In the first season, Homelander manipulated Vought and the public, twisted the plane crash to his advantage, found his son, created super-terrorists, injected supers into the military program, eliminated rivals, and made the heroes worry about him every time he was around them. He was smart, calculating, and terrifying.
He was laughed in his face by Hughie, Kimiko, A-Train, Marathon, Soldier Boy, Raian, Butcher, and Stan. He spends the entire season crying like a loser.
He spends the entire season acting like an idiot, and milk memes have become utterly obsessive. And the memes themselves, too. When Season 5 aired, Starr promoted his image not with cool drama, psychology, and deep themes, but by literally making Homelander a meme.
No one feared Homelander in Season 5. No one respected him. His intelligence has also plummeted. Eric was so eager to pelt Trump with poop that he forgot to take off his pants. He completely squandered the potential of his best work in an attempt to attract the politician's attention and show off his boldness and progressiveness, when in reality, it was all just a sham.