Spoilers ahead for the first three episodes of The Boys season four.
Since The Boys‘ earlier seasons, the Seven collective has been in near-constant flux. At the end of season three, the group was barely clinging on with only Homelander, the Deep, and A-Train remaining. Homelander’s continuous mental unraveling and overall instability certainly hasn’t made it easy to find replacements either. But the Vought supe team is determined to move forward in season four with three new weapons in its arsenal: Sister Sage, Firecracker, and a new Black Noir (!!!). We learn a lot about these Seven members in the first three episodes, so let’s dive into their stories.
Sister Sage Is the Smartest Person in the World, Homelander’s New Right-Hand Woman, and Vought’s True CEO
The first addition is Sister Sage, a Black woman from Detroit whose superpower is being the smartest person in the world. A-Train is against her joining the Seven because of their previous history together in Teenage Kix, a group similar to the one in the DC Universe’s Young Justice. (We have only heard of Teenage Kix in the TV show but they haven’t been seen outside of the comics.)
A-Train thinks Sister Sage is annoying and not an asset but Homelander personally seeks her out for a few reasons. First, he is aging and concerned about the world/legacy he’s leaving for Ryan. Second, he wants to use her brain to help him figure out how to find fulfillment and joy in his new role as a leader so he can keep the Vought train running. Third, he’s tired of everyone always agreeing with him and wants someone to actually be useful. Fourth, he wants to destroy Starlight and the Boys collective for good.
Sage is interested in gaining some level of power and influence, so she joins Homelander and she is absolutely on some diabolical s**t. From killing Homelander fans to frame Starlighters to setting traps for the Boys, Sage is pulling all sorts of strings. Outside of calling the shots and causing chaos, her other motivations aren’t super clear at this time. But she’s playing the hell out of everyone to the point that she’s Vought’s CEO now. Ashley is relegated to a figurehead whom even the Deep doesn’t respect anymore. Speaking of him, she’s messing around with him and mayyybeeee killed his octopus bae. Good times.
Firecracker Is a Conspiracy Theorist With a Connection to Starlight’s Past
One of Sage’s tasks is to bring in someone new who can take the Seven to another level. She finds Firecracker, who makes videos and does “truther” conferences where she spreads all sorts of weird theories and lies. One of her main targets is Starlight, whom she says is running a child sex trafficking ring with Tom Hanks and Oprah. (I know, I know.) Sage feels like Firecracker has the right spark to galvanize Homelander fans into destroying those who support Starlight and her foundation. Starlight eventually confronts Firecracker, who reveals that she was on the pageant circuit with Starlight when they were younger.
Then know as Sparkler, she was ousted from the pageant world after Starlight spread a rumor about her having inappropriate sexual relations with judges. Starlight said that was the only reason that “fat, white trash” like her would be in that world. So this explains why Firecracker has so much spite for her. She says she will do whatever she can to expose Annie for the heartless b***h that she truly is. Starlight is obviously remorseful for her childhood actions but now she will have to face her past in a new way.
Firecracker is also very eager to win Homelander’s affections, which makes her even more dangerous. Unlike the more reclusive Sage, Firecracker has an audience and influence among the same demographic that supports Homelander.
The New Black Noir Is a God U Graduate and Super Chatty
The funniest addition to the Seven is a new Black Noir. We don’t know who is under the mask but he’s very actor-y and constantly complains about not knowing what they want from him. He’s obviously willing to play along and even kill but he is also annoying everyone around him. Maybe he’s someone we’ve met before but it is likely that he’s a new character whose face we will see in the near future.
There is still one spot open in the Seven so we will have to see who takes that final chair at Homelander’s roundtable of foolishness.