Our understanding of Supes, Compound V, and powers in The Boys universe may have just been irrevocably changed. So far, while there have been several twists along the way, superpowers have been relatively consistent. At the very least, they’ve followed the general rule that the person using them had been injected with V, bestowing upon them either permanent or temporary abilities. And at the top of the power tree since the beginning has been Homelander, the seemingly unstoppable dark take on Superman, who is now looking to control the entire world.
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However, that status quo does need to change, because with The Boys Season 5 being the last one, Homelander somehow has to be defeated. And we have already had some glimpses of how this could happen: Billy Butcher has been after a potentially Supe-destroying virus, while on spinoff Gen V, we’ve had multiple teases that Marie Moreau could be even more powerful than Homelander. And now the college-set series has introduced another powers twist with Dean Cipher, which could be the most shocking yet. Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Gen V Season 2, Episode 4.
How Does Gen V’s Cipher Have Powers Without Compound V?
Marie’s blood-bending abilities allow her to sense Compound V in others, and she realizes that Cipher doesn’t have any in this body. This leads to two conclusions: he has no powers, and he’s human. Unfortunately for the heroes, neither seems to be correct. The end of Gen V Season 2, Episode 4 sees Marie forced to fight Jordan Li… before Cipher then takes control of her opponent. Even though he’s a considerable distance away, watching from high above, he’s able to completely take over Jordan’s mind and body, possessing her to do whatever he wants.
Given Marie’s senses are to be trusted, we should take it as a given that there’s no Compound V in his blood, which obviously raises the question of just how the hell he’s able to use powers. One possible answer lies in Project Odessa, the mysterious programme that was started by Thomas Godolkin. We already know this was connected to Marie and Homelander, that Cipher was also involved, and that it was seemingly linked to the creation of a new kind of Supe. Could Cipher be a successful product of that, who was given something that isn’t recognizable to Marie as V?
Another option is that Cipher was born a Supe. There is a precedent for this with Homelander’s son, Ryan, who wasn’t injected with any Compound V, and yet possesses incredible powers. It’s not impossible, then, that Cipher was actually the first Supe to be born that way, though it’s not an idea I’m convinced by, purely because it was such a big deal with Ryan, and would lessen how special he is.
There Could Be Another Twist To Cipher’s Powers
Another option is that Marie is right: Cipher is human, and he does not have powers. One theory is that it isn’t actually Cipher performing this mind control, but that while he is making Jordan look like a puppet, he’s the real puppet here. The key to this is the body of the old, scarred man that Cate and Jordan discovered in Cipher’s home, whom he says is his father. There absolutely has to be more to that story, so could Cipher’s dad – if that’s who it even really is – be the one controlling him?
Cipher’s mind control powers are already incredible, and at face value, make him among the most powerful Supes we’ve ever seen. But if it is the person in his home doing it, that’s another level entirely. That would not only mean he’s able to use someone from a great distance, but would mean he can control someone else through that control, adding multiple layers to it. Who even knows what the limits of that could be in terms of distance, or how many people could be controlled? Is Cipher just a random pawn? Is he even alive? If he were a dead body that’d been reanimated, it could explain why he’s easy to control and seemingly feels no pain.
Something along those lines feels huge, given what it could mean (and it’s another reason to doubt it’s this straightforward). Whether it is Cipher or the old man, this could make them a threat to Homelander, as he could even be strong enough to control the villain in the same way. Whatever the truth of the matter, and whether it’s Cipher having powers without Compound V, or another twist, this could be a turning point ahead of The Boys Season 5, and radically change how the heroes are armed to take on – and take down – Homelander.
New episodes of Gen V Season 2 release on Wednesdays on Prime Video. The Boys Season 5 is expected to air in 2026.
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