The original comic book series of The Boys came to a definitive and dark end in 2012. Written by Garth Ennis with art by Darick Robertson, the story concluded with major character deaths, a stunning revelation, and a final act of betrayal that reshaped the entire conflict. While the hit Amazon Prime series takes many liberties with its source material, the core question of how to stop corrupt superheroes drives both stories to their conclusions.
The Final Fate of Homelander and Black Noir’s Secret
The comic’s climax centers on Homelander staging a violent coup. He assembles an army of superhumans and storms the White House, killing the president. The U.S. military, armed with special anti-Supe weapons developed with intel from The Boys, wipes out his forces. Billy Butcher then enters the White House for a final confrontation, believing he is about to face the man who assaulted his wife, Becky.
However, a major truth is revealed: Black Noir is not a separate hero. He is a more powerful, psychologically unstable clone of Homelander. Vought International created him as a secret weapon designed to kill Homelander if he ever went rogue. Driven mad by years of inaction, Noir committed horrific acts—including the assault on Becky Butcher—while disguised as Homelander. He sent Homelander photos of these crimes to push him over the edge, hoping Vought would finally activate him to carry out his purpose.
Black Noir tells them, “I did all the things in the pictures hoping I’d be allowed to kill Homelander.”
The two nearly identical Supes fight in the Oval Office. Black Noir emerges victorious, killing the original Homelander. A wounded Noir then exits the White House, where Butcher is waiting. Butcher shoots him and finishes the job with a crowbar, brutally killing the clone. With this, the core members of The Seven are gone. Only The Deep and Starlight survive, both in hiding.
Billy Butcher’s Genocide Plan and the Fall of The Boys
Avenging his wife was never Butcher’s true end goal. His hatred for all superhumans had grown into something far more extreme. Earlier, The Boys discovered a new, deadly strain of Compound V in Russia that could be triggered remotely to kill anyone with the substance in their bloodstream. Butcher secretly used this to create a network of bombs. His final plan was to detonate them and kill every person on Earth with a notable level of Compound V in their system.
This genocidal plan meant killing his own team, as they had all taken Compound V during missions. To stop them from interfering, Butcher systematically betrays and murders his former friends. He kills Mother’s Milk, Frenchie, and the Female (Kimiko in the TV show). He also murders other allies, including the inventor of Compound V, Dr. Vogelbaum.
Hughie Campbell becomes the last member of The Boys standing. He confronts Butcher on top of the Empire State Building, leading to a physical struggle where both men fall from the edge. Hughie is badly injured, and Butcher is left paralyzed from the neck down. In their final conversation, Butcher begs Hughie to kill him. When Hughie refuses, Butcher provokes him by falsely claiming he murdered Hughie’s parents. Enraged, Hughie stabs Butcher with a piece of fencing, killing him. Hughie later calls his parents and discovers they are alive and well, realizing Butcher manipulated him one last time to get the death he wanted.
Hughie’s New Life and the 2020 Sequel “Dear Becky”
The main series concludes with the world changed. Vought-American, having lost its superhero division, rebrands to American Consolidated and pivots to defense contracting. Hughie is approached by the CIA and offered Butcher’s old role overseeing the Supe threat. He accepts but vows to do things differently, without Butcher’s brutal methods. He is finally reunited with Starlight (Annie January), and they share a hopeful moment together.
In 2020, writer Garth Ennis released an eight-issue sequel series titled The Boys: Dear Becky, set over a decade after the original ending. The story follows Hughie as he receives and reads Billy Butcher’s personal diary, sent to him anonymously. Through the diary, readers see the moment Butcher decided to kill all superheroes and learn that the memory of his wife, Becky, was the only thing that ever held him back.
The sequel confirms that Hughie and Annie are still together and get married. It also shows that the former head of Vought, James Stillwell, has lost his sanity. The diary was sent by former CIA Director Susan Rayner, who held a grudge against Hughie and hoped the contents would destroy him psychologically. Instead, Hughie finds closure. He burns most of the diary, keeping only one page which he writes a final message on and sends out to sea: “Dear Becky. You were with him all the way”.
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