Geekatana Review - The Boys - Discount Suicide Squad vs the Corrupt Heroes

The Boys is an American superhero web television series which is largely based on the comic book of the same name created by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The series was developed by Eric Kripke for Amazon.  It currently has Season 1 and a second Season currently in the works.

I have heard of the series but it wasn't until later that I finally gotten into it thanks to a friend of mine who is also a big fan of superheroes in general. I like to point out that I know nothing about the show prior to what I've seen in the show and some bits and pieces here and there about the comic book it was based on. That will not influence how I will review the series however but I might drop out some minor spoilers here and there.  

In a world where superheroes exist and being labeled as superheroes as the media and the world in general they are often viewed as pure kind individuals. Most famous of them are the Seven who are the best superheroes you can find. But they are hardly role models as a lot of these heroes abuse their powers. Protected by a powerful media company the world tend to overlook or ignore these abuses. Here a group of vigilantes operate to expose and take down these superheroes in any means possible.

Right off the bat you will notice similarities with the superheroes of the Seven parodies the characters of DC Comics Justice League but with a more mature and somewhat realistic take on the whole what if superheroes are real. How media and advertising use these so called heroes to earn money and tries to cover up their darker sides. This show has sex, drugs and enough swearing and profanity that its clearly not your kids superheroes. If you think a certain caped crusader film is dark this is probably a bit more darker.

The story gets you hooked right off the first episode with excellent pacing and characters you can relate to on a certain level specially when you grew up reading superhero comics. The series is rather mature however. Ever wondered what an superhero can do to a human without powers? They got that and more. It sets up the heroes as the not so abusive heroes that won't lose sleep for burning you into ashes with a heat vision just cause they feel like it. If that feels brutal the comics this was based on is more so. I like the Boys have their own superhero origin story woven in the plot.

Character wise is as mention a parody of the Justice League but has enough back story on each of them to flesh out their characters. I do like that the Boys as a series takes time to develop their characters. From one who lost his significant one from an incident and learning to move on. To a hero who has fears of losing his powers and being irrelevant and being just a nobody. The heroes are as flawed as anyone and its one of the best aspect of the series. The Boys is basically this worlds version of the Suicide Squad but with a lot less funding and a lot more suicidal.

Special effects wise the series does work on a tv budget so don't expect anything really fancy happening nearly every minute. A lot of the tension and the plot are more plot and character driven rather than special effects but it shows enough super strength and super speed to show that these so called superheroes are both a savior and a threat to anyone that crosses them. I also like how it's a not afraid to screw someone Final Destination style just to show how brutal the series is going to get. Also I like how the entire series is in this sort of dark noir tone and the use of color on certain characters like Starlight has this bright color outfit that others don't have signifying how pure she is.

The series isn't without its drawbacks though as a certain relationship with a main character and a super chick didn't land at me as much as I wanted it. The whole date ala cloak and dagger scenario felt force which is somewhat more of a plot device to move the story from scene A to scene B. Still these are really minor nitpick to how good the first season of the Boys is in its entirety.

As a whole the Boys is a fresh gritty and mature take on the whole superheroes and how powers in the wrong people can lead to trouble. The series is well paced despite its fewer episode with enough character development on its core characters. if your a fan of superheroes in general you will find something to like here. This series is rather mature however with some blood and gore so you don't like some violence this might not be for you. A must watch for mature comic and superhero fan everywhere.