Shapeshifter (The Boys)

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Ensemble Dark Horse
Full Name	Unknown
Alias	The Shapeshifter The Shifter Karen Ms. Jameson Annie January (stolen identity) Shifter Annie (subtitles)
Origin	The Boys
Powers/Skills	No information
Family	None
Allies	Sister Sage
Enemies	Annie January The Boys Robert Singer
Goals	Kidnap Starlight and take her place (briefly succeeded). Distract Hughie as much as possible to delete his files on Neuman (succeeded). Assassinate Robert Singer (abandoned). Frame Singer for Neuman's assassination. Help Homelander rise to power as de-facto President (both posthumously succeeded).
Why Do People Love The Character?	Them being a perfect foil to Starlight Them being an intriguing villain and completing their mission in the end.
Type of Ensemble Dark Horse	Skilled Assassin

“	It's like a furnace in here!	„
	~ The Shapeshifter's catchphrase.

The Shapeshifter, also known simply as the Shifter, is a major antagonist in Season 4 of the 2019 Amazon TV adaptation comic book series The Boys.

Given the ability to shapeshift into anyone they touch, this Shapeshifter was supposedly hired to assassinate the President-elect of the United States, Robert Singer, under Sister Sage's orders in order to put Victoria Neuman, and by extension, Homelander to power. It is later revealed that their inclusion in Sage's plan had a deeper purpose than just assassination.

They were portrayed by Erin Moriarty as Starlight, Naomi Frenette as an unnamed woman, Sarah D. McCarthy as Karen, and Eddy Kaye as the Shady Man.

What Makes Them an Ensemble Dark Horse?

• They were heavily praised for Erin Moriarty’s acting of the character, and they proved to be a good threat.
• They are the opposite of the Scrappy Tek Knight, since their rape of Hughie was actually portrayed seriously and for horror unlike Tek Knight. While it did get mild complaints because Annie initially blamed Hughie for falling for the trick, it was later fixed at the end and overall is better received than the former's rape, also the criticism this scene has to do with the writing itself of the scene not the actual character of the shapeshifter.
• They proved to be a good threat for the short time they were on screen, this is the opposite with Tek Knight who was defeated easily by the main cast. They were able to capture Starlight, delete the files The Boys had against Vought, nearly killed President Singer, and easily beat Kimiko. And even though they failed to kill Singer, they had the last laugh since they were the one to film Singer confessing his crime of ordering Neuman’s death, leading to Singer's arrest and victory for Homelander and Sage.
• They proved to be a great foil to Starlight since they represented everything Starlight doesn’t want to be.
• Despite their limited screen time of only 2 episodes they still, alongside A-Train, are overall considered some of the best parts of the otherwise highly criticized Season 4.

External Links

• Shapeshifter on the Villains Wiki
• Shapeshifter on the Boys Wiki
• Shapeshifter on the Pure Evil Wiki