The Boys Season 4 Teases Twisted Versions of Wolverine, Doctor Strange

The Boys season 4 teased their own versions of fan-favorite MCU heroes.

By Spencer Perry - June 16, 2024 11:38 pm EDT

Minor spoilers for The Boys follow! Season 4 of The Boys kicks of with surprise job for Homelander, completing the roster of The Seven. After Starlight quit and Queen Maeve faked her death the team is nowhere close to their namesake. Vought CEO Ashley Barrett provides an extensive list of names for Homelander to choose from, and eagle eye'd fans will see a lot of familiar faces. Not only are the likes of Tek Knight, who appeared in Gen V season one, viewable on the list but a handful of other superhero names that are recognizable can be seen, especially for Marvel fans.

One of these Marvel references in The Boys season 4 premiere is a blink-and-you'll miss it name that doesn't have much attention drawn to it, Dr. Peculiar. To fans that are looking for a riff on Marvel heroes, this is a clear reference to Marvel's Doctor Strange. In the pages of The Boys comics, Dr. Peculiar is a supe that ran a brothel for other supes, something that could very well happen in the show as well, and since he kept meticulous files on the other supes' proclivities he became a major source for Butcher and The Boys.

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Doctor Peculiar in The Boys comics.
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The second major Marvel reference is one that The Boys diehards will recognize instantly. Near the very bottom of the list of prospective The Seven members is none other than Groundhawk. Though he has not appeared in The Boys in live-action, Groundhawk has appeared in The Boys Presents: Diabolical where he was voiced by John DiMaggio. In the pages of The Boys comics, Groundhawk has a mask eairily similar to Wolverine's and instead of claws on his hands he just has sledgehammers for hands. The Boys comics also reveal Groundhawk has suffered a major brain injury from Billy Butcher and gonna only repeat the word "Gonna."

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Groundhawk in The Boys comics.
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There are a few other jokey references on Homelander's list. The first names on the list are actually highlighted by Ashley including: Talon, a female supe whose powers are "retractable carbon steel nail plates." In the pages of The Boys, Talon is somewhat of a parody of Marvel villain Lady Deathstrike, and their name predates the Batman villain of the same name. Another surprising name that appears is Hyperion. The supe revealed by Ashley bears no resemblance to the Marvel superhero of the same name, who would be closer in powers to Homelander, but reveals her abilities as "Superhuman Intuition," "Divine Femininity," and "Fireproof Hair." Finally, the supe Dogknott is revealed, a character that in The Boys comics is a parody of Teen Titans hero Beast Boy from DC Comics.

In The Boys season 4, Karl Urban stars once again as Billy Butcher, leader of The Boys, which also includes Jack Quaid as Hughie Campbell, Laz Alonso as M.M., Tomer Capone as Frenchie, and Karen Fukuhara as Kimiko Miyashiro. Some of the "supes" featured in the series include Antony Starr as Homelander, Jessie T. Usher as A-Train, and Chace Crawford as The Deep. Other stars of The Boys include Colby Minifie as Ashley Barrett, CEO of Vought International, and Claudia Doumit as Victoria Neuman.

The world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander, who is consolidating his power. Butcher, with only months to live, has lost Becca's son as well as his job as The Boys' leader. The rest of the team are fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it's too late.

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