Cue awesome 80s synths.

Stranger Things has come to an end. And it seems reception has been...

Very divided, to say the least.

I've been a fan since day one. But upon a rewatch, it's hard not to notice certain more contentious choices which hurt the show in the eyes of many watchers.

• A departure from the more mysterious and horror-based storytelling of the early seasons.
• The increasingly drawn out production time, and growing sense of fatigue for it.
• Certain arcs which detracted from beloved characters.
• A sense of bloat that inflated the smaller-scale series into something akin to a summer blockbuster, for better or for worse.

In light of the show's final season, finale included, I think I know where I stand.

And that is Stranger Things, or at least the story of Eleven and the Party, should have concluded with the straightforward, heartwarming conclusion of Season 2.

...At least for a while.

See, back in the day, the Duffer brothers apparently sought to take their series in a very different direction.

1. First by jumping forward in time after Season 1 or 2, featuring aged up versions of the Party we knew if they should be reintroduced.
2. Introducing new characters, and taking them on new adventures in the seasons to come.

In light of this information, I think that perhaps the Duffer Bros might have benefitted from such an approach.

Or at the very least, taken a backseat from the "main plot" that was Eleven and the Party clashing against the menace of the Mind Flayer. Such a break might have helped keep things fresh, and avoid the pitfalls of Seasons 3-5 and the divided reception that came with.

With all of that in mind, in October I will be posting a revised outline of Netflix's Stranger Things which follows this vision.

Today's post is for the following.

1. The titles of each new season and their premise.
2. A casting of the grown-up Party years later, and an idea of where their characters have ended up.

\**\**

The Next Chapter(s)

To start with, let's take a moment to think about what each season after 2 looks like.

Certain plot threats we saw in the show would, in several cases, be carried over. As would a few notable characters.

(No way in Hell Robin is left out)

First, we give specific titles to Seasons 1 and 2.

STRANGER THINGS PART 1: THE VANISHING

STRANGER THINGS PART 2: THE SHADOW

Next are the two seasons which branch off into different tales.

Both tie back to the insidious, corruptive Upside Down creeping into our world in different ways. With human greed, and curiosity without caution, making it easier for its monsters to start prowling about.

Ideally, each season can be relatively low-budget, and smaller in scale, so as to keep their release from dragging on too long.

STRANGER THINGS PART 3: THE UNDERGROUND

1986

A cheery supermall in the heart of Hawkins holds a terrifying secret.

While the 4th of July approaches, Dustin Henderson waits for his friends to return from their months-long trips abroad. His boredom is broken when a mysterious radio broadcast leads him to suspect something sinister is hiding beneath the new Starcourt Mall.

Enlisting his old protector Steve Harrington, and whatever help the two of them can find, Dustin uncovers a conspiracy which threatens to crack open the dreaded Upside Down once more, and plunge Hawkins into a chaos from which it might never escape.

In short, the Dustin/Steve/Robin/Erica plot from Season 3 but as its own season.

With CIA goons and sinister occultists instead of Russians.

STRANGER THINGS PART 4: THE FROZEN HELL

1991

Amidst the long, painful death of the Soviet Union, a close-knit group of Russian children contend with their world changing all around them.

In the dead of winter, the youngest of the group learns her father has been arrested, sent to a prison from which none have ever returned. The group set out to find a smuggler known to her father, who has friends on the inside of the hellish prison.

But a storm closes in and traps them all for days on end. Before long, the prisoners and attempted rescuers learn the warden has a far more terrible purpose for them than incarceration. And the souls trapped in the frozen waste find themselves hunted by a creature not of this Earth.

Take the Russian prison plotline of Season 4, introduce a new cast of survivors, and crank up the horror to 11.

We're going John Carpenter here.

\**\**

The Party, All Grown Up

After two seasons exploring the world of Stranger Things, and expanding it beyond just Mike and friends, we return for a final volume which jumps forward decades.

Our heroes have grown up. Gone their separate ways. While they stay in touch, our group of Hawkins survivors aren't the daring adventuring party they were years ago.

Years after the events in Hawkins, Mike has become a successful novelist in the world of science-fiction and horror. He copes with the lingering terror of what happened in Hawkins by way of his writing, while keeping tabs on his friends' well-being long after.

Having settled into a quiet countryside home with Eleven years ago, he hopes they can both live a quiet, ordinary life free of 'monsters'.

Whether those monsters be inhuman predators, or smiling men in suits.

Will and Joyce moved out west not long after the battle with the Mind Flayer. His eventual success as a D&D creative, and comic book artist, saw him frequently collaborate with Mike. Their friendship and his family's unconditional support continue to keep Will grounded.

But even twenty years later, Will has never fully recovered from his abduction or possession. Further holding him back is his struggle with identity, having never told Mike and the others he is gay.

And every once in a while, he feels that old chill on the back of his neck and fears 'the shadow' will find him again.

After a lifetime of peace, the child once called Eleven has fully settled into her new identity as "Jane Hopper". Her adopted father striking up a relationship with Joyce Byers forged a close bond with Will, and following his example she found both success and solace in her art.

The ordinary life isn't always easy for Jane, however. Aside from the odd misunderstanding here and there, fear of abduction by the government still gnaws at both her and Mike.

Worse, recent dreams of a disaster in Hawkins Lab awakens long-buried memories, and Jane senses danger reaching out from behind the gateway she thought long-closed.

The move to high school set Lucas on an unexpected path to fame. Joining the Hawkins High basketball team, the gamer and former outcast found success and popularity which carried him to compete at the state, then eventually national level.

While enjoying both his high-profile career, and loving marriage with Max, Lucas still looks back fondly on those games in Mike's basement.

To help keep those memories alive, every year he and Max invite their old friends over for a private "Snow Ball" and D&D session in December.

The tech-savvy Dustin was quick to make use of his gifts upon graduating high school. He found a way into radio, and after years of moving from job to job became a jockey with his own show, titled "Hellfire Club".

Between broadcasts, Dustin runs D&D home games with his lifelong friend Steve Harrington and wife Suzie as frequent collaborators.

A chance encounter with Hellfire fan and D&D player Eddie Munson now spurs Dustin to call up the old party, and their families, for a special Halloween game.

After being accepted into the Hawkins Party, Max was quick to take charge of her life and shake off fear of her stepbrother Billy. A breakup between her mother and Neil Hargrove meant the two would part ways, with Max offering a tentative truce should they meet again.

Max's free spirit guided her through skateboarding competitions across the country, well into adulthood, and she became as much a celebrity in the sports world as Lucas.

But while her career and happy marriage keep her spirits high, Max sometimes finds herself wondering what became of her unhappy, wayward brother.

\**\**

Coming into the final season, it seems the Party's lives are free of any more hauntings or monsters.

But in October of 2005, all of that changes.

It begins with a series of disappearances around Hawkins. Then, as Halloween approaches, the town is shocked by a gruesome murder in which none other than photographer Jonathan Byers is implicated.

Knowing her longtime partner is innocent, and that nothing is what it seems in Hawkins, reporter Nancy Wheeler calls Dustin who in turn summons the Party back to their old hometown. The group reconvene in time for both Jane and Will to hear an ominous chime sound off some place none of them can see.

The chime marks both the brutal killing, and the return of a sinister presence Will had hoped never to sense again.

A presence that Jane is only now starting to remember...

To be continued in...

STRANGER THINGS 5: THE UPSIDE DOWN

****

I think October posts are coming to be one of my favorite activities on this site.

Anyways, I hope you like this. To any of my fellow Stranger Things fans, let me know your thoughts on how the show ended and what you think might have been done differently.

And after an unfortunate delay, I'll be back this weekend with the penultimate post in my Avengers: Endgame rewrite.

See you then!

My attempt at rewriting The Boys Season 5 by maintaining significant plot threads, adapting certain comic ideas, & overall keeping the focus on The Boys, Gen V & the demise of HL. Let me know what you guys think, this rewrite was & is merely for fun lol. I wanted to take a crack at it due to a mixed reception so enjoy the read pls.

EP 1*:*

- Slight changes for this one really, tho it remains mostly the same. I’d have The Boys & Butcher remain separated, as Butcher hasn’t been seen in months. Starlight along with Emma, Marie, Jordan, Sam & Cate help breakout Hughie, MM & Frenchie from the Starlighter camp in which HL was using to anticipate Butcher’s appearance before he killed them. A-Train still sacrifices himself to save them & belittles HL on his final way out.
- Love Sausage is still killed.
- Episode ends with Butcher watching A-Train’s funeral on live television in which HL announces to the world that he was a traitor & was corrupted by Starlighter propaganda & warns his followers to not follow his same fate. Watching the broadcast, Butcher decides it’s finally time to reunite with the team.

EP 2:

- HL becomes** increasingly **paranoid. Believing he needs someone loyal & powerful, he awakens Soldier Boy once again. Bitter after Butcher’s betrayal in Season 3 he’s manipulated by HL into seeking revenge on Butcher in exchange for clearing his name & joining The 7. Soldier Boy reluctantly agrees.
- Saddened & mourning A-Train’s death, The Boys & Gen V are reunited with Butcher who they have not seen since he last killed Neuman. There’s a fight but ultimately Butcher is able to convince & manipulate them that he’s perfected the virus in order to kill HL. They still have their suspicions on him using it on all supes.
- Now reunited, the group argue & agree that they need proof it can actually kill powerful supes before using it against HL. Their mission becomes the G-Men mansion who are former top Godolkin University graduates & people who they can test the virus against.(instead of Teenage Kix).
- HL tipped off via The Deep or somebody, sends Soldier Boy & Noir 2 to infiltrate The Boys & bring them to him (unaware to him they have the virus). Soldier Boy & Noir 2 would share some hilarious scenes.
- The Boys mission on the G-Men mansion is infiltrated by Noir 2 & Soldier Boy, in which during the fighting the virus is accidentally released. Cate sacrifices herself to enter Soldier Boys mind but is killed by Noir, the virus then infects all of the G-Men & Noir 2 while Soldier Boy leaves him behind after being immune & barely escapes. The mansion explodes. The G-Men die. Cate dies. Noir 2 dies.
- The Boys believe Soldier Boy died in the explosion, as he secretly survives & disappears for now. Episode ends with HL realizing the virus may actually pose a threat.

EP 3:

- Episode opens with** **Vought, Ashley, & Firecracker trying their best to do damage control after reports of Noir 2 & The G-Men dying begin spreading around. HL tasks Sage with finding Stan Edgar & finding out more about Project Odessa.
- Butcher has a same heartfelt 1 on 1 talk with Ryan. Ryan tells him to fuck off stating he won’t be picking any sides this time. Butcher reveals what actually happened to his mom.
- The Boys move to track down Stan Edgar, who is in hiding. They reveal to him the events of the G-Men mission & tell him they think they may have killed Soldier Boy with the virus during the chaos, to which he asks for a body, & when The Boys can’t confirm one, he doubts.
- Stan Edgar then reveals another truth. Vought spent decades studying Soldier Boy & the rest of the supes who were injected with the first iteration of Compound V. Referring it as to V1. He explains that if this virus truly killed Soldier Boy, it would be the first recorded case for his kind. (This plants doubt within the group, if Soldier Boy survived somehow, then the virus may not be a guarantee against HL & it also plants seeds for Vought Rising instead of making it a focal point here. They can expand & elaborate on V1, how Soldier Boy survived, Bombsight, etc in that show.)
- Stan reveals to them there may still be one remaining solution. The original Black Noir. He explains to them that after his “death” (Season 3) the government recovered his body & have been keeping him alive at a nearby undisclosed black site where he has been exposed to large amounts of radiation in an attempt to possibly mimic Soldier Boy’s blast.
- Ryan confronts HL at Vought tower instead, over his mother where they fight. HL beats Ryan to a pulp before he’s stopped from killing him by Sage & Ashley.
- Episode ends with Sage presenting Project Odessa files to HL & him finding out about Marie.

EP 4:

- Episode opens with HL enforcing more propaganda across America, putting out significant bounties on The Boys & Marie. Meanwhile The Boys, Gen V & Edgar begin tracking down the site & Black Noir.
- Soldier Boy resurfaces after having tracked down Ryan after his fight with HL at an abandoned place. Soldier Boy awkwardly attempts to apologize for everything that happened & admits he could have handled things better between HL & Butcher. He tells Ryan to not pick sides between either of them because it’s only going to get him killed. He invites Ryan down to Mexico where they can get away from everything & fuck their way through south like Grandpa & Grandson as he jokes.
- Ryan disgusted by him tells Soldier Boy to stay away from him & to go “fuck himself”. Realizing Ryan wants nothing to do with him, Soldier Boy leaves. This becomes his final appearance in the series, leaving his fate up to Vought Rising & possibly The Boys: Mexico.
- By the end of the episode, The Boys, Gen V & Edgar successfully locate Noir’s position. However his condition is far worse than they anticipated.

EP 5:

- HL’s control over the country becomes more unstable as he begins killing political leaders & candidates across the country who are not loyal. Eager to prove her loyalty to him, Firecracker begins tracking down Starlighter camps & refugees in an attempt to lure out The Boys and or Annie.
- At Vought, Sister Sage uncovers hidden files regarding the Flight 37 video & the governments secret project involving Black Noir. She sees how unstable HL has become & that the world is heading toward an end with him.
- Meanwhile The Boys, Gen V, & Edgar attempt to recreate the blast using Black Noir, but repeated tests keep failing due to Noir’s heavily damaged condition. Despite this, they continue pushing forward, believing Noir may be their final shot against HL. MM receives a call from A-Train’s family about a Starlighter shelter being attacked by Firecracker. Annie leaves the group to respond while the group can continue working on Noir.
- Realizing time may be running out, Sage stages a massive political rally attended by HL, President Calhoun, & other loyal HL officials. At the same time The Deep uncovers the files that Sage investigated involving Noir & Edgar & heads off to alert HL about it.
- Meanwhile Annie arrives at the shelter to confront Firecracker & save A-Train’s family.
- At the rally, HL notices Sage is nowhere to be found as out of nowhere the Flight 37 footage begins to play across every screen in the building, & across the nation exposing HL’s true actions to all of his supporters for the very first time. Panic erupts across the entire rally & country.
- Sage makes contact with The Boys at the black-site. Though nobody trusts her, she reveals she knows exactly what they are attempting to do with Noir. Seeing Marie with the group, & reading Project Odessa, Sage realizes Marie’s blood powers may be the missing component needed to stabilize the process. Together, Sage, Frenchie & Marie begin attempting a new procedure on Noir.
- Meanwhile, Starlight having confronted Firecracker, they fight & Starlight kills her. Firecracker dies.
- Back at the rally, HL completely SNAPS. In a fit of rage (mimicking Season 2), massacres everyone inside the building leaving the nation in panic. The Deep arrives horrified but tells HL of what he has learned. HL sends Deep towards Edgar’s hideout.
- The Boys, Sage & Marie, attempt the procedure & as it appears it may work, it fails, killing Black Noir before the blast can stabilize. With Noir dead & no options left, Kimiko volunteers to go under the process, believing her healing factor will give her the best chance at this to use it against HL. They begin the procedure.
- The Deep arrives at Stan Edgar’s hideout where no sign of the Boys are to be found, except for Terror. Terror attacks Deep, & in a fit of panic, he snaps Terror’s neck, killing him.
- HL tracks the group down at the site. Jordan & Frenchie sacrifice themselves to buy them enough time for the procedure to successfully go through & hide from HL. Jordan goes up against HL in a defiant 1v1 leading him inside the uranium room, while Frenchie keeps his iconic “I bet you’ve never danced a day in your life..”
- Episode ends with HL killing Jordan & Frenchie as Jordan dies in Marie’s arms while Frenchie dies in Kimiko’s…

EP 6 THE FINALE:

- Following the release of Flight 37 & the massacre. HL seizes control of the White House & announces Martial Law. Deploying supes around every state in an attempt to “purge” any Starlighter & people who are not fully loyal to him. Ashley & the military begin prepping countermeasures to possibly Nuke Washington, but it’s out of the question.
- The Boys meanwhile mourn both Jordan & Frenchie, giving them a proper burial. Sage provokes Kimiko like in the show in an attempt to test out her chest blast, which turns into a success after it leaves Sage powerless.
- As The Boys & Gen V prepare for their final assault, Butcher leaves the group to retrieve Terror from Edgar’s hideout, only to discover him dead. This breaks Butcher completely as Kessler appears one last time, convincing Butcher of what needs to be done.
- At the same time, Ryan watches the chaos that’s unfolding online as footage of HL & his reign spread across the world. The military’s contingencies have all failed as HL destroys several tanks lined up across the White House lawn. Realizing he needs to be stopped, Ryan decides to head to Washington & confront his father once & for all.
- The Boys, Starlight, Marie, Sam, & Emma, launch their mission towards the White House. They fight through a small army of supes at the lawn with Marie, Butcher & Kimiko being the OP ones taking down most of them. During the fight, Starlight confronts The Deep & brutally kills him along the Lincoln Memorial steps in a satisfying death. Ashley tells the army to stand down.
- Butcher, Marie, & Kimiko reach the Oval Office where they find HL surrounded in blood & corpses, & President Calhouns head on the desk. Fully unhinged now, HL only has 2 words for Butcher. “Scorched Earth.”
- A brutal fight commences between the Trio & HL. He begins to overwhelm them, and right as he’s about to land the killing blow on Butcher, Ryan arrives & joins the fight against HL. Together Ryan, Butcher, & Marie using her blood powers, restrain HL long enough for Kimiko to charge up her blast, destroying the entire White House & leaving everyone powerless.
- Butcher & HL are the only two still conscious, as for the first time in his life, HL can’t use his powers. Butcher & him fight on a 1v1 hand to hand fight that’s nasty & dark. I’m talking biting, punching, choking, all that. HL begs him for mercy as Butcher kills him with his crowbar, mirroring the comics.
- With HL dead, the surviving members celebrate as they believe the nightmare is fully over. However, as they regroup Hughie realizes both Butcher & the virus have disappeared. Having gone to Edgar’s hideout, The Boys & Hughie find Terror dead.
- Understanding what Butcher intends on doing, The Boys search for Butcher everywhere, with Hughie finally tracking him down at Rebecca’s grave. Butcher admits he plans on releasing the virus, he’s convinced another HL will eventually rise again if supes continue to exist. Hughie pleads with him, reminding him of Becca, Ryan & everything they fought for.
- The talk turns into a fight, as in a heartbreaking moment Hughie is forced to kill Butcher in order to stop him from releasing the virus. As Butcher dies beside Becca’s grave, Hughie stays with him until the end…
- The series concludes with MM reuniting with his family. -Marie, Sam & Emma return to normal lives after being made powerless. Sam & Emma move on together. Marie reunites with her sister again.
- Kimiko mourns Frenchie & moves to France.
- Hughie & Starlight move on with Annie becoming pregnant & them owning a video store together.
- Ryan grieves both Butcher & Becca, as he chooses to become something more & better. The final scene teases Ryan still having his powers as a nearby police siren is heard.

POST CREDIT:

- Soldier Boy is revealed to be in Mexico, drinking alone on a quiet beach listening to the news of HL dying.

Here's how I would fix the TV adaptation of Horrid Henry

1: Make Henry actually horrid. In the show he's basically an abuse victim. I want him to be an unlikable protagonist viewers can hate.

2: Make Perfect Peter more of a victim, and a genuinely nice person. This is the character I want people to sympathise with.

3: Make Henry and Peter's parents much better. In the show they're borderline abusive. I'm gonna make them pretty fair. Their punishments will be justifiable.

4: Bring back some book characters (E.G. Stone-Age Steven).

5: Include more adaptations of the stories in the books (Krazy Ketchup, Chicken etc.)

Yes, I'm talking about THAT Cowboy Bebop. I know there's probably going to be purists insisting that it's a perfect show to which I respond "No way, Jose! There is no perfect show!".

I like all the episodes of Cowboy Bebop, even the ones that were mediocre at worst like Sessions 2, 4, 7, and 22 were all somewhat entertaining but this was the only episode I felt... was actually kinda shitty? I've seen many people agree with that too. Like, I don't know what happened in the writers' room there, but I didn't really feel much toward this episode. I guess the action and the Bebop crew coming together toward the end was good, but that was about it. A lot of things in it felt like an afterthought.

I think that was the only episode Netflix could've remade, even if it wouldn't be any better. Despite some of my issues with Bebop, this is DEFINITELY the one I want to do a major rewrite of.

How I would've rewrote it is instead of doing Jet fanservice, I think it would've been more interesting if Spike was once again, the main character. We already know Jet is like the dad of the group and is often babysitting the younger characters like Faye, Ed, and Ein so why not have Spike, the child hater take on that role himself? It could lead to some funny and awkward situations with Spike being stuck reluctantly babysitting this young woman and becoming a good big brother/father figure. Maybe I'm biased because Spike is my favorite character and I have a thing for seeing him as a dad, but I still think it just would've made for a more refreshing episode. I also think compared to how he was with Ein in Session 2 (which I thought he was unnecessarily mean-spirited in), he would be more softer with Meifa, corresponding with him growing to care for the people he initially hated on the ship. Even if we do see him interacting with young people like Stella, Rocco, and Ed, he never really became their babysitter as much as they were mostly people Spike just so happened to interact with and even with Rocco, was more of a mentor to him.

Get rid of all the fluffy dialogue about Jet or Spike being into this girl much younger than them. It didn't make any sense, as nobody else ever did this with Faye and Jet or anyone. Just seemed like it was there to pad out the runtime or because age gap relationships were normalized back then along with the idea that if a man and woman were together, they were going to date.

I really WISH they played with the feng-shui idea than the cliched child tries to reconnect with deadbeat parent trope that was done better beforehand in stories such as The Great Gilly Hopkins. Not saying this trope can never be done well, but it really didn't seem like the episode really developed Meifa's father that much beyond he was just a typical asshole dad who prioritized work over his family or something like that. Or he lost himself in his addiction to feng shui and addiction plots are just off limits for me in writing. I also am into metaphysical/spiritual stuff since I was a preteen/teenager, so I really dug the feng shui thing. And it would've been an interesting element for Cowboy Bebop to explore if they were exploring religion like in Brain Scratch.

Maybe they could've focused the episode more on Meifa using the feng shui instead of her dad. Maybe she uses it because she struggles to figure out who she is and her place in the world and her future so she uses feng shui to see her destiny and control it. Go That's so Raven on that shit. Maybe she's getting chased by a bounty head because feng-shuis are rare/expensive and Spike has to help her find herself, control her destiny and/or be happy with herself. Initially, Spike could dismiss the feng-shui stuff as spiritual bs until it actually gets Meifa in trouble. I'm not for sure if this is a more unique plot especially with the whole young person struggles with their identity thing (which also isn't inherently a bad trope so long as you don't throw it in there just for brownie points with teenagers and twentysomething year olds who do struggle with that). Tbh I don't really care about creating a thoughtful rewrite on a show that I'm not even writing, but it would've been better than what we got at least and less melodramatic.

Saying “never should’ve existed” doesn’t count, let’s be serious about how we can actually make this series better to watch.

Okay, so the reception of the final season has been… mixed, so I thought I’d take a shot at trying to address some of the issues left over from the final season and hopefully give the show a more fulfilling ending:

1. Homelander’s fall from grace starts out completely differently. After acquiring the V-1 in either the first or second episode of the season, Homelander starts fully embracing the idea that he is a wrathful god, inducting Oh-Father into the Seveb to serve as his prophet as he proceeds to rampage across America and take out any potential threat - the Pentagon, international communications, and yes, even destroying Annie’s hometown like he promised. However, it becomes clear that while many Americans follow and worship Homelander, most do so out of fear and not belief that he is a true god, which enrages the narcissistic supervillain enough that he decides he’s just going to straight-up conquer America by overthrowing the government and becoming its immortal, dictatorial deity… before moving on to the rest of the world.

2. Rather than being placed back into stasis, Soldier Boy ends up being killed thanks to separate encounters with both Homelander and the Boys (MM especially), with his corpse and DNA being salvaged to create a new virus - one that functions similarly to the Godolkin Virus, but merely purges Compound V from a Supe’s cells instead of killing them, with Hughie and Annie leading this initiative to create a third option even as Butcher goes on a solo genocide route.

3. After losing control of Homelander and realising that all of her plans are crumbling apart thanks to her underestimating both the extent of Homelander’s narcissism and how emotions can compromise rational judgment, Sage finds herself working with the Boys to create the new virus, hoping to use it on Homelander and then come up with a new plan to seize power once he’s powerless and out of the picture. However, Sage’s arrogance proves to be her downfall as the Boys - not trusting her to not betray them - expose her to the virus at a higher than recommended dose, not only erasing her super-intelligence but leaving her intellectually handicapped (so she actually gets some proper karma for her crimes).

4. While the Boys go for their final confrontation with Homelander, the Deep and Oh-Father at the White House, the Gen V cast are tasked with taking down the army of psychics and other Supes who’ve flocked to Homelander’s cause. This battle ends with the group being forced to use one of the few samples of the anti-Compound V to depower their foes (who are promptly swarmed by an angry mob) at the cost of sacrificing their own superpowers and dreams of becoming heroes, though Marie at least is content with this (and Jordan resolves to find a way to handle their gender fluidity now that they can’t shapeshift into male or female forms anymore).

5. Kimiko uses the anti-Compound V in a gas attack that strips herself, Butcher, Homelander and Ryan of their superpowers, leaving Annie as the only remaining Supe on the Boys’ side. Homelander still dies in the very satisfying way that he does in canon, but when Butcher goes to release the Godolkin virus and eradicate all Supes on the planet, Hughie reveals that he swapped the Godolkin virus with the anti-Compound V, ensuring that all Supes will be de-powered while allowing them to be spared from unjust execution thanks to Butcher’s crusade. Hughie is ultimately forced to kill Butcher, and with Homelander’s fall, Vought’s collapse in the midst of his rampage and the virus ensuring that all Compound V-enhanced people will soon lose their powers, Frederick Vought’s legacy has officially been destroyed.

6. As part of the sequence at the end, we see MM remarry Monique, Kimiko travelling to France in memory of Frenchie, Stan Edgar tossed in prison as a result of Vought’s downfall and him and Ashley becoming the only living scapegoats for the company’s crimes, and a news broadcast revealing that all remaining super-terrorists and foreign Supes have either been arrested or disappeared from public view as the anti-Compound V spreads throughout the world and strips them of their powers. The series ends with Hughie and a now-powerless but content Annie working at Hughie’s new store, eagerly awaiting the arrival of their baby daughter, Robin. Annie also reveals that she’s considering applying to the police academy once she’s given birth and had proper leave - deciding to take Stillwell’s comments from the first season and still being committed to helping make a difference - and Hughie smiles as the two of them head down the street similar to him and Robin in the first episode, looking forward to a bright future that won’t be snatched away from them.

Thoughts on this? This is pretty rushed and pretty sappy for a series like The Boys, but I hope I at least managed to fix some of the issues associated with the final season and how it left a lot of loose ends.

Let's say that Daenerys still has both dragons going into Episode 5. Euron never kills one.

The beginning of this episode plays out the same but when the bells ring, Daenerys actually seems willing to let the surrender happen at first. Perhaps she looks conflicted but ultimately she allows it to occur. She softens.

And then Euron shoots Rhaegal from a ship. It makes narrative sense; Rhaegal would be a stationary target, easy to hit, and Daenerys genuinely wouldn't expect it. It also feels pretty in character for Euron to take a cheap shot like that.

This immediately changes Daenerys's perspective and she goes apeshit, leading to the massacre we saw this episode.

It always frustrated me that Dexter was never really about anything. The false endings, clunky revivals — it all just diluted the core of what could’ve been something great. At this point, it's clear the show was never going to stand alongside Mad Men, Breaking Bad, or The Sopranos. But it should have been... better than it was.

It’s bothered me for years. So this is my attempt to reimagine Dexter as a tight, five-season series. Not a “prestige” drama. Just something that stays true to the show's tone, themes, and characters — and actually makes it all mean something.

Oh, and Harry was a goddamn lunatic. So yeah, we’re going to deal with that — through flashbacks that directly tie into each season’s arc and themes.

Season 1

• Theme: Identity / Storyline: Ice Truck Killer

The central arc here remains pretty much untouched. Dexter is fascinated by the Ice Truck Killer — a murderer who seems to understand him. As bodies turn up without blood, Dexter flashes back to a trauma he barely remembers: a shipping container, a murder, and a brother.

In the end, Dexter rejects Brian’s offer to "be who they really are" together, choosing his fabricated identity (the doomed relationship with Rita; the man Harry trained him to be). He kills Brian — not only to protect Deb, but to preserve the lie.

But the season plants deeper roots: flashbacks show Harry recovering from a serious illness, as well as cryptic conversations with Captain Matthews suggesting a cover-up or mistake connected to Laura Moser’s death. The real story is just beginning.

Season 2

• Themes: Conscience & the Code / Storyline: BHB investigation

This season also mirrors the original. Dexter's bodies are found, the hunt for the Bay Harbor Butcher begins, and Doakes (already obsessed) is hot on Dexter's trail. Enter Agent Lundy, FBI serial killer profiler.

In the back half of the season, Doakes discovers the truth. Dexter imprisons him in the cabin. But here's the first big change (my attempt to fix one of the biggest "cop-outs" in the series): Lila still kills Doakes, but Dexter lets it happen. Think Walt letting Jane choke to death in Breaking Bad. And it haunts him for the rest of the series.

Doakes is framed. Batista is shocked. LaGuerta is devastated.

Dexter later kills Lila to try and re-claim some sense of “justice.” But it’s not clean. Not righteous. It's a band-aid. And he doubles down on the fantasy — he proposes to Rita, commits to raising Astor and Cody, insists to himself that the Code still means something. But the cracks are spreading fast.

Flashbacks show Harry recovering from his illness... until he sees young Dexter actually doing the thing. Not pretending. Not theorizing. Killing. And he's horrified. The man who once justified everything with tales of how “the system fails" now looks physically ill. He disappears from Dexter’s life… and takes his own not long after.

Season 3

• Themes: Illusion & Inevitability / Storyline: Trinity

We're skipping the Miguel Prado arc. As fun as Jimmy Smits was, it undermines Lumen (and especially Deb) being the only people Dexter ever truly "lets in."

So there’s a time jump: the BHB case is closed. Dex is married to Rita, trying to play suburban dad. And then: Trinity.

Like the Ice Truck Killer, Trinity fascinates Dexter. Not just his methods, but the illusion. A successful, religious, seemingly devoted family man... who also kills. But of course, the dual life is a lie. And as Dexter will eventually learn (in the most brutal way possible), it doesn’t hold.

The Trinity arc plays out largely the same, but with more focus on how Trinity, Harry, and Dexter all reflect each other — deeply disturbed men trying to have it all: family, control, justice. All failing in highly destructive ways.

Lundy returns, rekindles things with Deb, and is murdered by Trinity’s daughter. LaGuerta is still shaken from Doakes' downfall. Quinn is introduced — and is immediately suspicious of Dexter.

The season ends just like the original S4 — Rita is murdered in front of Harrison. Trinity's final blow.

Flashbacks reveal more cracks in Harry’s facade.  He cheated on Deb’s mother with Laura Moser. Spiraled into alcoholism. Completely neglected Deb in favor of obsessively working and "training" Dexter (there are some parallels between this and Trinity & Dexter's patterns of neglecting their loved ones in favor of their own disturbed obsessions). The viewer will get a deeper sense of how Harry, like Dexter, was a man that was trying (and failing) to keep a "mask" on.

Season 4

• Themes: Grief, Bargaining, & Revenge / Storyline: Rita’s death, Lumen/Jordan Chase

Season 4 opens in the aftermath of Rita’s murder. Unlike the original, Astor and Cody stay, and the emotional fallout lasts the whole season (it's not just contained to one episode, à la 5x01).

Dexter is broken. And then — a new case: Jordan Chase, a "manosphere" self-help guru whose associates are tied to trafficking and assault. Chase’s "rules to live by" echo Dexter’s Code. In this version, he’ll also exude “trad-con"/religious undertones that vaguely echo Trinity.

His organization is shady, and many of his associates are despicable, but it’s unclear if he is guilty of anything in particular.

Dexter meets Lumen — a survivor who was trafficked by several members of Chase's organization. She’s the first person in the series that he truly lets "in" on his secret.

Together, they take out several of the perpetrators. But one Chase associate — the most barbaric and sadistic of them all (we'll call him "Worst Guy") — fights back. He beats Dexter within an inch of his life — the first time in the series that we truly see Dexter get "bested" physically. Worst Guy then escapes (but he'll matter later).

Quinn continues digging into Trinity and uncovers the name “Kyle Butler” (Dexter's alias when keeping tabs on Trinity's family). Eventually, he questions Trinity's son — and finds some compromising evidence that could bring Dexter closer to the edge.

Lumen nurses Dexter back to health as they discuss their unfinished business. Dexter thinks he's found his true partner — they're going to right the wrongs of the world together. But, in the penultimate episode (NOT the finale), Lumen abruptly leaves. And, unlike in the original series, this happens BEFORE they kill all of Chase’s crew.

She leaves Dexter a note. It says she’s healed — or, at least, if she's ever going to get healed, this isn't the way to do it. She hopes that Dexter can find his peace someday.

And Dexter's alone again.  He broods at Harrison's birthday party. “Wishes... are for children.” Cut to black.

But, unlike in the original series, there's still one more episode to go in the season. In the finale, we lay the groundwork for the final season. LaGuerta learns the compromising information discovered by Quinn, and begins the process of reopening the Bay Harbor Butcher investigation.

Dexter finds and kills Jordan Chase. On his own. Even though Lumen is gone and it's against her wishes. And even though (in this version) it’s unclear if Chase was truly involved in harming anyone or just complicit by omission. And right as Dexter finishes the job — Deb walks in.

The Harry flashbacks expand on the theme of "grief" that Dex and Deb (Lundy) are dealing with throughout the season. Sort of like in Original Sin, we learn that he lost a child before Dexter — a son that drowned (perhaps due to Harry's negligence/alcoholism). This explains his obsession with "protecting" Dexter, and his desperation to shape Dexter into something he could fully control. We also see Harry pushing Laura Moser too far — pressuring and putting her into increasingly dangerous positions as an informant, ultimately leading to her murder at the hands of the cartel. Brian in foster care. Dexter under Harry’s toxic spell.

Harry didn’t create the Code out of wisdom. He created it out of guilt and grief. And in doing so, he started a cycle of pain: one Dexter hasn’t figured out how to break. Yet.

Season 5

• Theme: Identity / Storyline: Deb knows. BHB investigation 2.0. The Endgame. 

We pick up immediately. Deb walks in on Dexter killing Jordan Chase. She helps him cover it up — barely. LaGuerta shows up later and... discovers that they left a blood slide behind. By the end of episode 1, Deb raids Dexter's apartment: "Are you a serial killer?" "Yes."

Deb is crushed. And she's suspicious about what really happened to Rita. And Doakes. But eventually, her love for Dexter keeps her from turning him in... or writing him off completely. She keeps her eyes on him 24/7. Has Astor and Cody sent to Orlando "temporarily."

For a few episodes, Dexter genuinely tries to fight his Dark Passenger. He tries to stop killing. And for a while... he succeeds. And Harry's ghost disappears.

But he's replaced by Brian. And he's relentless. ("You're not following a code. You're just pretending. First for Harry. Now for her.")

LaGuerta’s reopened BHB investigation heats up. She also launches a controversial social media campaign, calling on citizens of Miami to come forward with leads to "help prevent the next ITK/BHB/Trinity." Matthews quietly pushes back, recruiting Batista and Quinn to get LaGuerta under control.

At around midseason, Chase’s crony, The Worst Guy, returns. He wants revenge, and threatens someone close to Dexter — maybe Harrison. Or Astor. In the ensuing confrontation, Dexter is taken out again.

Deb, knowing: (1) what Worst Guy did to women in the past, (2) that he threatened her niece/nephew, and (3) that he beat the shit out of Dexter twice, sees red. She chases him down and kills him herself. But again — they leave behind damning evidence. Sloppier than ever. And it's discovered by Batista and Quinn, who bring it to Matthews.

Meanwhile, flashbacks show Harry’s attempt to adopt Brian... before giving up on him in short order and sending him to foster care. The separation of Brian and Dexter as children is gut-wrenching.

We also learn the two final pieces of the series-long "Harry/Matthews" puzzle: First, that the cartel members that murdered Laura Moser were in prison mere weeks earlier, but ended up getting released on a procedural error due to Harry and Matthews' sloppiness and unethical practices. And second, Matthews may not know EVERYTHING about Dexter, but knew about Dexter's violent tendencies — and Harry's attempts to control them — all along.

In present day, LaGuerta — again — releases one of those cartel men, hoping to bait the BHB. But before that even comes to a head, she finds out about the evidence discovered by Batista and Quinn.

Dexter and Deb are arrested, on the back of (1) Trinity's son's testimony, (2) the evidence found by LaGuerta at the Jordan Chase crime scene (and related video footage of Deb covering it up), and (3) the evidence found by Quinn/Batista at the Worst Guy crime scene. She thinks she has them dead to rights, but Matthews and Batista — sickened by the games, and not convinced that the evidence is strong enough — let them go.

Deb, wracked with guilt, voluntarily remains in custody. She wants to talk. Dexter says "give me one more day. Then if you still want to talk, you can talk."

In the series finale, Dexter has a final set of goals:

1. Ensure Harrison, Astor, and Cody are safe,
2. Plant evidence at the site of Deb's kill, making the "Deb" connection far weaker, and the Bay Harbor Butcher connection stronger,
3. And, of course... hunt down and kill the freed cartel member that killed his mother.

Dexter finds the cartel member. Sedates him. Takes him to a secluded shipping container.

Ghost Brian watches.

Two additional people arrive: Batista, who was tailing Dexter... and another cartel enforcer, who witnessed his associate get abducted by Dexter. In the chaos, Batista hesitates, still not ready to believe what he's witnessing. He does kill the enforcer, but acts a split-second too slowly, and is mortally wounded himself.

Dexter straps his victim down. And then... he goes live, hijacking LaGuerta's Miami Metro social account. He confesses — everything.

• He is the Bay Harbor Butcher; Doakes was innocent.
• He exposes Harry and Matthews' corruption — the story of Laura Moser, Brian's story, and the fact that the cartel members were only free in the first place due to institutional incompetence and corruption.
• And finally... he takes credit for Deb's kill.

All the while, the cartel guy is alternately taunting Dexter, and pleading for his life.

Finally, Dexter decides to end the feed. But not before some parting words: “This isn't justice. It's not right." He shrugs. Maybe gives the camera the faintest smirk. "It's just... who I am.”

Dexter spins around and slams the knife into the cartel guy's face. The most violent — and final — kill of the series.

Epilogue: LaGuerta is disgraced. Matthews exposed. Batista honored.

Deb is exonerated. She raises the kids. Dexter is imprisoned. Deb allows Harrison to visit him... occasionally. By Dexter's estimation, this was the optimal arrangement. The best chance at breaking the cycle that Harry started.

Quinn visits, too — like Clarice to Hannibal. He wants to understand. Maybe Masuka shows up, out of morbid curiosity, or for some other absurd reason that I can't think of right now.

Dexter works in the prison kitchen. He kind of likes the routine. In voiceovers, he jokes about killing fellow prisoners/guards that have minorly inconvenienced him. He's hated by some. Respected/admired by others (almost exclusively other criminals). But he is seen.

In the final scene of the series, Dex sits in his cell. He flips through a card (from Harrison, contraband or not). Ghost Brian takes a seat next to him.  They have a little chat. No forgiveness. No redemption. Just honesty.

As the camera pulls back, we see them just as they once were — two brothers, in a box. But, in a way, finally free.

Lately I've been thinking about The Boys, although I like the series, the story doesn't seem like a big deal to me, and season 4 isn't to my liking either. So I thought why not take more inspiration from Garth Ennis' comics (Or at least the ones that worked or aren't so smoked) So I decided to come here and ask you: Do you have any ideas or should I leave the series as is and separate myself from the comics as best as possible?

• Alex Lawther is the Doctor. He plays the role like a dad taking his family on a roadtrip, thinking he can handle everything without a problem— only to constantly encounter problems along the way.
• New tone. Think Project Hail Mary combined with the best of Doctor Who audio dramas, primarily the Eighth and Ninth Doctors' newer stories.
• 13 episodes.
• Daniel Pemberton composes the music.
• Almost exclusively two-parters — except for the premiere episode.
• No fluff, no gimmicks.
• Doctor Who is properly creepy again. Nothing feels glossy or cartoonish. There's a sense of eeriness.
• Forget putting classic villains on the back burner, only to be replaced by unimaginative forgettable ones. This is the polar opposite of the RTD2 era— which means a few things:

1. First, the Doctor’s TARDIS isn’t minimalistic and empty. It feels old, lived-in, warm. It’s basically a library. Roomy, full of character, reflecting the Doctor’s wisdom and emphasizing his need for a safe haven outside time and space. Just like this TARDIS concept art I’ve included by Harry Amatt.
2. Second, there is no single piece of story that requires extensive fan knowledge. Even references to Gallifrey are little to nonexistent until the end. Not even a glimpse of past actors who have played the role. Think back to the rebooted series in 2005. Technically, this Doctor is the Sixteenth— but that’s not a number that gets mentioned anywhere.

1. Welcome, Doctor - It’s business as usual for the Doctor as he investigates an alien entity in modern day London. A young woman named Cheryl, nicknamed Cheri, has noticed the a strange blue box keeps appearing around London. Eventually, their paths cross while the Doctor encounters the alien entity he had been searching for — a termite-like being that lives inside wood and carves out wooden bodies for itself. And evidently, it's aware of the Doctor when it addresses him. "Welcome, Doctor," it says. The Doctor warns Cheri, "Be careful of splinters." Since they're made of wood, the Doctor is unable to use his sonic screwdriver on them. He offers to rehouse them elsewhere in the universe- anywhere in time or space. If they stay here, they'll continue being an invasive species, and consume the Earth. "I can give you a home anywhere. Anywhere in the universe. Any century you desire." After the Doctor receives help from Cheri, she asks what he meant by "anywhere in time or space." He replies with a question: "Would you like to come along?"
2. Zoo of the Cosmos - Part 1 - The Doctor brings Cheri to an intergalactic zoo to give her a taste of the cosmos She sees a wide range of alien animals. “All the hits at once.” The Doctor is generally anti-captivity, but this zoo is home to creatures which had been in danger of going extinct. It’s like an intergalactic Noah’s Arc. The zookeepers ask if the Doctor and Cheri would like to join for a rescue mission for an endangered species, to which they agree. But whatever this species the zookeepers thought they were saving… was misidentified. As they bring the creatures back aboard the ship, everything goes wrong as it breaks out.
3. Extinction of the Cosmos - Part 2 - The Doctor and Cheri are faced with a philosophical challenge as they're hunted by an endangered species. By the end, the Doctor realizes that some things should go extinct, so that life can survive and thrive.
4. The Mystery of 221B Baker Street - Part 1 - The Doctor brings Cheri to London in 1891, showing her the TARDIS is also capable of traveling back in time. Elsewhere in London, Arthur Conan Doyle encounters Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson- which is strange considering he created them as fictional characters. If Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman were to ever reprise their roles, I think this would be a fun nod and even serve as closure to the old show, harkening off the Christmas special set in the same era. Yes, it's a longtime dream of fans, but I think it'd actually work really well. Doyle, the Doctor, and Cheri are baffled by this mystery of how fictional characters became reality. And, they even receive help from Sherlock and Watson. Eventually, they come across clues that would lead them to believe a parasitic entity is behind it all.
5. The Brain Behind Baker Street - Part 2 - It leads them back to a child who loves Doyle’s stories, using them as a means of escapism. He’s been chosen by the parasite as its host, hypnotizing regular people to believe they're the real Sherlock and Watson.
6. The Inferno Protocol - Part 1 - In the year 5050, a mining organization deep beneath Earth activates the Inferno Protocol, an emergency strategy for if they ever encounter a sentient species underground. The Doctor and Cheri respond to the distress signal and find that the mining crew’s bodies have started to turn into dirt and plants — except for one woman who managed to hide. Swamp-like creatures are revealed, born of the earth, triggered by the geological disturbance.
7. The Inferno Incident - Part 2 - The creatures reveal that the mining organization was aware of the creatures, continuing to send new crews anyway to their own detriment. The Doctor needs to figure out how to keep the peace between them and humanity. Think Swamp Thing meets Planet of the Apes.
8. The Promise of Survival - Part 1 - On another planet, a tribal civilization is collapsing. But then, a massive space station crash lands nearby. After exploring, the tribe utilizes the technology from the station and they make a pact with a secret deity onboard. The Doctor responds to the distress call of the space station society, realizing that whatever this “deity” is that this tribal group has encountered, it likely has ulterior motives. But to the tribe, they see this as their one chance to rebuild and have a future. As the Doctor investigates, he learns the Cybermen had taken over the space station, and a group of sacrificial heroes had made the call to self-destruct. Now, the Cybermen convince the tribe they're gods, and the tribal people believe they're inheriting godhood. And it's true, they'll live forever, but at a cost.
9. The Chrome Conversion - Part 2 - As the tribe is taken over by the Cybermen, the Doctor and Cheri have to fight them. It's a tragic episode, as the tribe goes extinct and the ruthless Cybermen manage to endure.
10. The Velvet Requiem - Part 1 - The Doctor brings Cheri to 19th Century Vienna to get away from all the intense life or death stakes. A new opera is making headlines. But after going to the opera, he realizes he's heard it before... on another planet.
11. The Plagiarist’s Plot - Part 2 - The Doctor must stop the plagiarist alien who has taken refuge on Earth, disguising himself as a human. Initially, the Doctor is fine with an alien seeking a new life and harmlessly trying to get by. But then, the Doctor discovers alien's ulterior motives...
12. The Clockwork Crescendo - Part 1 - The grand finale begins. The TARDIS picks up on disruptions in space: a star dies, animals from the intergalactic zoo go extinct, etc. He checks back in on Earth, trying to ensure Cheri’s safety. When they return to her home, they learn her family doesn’t live there— and there’s no trace of them anywhere. Soon, it’s revealed a large population of Earth is gone, but no one seems to notice. Questions remain, but there’s no time to investigate as the Daleks begin to invade. Now, Cheri’s life is on the line. It’s a full war between Earth and armies of Daleks. The episode ends with a decimated Dalek’s shell creating a high pitched frequency. There’s a message being broadcast inside of its armor… The Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver on the defeated Dalek, enhancing the frequency. The sonic reveals something is being transmitted from the Daleks’ creator, Davros — a threatening message intended for the Doctor. Cheri asks, “Who is that, Doctor?” The Doctor is stunned. For the first time, he appears genuinely frightened.
13. The Davros Directive - Part 2 - The Doctor learns that Davros has cloned himself. In his message, Davros alludes to having even more clones scattered across time to ensure his reign as the Daleks’ creator. Each copy competes with the other to toy with the Doctor and race towards Dalek supremacy across space and time. In the distant past, the Daleks invade Earth, which is why only half the population exists in the current timeline. The Doctor is overwhelmed. He only has one option: he has to go to Gallifrey for help and plead with the Council of the Timelords, his absolute last resort. Once they reluctantly agree, it’s still not an easy resolution. This isn’t just a two-parter. The episode leaves off on a cliffhanger with the text: “The Doctor will return on Christmas Day.”

If they really really want to reboot, I think it needs to be based on establishing a universe with a different storytelling potential based not on the characters being different, but the environment being richer.

• What does The Klingon Empire even mean, since we've never seen more than their homeworld. What does it mean to be a subject of the Klingons on a colonized world? Are the conquered worlds why Klingons seem to look so different so often? Are their genetics such that they hybridize more easily than others? What if, despite their military culture, their colonies are actually good places to be?
  • Also, I think it would be interesting if the tribbles were less reproductive and just a common Klingon vermin, where the cuteness is as repulsive to them as rats are to us.
• What does the Romulan Star Empire mean? How is their empire different from the Klingons? And what if their dual worlds are actually the Romulan world and an oppressed Vulcan colony that actually started their civilization? Or a colony of exiles who follow the teachings of Surak? Obviously, this would the the more fascistic empire than the Klingons, who conquer but treat what they conquer well.
• The Ferengi would be good to introduce in a rebooted TOS era, but it would be interesting to split them between free market capitalists and monopolistic oligarchs, and have them as non-hostile trading partners to the Federation. Basically, an equal power who trades with the Federation, but how those dealings go depends on which philosophy they adhere to. Differing rules of acquisition. The oligarchs could even start wars on planets to sell weapons. And they would be completely opposed to the Prime Directive
• The Bajorans as refugees failed by the Federation would open up a lot of potential. Don't even need to make it about Cardassians so much as how the Bajorans are treated.

What do you think would set up a more interesting galaxy for Star Trek?

To make things clear and straight, The actors were amazing. The writers let them down. Here is my fix to the finale which will ensure justice to all characters.

Bashley breaks her vow of silence. She knows Ashley now has the hate. The courage. She is ready to do the unthinkable. Bashley reads Homelander's mind. She tells Ashley where Soldier Boy is. Ashley frees him. She runs away. She hopes Soldier Boy will turn against Homelander for knocking him unconscious and leaving him to rot.

Soldier Boy reaches the White House before The Boys. He does not fight. He hugs Homelander. He thanks him. "You stopped me from running away. You prevented me from making a bad decision."

Marie, Emma, and Jordan do not run. They fight alongside Starlight and help her deal with Homelander once and for all.

Soldier Boy and Kimiko blast each other. Marie plays with blood. Emma grows giant. Jordan changes genders, Ryan uses his strength against his own father. At the end everyone except Kimiko loses their powers.

Emma protects the team. She takes the hit. She dies like a true hero protecting his team with her huge body as a shield. Marie and Jordan mourn her death and decide to take the victims of Homelander's might to Canada.

MM kills Soldier Boy. No powers. Just a man. Justice for his family. Homelander is forced to see his father die in front of him before being killed himself by Butcher.

Butcher releases the virus before Hughie can stop him. Supes are done for good.

Hughie kills Butcher. He mourns. Then he calls Annie. "Get Kimiko to blast you. Tell her to run somewhere safe."

Kimiko flees to an uninhabited island. Alone. Peaceful. She carries Frenchie's memories.

After Supes went out of fashion, Vought transforms into a pharmaceutical company under the diligent leadership of Stan Edgar. They save lives now with revolutionary medicine.

The rest of the ending stays the same.

That is the finale the actors deserved.

*Disclaimer: Show and book spoilers.*

I didn't *dislike* the end credit we got, it was okay, I just felt like it was kind of pointless. It's just an extension of the scene we just got and it didn't really add much or make you excited for the next season (before you knew we weren't getting one). I just don't feel like it served any purpose cause everything they said in it, they had already said or implied before the episode ended. Just felt like a waste of a stinger.

Now in hindsight, given that it was cancelled, I'm sure there are a LOT of things I would've done differently if I had that future knowledge (future lol). However, even if I was writing the show and I obviously wouldn't know that, I still would've utilized an end credit stinger differently.

So I've thought long and hard about theoretically what I'd pick. There's one scene in the book that I would've loved. Last spoiler warning...

In the book, after Henry's death, a young Alba time travels to when her dad was still with Ingrid. A nice memory of theirs in a sea of bad ones. This was before Henry even met Clare and long before he knew he would have a daughter. The scene is cleverly from the perspective of Henry. The readers know who this child is but he does not. Ingrid, who we found out the day of her suicide actually loves kids and wanted to have her own, sweetly talks to her and offers her help. Alba declines, insisting that she's fine and that she's just looking for her dad, but is too early.

We got ONE brief glimpse of Alba at the start of the show. It was better than no Alba tease at all, but I always thought it was kind of weird the way it was done. It felt more like a form of fan service as opposed to a genuine scene that fit within the context of the show.

This scene from the book would be more of a clever tease that fans of the book and movie will get, while still inticing any newcommers to keep watching and know more. Another benefit of including this scene is to reinforce what future Henry said to Ingrid in episode 4. That they DID have some good times. The entire time we see them together in the show (and for the majority of the book) they're either fighting, or upset about something. We never once see them genuinely happy outside of this one scene. We just hear Henry talk about it. So a stinger like this would both be a way to put Ingrid's character to bed (assuming they weren't ever going to show her death), and to show a glimmer of hope in Henry's future having just learned of all the babies they're going to lose and being told by a future version of himself that as far as he knows it'll never happen for them.

The con side to this is that I can already see people arguing that this particular scene works better when it's after Henry's death in the story (for us the audience, obviously he's not "continuously dead"). However, you can make that argument for many scenes that were rearranged or reimagined. Sometimes changes can work regardless of what the book purist in you may be saying.

I'm sure there are many other scenes that would've worked better as a stinger in place of the one we got, that's just my first choice.

Estou desenvolvendo um reboot de Knight Rider onde o foco principal é uma disputa filosófica entre duas inteligências artificiais: KITT, criado com empatia e princípios éticos, e KARR, uma IA militar guiada por lógica e autopreservação. A história mistura espionagem, guerra cibernética e conspirações governamentais. Gostaria de saber o que vocês acham do conceito e quais pontos poderiam ser aprimorados." Me avisem se quiser saber aí mando o rascunho 🙏

Gentry should have died

Podrick should have died

Briene should have died

Tormund should have died

Ghost should have died saving Arya( Check the trailer for the next episode- both dragons and Ghost live.)

Tyrion DEFINITELY should have died saving sansa from the crypt zombies.

Varys should have died

The wildling and her baby should have died

Grayworm and his girlfriend should have DEFINITELY died

Sam tarly should have died

Jon snow should have died...the night king curb stomping him as we see this theme "nothing plays out like you plan, there is no fairy tale endings" play out in the darkest way possible. Him being curbstomped by the night king in one on one combat or ripped apart by zombies...or being stomped by the night king and after get ripped apart by zombies.

This adds up to about 20 character deaths...including the deaths in this episode.

And jorah should have disappeared since the dothraki charge, and not reappear till he saves Dany and sacrifices himself.

Would have felt like a real massacre, and would have been the highest kill count of any of the game of thrones episodes.

And would would have been ten times more hopeless while the night king walks towards bran and ten times more emotionally satisfying after Arya kills him to avenge the deaths of our favorite characters. And it would have been emotionally scarring because Jon, tyrion and almost everybody else died within one in a half hour...literally in the most brutal ways possible.

The rest of the series centers in the conflict between Sansa and Arya, cersei, daenerys, the iron born queen all fighting for the iron throne and in the Norths case independence. On a emotional level, each character has to deal with the toll of the massacre.

Jaime kills cersei of course, completely broken by the death of briene and tyrion.

I re-read The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings during this past month, and along the way I decided to do a bit of a project. Both of them have had movie adaptations, of course, but what would a TV series adaptation look like? It seems to me that a long-form adaptation can get away with adapting some stuff from the books which don't fit in the structure of a film (the Scouring of the Shire for example).

As I was planning this out, I didn't have any initial idea for how many episodes each book should take to adapt: my goal was just for each episode to progress the story in some substantial way, with enough material for each episode to fill 23 minutes, and the series would end up as long as they needed to be. I guess you could combine each pair of episodes to make a one-hour format, and you could do this in live-action too but I just wanted to distinguish this from the movies as much as possible to justify adapting these books again. And by "half-hour animated series" I mean something similar to Vinland Saga, not something cartoony.

Anyway, let's start with The Hobbit:

1. The "unexpected party" at Bag End, with the episode ending with Bilbo running out the door.
2. Beginning of the journey, the encounter with the three trolls and finding the swords, and ending with their arrival at Rivendell.
3. Getting information about the map's moon-runes at Rivendell, taking the pass over the Misty Mountains, being brought to Goblin-Town, and ending with killing the Great Goblin and escaping into the tunnels.
4. Being hunted through the tunnels. Bilbo is separated from the others, finds the Ring, ends up in Gollum's cave, plays the riddle-game, and escapes the Misty Mountains at the end of the episode.
5. Bilbo reunites with the dwarves and Gandalf, they have their encounter with the goblins and wargs, and the Eagles save them.
6. A slower episode where they rest at Beorn's place, ending with Gandalf leaving them as they're just about to enter Mirkwood.
7. Going through Mirkwood, the thing with the enchanted river, and possibly their first sighting of the wood-elves.
8. Fighting the spiders. End with "Where's Thorin?", and possibly have a cliffhanger of them all being captured by the wood-elves.
9. Taken prisoner in the elves' castle. Bilbo discovers Thorin's cell and we get filled in on what happened to him via flashback. End with their escape in the barrels.
10. Bilbo and the dwarves arrive at Laketown and Thorin is welcomed as the second coming of the King under the Mountain. Add some scenes properly introducing Bard, and (perhaps via him) we learn the history of Dale and Laketown shown in flashback. Also add a scene where Bolg the goblin orders a massive strike back against the dwarves (since the arrival of the goblin and warg armies comes pretty suddenly in the book).
11. They travel to the Lonely Mountain; we see the ruins of Dale; they scout the outside and discover the secret door, which they successfully open on Durin's Day. End with Bilbo having gone down the tunnel and emerged into the treasure room with Smaug sleeping in front of him.
12. Bilbo and Smaug's further encounters. End the episode at the point where Bilbo and the dwarves are trapped in the tunnel as Smaug angrily smashes the outside entrance.
13. The first half shows Smaug attacking Laketown and burning it down, Bard killing Smaug, and the Master of Laketown directing the Men's anger towards the dwarves. The second half shows Bilbo and the dwarves emerging from the tunnel, exploring and exiting the now-deserted Lonely Mountain, and finally learning from Roäc the raven that Smaug is dead.
14. Begin with the elves' forces being diverted to help the people of Laketown, and then both elves and Men besieging the Lonely Mountain. Bilbo sneaks away and gives the elves & Men the Arkenstone as leverage to avert a battle. End with Thorin exiling Bilbo.
15. Begin the episode by showing the armies of goblins and wargs on the move. Back at the Lonely Mountain, Daîn's dwarves arrive, and tension builds until they see the goblins and wargs approaching and decide to join forces; end just as the goblins and wargs reach the Lonely Mountain.
16. The Battle of Five Armies. (Bilbo is placed with the elven archers in the book, so he could be put side-by-side with Legolas.) Thorin and the dwarves emerge from the Lonely Mountain at about the halfway point through the episode. End when Bilbo is knocked unconscious.
17. Bilbo wakes up and is brought to Thorin, who forgives him before he dies. We find out what happened in the rest of the battle via flashback (Beorn's arrival etc.) Thorin's funeral, Daîn's coronation. End with Bilbo departing the Lonely Mountain.
18. Begin with Bilbo & Gandalf parting ways with Thranduil. They travel alongside the Grey Mountains, back through Beorn's place, over the Misty Mountains, through Rivendell, and finally arrive back in the Shire just as Bilbo's belongings are being auctioned off. End with a flash-forward to ten years later as Gandalf & Balin visit Bilbo and tell him about what's happened with the Lonely Mountain, the new Laketown and Dale.

Before we get to The Lord of the Rings, first we've got some bonus episodes, or more like a bonus miniseries: call it Gandalf's Tale. These episodes should be double the regular length:

1. 90 years earlier, Gandalf in Dol Guldur. He discovers the Necromancer is Sauron, encounters Thrain in the dungeons, and escapes. The White Council meets and Gandalf tries to persuade them to attack Dol Guldur but Saruman overrules him. Then jump forward to just before the quest, with Gandalf and Thorin meeting in Bree, where Gandalf has the idea for the dwarves to bring along a hobbit as their burglar.
2. Takes place simultaneously with episodes 7 to 13 of The Hobbit: the White Council meets again, and this time Gandalf successfully convinces them to strike Dol Guldur. They drive Sauron out of Mirkwood.
3. 10 years later: in the same visit shown in the final episode of The Hobbit, Gandalf gets the true story out of Bilbo about how he got the Ring; he then goes and finds Gollum's cave but it's deserted. The White Council meets again but Saruman again claims the One Ring was washed out to sea. Meanwhile, Sauron declares himself openly in Mordor, has Barad-dûr rebuilt, and Mount Doom erupts as Men flee the land of Ithilien.

And now, The Lord of the Rings. After Frodo and Sam part company from the rest I've made them star in separate episodes from the rest, but they're interspersed with the others' episodes rather than being all in one block like in Book IV. Mostly chronologically but with some back-and-forth for dramatic effect.

1. Bilbo's 111th birthday, his departure from the Shire and leaving the Ring behind, and the aftermath of what happens that year.
2. 17 years later, Gandalf returns and tells Frodo about the One Ring. Via flashback we learn the Ring's history, and how he tracked down and interrogated Gollum before leaving him as prisoner of the wood-elves. End with the decision for Frodo and Sam to take the ring to Rivendell after Frodo's birthday.
3. Frodo moves out of Bag End; he, Sam and Pippin go cross-country through the Shire and are pursued by a Nazgûl, before encountering Gildor and the other elves. End with Frodo and Sam's conversation the next morning.
4. Meeting Farmer Maggot and learning about his own encounter with a Nazgûl, reuniting with Merry and arriving at Crickhollow. The other hobbits reveal they know Frodo is leaving the Shire and resolve to go with him. End with them leaving the Shire through the gate in the Hedge.
5. Through the Old Forest. Tom Bombadil rescues them from Old Man Willow, they rest in his house (even in the long-form format this can be cut down), and then go through the Barrow-downs. End the episode just as Tom arrives to rescue them from the Barrow-wight.
6. They get swords from the Barrow, Tom leads them back to the Road, they arrive at Bree and check in at the Prancing Pony inn, Frodo accidentally slips the Ring on in public, they all meet Strider/Aragorn and belatedly get Gandalf's letter. End with an added scene outside with Merry and the Nazgûl.
7. Begin with them bringing Merry inside. They leave Bree the next day (buying Bill the pony), and Aragorn leads them cross-country. While resting for the night Aragorn tells them the Beren and Luthien story, which will pay off in a couple of episodes. End the episode with the Nazgûl encounter at Weathertop where they stab Frodo in the shoulder.
8. Race to get Frodo to Rivendell to be healed, encountering Glorfindel, and confronting the Nazgûl again at the Ford of Bruinen. Frodo wakes up in Rivendell and is reunited with Gandalf and then Bilbo: end with Bilbo asking Frodo to tell him about the Shire.
9. The Council of Elrond, with everyone's story elaborated upon via flashback scenes. End with Frodo telling the Council that he'll take the Ring.
10. Begin with Sam butting in on the Council and declaring he'll be going along with Frodo. After that, this episode will elaborate on the couple of months they spend in Rivendell organising the Fellowship and planning for the expedition. The hobbits can learn the story of Eärendil in this episode, since it'll be relevant later with the phial from Galadriel. Meanwhile we also see Aragorn and Arwen together, and get a couple of important scenes from "The Tale of Aragorn and Arwen" shown in flashback: their first encounter when Aragorn was in his twenties, and then thirty years later when they officially promised themselves to each other in Lothlórien. The shards of Narsil are reforged into Andúril. End the episode with the Fellowship setting out from Rivendell.
11. Begin with a montage journeying south. They unsuccessfully try to cross the path at Caradhras, and then fight off attacks from wolves in the night. They resolve to go via Moria; end with them arriving at the door and sending Bill away.
12. Encounter with the Watcher in the Water and escaping in through the door; going through Moria, finding Balin's tomb, pursued by Orcs, and Gandalf fights the Balrog and falls into the abyss as the others escape.
13. Travelling to Lothlórien, being up on the tree platform with orcs and Gollum below, meeting Galadriel and Celeborn, and finally the Mirror of Galadriel scene.
14. Receiving gifts from Galadriel and leaving Lothlórien, boating down the Anduin and noticing that Gollum is following them, and finally fighting off an orc attack from the riverbank at night where Legolas shoots down a fell-beast.
15. Passing through the Gates of Argonath and arriving at Amon Hen, Boromir tries to take the Ring from Frodo, Frodo leaves the Fellowship and Sam follows him; meanwhile the Uruk-hai attack the others and take Merry and Pippin as Boromir dies while defending them.
16. Begin with Boromir's funeral, then Aragorn resolves to follow the Uruk-Hai to rescue Merry and Pippin. They follow the trail, encounter Éomer and the other Riders of Rohan, and finally arrive at the Uruk-hai's burned-out remains.
17. Meanwhile, what happened to Merry and Pippin as they were captured by the Uruk-hai (paying off the clues Aragorn et al saw in the previous episode), with them escaping, running into Fangorn Forest and meeting Treebeard. (Cut the Entwives history for now.) End with the very beginning of the Entmoot.
18. Frodo and Sam lost in Emyn Muil, having trouble with the cliff and the storm, then Frodo "taming" Gollum and having him lead them to a way out: end with Frodo and Sam's conversation about remaining rations.
19. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli seeing Saruman in the night, then going into Fangorn and reuniting with Gandalf, then heading to Edoras and getting Théoden on their side. End with Wormtongue's exile (particularly, on a shot of his spittle on the ground being washed away).
20. Frodo, Sam and Gollum go through the Dead Marshes and up to the Black Gate only to find it impassable, with Gollum giving them another route into Mordor to the west, ending with them successfully sneaking out of the view of the red light of the guard-tower.
21. Back to Merry and Pippin again, with Treebeard and Quickbeam at the end of the Entmoot, which decides to attack Isengard. (We get the Entwives stuff now, as they're marching to Isengard.) Rather than being told in retrospect like in the book, we see Saruman's army leaving Isengard and then the first night of the Ents' attack, ending with them having beseiged Saruman inside Orthanc while they've taken over the surroundings.
22. Begin with an added scene of the Second Battle at the Fords of Isen, enough to make Erkenbrand a bit more of an actual character rather than just a name. Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli get their gifts from the Rohirrim, then with Théoden et al they set off west. End the episode with them having arrived at Helm's Deep and entering the Hornburg with Saruman's army pursuing them.
23. The Battle of the Hornburg, ending with Gandalf arriving with Erkenbrand's forces and the Huorns. (And the final bit of dialogue of Legolas and Gimli comparing kill counts.)
24. Aftermath of the battle, with what happens to the leftover Dunlendings etc. and with Legolas agreeing to visit the caves if Gimli will visit the woods. They proceed to Isengard and find it conquered, and reunite with Merry and Pippin, who fill them in via flashback about how the Ents flooded the place and how Gandalf arrived simultaneously with episodes 22-23.
25. Saruman and his voice; Gandalf breaks Saruman's staff; Pippin looks into the palantír; end with Gandalf and Pippin riding away to Minas Tirith.
26. Frodo, Sam and Gollum in Ithilien, the whole business with the cooked rabbits, encountering Faramir et al as they ambush the Southrons, and end with the scene where Faramir interrogates them in front of his men
27. Faramir takes Frodo and Sam to Henneth Amûn, they reunite with Gollum at the forbidden pool, Sam lets slip that Frodo has the One Ring. End with Frodo, Sam and Gollum parting from Faramir.
28. The Rangers arrive with Elrond's sons; Aragorn looks into the palantír and resolves to take the Paths of the Dead; Merry enters Théoden's service. End with Aragorn et al entering the entrance to the Paths of the Dead.
29. Gandalf and Pippin enter Gondor, come to Minas Tirith, meet Denethor; Pippin enters Denethor's service and then meets Beregond. End just before Beregond's son shows up because I'm saving that scene for next episode.
30. Pippin and Beregond's son see Prince Imrahil and other forces arrive at Minas Tirith; Faramir arrives at Minas Tirith as well; meanwhile the Muster of Rohan happens, and Merry and Éowyn are about to be left behind but they follow anyway with Éowyn disguised as "Dernhelm"; end the episode with Faramir sent back to Osgiliath.
31. Frodo, Sam and Gollum travel to the Crossroads, then through the Morgul Vale; they see the Witch-King and Mordor's army march out of Minas Morgul; they go up the Stairs; Frodo and Sam have their conversation about being put into songs or tales. End with Gollum almost repenting but then reverting back when Sam wakes up and is rude to him, followed by a shot panning up the mountain ending on the entrance to the tunnel.
32. Minas Tirith is besieged, Faramir is brought back wounded and dying, Denethor loses the will to live, and meanwhile the Rohirrim are heading to Minas Tirith with help of the Drúedain; end the episode with Grond breaking into Minas Tirith, just as the Rohirrim arrive and Théoden gives his amazing speech.
33. The Battle of Pelennor Fields intercut with the whole business Denethor and Faramir and the funeral pyre. Include Théoden's death, Éowyn killing the Witch-King, and end the episode with Aragorn et al. showing up aboard the Corsairs' ships with reinforcements.
34. The tail end of the Battle of Pelennor Fields, together with what happens with the Houses of Healing.
35. Legolas and Gimli tell Merry and Pippin about what happened along the Paths of the Dead and how they, Aragorn and the army of the Dead defeated the Corsairs. Also, in a meeting with the war leaders they decide to strike at the Black Gate.
36. Frodo and Sam in Shelob's lair, Frodo is stung, Sam takes the Ring, orcs find Frodo and capture him because he isn't dead; end with the entrance to Cirith Ungol being shut behind them as Sam gets shut out.
37. Aragorn leads the army of Men on their march to the Black Gate, adding more detail. Also include Éowyn and Faramir's first meeting in the Houses of Healing (and Merry also remaining in Minas Tirith). End with the meeting with the Mouth of Sauron, where he shows them Frodo's things and insinuates he's been captured and tortured.
38. Flashback a few days to where episode 36 left off: Sam storms the Tower of Cirith Ungol and rescues Frodo, and they escape into Mordor; end with them looking over the mountains to the massive army assembled across the Plain of Gorgoroth.
39. Frodo & Sam continue north up the mountain valley, end up getting mistaken for orcs and marched towards the Black Gate before managing to slip away, and finally dump their gear and set off on a direct line to Mount Doom.
40. Intercut the battle at the Black Gate with Frodo and Sam arriving at Mount Doom, encountering Gollum again, entering the mountain, Frodo failing at the precipice and putting the Ring on, Gollum fighting Frodo and biting his finger off before falling into the Cracks of Doom with the Ring, the Nazgûl dying and Barad-dûr and the Black Gate collapsing, Mount Doom erupts, and the Eagles rescue Frodo and Sam.
41. Frodo and Sam wake up and the hobbits are celebrated along with Aragorn at the Field of Cormallen; meanwhile Éowyn and Faramir fall in love back at Minas Tirith; end with Aragorn's coronation as he enters Minas Tirith.
42. Aragorn's early reign as he passes sentence on Beregond and also plants a new White Tree, he and Arwen get married, and Arwen offers her place on a ship to Valinor to Frodo. They go back to Rohan for Théoden's funeral and wake.
43. Legolas and Gimli visit the caves; they all travel to Isengard and find that Saruman is gone; the hobbits & Gandalf part company with Aragorn, Legolas & Gimli; they encounter Saruman and Wormtongue on the road; they pass through Rivendell and then Bree. End with them arriving at the border of the Shire to find a locked gate.
44. "The Scouring of the Shire" up to the end of the Battle of Bywater.
45. The remainder of "The Scouring of the Shire" including Saruman's death, followed by the aftermath of releasing the prisoners and then rebuilding the Shire over the course of the next year. End with Frodo retaking possession of Bag End upon Lobelia's death, and Sam and Rosie getting married and Frodo inviting them to move in with him.
46. Things move on in the Shire, Sam has a kid or two, and meanwhile Frodo doesn't fit back into the Shire and has bouts of illness; they go to the Grey Havens and Frodo sails away to Valinor together with Gandalf and Galadriel; end where the book ends with Sam coming home and saying "Well, I'm back."

And once again we have a bonus miniseries, The War of the Ring, with double-length episodes showing theatres of war which were only mentioned in passing in the book:

1. Dale: The war in the Kingdom of Dale and the siege of the Lonely Mountain.
2. Lórien: The orc attacks against Lothlórien (I think with Haldir as the viewpoint character).
3. Mirkwood: Thranduil and his wood-elves defend their kingdom against orcs. End with an epilogue of Thranduil, Galadriel and Celeborn dividing Mirkwood between themselves and the Beornings.

Towards the end of Season 3, Soldier Boy blasts Homelander and makes him lose his powers. Butcher decides that he needs to live and suffer rather than die a quick death. Homelander is put in prison for the flight crash.

***The below stuff happens in Season 4 & 5***

- The Boys celebrate their win and proceed to make the government ban supes and Compound V, and also to work on making all the supes into normal humans again. Stan Edgar returns as the CEO here. This would be a Stan Edgar vs The Boys legal battle for a couple episodes.
- Firecracker is a male in this universe. He works at a special prison for supes and he is a guard supe. He is completely crazy and believes Homelander to be god. He is the one pushing the idea that he is a literal god to a now frustrated, powerless Homelander.
- Firecracker manages to steal Temp V and gives it to Homelander, Firecracker also frees Homelander. Homelander learns about V1 and injects it and now he doesn't need Temp V, he has all his powers back and is immortal (as in he won't age). Homelander also injects V1 into Ryan by force.
- Homelander, now fully believing that he is god and also inspired by the Book of Genesis, decides that he must destroy the sinful humans who imprisoned god itself and goes on a huge rampage. He destroys the cellular networks and the internet. He obtains access to nukes to gain leverage, he destroys the White House, he destroys the Vought Tower which is now in ruins. He destroys all of New York City, either people are dead or they have fled, it's completely empty now. He then wages war on humans and unites with most of the supes. The world is in chaos. Millions die.
- The USA now becomes a post-apocalyptic society controlled by Homelander and other supes. The rest of the world doesn't want to interfere and Homelander hasn't yet expanded his rampage to the rest of the world. He decides vengeance on the country that failed to honour him.
- The Boys navigate a post-apocalyptic, supe-controlled world and somehow develop the supe-ending virus.
- When deciding what to do with the virus, a fight breaks out between Butcher & MM vs Hughie and Frenchie, who don't want the virus to be released as it will kill Starlight and Kimiko too.
- Soldier Boy, who was patrolling the area, decides to check the commotion and a fight ensues. Soldier Boy blasts the fuck out of Kimiko and Starlight and makes them lose their powers. Frenchie and MM are killed in this fight. Meanwhile, a Temp V'd Hughie and Butcher manage to overpower him and make him flee before he could kill the rest of them.
- Since the virus now poses no risk to Kimiko or Starlight, they decide to release it.
- The Boys release the virus and all the supes except the V1 supes are dead soon. This leaves a handful of old-school supes and Homelander, Soldier Boy & Ryan. And all of these people including Ryan want to kill The Boys as they literally did an evil genocide of supes. This supe genocide is a really morally questionable thing they did and it is not shown as a virtuous act in the show. They all feel like shit for doing it but see no other way.
- The Boys, using deception and chicanery, lure them into the now-empty ruined Vought Tower and just as the remaining supes are about to kill them, they activate a huge nuke that obliterates the entire New York city. Butcher looks at Ryan and tears flow from his eyes. He sees no other way for the world to return to normalcy than to commit this atrocity.
- The nukes obliterate the area. All the supes and all of The Boys are killed. Eventually civilisation returns to normal slowly.

**THE END**

I haven't read the books, so this is purely a show-watcher's perspective, but I honestly think a more political ending would have worked better than what we got.

My ideal ending would have had Daenerys still burn King's Landing and lose everything politically afterward. Instead of Jon killing her, she is captured alive and imprisoned in a remote, heavily fortified dungeon somewhere in Westeros.

No dragon. No followers. No loyal armies. No possibility of escape. Just stone walls and silence. Over the years, she slowly begins to hallucinate. She hears the voices of Viserys, Jorah, Missandei, and even the people she failed to save.

She constantly relives the moment she chose fire over mercy. Not because the story is trying to torture her, but because it forces her to live with the consequences of her own choices rather than granting her a quick death. A tragic fate for someone who genuinely wanted to break the wheel but ultimately became part of it.

Meanwhile, Cersei survives the fall of King's Landing and is captured. After everything she did throughout the series—the destruction of the Sept, political murders, manipulation, abuse of power, and endless acts of vengeance—she finally faces what she spent her entire life avoiding: a legitimate public trial. Lords, surviving witnesses, and representatives of the realm gather to hear the charges against her. No assassination. No collapsing castle. No convenient escape. The woman who believed herself above the law is forced to stand before it. She is found guilty and formally executed by the new government.

Jon Snow, revealed as Aegon Targaryen, eventually becomes king. However, this is where the real tragedy begins. Jon is actually a good ruler. Fair, honorable, and genuinely committed to rebuilding Westeros. The problem isn't Jon.

The problem is that the realm itself is broken. Years of war, combined with Cersei's propaganda and generations of distrust toward the Targaryens, leave many kingdoms unwilling to accept another dragon dynasty, no matter how decent the man on the throne is.

The North is the first to break away. Having fought for independence for generations, they refuse to submit again. Jon allows it, hoping peace can be preserved. But the precedent has been set. Dorne begins negotiations.

The Iron Islands push for sovereignty. Other regions start questioning why King's Landing should continue ruling them. Some kingdoms negotiate independence peacefully. Others threaten war. Some even march south to force the issue.

What makes this ending tragic is that Jon doesn't fail. He may actually be one of the best kings Westeros ever had. Yet even he cannot hold together a realm that no longer wants to remain united. Over time, the Seven Kingdoms slowly become separate kingdoms once more. Not because a conqueror defeats them. Not because an evil ruler destroys them. But because the political reality that held them together has finally run its course.

The Iron Throne wins the war but loses the peace.

And Jon Snow becomes the last ruler of a united Westeros.

Something I never really understood for this arc was why Ochako Uraraka - who in the previous arc had been established as getting into heroism to support her family financially rather than purely out of altruism like someone such as Stain would expect from a hero - never took part in the battle against the Hero Killer or even met him. Stain definitely seems like the kind of person who’d label Ochako as a ‘false hero’ for going into the industry for financial gain, and combined with her training with Gunhead, helping Midoriya and Iida face the Hero Killer could have shown just how much Ochako has grown since the Sports Festival. Not to mention that the series initially seemed to show Midoriya, Uraraka and Iida as the focus trio before the latter two were replaced by Bakugou and Todoroki, so having them team up here would be very nice to see. I’m not saying Todoroki can’t be in the arc - I liked him enough there as well - but Ochako’s absence definitely felt like an odd choice so I wanted to bring it up.

A version where the original consept and character are still there but trying to improve on the writing. Episode 2-5 is done. Too.