Season four is by far the weakest of all the seasons so far. No real character development (no, Hughie getting sexually assaulted by Tek Knight after the death of his father doesn’t count), and it overall doesn’t really go anywhere.
Butcher is kept as a very static character, which he shouldn’t be. The show is too afraid to actually make him as bad as Homelander, and the attempts to show his descent are done poorly (the Fight Club-esque sequences with his evil alter ego really aren’t expanded on enough because there are too many side plots).
Frenchie does drugs (like usual), but this time is gay. His entire side plot really doesn’t have much to do with the main plot, and really should’ve been cut out entirely.
Kimiko is also more static, and while I like her character, she isn’t really given as much thought into her development as there should be.
Mother’s Milk is still disappointing and hasn’t really changed at all since season one.
Starlight’s identity crisis could be interesting if it were written better (such as if she had multiple times where she could have possibly regretted letting go of her Starlight persona, such as when she could have used it to sway attention from Homelander/Vaught, but the writers aren’t expanding on that either.
Homelander has had some interesting episodes (such as his vengeance towards the people that wronged him in the lab he was raised in), but like so many other characters, his limiting abilities and aging aren’t explained as well as they should be. Maybe the finale will make it make sense, but the writers being too obsessed with filler and real life references have taken away from his character development.
Speaking of filler, most of Deep’s scenes could have been scrapped. The weird octopus affair added nothing. Maybe make him question his allegiance more to Homelander or have him try to escape into the sea. Overall, it just felt like some writer was trying to live out their zoophilia fetish.
A-Train by far had some of the most potential this season to really shine, but because writers were too caught up in shock, gore, and sex scenes no one asked for, he seemed like an afterthought. Most of the season could have been a reconciliation between A-Train and Hughie in order to fight Homelander/Butcher, but the scenes they do have are few and far between.
Sister Sage has been one of the only interesting characters this season, but again, the weird side plots with Deep and Black Noir hindered her character. Why not just show her working to manipulate Homelander to enact her own agenda, which is separate from what Homelander wants? I feel like it’s hinted at, but all the stupid side plots of this season leave little time to show it.
I want to like Firecracker more, but the show can’t write a convincing right wing character. She’s too one dimensional and only barely resembles a right wing influencer. Having her go full vengeance towards Starlight (as in, changing her persona entirely once becoming part of the Seven in order to steal Starlight’s fanbase once the opportunity arises would have been an interesting pivot). There could have been more to her character, but being relegated to a Homelander simp is boring.
Overall, I don’t have high hopes for season five, but it’s a great watch if you want to learn how not to write a character.
