‘The Boys’ Season 5’s Supe Virus Storyline Is the Show’s Biggest ‘X-Men’ Homage Yet

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Throughout its run, The Boys has borrowed ideas from many superhero stories, but the final season appears to be heavily inspired by the X-Men. While elements of the X-Men universe have always been present in the Prime Video series, Season 5 makes these influences much more obvious.

Since its debut in 2019, The Boys quickly became popular, with viewers enjoying its bold use of violence, shocking content, and sharp political commentary. At a time when many superhero shows and movies are starting to feel stale, The Boys continues to stand out and maintain strong interest. Interestingly, even with the return of the X-Men to screens, The Boys is still considered by many to be a more compelling and imaginative take on the superhero world – even though it isn’t officially connected to the Marvel universe.

Why ‘The Boys’ Has Always Felt Like a Huge ‘X-Men’ Tribute


Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

As I said before, The Boys clearly makes fun of superheroes, especially those from Marvel and DC. The show often presents dark or twisted versions of characters we know from those universes. However, the core idea behind The Boys really feels like it started with X-Men. The key similarity lies in how people get their powers. In The Boys, superheroes – called ‘Supes’ – are ordinary people who were given a drug called Compound-V. What powers develop after that varies a lot – one person might become incredibly strong like Superman, while another might only develop a minor ability, like growing a tail.

Essentially, Compound-V solves the problem of constantly needing to create backstories for every character with superpowers. Writers can simply choose any ability, no matter how unusual, and explain it by saying the character took Compound-V. This is very similar to how Marvel handles the X-Men, with the X-Gene being the source of their powers instead of Compound-V. The key difference is that the X-Gene occurs naturally, while Supes gain their powers through a kind of genetic experiment. So, whether The Boys wants to create a character similar to one from another franchise or invent a completely original Supe, Compound-V makes it incredibly simple.

How ‘The Boys’ Season 5 Makes Its ‘X-Men’ Influence More Obvious Than Ever

In the X-Men universe, people with mutant powers are frequently feared and rejected by society. This often leads to powerful enemies attempting to suppress or eliminate them, particularly in the comic books. While the X-Men films explored the idea of a “cure” to remove mutant abilities, they didn’t delve into the extreme violence seen in the original comics. The Boys, with its more mature and graphic content, is willing to explore these darker themes without hesitation.

Season 5 of The Boys sees Butcher (Karl Urban) finally using the virus from the Gen V spin-off – originally created to weaken and kill Supes – in his attempt to eliminate Homelander (Anthony Starr). The trailer reveals Butcher’s extreme goal: he wants to kill all Supes. This storyline, which many X-Men adaptations have hinted at but avoided fully exploring, is now being directly addressed thanks to The Boys‘ willingness to tackle difficult themes head-on.

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2026-03-09 22:17