These writers need to be blacklisted

The Boys should have ended 2 seasons ago, and it is really evident throughout this final season. The show continues to tread water, delaying critical moments until the end by introducing a new Macguffin at the last minute to try and make Homelander more menacing after completely making him pathetic. In the first two seasons, he's genuinely terrifying and unpredictable, but by this point, he has no screen presence. The end result is a show where all the tension is deflated. Characters have also been stuck in arcs that were never meant to be this padded, so they've been just going through the same interior conflicts that any type of resolution has no weight. Finally, the cast is missing some really key characters that would have made the climax was more interesting had the show been willing to start wrapping things up in season 3 itself. One other thing I'll note is that this show relies a lot more on crudity than earlier seasons, probably because there is so little going on in terms of plot and characters. The satire feels phoned in at this point, not because its too on the nose but simply because it feels like it has no teeth behind it. There are a few good moments in the season, but I think you can count them on one hand. The rest feels perfunctory and like filler, a show limping its way to the finish line and going through a checklist of items. I think in terms of quality, it isn't as bad as GoT but it lies somewhere between the OG Dexter finale and this year's disappointing Stranger Things finale.

Not one earth was scorched. I think finishing a show well is a skill that is rare in the industry.

I forced myself through season four, and subjecting myself to the same pain again, as it’s the last season this time. So they took four seasons to find a random lore item that will solve the plot, and now they are going in circles one more season to find another random lore item that will cancel the previous one? And then one more random lore element to end it all. I can’t believe that even in their last set of episodes, they still have no clue what to do. So many characters left hanging in there without a proper arc, just to be sent home with a random event. I did like how Butcher's arc ended though, despite criticism. You wish this had at least ended with an epic showdown. I’m not going to spoil this for you, but I guess you already know what I was going to say aha.

A great series, even though it had a disappointing ending. It had enormous potential to conclude the story in an epic way, but the final season chose a more restrained approach, focusing on the characters rather than the world around them. In my opinion, this was a mistake, as the protagonists' actions had massive consequences and deserved to be explored in greater depth, which is something I find particularly interesting. I also didn't enjoy the final battle. It could have been grand and memorable, but it was undermined by the constant scene cuts, which made it difficult to follow what was happening. Instead of fully showcasing the conflict and meaningfully involving multiple characters, the series opted for a more limited approach, which significantly reduced the impact of the conclusion.