The Boys Season One (2019) Developed By: Eric Kripke Starring: Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Dominique McElligott, Elisabeth Shue, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Kapon, Karen Fukuhara, Nathan Mitchell
Certificate: 18 Running Time: 55-66 Minutes per Episode, 8 Episodes
Tagline: "Never Meet Your Heroes"
One of the positives (or indeed negatives depending on how you feel about the subject) of the enormous popularity of TV/film comic-book adaptations over recent years is the vast range of source material that can and is being plundered for our viewing pleasure, including some that many of us probably hadn't even heard of before. The Boys is a great example of this. I certainly didn't know of it until Amazon unveiled it as the latest of their 'originals'. It is a fairly recent example though. Originally created in comic form by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson and released between 2006 and 2012, it's set in the real world (mainly the US) and is, as far as I know, the first realistic look at what a world with superheroes might really be like. The result wasn't remotely surprising either, considering what our society has become.
The world depicted here is home to many superpowered people. Some of them try to hide their powers and of course many use them for personal gain, but some choose to use them for good, perhaps acting as lone vigilantes, while others form groups. The most famous and powerful of these is known as The Seven and consists of a varied bunch of heroes seemingly inspired by ones we already know.
Homelander poses for photos with fans...
Homelander (Starr) is their leader and is basically Superman, Queen Maeve (McElligott) is reminiscent of Wonder Woman, A-Train (Usher) is a speedster much like The Flash, The Deep (Crawford) is more or less a carbon copy of Aquaman (even down to being considered a bit of a joke), Black Noir (Mitchell) is a masked (and mute) hero with super strength and agility, and lastly Translucent (Alex Hassell) is able to turn himself invisible. You might have noticed that this only makes six members of The Seven, and indeed the show begins just as the seventh hero, known as Lamplighter, has retired, with the team holding auditions for a new member. The lucky applicant is Annie, a.k.a. Starlight (Moriarty), who can emit intense light.
Annie is a young, wholesome American girl and joins The Seven, not to be adored, but in the hope of being able to help people and do good. She soon learns, however, that the reality is a little different. The Seven, you see, are under the ownership of a powerful corporation called Vought International (slogan: "We make heroes super" - chortle!) who go to great lengths to market and monetise them, and the decisions as to which people they help/save are generally made based on maximising their exposure and reputation, and accordingly make more money.
Billy and Hughie try to think of a way to stop the supes...
Unfortunately, despite appearing heroic and caring in public, most of them are total dicks behind closed doors and care little (if at all) about normal people. The veteran Queen Maeve is burnt out, A-Train cares only about being the fastest speedster, The Deep uses his fame to hook up with chicks, and the worst of the lot is the arrogant, sadistic Homelander. One of the few outsiders who knows all this is Billy Butcher (Urban), a former CIA operative (despite apparently being English) who vehemently despises all superpowered people, especially Homelander whom he holds responsible for the disappearance (or death?) of his wife. He is the leader, and at the start of the show the only member, of the titular Boys who, after a few episodes of resistance from prospective members, eventually consist of five.
These include two old associates of his - Frenchie (Kapon) and the strangely-named Mother's Milk (Alonso), who do not get on, as well as Hughie (Quaid) whose girlfriend was recently killed by A-Train thanks to his obsession with being the fastest speedster which resulted in him literally running through her during a drug-induced practise run. They are later joined by a mute, feral-like girl they name The Female (Fukuhara).
Starlight is unveiled as the newest member of The Seven...
Their mandate is to expose and/or take down these heinous so-called 'heroes' as well as the corrupt corporation that manages them. Quite how 'normal', non-powered individuals might hope to do this is anyone's guess of course, and much of the show's humour comes from The Boys trying to figure this out. Well, for the first few episodes at least, but they do make some headway. Billy and Hughie are the most motivated as they both have a personal stake in their immensely difficult/risky endeavour, being particularly keen on taking out Homelander and A-Train respectively, but their bickering buddies are more than happy to help out. Happily there's a varied, appealing cast behind them too. There aren't many I was already familiar with if I'm honest (just Urban I think) but there are numerous standouts regardless.
It's hard for me to say how accurate the characters or their portrayals are compared to the source material as I've never encountered it, but from a newbie's perspective the casting choices were fantastic. Most of the 'heroes' have at least two different personas to convincingly pull off but it's hard to fault any of them. Usher impresses as A-Train whose public cockiness gives way to fear in private, and Starr is fantastic as Homelander; confident and caring in public, stern and imposing as leader of The Seven, blatantly uncaring, and rarely letting his guard down.
Homelander and Queen Maeve assess the situation...
Things are arguably easier for their opposite numbers who at least only have one persona to perfect. Quaid is excellent as the neurotic Hughie who acts as the show's (and our?) moral compass and Simon Pegg makes a few welcome appearances as his father, but Urban is, for me, the standout here as the perhaps-overzealous Billy Butcher complete with a Cockney accent/mannerisms and penchant for inflicting extreme violence both dialled up to eleven. Ironically, it's the former he's had a bit of stick for on social media (what don't people moan about there these days?) which is pretty funny really. Even as a Brit, so often mocked in films/shows, I can't help but chortle every time he calls someone a 'knobber' or uses some other stereotypical piece of slang, but while some may have a problem with it, it's fine for me.
Another standout is the lovely Erin Moriarty as Annie/Starlight whose lifelong dream is realised in getting chosen to join The Seven, only for crushing disappointment to sink in when the reality hits her. Special mention must also go to Elizabeth Shue who I haven't seen since Hollow Man some twenty years ago who is outstanding as Madelyn Stillwell, the scheming vice-president of 'hero management' at Vought International.
A-Train shows he's the man once again...
I kinda feel bad for leaving anyone out really though - pretty much all the main characters are great and many of the numerous supporting characters are worthy of more time too - and together, along with the simple-but-engaging story, help a genre that was surely in danger of oversatturation feel fresh again. Some might find the show and its themes rather cynical but they are also relevant and it's just realistic as far as I'm concerned, assuming 'powered' people were a reality. Not just regarding the monetisation (and potential weaponisation) of the heroes, but also their attitudes. Who can honestly say they would retain their humble and compassionate sensibilities after (presumably) decades with superhuman powers spent basking in the adulation of millions like the ones on show here? Very few I imagine.
And that's without seeing goodness knows how much merchandise modelled on you, starring as yourself in superhero movies, and even being the subject of theme parks! Okay, maybe only a few already-impaired people would end up like Homelander. The guy is narcissistic and sadistic at best, psychopathic at worst, but the rest? I can see it, personally. Of course, there's a chance that I'm cynical too, who can say?!
Frenchie and Mother's Milk love each other really...
Suffice to say, it's definitely not your run-of-the-mill superhero show. Much of the time the focus isn't even on the 'heroes' for one thing, and even when it is, there's very little actual heroic stuff going on. Thanks to Starlight's arrival, though, we get to see much of the process through the eyes of a naive, hopeful beginner, and it's all pretty funny in a ridiculous kind of way (except for one thing - you'll know when you see it). There are of course plenty of comedic moments and it's also very violent (too much, even, for my wife) with lots of strong profanity (mostly from Billy), but overall it's a nice mix of styles and a real quality show. Pretty much every aspect of the show is top-notch, from the writing, camera work and acting to the costumes, special effects and some fantastic action sequences.
Whether fans of the comics are happy I don't know - I have to assume so as we all know how much fuss they like to make online when they aren't - but for the rest of us, even the ones who have grown weary of all this superhero tomfoolery, The Boys is a engaging thrill ride of a satire that will keep you entertained from beginning to end, and I'm very glad I gave it a chance. The only question is, have they kept this quality going for the already-aired second season? I'll soon find out...
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