Wikipedia

The Bloody Doors Off

For the episodes that are named after this comic, see The Bloody Doors Off (The Boys episode), The Name of the Game (The Boys episode), and You Found Me (The Boys episode).

The Bloody Doors Off is a graphic novel written by Garth Ennis and illustrated by Russ Braun that was released in seven parts throughout 2012 by Dynamite Entertainment as the final volume of the American comic book series The Boys. Part 1, I Cannot Let You Do This…!, was released May 2, Part 2, Splendiddio…, was released June 6, Part 3, Do You Know What I Hate?, was released July 4, Part 4, Whose Woods These Are I Think I Know, was released August 1, Part 5, The Name of the Game, was released September 5, Part 6, The Scores on the Doors, was released October 3, and Part 7, You Found Me (illustrated by Darick Robertson and Richard P. Clark), was released November 14 (all 2012).[5]

The Bloody Doors Off
Date
  • May 2, 2012 (Part 1)
  • June 6, 2012 (Part 2)
  • July 4, 2012 (Part 3)
  • August 1, 2012 (Part 4)
  • September 5, 2012 (Part 5)
  • October 3, 2012 (Part 6)
  • November 14, 2012 (Part 7)
No. of issues7
Main characters
PublisherDynamite Entertainment
Creative team
WritersGarth Ennis[1]
ArtistsRuss Braun (Parts 1–6)
Darick Robertson (Part 7)[2]
Richard P. Clark (Part 7)[3]
LetterersSimon Bowland
ColouristsTony Aviña[4]
Original publication
Published inThe Boys
ISBN978-1-7811-6476-1
Chronology
Preceded byOver the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men
Followed byDear Becky (epilogue)

Following the death of the Homelander and the true mastermind Black Noir in the previous volume, having struck a secret alliance with the still-alive Jonah Vogelbaum, Billy Butcher unleashes his true nature and sets out to exterminate all humans with Supe DNA from the face of the Earth, numbering at billions. After personally killing M.M., Frenchie, and the Female, only Wee Hughie is left in his way. On the production of a television adaptation of the series, it was followed by the epilogue series Dear Becky in 2020,[6] while in 2022, elements of the volume were adapted to the television episode "Glorious Five-Year Plan".[7]

The series has received a universally positive critical reception.[3][8][9]

Premise

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Part One: I Cannot Let You Do This…!

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With Black Noir dead and his wife avenged, a now-unrestricted Billy Butcher disbands the Boys before enacting his master-stroke "Glorious Five Year Plan", starting with killing Vas, while Annie leaves Hughie, and Vought-American begins a struggle for survival.[8]

Part Two: Splendiddio…

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As Butcher silences the Legend forever by snapping his spine, M.M. learns that the reason his daughter had been avoiding him was that Butcher had slowly beaten his ex-wife (her mother) to death in front of her, supposedly on M.M.'s behalf, in response for her having the 12-year-old act in porn films with her. Shaken, M.M. elects to confront Butcher, while Hughie ends up in an unexpected showdown with Monkey.[10]

Part Three: Do You Know What I Hate?

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After Hughie puts Monkey in his place, on being confronted by M.M., Butcher explains his plan to enact a genocide upon all Supes and Supe-adjacent humans, including M.M. and his daughter, and on recognising M.M. would not assist, Butcher beats M.M. to death.[11][12][13]

Part Four: Whose Woods These Are I Think I Know

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On discovering M.M. dead, Hughie follows Butcher's trail to the corpse of Jonah Vogelbaum, confirming Butcher had lied to Mallory about killing him before and had with him developed the means of exterminating Supes from the face of the Earth, having provided the military with the anti-Supe missiles they had used against Homelander's coup. Realising he is found out, Butcher calls Hughie and taunts him over his chances, before blowing up the Boys' base, killing Frenchie and the Female.[14][15][16]

Part Five: The Name of the Game

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On his own and out of options, Hughie resorts to extreme measures to ensure he will be able to face Butcher, visiting M.M.'s mutated Supe mother and acquiring the source of M.M.'s powers for himself. Meanwhile, the Guy From Vought, retreating behind the name "James Stillwell", arranges for Jess Bradley to take the fall for Vought-American's role in Homelander's coup.[17][18]

Part Six: The Scores on the Doors

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Above the streets of New York City, Hughie and Butcher prepare for their final battle, as Hughie attempts to prevent him from unleashing his signal to wipe out half the world's population to rid it of the genetic possibility for Supes. After Hughie manages to break Butcher's back, accepting defeat, Butcher manipulates Hughie into killing him by tricking into believing Butcher had killed Hughie's parents while enacting his genocide.[9][19][20][21][22]

Epilogue: You Found Me

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Six months later, as the Brooklyn Bridge is rebuilt years after its destruction during 9/11, Hughie, having taken over Butcher's position within the CIA, blackmails the Guy From Vought into preventing the rebranded corporation from ever moving its field beyond that of Supe affairs, ultimately leading to him having a breakdown, lamenting the "bad product", before ruining Rayner's long-dreamed political career, before reuniting with Annie.[3][23][24][25][26][27]

Reception

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Issue # Publication date Critic rating Critic reviews Ref.
1 May 2012 8.0/10 4 [28]
2 June 2012 8.2/10 2 [29]
3 July 2012 9.2/10 3 [30]
4 August 2012 8.7/10 3 [31]
5 September 2012 8.0/10 3 [32]
6 October 2012 8.8/10 5 [33]
7 November 2012 8.0/10 5 [34]
Overall 8.4/10 57 [35]

Collected editions

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Title Material collected Published date ISBN
The Boys: The Bloody Doors Off The Boys (vol. 12) #66–72 November 28, 2012[36] ISBN 1-60690-373-X
The Boys: Definitive Edition 6 The Boys #60–72 (Over the Hill with the Swords of a Thousand Men and The Bloody Doors Off)[37] November 25, 2013 ISBN 1-60690-435-3

Follow-up

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An eight-issue epilogue series, Dear Becky, was published from June to November 2020 as a tie-in with the Amazon Prime Video television adaptation of The Boys.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Phegley, Kiel (September 25, 2012). "Saying Goodbye To "The Boys" with Garth Ennis, Part 1". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on September 26, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2012.
  2. ^ Near Mint Condition (July 12, 2022). Darick Robertson Interview | The Boys | Wolverine | Batman | Punisher | Transmetropolitan. Near Mint Condition. Retrieved July 12, 2022 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ a b c Lindsay, Ryan K. (November 14, 2012). "The Boys #72". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved November 14, 2012. "The Boys" #72 from Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, with a little Richard P. Clark, brings the entire run to a close in a simple way with some deeper meaning.
  4. ^ Dmitri, Chad, Josh, and Marcus (August 12, 2022). BTS w/ the Colorist of The Boys (Tony Avina). The Square Round Table. Retrieved August 12, 2022 – via YouTube.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ Johnston, Rich (August 13, 2018). "The Top 500 Most-Ordered Comics and Graphic Novels in July 2018". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
  6. ^ a b Abbate, Jake (September 20, 2020). "Garth Ennis Hints at New Discoveries in The Boys: Dear Becky". SuperheroHype. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
  7. ^ Barnhardt, Adam (March 25, 2024). "The Boys: Giancarlo Esposito Says He "Never" Wants to Leave Series". ComicBook.com. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
  8. ^ a b Kutsenok, Victor (May 9, 2012). "The Boys #66 Review". A Comic Book Blog. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved May 9, 2012.
  9. ^ a b Nadler, Lonnie (October 4, 2012). "Review: 'The Boys' #71 Second To Last Issue". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved October 4, 2012.
  10. ^ Epps, Justin (February 6, 2024). ""People Have Read It as a Heart Attack": Fans Totally Missed One of The Boys' Most Brutal Deaths". Screen Rant. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  11. ^ Robot Overlord (July 3, 2012). "Sneak Peek: Dynamite Entertainment for July 4, 2012". Major Spoilers. Retrieved July 3, 2012.
  12. ^ Edward (July 4, 2012). "The Boys #68 Review". Unleash the Fanboy. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
  13. ^ Serafino, Jason (July 4, 2012). "Review: The Dark Knight's Early Days Get Revisited In "Batman: Earth One", Thief of Thieves hits its stride, and The Boys gears up for its explosive finale". Complex. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
  14. ^ Edward (August 1, 2012). "The Boys #69 Review". Unleash the Fanboy. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  15. ^ Serafino, Jason (August 1, 2012). "Review: "The Boys" Continues An Explosive March Towards Its Finale". Complex. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  16. ^ Felizarte, Michelle (August 2, 2012). "The Boys #69 Review". Blue Raven Comics. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
  17. ^ Curran, Robert (October 18, 2020). "The Boys' Love Sausage Scene Is From the Comic (With a Different Body Part)". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved October 18, 2020.
  18. ^ Edward (September 5, 2012). "The Boys #70 Review". Unleash the Fanboy. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
  19. ^ Rob (October 7, 2012). "Bastard To The Last: The Boys #71 Review". Crisis on Infinite Midlives. Retrieved October 7, 2012.
  20. ^ Cheng, Jennifer (October 8, 2012). "The Boys #71". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
  21. ^ Serafino, Jason (October 3, 2012). "Review: The Penultimate Issue Of "The Boys" Hits Shelves In Bloody Fashion". Complex. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
  22. ^ Edward (October 2, 2012). "The Boys #71 Review". Unleash the Fanboy. Retrieved October 2, 2012.
  23. ^ Schleicher, Stephen (August 17, 2012). "Solicitations: The Boys concludes in November". Major Spoilers. Retrieved August 17, 2012.
  24. ^ Guerrero, Tony 'G-Man' (November 26, 2013). "Exclusive Extended Previews: Warlords of Mars #30, Dark Shadows #23 & The Boys Vol. 6". Comic Vine. Retrieved November 26, 2013.
  25. ^ Nadler, Lonnie (November 15, 2012). "Review: 'The Boys' #72". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved November 15, 2012.
  26. ^ Robot Overlord (November 15, 2012). "Major Spoilers Podcast #468: The Boys #72 – Dueling Review". Major Spoilers. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  27. ^ Edward (November 13, 2012). "The Boys #72 Review". Unleash the Fanboy. Retrieved November 13, 2012.
  28. ^ "The Boys #66 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. May 2, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
  29. ^ "The Boys #67 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. June 6, 2012. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  30. ^ "The Boys #68 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. July 4, 2012. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
  31. ^ "The Boys #69 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. August 1, 2012. Retrieved August 1, 2012.
  32. ^ "The Boys #70 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. September 5, 2012. Retrieved September 5, 2012.
  33. ^ "The Boys #71 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. October 3, 2012. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
  34. ^ "The Boys #72 Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. November 14, 2012. Retrieved November 14, 2012.
  35. ^ "The Boys: The Bloody Doors Off Reviews". ComicBookRoundup.com. November 28, 2012. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
  36. ^ Ennis, Garth; Robertson, Darick (December 19, 2018). "The Boys Volume 12: The Bloody Doors Off". Previews World. Retrieved December 19, 2018.
  37. ^ Johnston, Rich (July 8, 2022). "The Boys Omnibus Selling Out – How Many Copies Are Left?". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
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