Warning! Contains spoilers for The Boys!Though he's presented as one of the biggest monsters in The Boys, Homelander is actually far from the worst Supe in the series. But in a world of superpowered humans that commit atrocious acts, Homelander remains the best antagonist.

Throughout The Boys, Homelander is presented as one of the worst Supes to come out of Vought-American. Not only did he possess power rivaling Superman's, he was shown as slowly losing his mind, a result of being gaslighted by his teammate, Black Noir. In the series, Homelander shows no qualms about killing anyone, whether it's average citizens, other Supes, or even his own associates on the Justice League-like team, the Seven. Homelander even led an assault on the White House in the tail end of The Boys, intent on overthrowing the government and installing a new order that would have seen the Supes in control.

Homelander is Nothing Compared to Certain Other Supes

But as bad as Homelander can be, there are several Supes in The Boys that almost make him look like a saint by comparison. The Seven's biggest rivals, the Avengers-inspired team Payback, is led by Stormfront, an unrepentant Nazi who actually commits several ethnic cleansings in Africa and Indonesia. There's also John Godolkin, the man who runs The Boys' equivalents to the X-Men. Godolkin kidnaps Supes he feels has potential, sexually assaults and brainwashes them to his superteam known as the G-Men. And of course there's Black Noir, who is actually Homelander's secret clone made to handle the Supe should he ever step out of line. But because Homelander never did, Black Noir began committing acts of depravity while posing as Homelander in order convince the Supe that he's losing his mind.

It's clear that there's no shortage of awful people with powers in The Boys' universe. But the true threat presented with Homelander isn't that he's one of the most evil Supes in the world, it's that he's powerful and unable. One of the worst things the Seven does is botch the rescue attempt during 9/11, and that's a situation where they were trying to do the right thing. And though their actions wound up getting people killed, they were never held responsible. The Boys' ultimately isn't a story of people trying to defeat the worst superhuman alive, it's an examination on the dangers of unchecked power.

Homelander is Dangerous (But Not for the Reason Fans Think)

While Homelander is tricked into thinking he's a psychopath, and it takes him down a dark path, the true threat he presents is that he's a bully with godlike powers. He has no desire to ever do the right thing because he's never had to face consequences for his actions. While Black Noir or Stormfront are terrifying in their own right, Homelander is a much more relatable thing to fear because he shows that people given any sort of power, whether it be political, structural or actual superpowers could ultimately wind up abusing them if they're never held to any sort of standard.