The Boys have typically focused on the Seven, an evil Justice League pastiche who lives in Vought Tower. These are the villains that Billy Butcher’s team is attempting to defeat. They are guided by Antony Starr’s Homelander, despite their fear of him. Season 3 eliminated some partners, thus Season 4 introduced new ones.
Sister Sage and Firecracker are two of the new Seven members, yet Homelander has allies outside his corporate castle. A prime example is the evil Tek Knight. While Tek was first believed to be a Tony Stark-like person, the story shifts his character to resemble a dark Batman. Unfortunately, while he provides comic relief, his acts have terrifying consequences.
The Boys’ Tek Knight, Explained
In the comics, Tek’s given name was Robert Vernon. He was a member of Payback and one of the few people Soldier Boy didn’t dislike. That was because Tek didn’t pose a threat to anyone outside of his close circle. Tek experienced 𝓈ℯ𝓍ual madness, which led to him abusing friends. However, Bully Butcher was unconcerned with Tek’s fetishes and eccentricities and left him to his own devices.
Tek wore an Iron Man outfit and occasionally performed heroic acts. While it was assumed he saved the planet from a crashing asteroid, as in the Avengers film, he was 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ed by falling debris. In the end, it was discovered that he had a brain tumor that influenced his perverse personality. It did elicit some pity for the affluent socialite, aside from the people he abused.
The third season of The Boys transformed Tek into a more deviant superhero, resembling Sherlock Holmes with super-sight, hearing, and other unique abilities. He served as a personal lie detector at Godolkin University interviews, exposing traitors. He covered up numerous Vought scandals in exchange for unrestricted access to TV shows, his own Vought films, and contracts to continue jail construction. Tek also entertained himself with inanimate objects that paid respect to the source material.
Tek returns in The Boys Season 4 when he attends a Vought presentation on their media and entertainment plans. He is also present when Sage reveals him her Vought plans and Homelander orders them to beat Cameron Coleman (a news anchor) to death. At this point, Tek feels more like a member of the team than a contractor. Furthermore, he enjoys doing bad things since being a villain gives him pleasure.
The Boys’ Tek Knight Tortures Hughie
In Episode 6, “Dirty Business,” Tek hosts a party to gather funds for Homelander’s alt-right movement. He inherited fortune from his family’s days catching escaped slaves, which irritates A-Train. But they require more funds to govern America. As Tek continues to make racist remarks and exude white nationalist energy, the show portrays him as a problematic character. In short, he’s at ease entertaining America’s elite in this show of malevolent benevolence. His mansion, the bookshelf that turns into a lair, his suit, style, and overall fabric all give off a Bruce Wayne sense.
However, he has a sidequest to complete. He transports the show’s bad Spider-Man, Webweaver, to his 𝓈ℯ𝓍 dungeon, where fans discover his parents have been slaughtered. As the last Vernon, he was raised by his Black butler, Elijah. There, Webweaver notices his sidekick, Laddio, is all tied up. The twist is that this is not the genuine Webweaver, but rather Jack Quaid’s Hughie Campbell in disguise. Hughie has to play along, so he accepts being restrained.
Tek and Ashley, Homelander’s assistant, end up 𝓈ℯ𝓍ually abusing Hughie. Part of him enjoys it, but only because he wants to get high. Hughie’s father died a few episodes ago, and he has felt broken ever since. But he hides the agony. He tries to put on a brave face for Starlight because he knows she is hurting from Firecracker revealing her abortion and other secrets. Hughie also does not want to appear frail to the Boys, who have a large assignment ahead of them.
Hughie eventually escapes, but he collapses in Starlight’s arms. It’s a powerful statement about mental health and why guys should be more susceptible. He acknowledges that he does not know how to live without the man who raised him. He’s kept these emotions pent up for far too long. Clearly, he cannot distract himself with poisonous occupations or saving the world; Hughie requires serious assistance. Confessing it to his beloved is a significant first step toward resolving this problem.
The Boys Kill off Tek Knight
Hughie manages to escape when Starlight and Kimiko find the lair after Ashley departs. They restrain Tek and start torturing him to reveal more of what Homelander has planned. Tek confesses he is being tasked with using his prisons as internment camps. They will house dissidents, rebels and protesters when Homelander launches his coup. The Boys are mortified, as they see how far Homelander will take this insurrection.
He became a bigger neo-Nazi under the late Stormfront. But they had no clue he was willing to bring the Holocaust back like this in order to seize the Oval Office. They get the information when Laddio breaks free and shows them how to use the laptop to access Ted’s accounts. It’s hilarious seeing Tek sell out information only when they transfer his money to social justice causes. He hates the left, so they have indeed found his weak spot.
Right after that, however, Elijah chokes Ted. As an Alfred pastiche, Elijah hates having to 𝚋𝚊𝚋𝚢sit such a bigot. He tried to raise Tek right. But while DC’s Dark Knight was consumed by vengeance, Tek was consumed by money. Elijah finally decides enough is enough. Laddio doesn’t mind either. It’s an allegory about how Robin has suffered under the Caped Crusader’s watch after becoming conditioned to accept his mission as the only way forward.
The Boys Could Weaponize Tek Knight’s Empire
The Boys sneak out, leaving Elijah to clean up the mess. Homelander gets word the next day, which leaves him irate. He now has to reshuffle plans, but knowing he has Sage is reassuring. Surely, she’ll find a way to attain these resources, or pivot to a new plan. However, he still hates knowing that Butcher’s team can infiltrate his meetings like this. He sees it as an opening they keep exploiting, so someone has to face his fury soon enough.
As for Elijah and Laddio, they could become trump cards down the line. It’s uncertain if they went into hiding, or if they lied and passed the blame off on Hughie’s camp. Whatever they choose, they have information on Tek’s dealings with Vought and the coup that Homelander wants. In The Boys’ universe, information is a powerful currency, which could be useful in the media and culture wars to come. Firecracker is on TV spewing racist rhetoric and painting the left as villains. But Tek’s details could be weaponized, disseminated in the media and used to highlight Vought as a fascist empire.
Tek’s legacy may eventually come back to haunt Homelander. That is, assuming anyone cares. Homelander’s cult is expanding by the minute. His news channel, Vought News Network, is winning the media battles with fake news and deception. And a large portion of the population is willing to reject numbers and facts in order to buy into the terrible Superman personality cult. The Boys can at least try to use Tek’s info to bring down the nefarious Vought corporation.
