‘The Boys’ Season 5 hints at Queen Maeve’s return after key character's death
The Starlighters are central to 'The Boys' Season 5 plotline. But some of them have met pretty gory deaths in their war against the supes. Episode 1 of the latest installment saw Jessie T. Usher's A-Train die a quick death at the hands of Homelander (Antony Starr). Not only does this leave the Boys one major assist short, but it also allows them to recruit another former Vought supe in Dominique McElligott's Queen Maeve.
Like the speedster, Maeve was one of those slipping out of Vought's control after she faked her own death in the finale of 'The Boys' Season 3. To quickly recap, Maeve lost her powers after taking the full brunt of Soldier Boy's (Jensen Ackles) explosion. Not to mention, she lost an eye in the process during her battle with Homelander. She was last seen retreating to a quiet life with her partner, Elena (Nicola Correia-Damude). While one part of her arc suggests her character received closure, the other suggests she may be looking to get back into action, considering the significant damage Vought has caused in her absence.
At the time of this writing, there is no confirmation that Maeve will return. The series will also have to address how she gets her powers back, if she does return. To speculate, the storyline might see the Boys and Starlight (Erin Moriarty) seek her out to help them take down Homelander once and for all. The plot is also likely to include Maeve's internal conflict, especially after a tumultuous run with the supes. In what might be an eye-for-an-eye moment, there is a pretty strong possibility of her taking on Homelander. Lastly, it might mean another potential major character death, effectively closing out all members of Vought.
Ahead of the season, showrunner Eric Kripke teased a massive body count in the explosive last season. "You can let people have the emotional confrontations that they’ll never recover from," he said, while speaking to SFX Magazine. He added, "We wanted to take full advantage of that, having these mind-blowing moments. It’s a battle, and there are going to be casualties. It would be unrealistic not to. Things cost things, you can’t just get away with this!’ So yes, I wouldn’t get too attached to any single character." With six episodes remaining, only time will tell if Maeve makes a return for one final mission. 'The Boys' Season 5 drops a new episode weekly on Wednesdays on Prime Video.
