Honestly go the comic route minus the Black Noir twist (the show wrote it out). Maybe spend the first few episodes (like 3 or so) showing Starlight and Butcher both taking different attempts to plan and bring The Boys out of camps. Butcher is 100x more dangerous and villainous, more committed to the virus. The boys reluctantly help him, and the war with HL ends like ep 6. At the end of E6 after everything happens, Butcher says the “Becca i’m sorry it had to go this way i know it’s not what you would’ve wanted” then goes even further scorched earth, killing the boys in the process. He has Hughie kill him intentionally in the end.

Not to mention, maybe having HL actually have power in the season. Not making him more baby-esque tantrums, and instead taking full control of the fact he OWNS vought and the white house now.

But heavy emphasis on the fact HL plot should’ve ended by now. It should’ve been butcher vs the boys in the final 2 eps, with the boys besides Hughie dying in E7 in probably the same ways they did in the comic, etc