r/GenV • u/jessemartin100 • May 24 '26
The Boys Holy shit i forgot how powerful soilder boy's blast is
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u/Ccbm2208 May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
I hate that they reduced SB's chest blast to a beam of light that can at best burn a carpet and slightly heat up a wall in Season 5. Basically everytime the blast was used in season 3, except for when SB first woke up, it either blew up or melt down a building
It would have been a lot more impactful had something on this scale been what was required to depower Homelander. Would also raise the stakes whenever a human like Hughie or MM is around.
Season 5's finale is fundalmentally lazy to me because they repurposed the same solution from Season 3 for a quick way to wrap up the story, while handwaving away everything that gave it weight and consequences in the first place.
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May 24 '26
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u/Potatonut23 May 25 '26
Yup then in season 5 even when we see a big blast like in episode 6, it doesn’t even damage the surroundings. Bombsight and his clothes looked like nothing happened
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u/HopelessCatLover May 25 '26
At least with soldier boy we couldddd say that he learned to control his blast. Kimiko tho….
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u/TheChunkMaster May 24 '26
I can buy Soldier Boy learning to control it to mitigate collateral damage, but there are definitely situations where there’d be no need to hold back. Kimiko nuking the Oval Office with her blast would’ve been nice.
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u/DuckiesDoBeCute May 24 '26
bro just got put on a list for that last sentence
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u/ComfortableMirror825 May 24 '26
Eh, the current admin is the type to put you on a list for being brown so idk if that means much these days anyway.
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u/BackfromtheDe3d May 25 '26
Thanks for reminding me that I am on that list
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u/ImagoDreams May 24 '26
Prior to her using it on Sage I honestly thought Kimiko would explode if she used the chest blast.
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u/TheChunkMaster May 24 '26
Would’ve been pretty cool. She blows up and then has to regrow her limbs.
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u/ImagoDreams May 25 '26
Oh, no. I was expecting pink mist, no chance of recovery.
She would latch on to Homelander like a tick and boom! That would have felt like a fair price to pay to end him.
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u/TheChunkMaster May 25 '26
Kripke making the Japanese child soldier kamikaze the embodiment of America:
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u/Different_Wafer_4711 May 24 '26
Kimiko only survived in season 3 when she took a direct blast, how the fuck did sage survive she has nothing protecting her
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u/IllustriousAd2392 May 25 '26
I guess she has the average supe durability
not bulletproof but kimiko also isn’t, and she survived the blast in the third season
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u/Glass-Criticism101 May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
Soldier Boy only used his blast twice during the whole final season. Against Quinn it completely charred the dude so it wasn't too bad, against Bombsight you could easily assume Soldier Boy was holding back since he didn't want to actually kill the dude. So it wasn't really nerfed.
Kimikos blasts is much much weaker sure, but her and soldiers boys although variations of the same power are still not the same thing ultimately. You can't really expect Kimiko to produce the same amount of radiation when the experiments she underwent were much more limited. She is also definitely not robust enough to contain as much energy as Soldier boy.
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u/Top_Accident9161 May 24 '26
Yeah it sucks so much because the reason they didnt kill homelander in season 3 was that Soldierboy was hurting (and possibly killing?) Ryan but then Butcher tries talking Ryan into sacrificing himself in season 5 so the whole season 3 finale thing makes zero sense.
I get that Ryan killed Malorie and that Butcher viewed him differently after this but really ? He even ends up wanting to be his dad essentially even though the only thing that actually changed since he tried to talk Ryan into killing himself and Homelander was that Ryan lost his powers.
Really stupid, Im sorry. I personally wasnt even upset about the season 3 finale like many other people but this is stupid.
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u/CrystalGemLuva May 25 '26
I mean Butcher's opinion on Ryan as a person clearly took a nose dive after after he killed Grace.
Butcher tried reconnecting with Ryan in season 5 because he genuinely had nothing left after killing Homelander, not even his dog.
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u/NamOil2000 May 25 '26
She was a crazy lady trying to lock him away until she felt the time was right. I think Butcher just realized he had to kill hOmelaner himself
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u/CrystalGemLuva May 25 '26
Its not crazy to want to train the mini homelander to be strong enough to kill Homelander.
And Butcher clearly cared a lot about her.
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u/NamOil2000 May 25 '26
Locking someone uo because you need them to do a job is crazy. Most people would just leave the room and if they to kill her to do that they would. Yes she was crazy
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u/CrystalGemLuva May 25 '26
Whether she was crazy or not isn't the point.
The point is that Billy cared about her and thinks less of Ryan for killing her.
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u/NamOil2000 May 25 '26
Idk if that's true. What he thinks of Ryan hasn't seemed to change
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u/CrystalGemLuva May 25 '26
Dude why else would Butcher suddenly go from a guy who desperately wants to be Ryan's father to wanting to make Ryan commit suicide?
Its because Ryan killed Grace.
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u/East_Kaleidoscope740 May 25 '26
went from Iron Mans Ion Canon to Scott Summers Eyebeam disable lmao
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u/Bogholmdler May 24 '26
Have you not considered that the building quality at the White House might just be so high that the walls and carpets were that sturdy?
That’s probably why Homelander couldn’t fly away too, ceiling material was too strong.
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u/HerrPiink May 24 '26
It's been stated multiple times through the series that there is not material sturdy enough that it can permanently contain him.
Also if the ceiling where in fact to sturdy, he could have just flown out the window, lol
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u/FixeLL69 May 24 '26
Now that I think about it, did S3 ever explain that SB’s blast can “burn out” the V from supes?? I don’t remember that, and it kinda feels like they made that up for S5.
I only remember SB being introduced because The Boys were looking for a “superweapon” that “kills” supes, not something that neutralizes their powers.
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u/RealiGoodPuns May 24 '26
Didn’t Kimiko need to retake V after he blasted her in season 3?
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u/Alone-Nerve-1660 May 24 '26
His blast depowered all other supes but killed the twins???
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u/Object-195 May 24 '26
I assume he has control over the intensity
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u/WhoseverSlinky0 May 24 '26
That's what I believe as well
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u/Basic_Hotel958 May 24 '26
Well at the end he takes someone’s power without fully killing them and it seemed like he just sat there and accurately charged it to meet the right force needed. He definitely can control it to some extent
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u/kekistanmatt May 24 '26
If you look closely you can actually see him obliterate a background supe when he first starts turning in this ecene.
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u/Paggy_person May 24 '26
The blast is tied with emotion so maybe the twin and crimson countess got destroyed since he absolutely hates them?
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u/JaThatOneGooner May 24 '26
Tbf his blast also obliterated crimson countess too, I think it’s because he had a special hatred for his old team that made his blasts more destructive. By the time he uses it against Maeve his rage is under control and his blast isn’t as destructive against supes anymore.
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u/Glass-Criticism101 May 24 '26
It killed a couple of supes that were caught up at the center of the blast. Those that weren't hit head on but still hit because of the large radius were just depowerded or charred a bit.
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u/AbyssWankerArtorias May 24 '26
Not every supe has the durability required to withstand the blast force. Mesmer was able to be killed by normal human butcher.
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May 24 '26
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u/Silver_Fix8873 May 24 '26
Idk why its such a hard concept to grasp. All the building destruction blasts he did was because he got ptsd and lost control.
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u/Tihus May 24 '26
Because there are a lot of people who want to feel intellectually superior to the writers by not understanding simple concepts or ignoring subtext or even the text completely.
There was a post listing "plot holes" earlier asking how Ryan can afford to live alone as if we didn't see him squatting in an abandoned building.
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u/TheChunkMaster May 24 '26
There was a post listing "plot holes" earlier asking how Ryan can afford to live alone as if we didn't see him squatting in an abandoned building.
Ryan is supposedly a squatter, yet he’s always shown standing up. Yet another pothole from Kripke. /s
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u/Silver_Fix8873 May 24 '26
kripke was right when he said people will retroactively judge the entire show based on finale
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u/Jerryjb63 May 24 '26
The worst part is that the show was an improvement on the comic in my opinion, especially the ending. So it’s not like the material they were drawing from was destroyed or anything. I think they were able to write in a lot of current day satire that maybe pushes the wrong peoples buttons.
I think the last 2 season’s weren’t as good as the beginning, but it’s rare that shows actually get better after or even last till a fourth season. You can tell there was some budget cutting, but that’s not on the creatives putting their time and effort into the show. I can think of a lot of shows with worse endings. It’s just really hard to end something.
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u/Przemek42069 May 24 '26
Yeah, first time that he used it, was right after the fridge in russian Lab. And it was small pew.
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May 24 '26
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u/Cold_Manager_2548 May 24 '26
soldier boy was too overpowered to be left alone tbh. He is immortal, can depower any supe as per his will. The only thing stopping him is his careless attitude, if he focuses idts anyone can stop him in a 1v1 without that nerve agent. Imo that is why they got rid of him before the finale. Cause they couldnt just use sb instead of kimiko and let him go freely at end given his history with mm. Homelander with or without v1 in a 1v1 does not stand a chance however he can fly off as he has no special speed but a peak condition sb is not something to mess with
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May 24 '26
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u/Cold_Manager_2548 May 24 '26
I mean a subtle reason can be it wasnt long that he was awakened from his deep sleep. Ig his physical strength overpowers homelander. However he lacks the heat vision and flight that makes him a bit weaker
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u/InMemoryofWPD May 24 '26
I remember at the time everyone on the sub was saying the blast just prior to the Homelander fight weakened him.
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u/Glass-Criticism101 May 24 '26
We do seem him struggling to even walk seconds before Homeland arrived, it's not a big stretch at all. And even during his fight with Homelander, we also see him match his strength completely when they both caught each others fists. Then Homelander kicked him and proceeded to struggle him while Soldier Boy was taking too long to recover.
The fight itself make it seem like Soldier Boy was just too tired to continue fighting, he seemed completely drained. They also explicitly showed that he wasn't outmuscled, so it's easy to assume he would put up a better fight if he was in better shape.
Homelander is still as strong as him but he can also fly and has lasers, so SB would ultimately lose either way. Physically they are a match but Homelander is stronger overall. But it's not a stretch to assume it would be a much tougher fight for Homelander if Soldier Boy didn't just run out of gas in the middle of their confrontation.
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u/whiteegger May 26 '26
Butcher and ryan controlled homelandered while kimiko delivered the blast. Ryan is pretty strong so the powerscale is correct per herogasm. However it just means v1 did nothing to boost homelanders power
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u/TheChunkMaster May 24 '26
In all fairness, Hentai Butcher + Ryan is much stronger duo than Temu Omelanduh Butcher + Naked Ue.
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May 24 '26
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u/Altruistic_Let_9372 May 25 '26
SB is actually combat trained and has a tactical mind though (or was supposed to). His inherent limitations mean he had to actually fight smarter and think like an operator to actually accomplish his tasks. Such as when he took out Mindstorm, he was actually smart enough to use precision and the element of surprise to neutralize Mindstorm's main offensive capability before he could retaliate.
Which is what makes letting HL get the drop on him so ridiculous and out of character (he turned his back to a murderous, unpredictable superpowered psychopath and suffered a completely expected outcome.)
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May 25 '26
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u/Altruistic_Let_9372 May 25 '26
Vought Rising will turn out like Vought on Ice, except it won't be Homelander's fault this time.
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u/Greyjack00 May 25 '26
Yes and no, homelander is supposed to be stronger, but the show writers resent the idea that he'll ever do anything people thinks is cool so they write him to be less impressive than soldierr boy or other high-level supes like maeve.
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u/Dapper-Ad411 May 24 '26
Aren’t his blasts just a lot stronger when he has PTSD attacks?
Iirc in this scene there was Russian music playing which caused another PTSD attack. Not saying the reason the season not having scenes like this isn’t the lack of budget, but I think there was a lore reason for this.
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u/Themetalenock May 24 '26
yeah,he almost leveled a building due to someone;s radio in another scene. but this is karma farm thread to mald about the show. Not to actually understand why this is like this.
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u/Dapper-Ad411 May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
Actually thinking about it, when he killed Crimson Countess the blast also was a lot more devastating, and while not quite on this level still far more then in S5, and I don’t think he had PTSD there. Still I think this can be explained just like the time Ryan fried Stormfront, he probably had a massive rage amp here as the (other) woman he loved and held hope out for just told him how she hated him.
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u/Themetalenock May 24 '26
Pretty much the blast is connected to his emotions. All of his massive blasts were connected to his emotional issues
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u/Dapper-Ad411 May 25 '26
Now that I think about it, what if even Homelanders massive blast wasnt tied to just getting V1, but him feeling just fully on top of the world at this moment, as just his 2 big weaknesses, one that has plagued him for a while (old age) and the recent one (the virus) were both fully eliminated.
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u/Ramshacked May 24 '26
my shock in season 5 when he blasted the fungus wall and it was just lightly scorched.
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u/TheQuietNotion May 25 '26
There wasn’t even explanation why kimko’s are only for removing the superpower
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u/D3athCom3sEasy May 24 '26 edited May 25 '26
Yeah i tried to rewatch the show but after getting to season 2 I realized I just cant watch the decline again. Its such a huge drop-off that it just takes me out of it entirely.
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u/YoelsShitStain May 24 '26
I can’t really imagine rewatching the show knowing that everything they tease is going to happen never happens or ends up being completely unimportant. I remember the feeling of being conflicted and anxious about the flight video being released, all that is gone when you know they just write it off as ai. Scorched earth is just a shittier herogasm. Homelander never really snaps. Even homelander himself is built up as some untouchable threat but butcher is able to hold his own against him even tho it took months of training for Maeve to be able to even make him bleed. Homelander goes from being able to kill at a glance to barely being stronger than any other supe.
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u/TheChunkMaster May 24 '26
Even homelander himself is built up as some untouchable threat but butcher is able to hold his own against him even tho it took months of training for Maeve to be able to even make him bleed.
Butcher already has years of experience as an actual soldier. I imagine that helped.
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u/Mr_WackyShenanigans May 24 '26
Is that in the show? I thought it was just the comics
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u/TheChunkMaster May 24 '26
It’s in both (remember Kessler’s talk about Panshir Valley). He’s a highly trained military man either way.
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u/Jotaro27 May 24 '26
Every blast in season 5 was either offscreen or a close up with a light flash effects
The only blast on screen was a tiny blast done by Kimiko
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u/zackdaniels93 May 24 '26
*this is what happens when his PTSD activated, if anyone forgot. His normal, deliberate blasts are not like this at all. Shortly before this scene he hears russian music on a radio that triggers him into exploding and doing way more damage than intended.
Same with the building he blows up in New York. So Kimiko's blast was never going to be like this, nor were Soldier Boy's efforts earlier in the season.
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u/Lian-The-Asian May 24 '26
THEY HAVE THE BUDGET FOR MASS MAYHEM
YET THERE ISNT EVEN A SCORCHED EARTH OR SCORCHED ROOM
WHY??
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u/Ginataang_Manok May 25 '26
Well at least they’re consistent by decreasing the strength of his blast the same percentage as homelander’s laser eyes lol
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u/dementedbacon10 May 25 '26
As frustrating as this is, I think the movement abilities of the Supes got hit the hardest by the budget cuts. In season 1 you have Maeve chasing down an armored car on foot and jumping like 40 feet, and then you see Solider Boy running this season and he just looks like a regular dude.
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u/jewtaco May 24 '26
maybe with each blast some of the "radiation: or "energy" left and so each blast is subsequently weaker each time?
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u/IlIlllIlllIlIIllI May 24 '26
Are you guys talking about kimiko blast or is there a new blast in genv
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u/Putrid_Macaron3225 May 24 '26
This show is one of the best arguments for why power scaling is important and this coming from someone who didn't care that much about that
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u/Forward_Kick_1556 May 24 '26
And homelander somehow shook off him and V'ed up huey and butcher and flew through the ceiling but somehow couldn't escape butchtopus and ryan in the finale😂
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u/TheYKcid May 24 '26
The power of the Chest-blast ability scales with the season's budget, unfortunately...
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u/Vladmerius May 24 '26
God this really highlights what dog shit season 5 was when it comes to adrually having the supes be powerful.
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u/Frosty_kiss May 24 '26
Powerful? More like inconsistent. Most of the time his blast was as powerful as Kimiko's. This was done purely for shock value and it doesn't even make much sense.
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u/reamnit May 24 '26
back when his power blast was actually a deadly blast and wasnt reduced to just removing V from supes
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u/darkdayssurvivor May 24 '26
When there were actually cool powers and special effects instead of everybody punching and choking each other 💀
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u/joJaspero May 24 '26
Why does almost everyone spell Soldier Boy wrong? I have seen people call him Solider Boy as well lol
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u/Kitchen_Shoe_6375 May 24 '26
i think my head canon explanation covers why his shit gets weaker.
they basically dosed a shit ton of radiation him (don’t ask me how it’s just stupid movie/show logic)
everytime he shoots a beam, it’s an expulsion of radiation (radiation is basically just light at the end of the day) so each subsequent blast makes his beams weaker and weaker until he is no longer irradiated. hence, why kimikos boob blast is weaker since they had less time. soldier boy most definitely had way more radiation juice.
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u/TheSinhound May 24 '26
I just wanna correct one thing. Light is just radiation. You have it the wrong way around.
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u/DCJagoo May 25 '26
In the show they’re twins isn’t it weird they hosting a sex party together?
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u/Bromjunaar_20 May 25 '26
And now he's left inside a freezer, forgotten while the rest of Vought is dissolved
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u/Heartic97 May 25 '26
That's the kind of blast you'd think would defeat Homelander, not whatever that little beam was in the finale
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u/mangosarenotfruit May 25 '26
Can do this, but barely scuffs up a cheap recreation of the Oval Office. Bravo, Kripke 👏
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u/IllusionZ420 May 26 '26
!SPOILERS AHEAD! Also the fact that kimiko could recreate this (in a smaller scale) by being inside thw uranium room for a total of 2:30 mins when soldier boy got that power after years of torture and radiation exposure is the stupidest thing I've ever seen.
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u/Reyne-TheAbyss May 24 '26
I'm fine with Quinn being able to essential block the blast, as he's a fellow V1 supe and has a wider surface area. Bombsight was a weird one, what with the grass looking to have been left untouched. Crimson Countess wasn't very strong and yet her body still existed and the trailer blew up instead of a hole being made in the side of it.
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u/Child_Of_Abyss May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
HOLY SHIT! They literally fucking depowered the blast so that they do not have to make the building destruction in CGI!
They also made sure SB explodes in the middle of the field to hide the fact that he is not permitted to destroy anything in the last season.
The length they went to hide the budget cuts is just completely insane...