The final episode of Gen V season 2 has landed on Prime Video, and it's certainly set the stage for an explosive fifth and final season of The Boys.
Titled 'The Guardians of Godolkin' – that's a near-identical name to last season's finale, but I'll allow it – Gen V season 2 episode 8 is full of story twists and cameos, and drops some clues about The Boys' final installment and Gen V's own future. It's just a pity all of that is shoehorned into what feels like a hastily-arranged 45-minute episode.
Who dies in Gen V season 2 episode 8?
Not a lot of people, really. In fact, only two members of this season's primary cast die in 'The Guardians of Godolkin'.
The first of those is Doug. That's the real name of the human character who was puppeted by Thomas Godolkin for, as Doug reveals at the start of this episode, many years.
As we learned in episode 3, a Godolkin-controlled Doug – under the alias Doctor Gould – was one of the scientists who created Marie as part of The Odessa Project. Considering Marie is around 19/20 years old in season 2, Doug must have been Godolkin's unfortunate lackey for over two decades. For more details on this Cipher/Doug reveal, read my piece on Gen V season 2's true villain being revealed in its seventh episode.
Anyway, in a bid to save Doug's life – he was beaten pretty badly by Polarity, Jordan, Sam, and Greg in last week's episode – Polarity drives Doug to a medical professional he knows. Polarity does this because, after Marie cured Godolkin of his injuries last episode, she's too weak to use her biokinetic powers to also heal Doug's wounds.
Unfortunately for Doug, on the way to Polarity's ally's home, the pair are ambushed by Black Noir II. Slicing through the car's roof with one of his swords, Black Noir II stabs Doug in the heart. Without Marie, there's no coming back from a fatal blow like that.
The only other casualty is Godolkin himself. He's killed by Marie, who uses her abilities to make his head and upper torso explode once he's subdued by Polarity's upgraded electromagnetic superpowers.
If it wasn't for Polarity's last-minute intervention, though, Godolkin would've got what he wanted all along. That being, the ability to control Marie, use her to help him kill Homelander, and take control of Vought and the United States.
In episode 8's opening scene, we find out how Godolkin survived the 1967 lab accident, how he gained superpowers, and why he hasn't aged a day once Marie heals him. Basically, he injected himself with V-1, aka the same anti-aging version of Compound V that Soldier Boy and Stormfront were given, which grants him the ability to control people and still look young despite being around 100 years old at this point.
Later on in 'The Guardians of Godolkin', we also learn he's already tried to possess Marie multiple times. However, she's been too strong mentally for him to do so, which forces Godolkin to slightly tweak his plan to cull 75% of Godolkin University's (God U) Student Supe population.
Instead of eradicating them one-by-one, Godolkin sets up a new class in God U's hero optimization room with the 'promise' of helping attendees unlock their true potential. Of course, it's a ruse designed to strengthen Godolkin's mind-control abilities. By pushing himself to control as many Supes as possible, he'll train himself to possess someone as powerful as Marie.
Long story short: Godolkin achieves his goal and finally manages to possess Marie and uses her to incapacitate her friends with her blood manipulation ability. Thankfully, Polarity, who's immune to Godolkin (and, by proxy, a possessed Marie), arrives in the nick of time to stop Godolkin, release Marie from his spell, and watch as Marie puts a permanent end to Godolkin's world domination plan.
Is there a mid-credits or end credits scene in Gen V's season 2 finale?
Nope. Unlike last season's finale, which included a Billy Butcher-starring mid-credits stinger – remind yourself of it via my Gen V season 1 ending explained piece – there are no end credits scenes to stick around for.
That's not a great surprise. Sure, Gen V's latest season establishes events to come in its parent show's final entry (more on that in a bit). But, it was incredibly unlikely that there would be more teases for The Boys season 5 once season 2's final end credits crawl ended. If you were holding out hope for a first look at The Boys' final chapter, then, you'll be sorely disappointed.
Are there any cameos from The Boys in Gen V season 2's final episode?
Apart from the aforementioned Black Noir II cameo, yes.
Despite what I wrote above, 'The Guardians of Godolkin' doesn't end without dropping a hint at what's to come in The Boys 5 – and that comes by way of two other cameos.
The first of those is Annie January/Starlight. She made a brief appearance in season 2 episode 1; Starlight rescuing Marie Moreau from Dogknot before she convinces Marie to head back to Godolkin University (God U) to learn more about The Odessa Project.
Anyway, Starlight reunites with Marie and the latter's friends, all of whom have gone on the run – again – after Godolkin's death. Lauding them for putting a stop to Godolkin's masterplan, Starlight asks the group if they want to join the resistance, to which Emma jokingly suggests Starlight's resistance should join forces with theirs.
I did say there are two cameos, so who's the other? Asked by Sam how she found them, Starlight said she covered a 200-mile radius around God U, which only "took 30 minutes".
There's only one Supe capable of covering that amount of ground in such a short space of time: A-Train. Cue an appearance from Reggie Franklin, who amusingly chastises the group for conducting this conversation in the open before the screen cuts to black.
A-Train's appearance is certainly a crowd-pleasing moment. In The Boys season 4's penultimate chapter, he fled the country with his family because, after leaking information about Homelander to the titular Supe-busting group, A-Train feared for his and his loved ones' lives. Until now, then, it was unclear, then, if we'd see him again before The Boys' final season ended. Speaking of which...
How does Gen V season 2's final episode set up The Boys season 5?
The Boys season 4 finale and what we know so far about The Boys season 5 notwithstanding, 'The Guardians of Godolkin' provides further clues about the main show's final eight-part installment.
For starters, the number of Supes who are part of Starlight's resistance just grew exponentially. The fact that they have a God-tier level Supe like Marie, who can go toe-to-toe with Homelander, on their side also continues to level the playing field for the fight to come.
Elsewhere, it'll be fascinating to see how The Boys 5 deals with the fallout from Godolkin's death.
Sister Sage, who was appointed CEO of Vought by Homelander, wanted to break the news about Godolkin to Homelander in a sensitive manner. After all, telling the world's most powerful Supe – one who's incredibly volatile and increasingly unstable – that a mind-controlling superhuman is back on the board would need to be done in the right way.
Unfortunately for Sage, Godolkin announces himself to the world via 'V', Gen V's TikTok and Instagram-like social media platform. Considering Homelander phones Sage during Godolkin's live broadcast – a call Sage declines – he won't be happy about being kept in the dark over Godolkin's return. Well, before Godolkin had his head popped by Marie. Nonetheless, I'm curious to see how Sage will get out of this mess and/or retain Homelander's trust after it.
The other big question mark over Gen V 2's ending is what'll happen to Polarity and the rest of God U's Supe student population. Will they be rounded up by their fellow Supes who are loyal to Homelander, branded traitors to their kind, and locked up at Elmira? Or will some of them have escaped as well and be laying low until they're called upon by Starlight and company to join the inevitable battle? I guess we'll find out in The Boys season 5.
Will there be a season 3 of Gen V?
We don't know. Much depends on how The Boys 5 ends so, until its finale airs, no-one knows if Gen V will return for another season.
There's always the chance that it will, mind you. No matter what happens in The Boys season 5's final episode, Supes, Compound V, and Vought will all still exist in this universe. Well, as long as Billy doesn't release the Supe-killing virus worldwide, every vial of Compound V isn't destroyed, and Vought isn't shut down.
If one or more of the latter scenarios don't come to pass, Amazon's live-action retelling of The Boys' graphic novel series will continue on one of the world's best streaming services. And, with numerous teen and young adult Supes likely still populating it, plus former Vought CEO Stan Edgar's ambition of regaining control of the Supe-manufacturing company, there's no reason why Gen V's story can't continue.
On the off-chance Gen V season 3 isn't greenlit, there'll be other stories to tell as part of the satirical superhero franchise. Vought Rising, a prequel starring Jensen Ackles' Soldier Boy, is currently in development. Meanwhile, a Mexico-set spin-off of The Boys is also reportedly in the works. With or without Gen V, then, the future looks bright for Prime Video's first major TV hit.
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