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The Wife and I (finally) finished season one of The Boys last night. If you're unfamiliar with the Prime Video series or comic, here's a quick summary...

The story of The Boys depicts a bleak world filled with power-imbued superheroes who have become reckless, selfish and hedonistic, leaving citizens in danger. Thus, an angry, ultra-violent Englishman named Billy Butcher puts together his own team of ex-military personnel with black ops experience to watch the proverbial watchmen, calling themselves, you guessed it, the Boys.

So that was the synopsis that I posted prior to watching the series. Now that I've finished the first season, I would add a few things.

This ain't Marvel (or DC). Decapitations, bodies exploding, "heroes" straight-up murdering people. Make no mistake, this is an ultra-violent program. Certainly a far cry from what our superhero genre movies and shows have taught us over the years. The lead hero - a mash-up of Superman and Captain America named "Homelander" - drops F-bombs and downs civilian planes when he's not in the public eye.

BUT, that is what makes the show so compelling. It takes the superhero tropes and flips them upside down. The "supes" (as Billy Butcher calls them) are not all bad - but definitely not all good either. The Boys essentially humanizes superheroes. I mean, let's face it: that's how it would be if these things were real. "Absolute power corrupts absolutely", right?

It's not Good vs. Evil. I think what I find most compelling is that there really are no "good guys" or "bad guys". Sure, the "supes" are doing some bad stuff (sex, power-hungry, manipulation of the public, etc.), but The Boys are definitely not angels in comparison. There is plenty of crime that is committed in the name of revenge.

While the show (and the comic) definitely aims to entertain, I think that there are some underlying philosophical issues with which some of the main characters are grappling.

For instance, Hughie Campbell (ably played by Jack Quaid) is the 'innocent' of The Boys who has been a huge fan of the superheroes (namely A-Train) his whole life. But when his girlfriend is accidentally killed by A-Train, he goes down a very dark path that leads to him murdering another superhero. This conflict between the good side of him that wants nothing to do with The Boys, and the vengeful side of him that wants to dole out justice is a great juxtaposition and Quaid does a excellent job capturing that internal struggle.

I'm not going to give you a detailed synopsis of the first season, as I don't want to spoil anything for would-be watchers. What I will say is that we thoroughly enjoy the show, even though there are some cringe-worthy moments (mostly due to violence).

Onward to season two!

[FYI, the season two trailer is violent too - but not nearly as much as the actual show.]