Sister Sage has long been portrayed as the most intelligent person on the planet, and after numerous episodes of perplexing decisions, The Boys season 4 has now revealed her true plan for Starlight’s swap and the major revolt.

Homelander recruited a new supe named Sister Sage at the start of Season 4 of The Boys to assist him advance his supe supremacist agenda, and they decided that they needed a supe in the White House. Up until The Boys season 4, episode 7, their plot was hazy, but a light has now been cast on her true goals.

Season 4 of The Boys is now available on Amazon Prime Video, marking the much awaited continuation of the critically acclaimed superhero series. The Boys season 4 begins shortly after the conclusion of The Boys season 3, with the titular team attempting to 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 Victoria Neuman before she can become Vice President of the United States, while Billy Butcher quietly continues to try to 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 Homelander in the background. Meanwhile, Homelander and Sister Sage have been working on a new strategy, which has now been revealed in The Boys season 4.

How Long Starlight Has Been A Shapeshifter In The Boys Season 4

The Boys season 4 episode 7 concludes with a huge revelation, showing that Starlight is truly a shapeshifting superhero. The actual Starlight is imprisoned in a dilapidated house in an unknown location, and the pieces of the puzzle point to Sister Sage as the mastermind. While Hughie is sleeping, the fictitious Starlight exits the bed and quietly destroys Hughie’s blackmail on Victoria Neuman. This appears to be the primary reason Sage convinced the Shapeshifter to take on Starlight’s form, and here’s how long the phony Starlight lasted.

The Boys season 4, episode 7 shows that Starlight hasn’t been a shapeshifter for very long, as the transition occurred quickly after the exposure of the fake Starlight. Late in the episode, a random woman approaches Starlight in a bar and asks for a picture with her. It turns out that this woman was the shapeshifter, and by establishing physical contact with her, she was able to take on Starlight’s form. Hughie, Starlight, and the group only encountered the shapeshifter earlier in the episode when investigating an apartment, implying that the real Starlight has not been missing for long.

Sister Sage’s Plan Explained: Why The Shapeshifter Has Replaced Starlight

The main reason for Sister Sage’s decision to recruit the shapeshifter into replacing Starlight seems to have to do with Victoria Neuman. Sage wants Neuman to get into office and invoke the 25th amendment, but the fact that the Boys know that Victoria Neuman is a powerful supe is a liability. Hughie has safely guarded the blackmail against Victoria Neuman for a long time, with this being the reason that she couldn’t 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁 the Boys. However, this blackmail is gone thanks to the fake Starlight destroying it, opening up all kinds of new possibilities for The Seven.

The Boys’ blackmail of Neuman’s absence means they are sitting ducks, with nothing stopping Neuman from 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ing them. Even if they survive, they have no way of exposing Neuman to the outside world, thus 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ing her is their only option.

However, the shapeshifter could have stolen the identity of any member of the Boys, implying that Sister Sage has a reason why the shapeshifter chose Starlight’s body. This motive is unlikely to be disclosed until The Boys season 4 conclusion, but given that the Seven has been targeting Starlight’s reputation for some time, they are most certainly plotting something nasty.

Sage was always two steps ahead in The Boys season four

The reveal that Starlight was actually a shapeshifting replacement confirms just how smart Sister Sage is, proving that she was always two steps ahead of the Boys in season 4. Sending the shapeshifter to steal the blackmail that Hughie has shows that she knew that this was her only obstacle between Neuman and the presidency. However, getting the shapeshifter to touch Starlight involved sending the Boys on a wild goose chase, with them following the trail of a fake assassination plot in order to encounter the shapeshifter.

A-Train being the leak at Vought was also planned by Sage, with him only revealing the information that Sage needed him to. The fact that the shapeshifter has taken over Starlight even implies that the plans for the insurrection that the Boys find in episode 7 are faked as well, with them being red herrings for Sage’s true plan. Every move the Boys have made throughout season 4 have caused them to play right into the palm of Sister Sage’s hand, with episode 7 finally pulling the veil back on how smart the supe truly is.

Does Sister Sage Plan On Framing Starlight For Singer’s Assassination?

The fact that the shapeshifter chose to take on Starlight’s form over the many other probable options raises the horrifying possibility that Sister Sage is going to frame Starlight for President Robert Singer’s 𝓀𝒾𝓁𝓁ing. Much of Sister Sage’s plan has been around tarnishing Starlight’s reputation, with the choice to bring Firecracker onto the Seven being critical to this. Sage’s use of Firecracker despite her strong dislike for her demonstrates that this part is critical to their overall goal, and the shapeshifter could be the culmination of this Starlight replacement narrative.

Sage’s plan to assassinate the President with a Starlight lookalike will not only result in a supe in office in the person of Victoria Neuman, but it will also intensify public outrage against anti-supe campaigners. Having the shapeshifter carry out a false flag attack on the president will further enhance Homelander’s supremacist movement, and Sister Sage’s purpose would not have been nearly as successful if Starlight had not been replaced by the shapeshifter in The Boys season 4, Episode 7.