The animated spin-off Diabolical uses a variety of animation styles and influences to tell a series of stories set within the world of The Boys without being necessarily tied to the primary series.
The spin-off premiered last Friday and includes another story that was planned to be The Boys canon, albeit to the original comic book and not the TV adaptation. That episode was written by Ennis himself and drawn in the original comic's style, which means Butcher and Wee Hughie's looks are a bit different than how many Amazon Prime viewers have come to know them. The episode tying into The Boys show's core storyline, however, is the Diabolical finale, titled "One Plus One Equals Two," which was written by Simon Racioppa.
The episode focuses on the unhinged Superman pastiche Homelander, played by Anthony Starr, specifically on the beginnings of his days with The Seven and his relationship with fellow Supe Black Noir. The two Supes bond as Black Noir aids him in covering up a massacre. Racioppa says he wanted the storyline to be the one that "feels like it's really connected to the mothership" since it includes Homelander's backstory. According to Variety, main showrunner Eric Kripke says the episode will really give viewers a deeper understanding of the relationship between Homelander and Black Noir before season 3. But Kripke also says having the episode tie-in may not have always been the plan. His quote is below:
“The finale is canon, yeah. I thought [Simon] did such a good job with it. I don’t think we had any specific plans going in for it to for sure be canon. But he just did such a good job writing and directing it, that watching it, I was like, ‘This is for sure what happened.’"
According to producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, Diabolical could be the first of many spin-offs to come, and it features several actors reprising their roles from the main series, including Elisabeth Shue - who Racioppa brought back as the now-deceased Vought exec Madelyn Stilwell - and Giancarlo Esposito as Vought CEO Stan Edgar. Both characters feature prominently in "One Plus One Equals Two." Kripke has also teased that Rick and Morty creator Justin Roiland's insane-sounding episode "An Animated Short Where Pissed-Off Supes Kill Their Parents," while not canonical, does have an unexpected connection to season 3, but what that connection is remains to be seen.
The importance of having a deeper understanding of Homelander and Black Noir's relationship before season 3 likely means that the relationship will tie into events to come. Although Black Noir was seemingly taken off the chessboard by a peanut allergy in season 2, leaving him in a vegetative state, the mysterious Supe is likely to make a comeback. Kripke previously stated the 3rd season would dive into the enigmatic character more, which is fantastic as his lack of definition for such a principal character has felt like one of the few weak spots for a show that generally finds time to give depth to all of its characters. While all episodes of The Boys Presents: Diabolical are currently available for streaming, season 3 of The Boys is set to premiere on Friday, June 3rd.
Source: Variety