Despite playing a key role in the season’s main storyline by putting the Temp V into The Boys’ hands and pointing them in the direction of Soldier Boy, McElligott’s superhero is predominantly reduced to a pawn in the men’s game for the majority of the series.

Early on, she throws away her sobriety by drunkenly sleeping with Billy Butcher, and then is just kidnapped and held hostage by her former abuser Homelander until the final episode.

This lack of screen time halts the groundwork laid for Maeve’s personal journey in the second season, shortchanging her evolution from a cynical and scared individual to someone who finally stands up to her abuser. Instead, this time around Maeve is held hostage and threatened with her eggs being harvested against her will, so Homelander can fulfil his wishes and create their offspring if she dies. It’s pretty shocking treatment for a character, even in a series as extreme as The Boys.

While Starlight (Erin Moriarty) and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara) are both afforded empowering and heartwarming season 3 arcs – with the latter particularly shining this year – Maeve is just used as a means to propel the story forward. At best, she acts as the muscle, seemingly saved to go toe-to-toe with Homelander in the season finale.

Where’s ‘Brave Maeve’ gone?

In the previous season, showrunner Eric Kripke sensitively explored the fallout of Maeve being cruelly outed by Homelander live on a talk show, and how this helped drive Maeve to overcome her fear and bring the out-of-control Supe down with her strength and wit.

In this season, I hoped we’d see her being able to live authentically as an LGBTQ+ superhero – something which DC and Marvel are only really beginning to explore (though there are more examples on the small screen). Instead, Kripke uses the character to make a statement about the commodification of queerness in certain big corporations in a sequence set at Voughtand – Vought’s Disneyland-style park.

But without actually including ‘Brave Maeve’ in this storyline – and putting her through the ringer once again in her own arc – the pointed satire feels a little flat and disappointing.

Maeve goes after Homelander

When she does escape Homelander’s prison, Maeve becomes so completely driven by her desire to bring him down that she shockingly (and literally) throws The Boys’ plan out of the window.

“Butcher’s right, Homelander needs to die. That’s it, whatever it takes,” she tells Starlight.

“I really thought that deep down, you were a hero.” Starlight replies with disappointment.

“Well you were wrong – there’s no such thing,” Maeve shoots back.

In my mind, this exchange dishearteningly undermines Maeve’s trajectory and growth, throwing away the progress she made aligning herself with The Boys and Starlight in previous seasons – even if it is walked back slightly in subsequent scenes.

When Kripke finally pits Maeve against Homelander in the final showdown, the battle could have been an emotional moment – like the previous season – but instead, it feels surprisingly cold.

This scene may have had more impact if the conflict and history between the two had been afforded the runtime it deserved to be properly explored – but alas, one of the major scenes shedding some light on the circumstance of their relationship was cut from the first season, and never truly re-explored.

Maeve’s ‘death’ and return

Amazon

In the end, Maeve changes her mind. Protecting Ryan and Billy – along with the city – Maeve eventually saves the day, but at a great personal cost. By giving up Homelander (who she finally had on the ropes) to tackle Soldier Boy, she sacrifices her long-held plans for revenge and – in turn – truly embraces the heroism she thought she had given up on. By letting go of what she’s held on to for so long, Maeve is potentially finally free – free from her powers, free from Homelander and free from the control of Vought.

But where does this leave the Queen Maeve of The Seven? Now blind in one eye and powerless, but also without the ties and control of the corporation, she’s reunited with Elena (Nicola Correia-Damude).

So, will McElligott return for a fourth season? At this point it looks slightly doubtful. It’s potentially a bittersweet goodbye for fans of the character, though possibly a fitting outcome for a Supe who has long been wanting to escape.

Maeve’s many qualities, personal strength and intriguing history could have led to one of the show’s most compelling arcs this year – but instead, she’s been overshadowed and overlooked in season 3, and her once-evolving transformation isn’t explored as well as it could have been.

Considering this may be her exit from the show, it’s a crying shame that McElligott (and Maeve) is going out with more of a whimper than a bang. At the very least, let’s hope that next season Homelander is finally brought to some sort of justice – for Maeve.

The Boys season 3 is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Check out more of our Sci-Fi coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what’s on tonight.

The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now – subscribe now and get the next 12 issues for only £1. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the Radio Times podcast with Jane Garvey.

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