For a show already known for its brutality, dark satire, and moral ambiguity, ‘Gen V’ season 2 has somehow managed to push the boundaries even further. Fans spent the first half of the season guessing what Cipher’s real motives were.
Now, the new episode shattered every assumption. The reveal wasn’t just shocking, it reframed the entire season and confirmed something most fans never wanted to admit: Cipher isn’t just another antagonist. He might be the most disturbing villain ‘the Boys’ universe has ever introduced.
Cipher’s Plan Is Literally Genocide, But Without A Virus
When Hamish Linklater’s Cipher arrived to replace Dean Shetty, he didn’t seem very sinister. In contrast to Shetty’s overt cruelty and gruesome experiments in The Woods, Cipher seemed patient and pragmatic. Some viewers even thought he might genuinely care about Godolkin’s students. However, that illusion has now been obliterated. By the end of episode 6, Cipher confirms his plan to wipe out 75% of the “weakest” supes on campus. Not criminals. Not threats. Just the ones he deems genetically or strategically unworthy.
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This isn’t Shetty’s total genocide-by-virus approach. However, it’s arguably worse in execution. Instead of fearing or hating supekind, Cipher wants to curate it, treating humans and low-tier supes as waste material in his pursuit of a “purified” next generation. His endgame is horrifying as only the most powerful supes survive to shape the world. It suggests he’s not trying to save anyone; he’s trying to engineer a future in his own twisted image.
And unlike villains who hide behind delusions of righteousness, Cipher doesn’t appear to care about morality, society, or collateral damage. He’s not trying to coexist with humanity or elevate supes collectively. He sees the world as a numbers problem. He wants to remove the weak, optimize the strong, and take control before humans do. It’s not just eugenics, it’s a calculated reshaping of the species. He might actually be worse than Homelander.
Why Cipher Is The Universe’s Most Disturbing Threat
To call someone “worse than Homelander” in this franchise feels almost comedic. However, the new episode makes the argument frighteningly plausible. Homelander is a narcissistic, emotionally unstable, mass-murdering supremacist. However, he’s always maintained one core belief: that all supes, regardless of power, are superior to humans and should remain united as a dominant class. Cipher doesn’t even share that minimal loyalty.
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His vision excludes weaker supes entirely; he has no interest in protecting, rallying, or even acknowledging them. He sees them as useless byproducts of Compound V experimentation. He only cares about creating a small elite of god-level supes, those strong enough to rule without resistance. Everyone else, including his own kind, is expendable. Cipher wants to use Marie’s blood-controlling abilities to remove the physical weaknesses of powerful supes, essentially upgrading his chosen survivors.
He wants to eliminate the weak while empowering the elite. However, the greatest bombshell isn’t even his plan; it’s the possibility that Cipher isn’t acting alone. Episode 6 also cracks open a mystery that could change everything about how fans view Cipher’s character: the identity of the burned man in his chamber. Characters are starting to whisper the same name, Thomas Godolkin.
The most compelling theory so far is that Cipher is not the mastermind, but the puppet. Many believe Cipher was originally human. Thomas Godolkin survived a catastrophic accident that left his body incapacitated. So, Godolkin, with powerful mind-control abilities, took over Cipher’s body. This is why Cipher’s blood contains no Compound V because he was never a supe to begin with. The real “villain” is Godolkin using Cipher as a host while plotting his own resurrection.
