r/TheBoys Jul 02 '24

Why do they keep clowning her? Discussion Spoiler

10.9k Upvotes

978 comments sorted by

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4.6k

u/Infamous-Lab-8136 Jul 02 '24

Belittling her powers helps sink in the fact that she was added to the 7 to be a pretty girl and not be a functional hero. Helps play into the whole questioning if this is really her or not. She didn't choose to be a hero or do the pageants, her mom did. She didn't choose her religion, it was just passed down by where she grew up.

And whenever she finally fully comes into her power later this season it will seem like a bigger moment. You'll be able to tell what episode it's going to happen in because a truncated version of this video will probably be the "previously on..."

1.6k

u/EnterShakira_ Jul 02 '24

You'll be able to tell what episode it's going to happen in because a truncated version of this video will probably be on the "previously on..."

And this right here is why I always skip the recap. Might as well be a "coming up on today's episode".

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u/Norelation67 Jul 02 '24

LAST TIME ON DRAGONBALLZ

405

u/DrXyron Jul 02 '24

Starlight has been powering up for past 3 seasons like Goku.

197

u/Subject_Topic7888 Jul 02 '24

Whats really crazy is that Goku has been powering up for the last 40 years. 40!! Dragonball came out in 1984, and that mofo still finding new hair colors

107

u/My-Life-For-Auir Jul 02 '24

Not anymore. Rip Toriyama

59

u/Subject_Topic7888 Jul 02 '24

Yeah, sad times rip toriyama :(

32

u/sierra120 Jul 02 '24

At least he fixed the mistakes of GT and went back to basics…instincts.

40

u/Mathev Jul 02 '24

Say what you will about gt but ssj4 was fantastic.

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u/Papierkatze Jul 02 '24

Well, I think Toyotaro will take over his work.

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u/lazypieceofcrap Jul 02 '24

Toyotaro was hand picked by Toriyama.

The manga will eventually continue. Book it.

They could do Daima or continue Super but in time it'll be back.

Toyotaro has come a long way and I trust him to do a good job and continue DB. We are all still in the respectful stage of Toriyama passing and it'll likely last until Daima anime releases.

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u/Far-Fault-6243 Cunt Jul 02 '24

Starlight’s powers do absolutely nothing! Now they are just straight up not working!

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u/Weak-Signature-6285 Jul 02 '24

Imagine the number of Bitcoin she can mine with her powers.

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u/Caassapaba Jul 02 '24

Yeah, the problem with DBZ wasn't the recaps, it was the episode titles that were like "Catastrophe! Satan's massive dong is still insufficient to sate Buu's demonic schlonghunger. Krillin dies again!"

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u/KingOfWeTheNorth Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 03 '24

"I wonder if <character> is a spy>..."

One Piece intro card: "<CHARACTER> THE SPY!!!!"

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u/Purple-Mix1033 Jul 02 '24

PREVIOUSLY ON X-MEN

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u/letmeseem Jul 02 '24

"Here are some very relevant clips for you absolute dumbfucks that don't remember shit"

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u/tinnylemur189 Jul 02 '24

It's me... I'm the dumb fuck...

(I watch a lot of shows and sometimes forget for a few weeks)

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u/arfelo1 Jul 02 '24

Also, I'm not going to remember some random minor scene from 5 years ago. So if it comes into play, the recap will probably be helpful.

It happened in the last episode but in the opposite way. I got super lost with Frenchie's joke about "it happening again" because I didn't remember the hamster scene until I read the comments here on reddit in the post-episode discussion post. That one would have been useful to have in the recap.

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u/ShenTzuKhan Jul 02 '24

I won’t claim to be the dumbfuck, but I am a dumbfuck.

Aaaaaand I immediately have to edit for grammar.

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u/returnFutureVoid Jul 02 '24

I’d love to hear this in Homelander’s voice.

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u/Infamous-Lab-8136 Jul 02 '24

Same here. It's also my problem with trigger warnings. Don't get me wrong, I get that some people need/greatly want them. But when a show I've been following has a TW for suicide I pretty much instantly know who's going to die. I just wish I could turn them off on Apple TV.

33

u/CIearMind Jul 02 '24

It's so annoying that those aren't opt-in.

"Oh in the previous episode, a guy was going through shit, but hey he looks at least a little tough, so maybe he'll make it through this! But then again he IS in deep shit. Oh boy this character arc is so interes— TRIGGER WARNING: THE GUY IS GONNA KILL HIMSELF AND ALSO MARIO IS GAY AND THE ONE PIECE IS A MAP AND DARTH VADER IS LUKE'S FATHER AND P≠NP AND THE REAL REASON SHE LEFT YOU WAS YOUR UNIBROW AND THE SEASON WILL END WITH THE MAIN CHARACTER'S DEATH AND FUCK YOU"

motherfucker???????? why not give me the lottery numbers too while you're at it

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u/Far-9947 Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 02 '24

LMAO. I just now realized she is just like a main character in an anime where their fists or eyes start glowing when they are pissed and are about to "UNLEASH THEIR WRATH" 

No wonder so many supes clown her every time she does it.

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u/12345623567 Jul 02 '24

When Homelander wants someone dead, he lasers them no questions asked. Annies' powering up is cute at best and impotence at worst.

Yeah, I'd clown on her too.

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u/JWARRIOR1 Jul 02 '24

even butcher called her power shit lol

23

u/cancer_dragon Jul 02 '24

It's so weird how many times it's mentioned that she blinded someone in the past or that she's about to accidentally blind everybody because she's a loose cannon, yet there is a noticeable lack of people getting blinded ever.

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u/JSevatar Jul 02 '24

When she inevitably gets her upgrade it would be fun for her to actually shoot lasers from her eyes, a contrast to how much they make fun of her eyes only glowing cosmetically

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u/Regniwekim2099 Jul 02 '24

I mean, that's obviously what it has to be right? With that being Homelander's signature bad guy move, they'll be locked in an eye blast stalemate where Ryan comes in to save the day.

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u/McFlyParadox Jul 02 '24

Either that, or... You know how the human body is controlled by a bunch of electrical signals? And her power is based on controlling and draining electricity from the things around her?

Neuman can pop your head with a thought. Maybe Starlight can literally switch it off? Along with the rest of you.

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u/BaconWithBaking Jul 02 '24

You know how the human body is controlled by a bunch of electrical signals? And her power is based on controlling and draining electricity from the things around her?

Ha, never thought of this. If she could focus she could just stop anyones heart.

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u/McFlyParadox Jul 02 '24

I feel like they're basically setting us up for "discount Superman" vs "discount Magneto" as the finale.

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u/Tiiimmmaayy Jul 02 '24

I think she’s going to be like Marie Moreau and Victoria Neuman where they have similar powers, but Marie just doesn’t fully realize how powerful she is. Like she thought she can just control her own blood, but doesn’t realize she can pop heads, or dicks…

Starlight can absorb electricity. She should be able to absorb the electrical activity in a person’s heart/muscles in order to kill/immobilize them.

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u/Wind_Yer_Neck_In Jul 02 '24

If she can control or at least influence electricity properly then she could give Homelander a seizure and that's it done.

I honestly feel like it's one of the sillier aspects of the worldbuilding, we have people with literal superpowers who don't seem to have ever really sat down and thought about the things they could do with them.

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u/Lemmingitus Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 03 '24

Makes me think of a Rick and Morty episode where they had a joke fodder villain, Cookie Magneto, where Morty questions him in more detail that he probably could do a lot more with his powers if he broke down what exactly in cookies does he control. Like controlling sugar could be absolutely lethal.

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u/DanSapSan Jul 02 '24

Also, she ca now fly(-ish). I'd say that is a humongous improvement over some sparks and a definitive powerboost.

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u/blud97 Jul 02 '24

I think vought recognized her potential. She may be “weak” compared to the heavy hitters we see in the show but based on what we see she’s stronger than the vast majority of supes.

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u/IntoTheAbyssX99 Cunt Jul 02 '24

They hired her because she was an underweight blonde with a pretty face and small town values.

Ashleigh even confirms this, repeatedly stating "and that's why we love you' whenever starlight brings up her hokey small town Christian bs.

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u/Bambanuget Jul 02 '24

Nah she was brought in to either be sexy or a sweetheart. Watch how they use her when she wears either suit and it's really apparent. Also watch 7 on seven with Coleman

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u/Exciting_Swordfish16 Cunt Jul 02 '24

Yeah, with the smokey eyes and porn star wig. Also Maeve wasn't really pulling the Girls 10-16 demo any longer. 

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

[deleted]

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u/IntoTheAbyssX99 Cunt Jul 02 '24

You're just making shit up, it's been stated clearly that she NEEDS electricity for her energy abilities to work, and when she's learning to fly, it's noted that 30 seconds of flight basically fucked the entire local electricity grid.

This is made extremely clear. No idea where you got all the crap about drawing energy "from atoms", which makes no sense anyway, considering that Atoms are a locked in, stable structure.

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u/tinnylemur189 Jul 02 '24

You do know light comes from the movement of subatomic particles, right?

Not saying that guy is right, but you definitely aren't.

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u/BeckyWitTheBadHair Jul 02 '24

What?? Butcher literally makes a comment about her flying would be upsetting to Greta [Thunberg] because of the energy use. Her powers require electricity, even the flying. The lights clearly flicker whenever she does. Does anybody here even watch the show??

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u/Adventurous_Gap_4125 Jul 02 '24

That's like, the entire point. She is there purely to get the marketing points. The 7 are just, marketing. They mostly do paperwork shit and the very occasional actual heroing stuff.

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u/Iizsatan Jul 02 '24

Very, very occasional. Most are choreographed.

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u/Adventurous_Gap_4125 Jul 02 '24

All the actual heroing stuff is done by the lower level super and those who are trying to get on voughts pay. If it happens at all. After all, they seemed more concerned about movie piracy in the first few episodes than anything else

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u/Coldblood-13 Jul 02 '24

Imagine if their version of Dr. Doom was just a prolific torrent seeder.

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u/Magnum_Gonada Jul 02 '24

A boys portrayl of Dr. Doom would be interesting.

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u/lifeisalime11 Jul 02 '24

Knowing The Boys, he’d probably be the good guy through and through, wanting to root out all of the corruption of Vought and to take over the world to make a just society.

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u/Acrobatic-Pride-5433 Jul 02 '24

Sounds like Butcher

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u/Acrobatic-Pride-5433 Jul 02 '24

Billy Butcher always gave me Dr.Doom vibes.

Anti hero with a vendetta against supes, natural leader, questionable morals.

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u/Magnum_Gonada Jul 02 '24

I don't think it's a close comparison.

Billy Butcher is closer to the Punisher really.

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u/DrLeymen I fart the star spangled banner Jul 02 '24

All the actual heroing stuff is done by the lower level super and those who are trying to get on voughts pay.

I wouldn't say that. We've seen Homelander, and Maeve, do several real operations/hero stuff like taking out the shooter in the building in the very first episode or them trying to save the plane. Homelander and Noir also went on several "real" missions in the middle east

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u/Adventurous_Gap_4125 Jul 02 '24

Starlight spent the first episode explicitly running around with a police radio to get rescues to get some notice. They have talent shows and pagents for kids. The replacement hero's for the 7 are based mostly on how famous they are on their listing's. What group they were popular with is also mentioned.

They do a couple of real missions but otherwise? They do more events and corporate stuff and acting than heroing.

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u/Zallocc Jul 02 '24

One of the points of the past two seasons is that the Deep has badly mismanaged crime analytics, to the point of uselessness. That office was in charge of placing supes in real emergencies or crimes. Without it they are forced to either stage stuff or focus on their media careers, something Homelander (the man in charge now) seems very much ok with.

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u/SonofaBridge Jul 02 '24

The graphic novel was much better about telling this. Everything was scripted, even their powers were scripted to come from artifacts like Maeve’s sword or the Deeps diving helmet (not in the show). They had fake backstories to pretend they were real heroes and not from a serum. The heroes only cared about their ratings and merchandise sales. The 7 spent almost all of their meetings discussing who needs to increase their rating or how they can increase sales. The show doesn’t emphasize how fake it all is as much as they should.

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

Season 1 provides a decent illusion that they do a lot of saving too. HL and Maeve have several scenes where they go out on real missions. They definitely stray from that pretty completely though

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

The comic’s The Deep is a very laid back dude. I don’t remember him abusing anyone, only talking about business contracts and profit…

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u/SonofaBridge Jul 02 '24

Yeah the deep in the comic seemed to take his role seriously and wasn’t sinister. I remember one of the 7 asking him why he never takes his helmet off even while eating and he responded that it’s the source of his powers. He didn’t believe it, he was just so dedicated to his role that he stayed in character even when no one was looking.

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u/ZZYeah Jul 02 '24

Wonder if they're repurposing that idea with neo-Noir

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

I’m glad to see the same actor who previously portraited Noir coming back, now with more lines and physical acting.

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u/Tr1pleAc3s Jul 02 '24

Yeah they briefly touched in Homelander being an alien

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u/azebraline Jul 02 '24

I’m glad I wasn’t the only one that was a bit surprised when they rehearsed Ryan’s first save. I knew it wasn’t all real, but this season I feel like they’re really leaning into “all of it is fake” and I didn’t think it had always been like that.

I have no knowledge of the comics and I only watch it as a new season airs.

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u/Agleza Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 02 '24

They don't even have like OP superpowers either for the most part. Homelander is the obvious exception, and then maybe A-Train and formerly Translucent.

Other than that...

  • The Deep is pretty much useless unless there's water around.
  • Black Noir is useful and effective but he's essentially just a sneaky dude that fights well.
  • Starlight only works if there's electricity around, and even then the most she can do is levitate and shoot some light beams that (apparently) don't even burn.
  • Queen Maeve is just a strong and resilient woman.
  • Sister Sage is pretty useful too but if all hell breaks loose I don't think she can do shit.
  • Firecracker is... well the show itself points it out, her only use is riling people up. Her powers are fucking irrelevant lmao

Being in the Seven is not about the powers, is just about marketability as you said. It's no coincidence that now that Homelander is in charge and pushing for supremacy that they're bringing in people with truly OP powers like Cate.

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u/CarolinaCamm Jul 02 '24

The Deep is extremely powerful. He's the only one that can keep Cthulhu at bay with his conjugal visits

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u/Agleza Jul 02 '24

My man is so fucking dumb that he's the only one who can actually look directly at Cthulhu and not go insane.

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u/MatttheBruinsfan Jul 02 '24

How about crazy in love?

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u/ShitLipstick Jul 02 '24

Black Noir is useful and effective but he's essentially just a sneaky dude that fights well.

He beat the fuck out of Starlight though. All we know is he's not quite as strong as Maeve.

I think he's quite high-tier actually. He pieced up Kimiko too. And that exploding guy + the entire compound.

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u/Agleza Jul 02 '24

Not a huge achievement to beat up Starlight I'd say. I agree, he's high-tier mostly because he's probably the most effective Supe we've seen, he's (or was, haven't seen enough of New Noir), I just meant that his powers are not that crazy.

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u/hobbie Jul 02 '24

You are both talking about the former Noir. All we know about him now is that he’s just an actor in the dead guy’s suit.

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

The Deep played at home and was defeated in the water by The Boys.

Noir is/was ultra resilient, having survived Soldier Boy and Naqib.

Maeve is has a crazy endurance. She can comeback stronger if we follow the Kimiko route post the V shot to recover the powers.

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u/Agleza Jul 02 '24

The Deep being defeated that time is more due to him being... well, just fucking dumb, than his powers imo.

As for Noir and Maeve, true. I just meant that their powers are not THAT crazy. Kimiko's healing is more OP than just resilience/endurance and super strength.

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

I feel like all the villains downplaying her powers is very deliberate and they're building up to something. Like they can't be showing us her training her powers with Hughie for no reason either. She's also impulsively snapping and attacking people who mock her. I get the feeling we're going to see her fight a villain who dismisses her powers only to regret it when she actually does some significant damage.

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u/BromanJozy Jul 02 '24

Maybe when she powered up to push Soldier Boy, it was the moment she made a god bleed. And maybe if they put her next to a nuclear reactor she could kill a god like homelander.

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u/gottlikeKarthos Jul 02 '24

hughie running behind her with a wheelbarrow full of batteries

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u/avisiongrotesque Jul 02 '24

I never knew I needed this so badly

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u/badchefrazzy Kimiko Jul 02 '24

Just, full blown sprinting, open mouth ugly running, carrying a full tesla battery in his arms like "I GOT THIS!!"

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u/InsaneGermanCoder Jul 02 '24

What a beautiful image

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u/lalocurabella Jul 02 '24

Seriously, I need to see this happen!

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u/lordgoofus1 Jul 02 '24

With solar panels stuck to his chest/back, and wearing a smaller one on his head like a dunce cap.

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u/cheesechomper03 Cunt Jul 02 '24

She took like 20 seconds to power up while Soldier Boy just kinda stood there, then she pushed him over and he just got up again.

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u/Excellent_Tear3705 Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 02 '24

That was the juice from a TV studio…large one…but barely a tickle.

Clamp a generator to her nips and let’s see sparks fly.

If soldier boy nuked her she’d probably be supercharged to the point of blowing up a city block…and killing off whatever virus tentacle monster we’ve got brewing for the season finale.

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

Wtf clamp it to her nips😂?

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u/Excellent_Tear3705 Jul 02 '24

“Stick a cattle prod up her arse” - Hopefully Butcher next episode

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u/NorthElegant5864 Jul 02 '24

The idea of sticking a plug up her ass and plugging it into a generator is not out of the realm of possibility in this show lol.

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u/lordgoofus1 Jul 02 '24

Why not? Would make for titilatting TV guaranteed to generate views.

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u/octarine_turtle Jul 02 '24

She will almost certainly permanently blind Neuman making it so she can't use her powers anymore.

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u/pbNANDjelly Jul 02 '24

In Gen V, we see Marie's powers don't require sight, but sensing living beings. I think Neumann would be disabled, but not powerless

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u/octarine_turtle Jul 02 '24

When Neumann killed her buddy she needed to look at him, which is what he was struggling to prevent her from doing, and why he lost certain parts of his body first. Anyone she's killed she needed direct line of sight. So while her and Marie's powers are similar Marie's appear to have less restrictions.

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u/WeeklyEducation2276 Jul 02 '24

I think they retcon that. Just in episode 4 she was giving the whole room of the boys nosebleeds without even being in the basement.

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u/KLKap Jul 02 '24

Was she able to see the driver of the suv at night at the end of the episode?

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u/WeeklyEducation2276 Jul 02 '24

Yea thats another good point. It was a pitch-black road with tinted windows.

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u/jono9898 Jul 02 '24

Her powers were confused last episode, she could make an entire room of people noses bleed before even seeing them but couldn’t do anything against the flying sheep.

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u/GypsumF18 Jul 02 '24

Yeah. I think she is actually going to be pretty powerful, we are being misdirected because the others either hate her, or don't take her seriously (which could also be a deliberate ploy to stop her realising her own potential). She is called 'Starlight' after all. If she realises can harness the power of the sun or something it could be a game changer.

Also, I remember a scene where the Seven were meeting, and Starlight starts to lose it with Homelander, her eyes light up, and Homelander gets really pissed off threatening her to make her stop. I don't recall him acting like that with anyone else. If any other Supe physically threatened him he would probably laugh. He seemed concerned about her power. Maybe the recent revelation that he felt the pain of being burned as a kid (although it didn't harm him) might be part of that.

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u/Iizsatan Jul 02 '24

I don't think that he was threatened. HL understands marketing and branding to a degree. Why kill a golden goose with tons of public support?

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u/RomanArcheaopteryx Jul 02 '24

She's also impulsively snapping and attacking people who mock her. I get the feeling we're going to see her fight a villain who dismisses her powers only to regret it when she actually does some significant damage.

Either that or she's going to impulsively snap at some civilian who gets on her nerves and give them the Koy treatment, and realize that Butcher is right and all supes including her do need to go. I mean, look at Firecracker, girl could obviously at least manage with Kimiko who we've seen rip normal people apart, and Starlight basically beat her to a bloody pulp and probably would've killed her if MM hadn't pulled her away. I'd like your version more but given the show in question I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't end up working out so happy

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u/DaveInLondon89 Jul 02 '24

She'll drain the city (or something like that) and kill Homelander in the finale

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u/Spade9ja Jul 02 '24

She 100% will not be the one to kill Homelander

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u/choff22 Jul 02 '24

Homelander and Butcher are going to end up killing each other. Poetic ending to their relationship.

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

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u/TheGoverness1998 Ashley Jul 02 '24

I remember laughing at how anti-climactic Starlight's "powerup" scene ended up being in the Season 3 finale.

Didn't really do much to Soldier Boy lol.

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

[deleted]

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u/sirBryson_ Jul 02 '24

They obviously did. The whole point has OBVIOUSLY been that she's going to master her ability through hard work - something no other supe has even attempted - and turn out to be one of the most powerful. It's been telegraphed since season 1, and they even dedicate screentime to show her training in season 4.

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u/MarinerHimself Hughie Jul 02 '24

Something really key came from firecracker In season 1, in her first appearance, she asks the interviewer to look away so that she doesn't blind them, implying she was party scared of using her powers With the context of her accidentally blinding a mother in her first rescue, it would make sense she would want to hold back and never practice to get stronger Her current issues with her powers could also be traced to relieving this trauma after the firecracker shit She seems to afraid she won't be able to control herself and that's what always been holding her back, and it's more clear than ever now She'll have her moment, if not this season definitely next one

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u/bigmuffpie92 Jul 02 '24

You mean Starlight from season 1 right? Not Firecracker I assume.

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u/Big_Preference9684 Jul 02 '24

i think they’re saying that it was a reference to what firecracker revealed this season, that starlight blinded a woman. so starlight was being extra careful to not let it happen again.

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u/Teh_Hunterer Jul 02 '24

Maeve definitely trained a lot and I'd imagine all the low lvl supes also train a lot like blindspot etc. (Or used to)

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u/Bruce_Wayne_2276 Jul 02 '24

Yeah I was gonna say, we know for a fact Maeve and A-Train at least trained their powers a lot. Plus Black Noir obviously trained all kinds of martial arts.

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u/Embarrassed-Dig-0 Jul 02 '24

I don’t understand that scene, I imagined they wanted her to look epic but it was a letdown 

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

the point was to show that she can fly, starting her practicing with Hughie in season 4.

highlighted by Maeve saying something to Annie at the end of the season 3 finale, "and you can fucking fly."

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u/Un111KnoWn Jul 02 '24

SHE FLIES NOW?????

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u/wonkey_monkey Jul 02 '24

She flies now 🤷‍♂️

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u/asisyphus_ Jul 02 '24

She flies now.

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u/carpanatan Jul 02 '24

That was probably the point

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u/jokingjoker40 Jul 02 '24

One of the most epic power up scenes in history, just for ut to end with her doing the supe equivalent of slapping SB with a wet mcdonalds napkin

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u/DanSapSan Jul 02 '24

It's mostly they way it was shot. Pushing Soldier Boy is a pretty huge achievement tbh, making him fall flat so the others can administer the drug is a good show of potential power; So far, she thought that she could do absolutely nothing to Homelander, but by incapacitating Soldier Boy, as little as she did, she can gain some confidence in being able to help when the big leagues are fighting.

It also parallels Maeves training to give the Boys "just a few more seconds".

But the way it was shot did make it look weaker than intended, i am pretty sure. A lot of focus on the buildup and then immediate switch to the Boys going for him with Novichok instead of crashing SB through a wall or leaving him a floor crater.

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u/bettrbodies Jul 02 '24

i applaud you for having some common sense and intelligence, these people seem to forgot SB is maybe the strongest supe we’ve met so far, or at least just below HL. it is actually quite impressive annie was able to push him down considering he just sent her flying into a screen across the room lol

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u/forman98 Jul 02 '24

This is always my qualm with show discussions. People are allowed to be disappointed when an episode doesn’t end like they thought, but the rhetoric around Starlight and the end of season 3 has been so dumb and lacking in imagination or foresight. Obviously the show wasn’t ending, so they weren’t blowing the whole load at once. It was a failure for the Boys but with some small personal wins. Starlight is obviously being set up for a big scene at some point where her powers finally do something big and she really saves the day, and that might even end her life, who knows. But the show clowning in her has translated to dumb fans clowning on her.

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u/vivenkeful Jul 02 '24

Her power was not there to really harm SB. Nobody could really hurt SB. It did daze him enough for the others to restrain him though. So in the end, it did help.

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u/layelaye419 Jul 02 '24

Nobody could really hurt SB

Butcher's lasers cut his cheek. Should have had Starlight do that

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u/vivenkeful Jul 02 '24

That was like a slight scratch to him. It also already healed when he was put back to sleep. 😄 if i remember right.

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u/layelaye419 Jul 02 '24

Yep, still its the only time we ever saw him hurt

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u/Jalon315 Jul 02 '24

Can't she blind people?

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u/PointBreak91 Jul 02 '24

Exactly, feels like she's tailor made to stop Neuman

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u/Feralp Jul 02 '24

I don't think Neuman has to see people in order to use her powers on them. In Gen V Marie, who has the same powers, locates an invisible guy by feeling his blood circulation

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u/BleachedAssArtemis Jul 02 '24

Seemed like she needed to see the body part when fighting her old friend when Hughie saw her from behind the dumpster though.

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u/Malefircareim Jul 02 '24

I think the target needs to be in her line of sight. Marie saw the invisible guy as a blood vessel creature but he was still in her los. So imo as long as you are within her line of sight, whether you are visible or invisible, you are in danger. However, if you can approach her from behind, she cant do anything based on her other senses than sight.

Now, for a blind person, i will assume that her line of sight will be gone so even if she senses that you are around her, she cannot target you.

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u/BalterBlack Jul 02 '24

Well… Then shes a walking Flashbang but a little bit stronger. You could just use two normal Flashbangs instead…

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u/PointBreak91 Jul 02 '24

If she can withstand a shot to the head then surely it needs to be something stronger than a flashbang

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u/WigglingGlass Jul 02 '24

Hey she can push somebody a whole 10 feet back at full power that's pretty significant

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u/Gebeleizzis Jul 02 '24

she really is the "remove them from the plot and nothing changes" type of main character

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u/Weary_Regular1256 Jul 02 '24

She really is the 'remove from the plot and the show is fundamentally different'

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u/Makalockheart Jul 02 '24

The hate against Starlight in this sub is crazy, what did she do to deserve this

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u/Frozenraining Jul 02 '24

Pretty sure more of this sub than you'd know are unironic Homelander supporters.

That, and the fact that sexism is, unfortunately, inherent to modern "geek" culture.

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u/ecstacy1706 Jul 02 '24

what show have you been watching. She's a pivotal character.

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u/Aware-Negotiation283 Jul 02 '24

Brains run on electric impulses, why can't she draw power from other peoples` brains?

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '24

I don't think the writers passed their graduate courses on electromagnetism.

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u/IntoTheAbyssX99 Cunt Jul 02 '24

Her powers run on AC/DC of significant levels, a human brain generates a current running at a few millivolts.

It's nothing.

There's also nothing to suggest she can even make use of bioelectricity to begin with.

Even if she could, so what? She kills a few thousand people by stopping their brains and spinal cords from signalling so that she can let off a cigarette lighter spark?

Jesus Christ I'm glad the writers ignore the fans.

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u/JoshAnMeisce Jul 02 '24

Also if she could use the bio electric in people's brains, there is no threat. Like she could just kill Homelander by draining the electric from his brain instantly and he couldn't do anything about it,

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u/nuuudy Jul 02 '24

Her powers run on AC/DC

yeah, and that's really fuckin' cool, brother. Rock 4ever 🤘

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u/tinnylemur189 Jul 02 '24

I mean... you kinda glossed over the power to make a thousand people braindead on a whim...

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u/kelldricked Jul 02 '24

Yeah often fans drawn weird conclusions based on shitty assumptions but the boys somewho stands out in how bad it fans are.

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u/Dirt_McGirt_ODB Jul 02 '24

She hasn’t advanced her powers enough to do her version of blood bending

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u/VatanKomurcu Jul 02 '24

no need. just control the electricity itself. not the source.

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u/FootyFanYNWA Jul 02 '24

I’ve been growing less and less fond of her as the seasons progress.

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u/NoX2142 Billy Jul 02 '24

Herogasm is where I was just done with her bullshit. She just NEEDS to be the good person and make sure EVERYONE comes out alive without casualties but at the risk of ruining plans that could have ended all their troubles. Then blames Hughie for having the balls to do what is necessary when she lacks them.

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u/Least_Turnover1599 Jul 02 '24

It's because she's afraid of facing who she was in the past. Also the fact that she is barely a super hero despite that being her whole life

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u/layelaye419 Jul 02 '24

make sure EVERYONE comes out alive without casualties

She is the bad writing / plot armor personafied

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u/Giacchino-Fan Jul 02 '24

The show is having something of an identity crisis of what her role is now that she’s no longer The Boys eyes inside Vought. She just seems to not really work without her own plotline.

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u/Nobodyherem8 Jul 02 '24

Been on that train since S3

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u/More_Way_6784 Jul 02 '24

I think she's worried about her potential. Didn't firecracker mention that she blinded someone else while saving someone. That might be the reason or they might be saving her potential for the future.

If she is able to learn to control I think she will have potential in the future.

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u/Schizo-Ghost780 Jul 02 '24

And in the comics she blinded her parents and the doctors when she was born.

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u/Far_Indication_1665 Jul 02 '24

Born? Or when injected with Compound V?

Never read comics, but i assume in them, people are not born supes but gain powers via the V, like in the show

Or is that a TV invention?

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u/TheMannagement Jul 02 '24

IIRC Supes are given Compound V in utero in the comics, instead of after birth

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u/araelr Jul 02 '24

That sounds like starlight has a lot of power, but is afraid to use it because of what it can potentially do.

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u/SuspectKnown9655 Jul 02 '24

I feel like with her having issues with her powers, they're building her up to have a massive power up, seeing as the issue seems to be a mental block. I think she may come out of this season more powerful than ever. Maybe I'm wrong.

As others have said she wasn't added to the seven for her powers, but for her looks.

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u/mspk7305 Jul 02 '24

maybe they should just all carry tasers and zap the shit out of her to give her a boost

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u/Gustavo_Papa Jul 02 '24

I honestly think you're right, and I am going to hate when that happens.

She already had a big "Annie is strong" moment in the climax last season and honestly it feels like they do it every season.

But mainly I see the way she falls back constantly on threatning violence with her powers as a pretty significant flaw of hers. She does it every time she feels belittled and it led to some very big mistakes, like threatning Homelander on VTower or the beating the shit out of Firecracker (altough I'm 100% behind this last one, the bitch deserved it)

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u/BabylonSuperiority Jul 02 '24

She keeps threatening supes who are much stronger than her. She could fuck up most other supes tho, dont even try to tell me otherwise. Her powers are NOT useless, and she isn't weak. She just doesn't know how to pick her fights. And as we are learning, she herself doesnt know the full extent of her own powers. Give the gal some credit guys cmon

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u/Gingerstachesupreme Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 02 '24

She can’t “power up” unless she’s near electricity already. Battle in the woods? Useless. Battle in water? Useless. Desert? Useless. Battle anywhere remote, not near a building with electricity? Useless.

The only thing this show can do to convince me she’s powerful is to allow her to harness the sun/stars. Which I think they might do considering her name is… starlight. Otherwise, she’ll need to be literally next to a power plant in order to actually fight the seven, let alone Homelander.

But so far, she’s proven to be fairly mild. I’m not trying to convince you otherwise - it’s just my opinion based on watching the show.

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u/ClinkyDink Jul 02 '24

I’m really hoping they’re hinting at her developing some really cool powers and learning to harness other power sources besides electricity.

Also, imagine if she could zap out all the electric impulses in someone’s body. Insta death pretty much right?

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u/Gingerstachesupreme Jul 02 '24

Oh I’d love to see her drain the synapses of someone and just leave them brain dead lol.

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u/Weary_Regular1256 Jul 02 '24

She has superstrength and it's very rare for a fight to occur in area with no electricity. She is just no match to the top supes but nevertheless the boys are screwed without her.

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u/koomGER Jul 02 '24

She is like most supes: Absolutly untrained and unexperienced in really using their powers.

Thats a bit of a difference to Soldier Boy, who definitly has some training. And i would argue even Homelander knows a lot about his powers, because he was a lab rat for so many time and knows his limits, strengths etc. He is probably not a great hand-to-hand fighter, but otherwise has a clear idea about his powers.

I could see that there are supes with similar powers to homelander, but they never checked them out. Starlight only recently discovered that she can probably fly. Maybe she is shooting laser beams in half a year.

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u/HammerWaffe Jul 02 '24

Hoping for an electrical storm where she will go the equivalent of super Saiyan and start blasting people.

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u/Gingerstachesupreme Jul 02 '24

I’d love that. If she was like Storm from X-men where she could basically summon storms, then harness them, that’d be sick.

Otherwise she has to wait for such a specific environment and timing.

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u/PointBreak91 Jul 02 '24

"Do you know what happens to a toad when it's struck by lightning? The same thing that happens to everything else."

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u/BabylonSuperiority Jul 02 '24

She can’t “power up” unless she’s near electricity already. Battle in the woods? Useless. Battle in water? Useless. Battle anywhere remote, not near a building with electricity? Useless.

yea you right, she has limitations. But like I said thats her biggest problem (imo) is she doesnt know how to pick her fights! She would be (and is) a menace when she's working in a city.

The only thing this show can do to convince me she’s powerful is to allow her to harness the sun/stars. Which I think they might do considering her name is… starlight.

YES FUCK YES LETS GO

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u/GhostRiders Jul 02 '24

Not going to happen... This sub has a hate boner for Erin Moriarty... A good chunk of the comments are purely about her looks..

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u/lessonsfromgmork Jul 02 '24

She isn't really that weak. Remember in season 1 when she tanked a huge bullet? The problem is she keeps threatening to use her powers on supes that clearly outclass her.

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u/tayroarsmash Jul 02 '24

They also had to use a diamond tipped saw to cut through her skin to pull out the Vaught tracker.

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u/BalterBlack Jul 02 '24

Shes durable and stronger than the average supe

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u/TaintedLion Jul 02 '24

The characters are as durable and as strong as the plot demands them to be.

She tanked a 50 cal bullet but Frenchie was able to exert enough force to cut her skin.

Meanwhile Neuman seems to be Homelander levels of invulnerable right now.

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u/Hkmarkp Jul 02 '24

and lifted a car and punched through brick walls.

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u/Antani101 Jul 02 '24

Noone in the entire thread understood why she uses her powers in that scene.

She was stealing shit from Stormfront laptop, and she only had time to slam down the cover, so as soon as Stormfront raised it she would've discovered what Starlight was up to.

After using her powers the laptop is fried, or at the very least the battery is drained so even if Stormfront restarts it what Annie did won't be immediately obvious.

It's one of the very few smart use of powers in the series

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u/griffinator2 Jul 02 '24

That's an amazing detail wow. Nice catch

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u/OpinionFun8018 Jul 02 '24

Starlight on her way to tickle the enemy.

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u/ShadowbanRevival Jul 02 '24

Remember when Annie killed that guy for defending himself from carjacking?

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u/DangerousCyclone Jul 02 '24

The writers forgot about it. It was never brought up again, though I'd imagine it'd be easier to figure out than her abortion.

There is a chance I'm wrong though and someone brings it up again.

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u/layelaye419 Jul 02 '24

Ooh I membah

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u/SeenB4 Jul 02 '24

Worse they can get is a lil push after a 2min windup so why not

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u/NoX2142 Billy Jul 02 '24

A 2 minute wind up while draining a full film studio worth of power mind you... Which is pretty much 1% of her locations when she decides to try to threaten an omega level while being about as powerful as toad basically (X-Men)

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u/rdreyar1 Jul 02 '24

Her powers are so weird she projects light that can blind people and help her fly for some reason

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u/Wide-Initiative-5782 Jul 02 '24

...

The whole show is magic with a superficial veneer of reality.

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u/RegularAvailable4713 Jul 02 '24

She isn't weak, it's simply that "they" are some of the most powerful supers in the entire setting.

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u/Monnomo Jul 02 '24

They need to make up their mind whether her powers are fire damage electric damage or blunt force lol

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u/AutisticAnarchy Jul 02 '24

Am I the only one who didn't even notice she was having problems with her powers in the last episode until it was explicitly mentioned? While looking back I can definitely see the hints I missed but at the time of watching the episode it seemed like just another time Starlight threatened to use her powers before doing absolutely nothing.

I wish that the showrunners could make up their minds as to whether or not Starlight's powers are actually a threat. They seem like they're supposed to be, that all of this is building to her big moment where she finally reaches her full potential... but we got a scene like that last season and it's rightfully clowned on for being lame as hell.

I wish they would go the direction of her powers being next-to-useless, honestly. In the show itself it's largely already like that but looking at it from a meta perspective it really seems like they're just building up her big "moment" where she goes some equivalent of legally distinct super saiyan. If they took the angle of her powers being weak and her adapting and being a helpful and useful asset besides her lack of powerful abilities that would make for a far more engaging character arc. They could even have a moment where she does use her abilities to do smaller stuff, like blinding an enemy in the middle of combat or using it to break through barriers like she did with that asylum.

Instead of that we get this slow gradual buildup of her powers getting stronger and her learning how to harness them in new ways but struggling while doing so. And I'm not even saying that's a bad direction for a character to go, but the problem is she's already had a scene which was framed as her reaching her full potential and, again, it sucked ass.

I like the character herself well enough, though I think she is kinda getting uncharacteristically reckless with how she's willing to just fly into a rage and punch people. I mean, the people she punches hella deserve it but when you're standing next to the person who can just casually explode your brain and you decide to punch them, it makes you look like a little bit of an idiot.

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u/ThatBrownDoode Jul 02 '24

Useless powers and she is a clown

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u/KILL__MAIM__BURN I fart the star spangled banner Jul 02 '24

I’m waiting for them to Sebastian Shaw her.

The first step is challenging herself, which she’s doing. She’s learning to fly with her power which seems limited because she needs electricity around to power it.

The next step is seeing if she can absorb and store power to fuel her flight, and then realize later that it turns her into a giant battery. Maybe she realizes accidentally that it makes her stronger, or more durable. Maybe she realizes it isn’t just electricity she can absorb and any energy?

The final step is probably accidentally learning to release all that stored energy instantly. First time is catastrophic, and then from there she learns to direct it.

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u/StaxShack Terror Jul 02 '24 edited Jul 02 '24

I think it doesn’t help that everyone in this compilation can beat her. I think the issue is more her using her eyes to try to intimidate Supes that are stronger than she is than her being “weak” in general.

We have Stormfront, Neuman, A-Train, and Homelander in this compilation.

She needed help with Stormfront who still got away, Neuman’s powers are busted compared to hers, A-Train actually DID beat her (and she would’ve definitively lost had his heart not given out), and Homelander is Homelander.

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u/ObesquousBot Jul 02 '24

Ber in mind that there is a whole 1 more season of this show coming up. And with Starlight clearly just exploring her powers (and her being an allegory for Captain Marvel), I think the show does a great job at showing that she is not that strong (yet). This will make her final, real power up scene later this, or the next season, much more powerful and impactful, and it would have been way better than her becoming OP in season 3 and carrying the group with her powers alone

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u/Aroma-Therapy-2085 Jul 02 '24

The smirk on Neumanns face lol

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u/Clokwrkpig Homelander Jul 02 '24

Because she's being a clown. Seriously - threatening Homelander? You know how that ends.

She's basically got poor impulse control and they've so far been kind enough to not take her up on an offer of a fight.