The Boys Season 1 Review: Not Your Granny's Superheroes

Just when you think media couldnt be any more saturated with superheroes, Amazon gives us "The Boys". It's a eight episode series based on a comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The TV show was developed by Eric Kripke.

Our main superheros are known as "The Seven". They include: Homelander, Queen Maeve, The Deep, A Train, Black Noir (who never says anything) and Translucent. They are eventually joined by Starlight/Annie January after LampLighter retires.

But these are not your ordinary goody two shoes. Most are despicable when ya get to know them-- and they get away with anything/everything. A big company (Vought) manages ever aspect of their public life. There are publicists, marketing departments, handlers (Madelyn Stillwell is VP), analysts who tell them the best time to save someone in order to optimize their social media traffic, etc. They are NOT in the business of saving people. They are in the business of making money for Vought (who is trying to sell their services to the government for a VERY big price tag).

This is where "The Boys" come in. In the first episode we see Hughie Campbell's (Jack Quaid) girlfriend Robin demolished by a drugged out A Train. There was nothing left of her body after he ran straight through her. Hughie vows to take A Train down and teams up with Billy Butcher (Karl Urban). Billy is out to get Homelander due to what he did to his wife. They are later joined by Frenchie, Mother's Milk/Marvin and The Female/Kimiko.

We also meet a few others with superpowers-- Ezekiel, Mesmer, Popclaw, Doppleganger, and Shockwave.

I wont give away the specifics of the story line since that would ruin the enjoyment of watching it. I will say the episodes moved along at a nice clip. I wasnt bored. There are plenty of twists and turns. Definitely stay for the finale. The biggest surprises are there.

Grade: 4 Monsters (out of 5). I was initially skeptical as to if I would enjoy "The Boys". Gotta say I'm pleasantly surprised. I always wanted to see some "dirt" behind those sqeuky clean images. "The Boys" delivers that in spades.

All the actors were great. I always love Karl Urban (Billy Butcher) in everything he does. I didnt realize that Jack Quaid is the son of Dennis Quaid and Meg Ryan. Erin Moriarty is also a standout as Starlight. And I enjoyed Elizabeth Shue as the icely effective mastermind behind Vought. I hope we see more of Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott) next season.

I hear there are plenty more superheros from the comics. We'll see who shows up in season 2 (the show has already been renewed). That's a good thing, because the Seven is down a few team members.