An eventful episode of The Boys gives us some of Frenchie’s backstory and reveals some new details about Stormfront. Our review of “The Bloody Doors Off”:
The Boys encounter an old enemy when they go on a mission to a psych ward only to run into Lamplighter (Shawn Ashmore). Annie tags along with them, as the lead came from her and it forces her and Butcher to have an actual conversation, although it’s as awkward and cold as you’d expect giving their pasts. Each time Hughie jumps in trying to mediate, the two shut him down, which kind of makes Hughie feel like their child.
While they speak, we get flashbacks to when the Boys first encountered Lamplighter, told from Frenchie’s perspective. They originally blackmailed Lamplighter into gathering intel on Vought, but he turned on them, and when he tried to kill Grace (Laila Robins), he accidentally killed her children instead. Frenchie was following him that night, but he left to try and save his friend who had overdosed. Frenchie is still carrying a lot of guilt and pain over that and nearly loses control when they see Lamplighter as an executioner in the psych ward for Supers. Their fight leads to the escape of a patient/prisoner, who then releases the rest of the people in the facility. Frenchie, Mother’s Milk, and Kimiko are forced to work with Lamplighter to escape alive.
Outside, Annie and Butcher are still not getting along as Hughie minds his business in the van. But then, an escaped Super uses their powers to cause a minor explosion. Annie and Butcher are unharmed, but Hughie is badly wounded, and the two are forced to work together to save him.
The way the two stories play off one another is really fun, and something the show has been doing well for a while now. Annie flags down a car, but things quickly go sideways. Butcher loses his patience, the guns come out, and Annie is forced to save Butcher, killing the driver in the process. They load Hughie into the car and Annie notices a baby seat in the back. The next thing we see is the driver’s dead body on the road as they drive off.
Annie talks about her realization that she no longer feels empathy like she used to; the innocence she had in the beginning is truly gone now. On the bright side, she and Butcher do get Hughie to a hospital, and connect a little over how much they care for him.
Meanwhile, the rest of he Boys make their way out of the facility only to find the way blocked by Stormfront. Lamplighter fools her by leading her down a hallway, and the others escape to meet up with Grace. When she arrives, Lamplighter submits himself to her, as he deeply regrets his mistake and gives his life to her. She lets him live, so he can feel the torment of his past for the rest of his life.
Homelander has been waiting for Stormfront all day, and when he investigates her whereabouts, he discovers her lies. When she returns from the psych ward, he confronts her about it. She confesses everything to him, including her true age and origin. It turns out she’s a straight-up Nazi. So yeah, there’s that.
Grade: A
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