zinc Box.

Ryan agreed to go with Homelander to see Becca, and the two went to Madelyn to arrange the visit. Madelyn sent them toward Becca’s home by helicopter and revealed that she now intended to use Becca to keep Ryan in check.

• Homelander asked Ryan to come see Becca with him, and Ryan agreed.
• Homelander flew through several floors of the Seven Tower, and Ryan followed, damaging Madelyn’s office.
• Madelyn arranged a helicopter to take them to Becca’s home.
• Homelander flew out through Madelyn’s office window, while Ryan asked why she had revealed Becca’s location.
• Madelyn told Ryan she no longer needed Becca to control Homelander because Ryan could do that, and she could use Becca to control Ryan.

Ryan returned to Becca’s home with Homelander, reunited with his mother, and shared an awkward family meal while Becca and Homelander tried to connect. The chapter ended with Homelander taking Ryan into the night sky to deliver his strange lesson on adulthood.

• Ryan left Madelyn behind and raced Homelander to Becca’s location, arriving at the same time with their clothes scorched.
• Ryan found Becca asleep at home, and Homelander kicked over the sofa, waking her; Becca hugged Ryan and then treated Homelander as an unwelcome cockroach.
• Ryan returned to his childhood room while Becca cooked, then the three ate together as Becca and Homelander maintained a politely hostile air.
• Becca told Ryan about her lonely life and questioned him about romance, while Homelander agreed with her advice.
• Homelander took Ryan outside and flew with him into the night sky, where he began an eccentric lesson about adulthood and the moon.

Ryan spent the night at Becca’s house with Homelander, then woke to Becca teasing him before deciding to leave. As he departed, Homelander woke and asked where he was going, but Ryan did not answer.

• Ryan stopped Homelander from breaking down Becca’s locked bedroom door by warning him that it would ruin the family life he wanted.
• The next morning, Becca teased Ryan with an adult videotape she had planted under his bed and made waffles while Homelander slept on the sofa.
• Becca asked Ryan what kind of life he wanted, and he promised to buy her a dishwasher instead of answering.
• Ryan kicked over the sofa, sending Homelander rolling into a table and wall, then headed for the door.
• Homelander woke and asked Ryan where he was going, but Ryan said nothing.

Ryan joined Billy, Hughie, and Mother's Milk as they investigated The Female, and the group devised a plan to access her home network. Ryan and Hughie entered her villa disguised as internet technicians, but A-Train arrived while Hughie was working.

• Ryan left Homelander at Seven Tower and went to meet Hughie, Billy, and Mother's Milk in a surveillance van near The Female's villa.
• After hours of watching The Female come and go, the group agreed to pose as internet technicians and obtain her network address.
• Ryan and Hughie went to The Female's villa in work uniforms, and Ryan persuaded her to let them inside.
• Hughie began working on The Female's computer while Ryan kept watch, but A-Train arrived at the door.

Ryan and Hughie obtained access to a camera and microphone inside the Female’s villa while Billy distracted A-Train. The group listened in on A-Train’s conversation and learned he was worried about a new supe named Shockwave challenging his place in The Seven.

• Ryan asked Billy to draw A-Train away from the villa so Hughie could finish his work.
• Billy distracted A-Train by posing as a fan and asking him to sign his shoe.
• A-Train returned to the villa, promised the Female he would reveal their relationship soon, and dismissed her explanation for footprints in the house.
• Hughie finished obtaining the web address, allowing the group to watch and listen to A-Train and the Female through the television’s camera.
• A-Train told the Female that Shockwave, a newcomer to the racing circuit, wanted to outrun him and take his spot in The Seven.

Ryan and The Boys watched A-Train obtain Compound V from the Female, then Ryan intercepted him and made him take it so they could see its effects. A-Train raced down a country road, believing he had left Ryan behind, but Ryan followed overhead.

• Ryan, Billy, and Mother's Milk waited outside the van while Hughie watched A-Train and the Female on the surveillance feed.
• The Female gave A-Train Compound V and persuaded him to take it so he could beat Shockwave, despite its dangerous side effects.
• After A-Train left the villa, Ryan flew after him, demanded the Compound V, and pressured him into swallowing the dose.
• A-Train warned Ryan that Compound V strained the body and could damage his heart, then drank the liquid and glass fragments from the broken Test Tube.
• Ryan challenged A-Train to race down an empty country road, and A-Train sped off, thinking Ryan was far behind.
• A-Train looked up and saw Ryan flying above him, watching with indifference.

Ryan chased A-Train through the night, then recruited him to help obtain more Compound V. A-Train agreed to take Ryan to the Female in two days, while worrying that his place in The Seven was slipping away.

• A-Train ran through the wasteland highway after taking Compound V, but Ryan followed him from the air.
• When A-Train collapsed from exhaustion, Ryan caught up and offered to spare him if he helped obtain Compound V.
• A-Train revealed that the Female could provide another dose and explained that he needed the drug to beat Shockwave in a race for a place in The Seven.
• Ryan agreed to go with A-Train to collect the Compound V in two days, then flew away.
• A-Train sprawled on the deserted highway and wondered when he had stopped being the fastest.

Ryan accompanied Starlight as Vought dealt with backlash over a video of her beating several men, then learned from Madelyn that Vought had created its other superheroes and wanted him to father superpowered children. The chapter left Ryan facing Madelyn’s ambition to use his inherited powers to build a Vought-led world.

• At The Seven’s weekly meeting, Homelander dismissed Translucent’s absence and heard that Starlight had beaten men who were harassing a girl.
• Ashley showed Ryan and Starlight an edited video that portrayed Starlight as an aggressor, and the three discussed how to manage the scandal.
• Ryan and Ashley settled on finding the girl Starlight had saved so she could explain what happened, while Ashley left to handle the fallout.
• Ryan headed to ask Hughie about obtaining Compound V and met Madelyn in an elevator.
• Madelyn told Ryan that Vought had created its other superheroes and that Starlight did not know the truth.
• Madelyn revealed that she wanted Ryan to father children with inherited powers so Vought could rule the world.

Madelyn demanded that Ryan father children for Vought International, then used Black Noir to demonstrate the consequences of defying the company. Ryan decided to seek Compound V to strengthen himself and flew to The Female’s villa, where he found A-Train and kicked in the door.

• Madelyn asked what Ryan wanted in a partner, then told him Vought needed him to have children and warned him against disobedience.
• Black Noir attacked Ryan, resisted his lasers, and bruised his fist before Madelyn ordered him to stop.
• Madelyn left with Black Noir, and Ryan realized he needed to grow stronger so Vought could not control him.
• Ryan left Seven Tower and flew toward The Female’s villa to ask her about Compound V.
• Ryan used X-Ray Vision to find A-Train with The Female, kicked down the front door, and announced a room inspection.

Ryan searched for Compound V and learned that Ezekiel was connected to its supply and would return to Seven Tower in a few days. He left to wait for him, while A-Train invited Ryan to lunch and showed him his training run, where his brother revealed that A-Train had slowed down.

• Ryan found that The Female had used her last dose of Compound V, and A-Train said she could get three more doses the following night.
• A-Train told Ryan that Ezekiel helped distribute Compound V through Supe Charity and would return to Seven Tower in a few days.
• Ryan left, and The Female worried that A-Train was tired of her as A-Train went after Ryan.
• A-Train caught up with Ryan, invited him to his race against Shockwave, and took him to lunch at a convenience store.
• A-Train brought Ryan to a running track to meet his brother and ran several laps while his brother timed him.
• A-Train's brother told him he used to be the fastest man alive but had become slower.

A-Train struggled with his declining speed and resolved to use Compound V to beat Shockwave, despite Ryan warning him that it would not be a clean win. A-Train took Ryan to a railway track, saying he would show him where to get Compound V.

• A-Train left the track after realizing he had become slower, while his brother urged him to keep training.
• A-Train argued with his brother and insisted he could beat Shockwave, trusting Compound V to give him an advantage.
• Ryan warned A-Train that using Compound V would not make his victory clean, but A-Train remained convinced he was doing the right thing.
• A-Train and Ryan left the track before A-Train's brother noticed they were gone.
• A-Train ran to a railway track with Ryan and said he was taking him to see where to get Compound V.

Ryan accompanied A-Train to a Compound V transfer point, where they found no supply and learned the drug would arrive the next day. When Hughie and Frenchie investigated the same location, they discovered a captive girl, whose attention fixed on Ryan.

• A-Train led Ryan to a hidden Compound V transfer point, but the card players told them no supply would arrive until tomorrow.
• Ryan spotted Hughie and Frenchie approaching the alley, said goodbye to A-Train, and waited for them.
• Hughie told Ryan that The Female had revealed leads on Compound V, and Ryan joined Hughie and Frenchie as they investigated the basement.
• Frenchie noticed a girl locked behind bars in a filthy room and opened the door; she looked past him at Ryan.

Frenchie accidentally freed a dangerous, fiercely strong girl in the Compound V basement, where she killed several men before Ryan subdued her. As Frenchie searched for Compound V, Ryan noticed the girl's broken leg had healed and suspected she could regenerate.

• Frenchie realized the girl behind the bars might be dangerous, but she wrenched the gate open and forced him to hide inside the cage.
• The girl charged Ryan, then killed the three armed men when they fired at her.
• Ryan restrained the girl, but the last surviving man shot himself before Ryan could reassure him.
• The girl attacked Ryan with a kick, and he broke her leg before she calmed down.
• Frenchie searched the basement and found a test tube containing a little blue liquid that looked like Compound V.
• Ryan noticed the girl's broken leg had healed and suspected she had a regenerative power.

Ryan captured Kimiko after she escaped from Vought International’s basement and took her to a villa, where he learned Vought had turned her into a Supe as part of a plan to create supervillains. The chapter ended with A-Train telling Ryan that he would have to ask Homelander for Compound V.

• Kimiko tried to escape the basement, but Ryan tripped her and Frenchie failed to keep her under control.
• Ryan carried Kimiko to a villa outside the city and used a translation app and dictionary to communicate with her.
• Kimiko told Ryan that Vought International had captured her, given her Compound V, and planned to create supervillains to counter its heroes.
• Kimiko said she missed home and was searching for her missing family.
• A-Train called Ryan about the attack on the basement, and Ryan learned he would have to ask Homelander for Compound V.

Ryan left Kimiko at his house and flew to the Seven Tower to ask Homelander about Compound V, while privately planning to exploit Kimiko’s regenerative powers in the Laboratory. At the tower, Homelander followed Madelyn as she carried a baby and questioned her concern for the child.

• Ryan asked Kimiko to make dinner, and she reluctantly went to the kitchen and began cooking Lime Meat with splintered wood and metal shavings mixed in.
• Ryan told Kimiko that A-Train was outside looking for her and promised to help her find her family, though he privately intended to put her in the Laboratory.
• Ryan flew toward the Seven Tower to confront Homelander about Compound V.
• Homelander followed Madelyn through the Seven Tower as she carried a smiling baby and told her she was too concerned about the child.
• Madelyn asked Homelander who she should be concerned about instead.

Homelander agreed to help Ryan obtain Compound V, while displaying his jealousy over Madelyn and his attachment to her. At A-Train's race against Shockwave, A-Train secretly used Compound V before heading to the starting line.

• Madelyn told Homelander to cause a fatal plane crash to eliminate a congressman opposing Vought International's military plan, and Homelander agreed.
• Homelander confessed his feelings to Madelyn, but she left; afterward Ryan teased him about drinking milk and photographed him licking the bottle.
• Ryan asked Homelander for Compound V, and Homelander promised to bring doses to A-Train's race the next day.
• Ryan visited the taped-off Video Store, then returned to Seven Tower before flying with Homelander to the stadium.
• Homelander gave Compound V to A-Train and several doses to Ryan, while Ryan asked who had developed the drug.
• A-Train secretly injected Compound V in a dark lounge, then returned to the track as the race against Shockwave was about to begin.

A-Train beat Shockwave in a race, and Ryan recruited the defeated runner to follow Homelander. Shockwave agreed after Ryan arranged for A-Train to drop their bet, while Ryan hoped the surveillance would reveal where Homelander was hiding the doctor who developed Compound V.

• Homelander's arrival distracted the crowd before the race, but A-Train beat Shockwave and claimed the victory.
• Shockwave tried to flee rather than pay their bet, but Ryan stopped him and led him into the stadium tunnel.
• Ryan offered Shockwave a place in The Seven in exchange for following Homelander, and Shockwave reluctantly agreed.
• Ryan persuaded A-Train to call the bet a joke, easing Shockwave's fears about losing a leg.
• Ryan hoped Shockwave's surveillance would uncover the location of the doctor who developed Compound V, and considered where to get a tracker.

Ryan obtained Compound V and went to a secluded villa to test it, but Shockwave reported that Homelander had flown out to sea. Realizing Homelander was about to attack a passenger plane, Ryan chose to intervene and confronted him above the clouds after saving the plane from his laser beams.

• Ryan got a tracker from Billy, gave Homelander a pen containing one part and Shockwave the other, then went to the villa with Compound V.
• Ryan found Kimiko at the villa, where she tried awkward ways to get along with him while he prepared to take the Compound V.
• Shockwave told Ryan that Homelander had flown out to sea, and Ryan realized Homelander was heading to kill a congressman and endanger a passenger plane.
• Ryan flew to the plane and punched Homelander, diverting his lasers before they hit the aircraft.
• Homelander warned Ryan to stay out of Vought International business, but Ryan refused and drank the Compound V before preparing to fight him.

After taking Compound V, Ryan unlocked far greater powers and defeated Homelander in a fight over the ocean. He spared his father, helped him toward land, and watched the rescued plane fly safely onward as he considered his future as a hero.

• Ryan stood dazed as Compound V surged through him, and Homelander struck him with a full-strength punch that barely hurt him.
• Ryan punched Homelander out of the sky and followed him down to the ocean, striking him into the water.
• Homelander surfaced and fired his lasers, but Ryan overpowered them with his own beams and burned Homelander's eyes.
• Ryan suppressed Compound V's violent urge to kill Homelander, who told him he was proud and urged him to take up his mantle.
• As Compound V's effects faded, Ryan helped Homelander toward land and saw the plane fly safely near the horizon.