Anyone hoping for another entry in Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson’s originalThe Boysseries is out of luck, as Ennis is done torturing one of the franchise’s central characters. In fact, the creator sayswhat he really wants to write is an alt-universe story where nothing bad every happened to them, though he admits that audiences and publishers probably wouldn’t be that interested in what would amount to a low-stakes rom-com.
In a recent interview withCBRabout upcominghorror comicFreddie the Fix, Ennis was asked if he planned to return toThe Boyswith a new entry in the comic franchise. The iconic writer ofPreacherandCrossedreplied:
Not right now. I always enjoy writing Butcher and his wife Becky, but I don’t really want to put them through any more shit. An alternative universe story where they avoid the godawful things that happened to them and live happily ever after would be highly enjoyable for me to write, but I suspect might not satisfy the audience. Or, indeed, publisher.
The Boysbegan publication in 2006, with the main series and various character-centric tie-ins running until 2012. The series returned for an epilogue story in 2020 withThe Boys: Dear Becky, exploring Butcher’s early days running the CIA-backed team of anti-Supe enforcers.
The originalThe Boyscomics were even more brutal to Butcher and Becky.
If The Boys Had Used Their Original Team Name, There Would Be No TV Show
The Boys almost had their own superhero-style team name, which matches the original “Fantastic Four”-inspired costume designs and powers.
Even Compared to the TV Show, Comic Butcher and Becky Went Through Hell
Garth Ennis Is Done Torturing The Boys' Butcher
Unlike in Amazon’s TV adaptation, Becky Butcher is dead whenThe Boyscomic series begins. Her story is revealed in flashback in the main series and especially the tie-inThe Boys: Butcher, Baker, Candlestickmaker. The comics reveal that Becky was raped by Black Noir (disguised as Homelander). She unknowingly became pregnant, with the superhuman fetus eventually killing her with an uncontrolled release of its powers.Butcher’s first inkling of what happened to Beckyis when he wakes up to discover the horrific scene, ultimately killing the young Supe.
Butcher later discovers Becky’s diary, beginning his crusade against Homelander and all other Supes, despite knowing that he’s betraying Becky’s memory by indulging in his violent nature.Dear Beckyreveals that Butcher was never quite able to quash his memory of Becky, and thatit was likely her influence that caused him to leave a window for Hughie to stop his genocideof everyone with Compound V in their system in the main series' finale.
Garth Ennis' idea for an alt-universe Boys series could actually work, especially if it asks whether Butcher could really have given up violence in the long term.
Butcher and Becky’s Love Is the Heart of The Boys
It Makes Sense That Ennis Can’t See a Way Back (Yet)
WhileThe Boysis an irreverent series to the bone,the story always treats Butcher and Becky’s romance as deadly serious. Butcher’s view of love as the ultimate source of meaning lends the character the humanity that tempers his malevolence. Indeed, this is one of the series' main themes, withButcher revealing the meaning of the series' titlein his dying moments, telling Hughie,“She said men without women, it wasn’t a good idea. An' she was right … Men are only so much use, Hughie. Men are boys.”
It therefore makes sense that Ennis doesn’t want to put Butcher and Becky through any more heartache, and that it would be difficult to revisit the franchise without their love as a core theme. However, in a world where alternate timelines and multiverse stories are mainstream, a miniseries exploring Butcher and Becky’s happy life doesn’t sound so bad to fans ofThe Boys- especially if it were toask whether Butcher couldactuallyhave escaped his monstrous impulses in the long term.
The Boys
The Boysfranchise is a satirical and dark superhero series based on the comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. It explores a world where superheroes, or “Supes,” are corrupt, violent, and morally bankrupt, all controlled by the powerful corporation Vought International. The story centers around two opposing groups:The Boys, a vigilante team aiming to expose and defeat the corrupt heroes, andThe Seven, Vought’s elite team of Supes led by the ruthless Homelander.
