# The Boys S1 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, amazon-prime\ **Created:** [June 17, 2019, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656 "2019-06-17T20:58:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/41 "2019-07-29T01:51:57Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Your opinion is weird, it is very little like the Mystery Men movie. I don’t know about original or not, but not copying MM much at all. Mystery Men and several other movies were about those with very minor powers. This is really very different. The 7 are pretty super and the other group have no super powers at all. I think it is mostly a story about corruption though at its heart. And, like many Phil Dick stories, a central question is “what does it mean to be human?” ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ecks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ecks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ecks)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/42 "2019-07-29T02:22:27Z")
I watched the first four episodes after reading the positive reviews, and it’s actually quite good. Yes, it’s dark and depressing, but it doesn’t wallow in it as much as the comic. Yes, the supers are terrible people, but they have understandable motivations, unlike the comic where they seem to be arbitrarily horrible. I mean, Starlight still gets raped, but in the comic it was by the whole squad. Homelanders weird Oedipal thing is so creepy and pathetic I feel sorry for him, and his disgust at having to pretend to have had a normal childhood is telling. The plot changes are a bit of an improvement, with the whole “what is compound V” mystery giving the crew a goal beyond killing random Supers in gory and humiliating ways. I like selling supers to cities like sports teams- something that makes a lot of sense but I don’t think was in the comic. And yeah, it doesn’t have much in common with Mystery Men besides a corporate sponsored hero. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/43 "2019-07-29T02:39:42Z")
The only needed Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto to get the whole team back together. Liked it, will watch season 2 when it comes out. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/44 "2019-07-29T02:39:44Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Your opinion is weird, it is very little like the Mystery Men movie. I don’t know about original or not, but not copying MM much at all. Mystery Men and several other movies were about those with very minor powers. This is really very different. The 7 are pretty super and the other group have no super powers at all. I think it is mostly a story about corruption though at its heart. Captain Amazing is/was very powerful. And the 7 are just the Justice league, more or less. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/45 "2019-07-29T03:25:41Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Captain Amazing is/was very powerful. It’s hard to disagree with this statement. > [@DrDeth](#): > > And the 7 are just the Justice league, more or less. But easy to disagree with this one. “Team of superheroes” is where the similarities end, IMO. Overall, I agree with **What Exit?**'s assessment of your assessment: > [@What\_Exit](#): > > Your opinion is weird, ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/46 "2019-07-29T04:10:52Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > It’s hard to disagree with this statement.But easy to disagree with this one. “Team of superheroes” is where the similarities end, IMO. To be fair to **DrDeth** I agree with him that they were pretty obviously meant to be a pastiche/parody of the Justice League. Homelander = Superman Queen Maeve = Wonder Woman The Deep = Aquaman A-Train = Flash Lamplighter = Green Lantern Black Noir = Batman Jack from Jupiter(comics )/Translucent( show ) = Martian Manhunter It’s very slightly less obvious in the show vs. the comic, as “Jack from Jupiter” is a very blatant tell. But still pretty clear. But other than that, I agree with you. Not getting much of a similarity to Mystery Men, other than the coincidental blond superhero. ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b2d939/32.png) [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Arachnid_Laser_1)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/47 "2019-07-29T07:24:24Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > To be fair to **DrDeth** I agree with him that they were pretty obviously meant to be a pastiche/parody of the Justice League. > > Homelander = Superman > Queen Maeve = Wonder Woman > The Deep = Aquaman > A-Train = Flash > Lamplighter = Green Lantern > Black Noir = Batman > Jack from Jupiter(comics )/Translucent( show ) = Martian Manhunter > > It’s very slightly less obvious in the show vs. the comic, as “Jack from Jupiter” is a very blatant tell. But still pretty clear. > > But other than that, I agree with you. Not getting much of a similarity to Mystery Men, other than the coincidental blond superhero. Oh, both Mystery Men and The Boys are postmodern deconstructions of Super Heroes. Neither were the first. There was Marshall Law, Dark Knight Returns, Watchmen… Hell, Roy Thomas created the Squadron Sinister in 1969. ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b2d939/32.png) [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Arachnid_Laser_1)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/48 "2019-07-29T07:35:58Z")
And, of course, Gardner Fox created the Crime Syndicate of America in '64. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/49 "2019-07-29T09:50:41Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > He sounds like (and looks like) Ravi from\* I Zombie. > \* The vocal resemblance is not as close as the physical one. And that goes no further than “man with beard”. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/50 "2019-07-29T18:01:32Z")
So “dead ringer” then? No real differences, eh? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Noelq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noelq/32/16438_2.png) [@Noelq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noelq)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/51 "2019-07-29T18:36:32Z")
Daaaamn… This show was amazing. Great story, very well interconnected, highly relevant, and just done REALLY well. The plane scene was PHENOMENAL. Still gives me shivers. And baby-lasers. You can’t go wrong with baby-lasers. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/52 "2019-07-29T19:40:01Z")
> [@Noelq](#): > > And baby-lasers. You can’t go wrong with baby-lasers. Loved that scene as well. However, given Butcher’s hatred of all sup’s, I’m surprised he didn’t try and kill the babies in the lab, but actually took great care to put it back into its incubator. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/53 "2019-07-31T01:26:49Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ecks](#): > > I watched the first four episodes after reading the positive reviews, and it’s actually quite good. Yes, it’s dark and depressing, but it doesn’t wallow in it as much as the comic. […] The plot changes are a bit of an improvement, with the whole “what is compound V” mystery giving the crew a goal beyond killing random Supers in gory and humiliating ways. Last year I read the plot synopsis on Wikipedia (I was curious after seeing that they were filming in Toronto), and it sounded a bit distasteful (to me) in terms of its EXXXTREME violence. So I was pleasantly surprised by how the TV series turned out. ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/54 "2019-07-31T06:19:00Z")
Went into this blind. Holy shit, it is dark. But good so far. I don’t know how to process the short dolphin rescue scene. I laughed, but what the hell! ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/55 "2019-07-31T12:45:11Z")
Which is exactly how you’re supposed to process it. Garth Ennis writes some seriously dark, but funny stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/56 "2019-07-31T12:54:33Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > Which is exactly how you’re supposed to process it. Garth Ennis writes some seriously dark, but funny stuff. Is it wrong I’m glad the dolphin died instead of it turning into a sex scene? ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b2d939/32.png) [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Arachnid_Laser_1)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/57 "2019-07-31T12:56:28Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > Which is exactly how you’re supposed to process it. Garth Ennis writes some seriously dark, but funny stuff. That wasn’t actually in the comics, though. Now, Ennis is still a producer, so it could still have been his idea, but in the comics The Deep was a largely irrelevant side character that appeared in few pages, mostly as background. He wore an old-timey diver’s helmet. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/58 "2019-07-31T15:05:58Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > I really liked Homelander explaining why he couldn’t just carry a plane in flight. I didn’t. He could have just grabbed onto the wing spars and carried the plane down. It would have easily handled the stress. ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/59 "2019-07-31T15:29:24Z")
> [@Dorjan](#): > > I didn’t. He could have just grabbed onto the wing spars and carried the plane down. It would have easily handled the stress. I just took that as him trying to calm Maeve down- He seems to be something of a sadistic prick. I think he likes being able to cause the death of us squishy normals on a whim, as evidenced in the scene where he unnecessarily kills the lone gunman in the high rise, staring him in the eyes as he dies. He had the barest pretense to allow the plane to go down, and he took it. I still have three episodes to go, which I’ll be finishing up tonight. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656/60 "2019-07-31T15:46:22Z")
Really enjoyed it. But I kept seeing seeing Jack Quaid (Hughie) as a young Michael Shannon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-boys-s1/835656.md?page=4)