The Boys Season 5, Episode 6 Delivers a Huge Betrayal That Changes the Series Forever, But There's a Catch - IGN

Warning: This review contains full spoilers for The Boys Season 5, Episode 6! Warning: This review contains full spoilers for The Boys Season 5, Episode 6! The Boys Season 5 took way too long to get to this point, but it finally feels like we're in the meat of this final conflict between the team and Antony Starr's Homelander. The desperate search for the elusive V1 formula reaches its climax in Episode 6, with a resolution that promises a very dark and enticing status quo for the final two episodes. Better late than never. "Though the Heavens Fall" is heavily preoccupied with themes of death and aging, which is fitting given that the entire conflict revolves around a deadly supe plague and Homelander's thirst for immortality. It's a great time to bring back Paul Reiser as "The Legend," the disgraced former Vought media mogul who's now living out a slightly less glamorous life in showbiz. Reiser is very entertaining in the role once again, but the real hook with The Legend comes in his interactions with M.M. (Laz Alonso). As much as M.M. would like everyone to believe he's at peace with himself and his place in the world, The Legend exposes his deep discomfort at being the architect of a potential supe genocide. Those scenes contrast nicely with Hughie's (Jack Quaid) big speech about hope and reflect just how differently these two characters are processing the current state of affairs. Reiser also shines in his final scene with Homelander, as the character confronts what seems like his imminent mortality and opens up with the emotionally spiralling man-baby before him. You get a sense of the character's guilt over the role he played in propping up the Vought machine and contributing to the countless ruined lives as a result. But ultimately, "that's talent." And even Homelander gets a rare moment to show his humanity, as he lets The Legend walk free as thanks for inadvertently cluing him into the location of his quarry. Reiser's character isn't the only past-their-prime supe showing up in this episode. We also meet Golden Geisha (Naoko Mori) and an entire rest home full of aged supes. That makes for a dumb but entertaining fight scene and some cute moments between Geisha and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara). But the Geisha storyline takes a more somber turn as the episode wears on, particularly after the introduction of her old beau, Bombsight (Mason Dye). Episode 6 gets a fair amount of mileage out of the eternal curse that is immortality, and the pain that comes when only one half of a couple possesses it. Building on last week's very entertaining "One-Shots," we get more fun with the Vought supporting cast in Episode 6. The Ashley (Colbie Minifie) and Sister Sage (Susan Heyward) subplot is once again a lot of fun, particularly with Minifie doubling down on the physical comedy routine that is her "Back Ashley" performance. Beyond that, it's nice to see the series finally focus more attention on Sage after relegating her to the background in the first half of the season. Sage finally severs her ties with Vought and the Seven and makes her play, only for things to uncharactristically not go as planned. More on that in a minute. "After an underwhelming string of episodes, The Boys Season 5 finally bounces back with the very enjoyable "One-Shots." While this episode doesn't advance the overarching narrative as much as it could, it does provide several character-driven subplots that lend newfound depth to a number of key players in the series. This episode especially shines when it explores the plight of Valorie Curry's Firecracker and gives us the Supernatural reunion we've all been waiting for." -Jesse Schedeen, 04/29/2026