"The Boys" Season 5 has officially concluded, with the Prime Video superhero satire—spanning seven years and 40 episodes—culminating in Homelander's defeat and the final confrontation between Butcher and Hughie. 
However, following the series finale, audience reception has not maintained the high points seen earlier in its run, instead showing a notable decline on Rotten Tomatoes.
According to reports, "The Boys" Season 5 currently holds an audience score of 59% on Rotten Tomatoes. While still higher than Season 4's 54%, this marks a significant drop for an Emmy-nominated series concluding with its final season. The fifth season initially premiered with an 85% audience score, with the plot ending with Homelander brutally killing another supe, building anticipation for the resolution of long-standing plotlines.
However, as subsequent episodes aired, audience reactions gradually cooled. International outlets noted that while Season 5 still delivered numerous thrilling sequences and featured stellar performances from actors like Karl Urban and Antony Starr, certain narrative choices and the decision to keep much crucial content off-screen meant the final season ultimately fell short of audience expectations.
A primary point of contention has been the relationship between the flagship series and its spin-offs. Many viewers felt that the teen spin-off "Gen V" initially appeared poised to play a pivotal role in Homelander's defeat, only for its significance in the main series finale to seem limited. Conversely, other viewers criticized Season 5 for dedicating substantial screen time to setting up the prequel series "Vought Rising," which they argued sidelined the main series' core characters in its final chapter.
In fact, prior to the finale's broadcast, showrunner Eric Kripke had addressed these criticisms. He stated in an interview that the inclusion of characters like Soldier Boy and Bombsight in Season 5 was not a result of "naked commercial calculation." Kripke explained that the writers initially started with the crucial concept of V-One, then explored why Soldier Boy and Stormfront were nearly immortal, emphasizing that it wasn't a forced advertisement for "Vought Rising."
Kripke further elaborated that the team naturally linked the story to "Vought Rising" characters when considering who possessed V-One. He stressed that this approach stemmed from "The Boys" having evolved into a comprehensive universe, and with available elements at their disposal, there was no reason not to utilize them.
Judging by the audience scores post-finale, Kripke's explanation clearly hasn't fully quelled the controversy. Whether "The Boys" Season 5 will ultimately be remembered as a successful farewell or another disappointing series finale in recent memory remains to be seen.
via： Screenrant IGN