Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Boys season 4, episode 7!

Sister Sage has long been presented as the smartest person on Earth, and after several episodes of head-scratching decisions, The Boys season 4 has finally revealed her true plan for Starlight’s switch and the big insurrection. At the very beginning of The Boys season 4, Homelander recruited a new supe named Sister Sage to help him push his supe supremacist agenda, with them deciding that they need to get a supe in the White House. Up until The Boys season 4, episode 7, their plan is a bit murky, but a spotlight has finally been shone on her true intentions.

The Boys season 4 is finally here, with the highly anticipated continuation of Amazon Prime Video’s critically acclaimed superhero series now releasing on the streaming service. The Boys season 4 picks up shortly after The Boys season 3 ended, with the titular team attempting to kill Victoria Neuman before she is able to become Vice President of the United States while Billy Butcher secretly continues attempting to kill Homelander in the background. Meanwhile, Homelander and Sister Sage have been cooking up a new plan, and The Boys season 4 has finally revealed what this plan is exactly.

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

The Boys season 4, episode 7 ends with a major twist, with it revealing that Starlight is actually a shapeshifting supe. The real Starlight has been imprisoned in a decrepit house in an unknown location, and the pieces of this puzzle make it clear that Sister Sage is behind it all. While Hughie is sleeping, the fake Starlight leaves the bed and secretly destroys the blackmail that Hughie has on Victoria Neuman. This seems to be the main reason why Sage got the Shapeshifter to take Starlight’s form, and here’s how long the fake Starlight was around for.

The Boys season 4, episode 7 reveals that Starlight hasn’t been a shapeshifter for too long, as when the switch happened is shown shortly after the reveal of the fake Starlight. Late in the episode, a random woman approaches Starlight while at a bar, asking to take a picture with her. It turns out that this woman was the shapeshifter, and by making physical contact with her, she gained the ability to take Starlight’s form. Hughie, Starlight, and the gang only met the shapeshifter earlier in the episode while investigating an apartment, meaning that the real Starlight hasn’t been gone 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 on Neuman being gone means that they are sitting ducks, as nothing is stopping Neuman from killing them. Even if they are left alive, however, they have no way of exposing Neuman to the world, meaning that killing her is their only option.

However, the shapeshifter could have stolen the identity of any member of the Boys, meaning that Sister Sage probably has a reason that the shapeshifter specifically took on Starlight’s form. This reason probably won’t be revealed until The Boys season 4’s finale, but since the Seven has been targeting Starlight’s reputation for a while now, it is likely that they are planning something sinister.

Sage Was Always Two Steps Ahead In The Boys Season 4

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 has taken on Starlight’s form out of the many other possible candidates sets up a terrifying possibility, that being that Sister Sage could be planning on framing Starlight for the assassination of President Robert Singer. Much of Sister Sage’s plan has revolved around ruining Starlight’s reputation, with the decision to bring Firecracker onto the Seven being key to this. The fact that Sage is using Firecracker despite hating her so much proves that this aspect is essential to their big plan, and the shapeshifter could be the climax of this Starlight replacement plot.

By using a Starlight look alike to assassinate the President, Sage’s plan will not only lead to a supe being in office in the form of Victoria Neuman, but it will also lead to the public outcry against anti-supe advocates to be even stronger. Having the shapeshifter performs a false flag attack on the president will only strengthen Homelander’s supe supremacist movement, and Sister Sage’s goal wouldn’t go over nearly as well if she didn’t have Starlight get replaced by the shapeshifter in The Boys season 4, episode 7.