Gen V Brings Back A Dead Character From The Boys That No One Saw Coming

Contains spoilers for "Gen V" Season 1, Episode 1 — "God U"

As proven with past seasons of "The Boys," certain characters have a habit of making comebacks in brief and often bonkers ways — despite the fact that they're dead. For example, even after being killed in a scene some people think went too far, former Vought head Madelyn Stillwell (Elisabeth Shue) returns by way of Doppelganger (Dan Darin-Zanko) for the benefit of Homelander's (Antony Starr) twisted fantasies in Season 2. From there, you'd imagine that would be the absolute last we'd see of the former exec, but "Gen V" proved us wrong once again.

Kicking things off with an opening that might top "The Boys" for jaw-dropping shockers, the spin-off series introduces audiences to Marie Moreau (Jaeda LeBlanc) on the day she gets her powers and loses her family in the process. Moments before this traumatic event, Marie's parents are watching the initiation of A-Train (Jessie T. Usher) into the Seven. As we've come to expect, it's all flashing lights and fake smiles, covering up the far seedier business of Supes behind closed doors.

The real surprise is the flicker of Madelyn Stillwell giving a statement praising the new addition to the team. Her appearance is literally seconds long, but it once again fortifies this world of corrupt cape-wearers and the business they're a part of by filling in more gaps we've not yet seen. In doing so, it begs the question of whether Stillwell could be back for more in later episodes.

While "Gen V" has yet to delve too deeply into whatever top-secret shenanigans are going on underneath the university, given the setup and the condition of the place, it's safe to say it's been around for a while. If so, there's every chance that Stillwell, during her time at Vought, was fully aware of what was happening.

It's clear that the current top-level puppet, Ashley Barrett (Colby Minifie), is in on the act, so why not her predecessor? Should Marie (Jaz Sinclair) and the rest of the collegiate superteam dig a little deeper, it'd be cool if they come across Stillwell in old footage, showing just how long another part of Vought's shady side has been operating.

With a cameo like this, there's every chance that more could be on the way, particularly as Godolkin's finest continue to delve into the mystery of the Woods. Then again, this really could just be a millisecond cameo moment from Elisabeth Shue and not much else. Either way, it's a welcome return for one of the show's most despicable characters that's gone too soon.