Summary
The Boyshas been on a character development bullet train since kicking off its fourth season, and one of its most recent revelations plays perfectly into a long-held hunch among some fans.
The Boyshas been a panacea of sorts to the wave of apathy that has been making its way into the superhero genre for years now and has managed to thrive where established franchises have withered and fallen by the wayside. One reason for this immense success is the core group of personalities that the show presents to audiences,all deeply interesting and masterfully portrayed by the show’s stars. One major standout is Karen Fukuhara’s Kimiko, a mute, superpowered member of the eponymous team andeasily the best female character in the cast ofThe Boys.
While it currently featuresa really compelling redemption story for one iconic character, the show’s current run holds the opposite for others, Kimiko included. In the seventh episode ofThe Boys’ fourth season, it was not only confirmed that Kimiko’s muteness was a symptom of the trauma she holds from her terrible past but also that the trauma itself was much deeper than the cover story she initially gave earlier on in the series as some fans had come to suspect. Rather than being a result of simply experiencing the Shining Light’s barbaric and oft-sadistic acts affecting her and her loved ones, Kimiko reveals that she actually lost her voice as a result of participating in their terrible violence and killing many other young girls to survive.
Speaking toTheWrap, Fukuhara discussed her character’s muteness and how she andThe Boysshowrunner Eric Kripke settled on the non-physical nature of the impediment.
From initial conversations with Kripke, we spoke about having Kimiko’s muteness not come from a physical attribute because if it was a physical attribute, it’s sometimes impossible to get your voice back after a physical trauma. So I said to [Kripke], I don’t think it can be a physical attribute if we want that tinge of hope, if we want to change the storyline or incorporate that in future seasons, and he was really receptive to that early on.
The showrunner’s receptive attitude makes sense, as Kripke would reveal early on that he felt bad about accidentally waltzing into the silent Asian woman stereotype despite that being the nature of the character’s source material.Digital Spy reported the star’s response to his statement, which said:
“Even in season one, I felt like Kimiko’s storyline really propelled the boys' actions. And knowing her back story through Mesmer really fueled the boys and what they were gonna do. So I didn’t really feel as though Kimiko was forgotten storyline-wise but it was obviously a delight to see that she had even more of a bigger role in season two, and I just love how it’s so different from the comics.”
Kimiko’s Character Offers So Much More In The Show Than In the Books
The greatest feat thatThe Boyslays claim to as an adaptation is improving on the controversial source material from which it draws inspiration, such as therecent twist that reveals new depths to Homelanderas a character. Kimiko is currently at the fore of another such stellar update to a character that actually does very little for the story in the books, serving as little more than a comically short and violent enforcer for the rest of her equally shallow team. This guilt from her past plays into the arc that Frenchie is going through, both of which have seen a lot of color added to these two characters. Standing in contrast to this is Starlight, whose confrontation with Firecracker effected almost no change or interesting internal conflict. Albeit a much lighter load than those carried by her friends, this still stands out.
With the show now firmly beyond the pale of the comics, fans can hope to see more development for Kimiko and the others and maybe even seeThe Boys avoid the fate they met in the comic booksto find a better, more rewarding ending.
