Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

The first 3 episodes are up. Apparently the release structure is an episode per week until the finale from this point forward. I'm not a fan of that, but it worked for The Mandalorian...

They really should've only released the first two episodes though

Anyways, it's just good as the first season so far.

I take it a key point of the spoilered characters back story crops up in episode 3, trexmeyer?

Karl Urban and his aura of pure passionate hugging that can be felt three houses away.

 Dysartes wrote:
I take it a key point of the spoilered characters back story crops up in episode 3, trexmeyer?

If you're familiar with the comics then it won't be surprising.

 trexmeyer wrote:

 Dysartes wrote:
I take it a key point of the spoilered characters back story crops up in episode 3, trexmeyer?

If you're familiar with the comics then it won't be surprising.

I am not, and when she

The three episode thing is vaguely engrumping but even two episodes of Butcher goodness is close to overdose of awesome

Also I thought the dolphin mishap from s1 would take some beating but poor poor Lucy

 AduroT wrote:

 trexmeyer wrote:

 Dysartes wrote:
I take it a key point of the spoilered characters back story crops up in episode 3, trexmeyer?

If you're familiar with the comics then it won't be surprising.

I am not, and when she

Spoiler:

zapped that first dude I was like what the F? Then she took out the kids and it sort of clicked. Is she perhaps named in reference to the Daily Stormer? That was my immediate assumption.

My favorite part of the 3 eps so far has still be "Until you beg me to stop, and then... I still won't stop, I can't".

 Ouze wrote:
My favorite part of the 3 eps so far has still be "Until you beg me to stop, and then... I still won't stop, I can't".

 trexmeyer wrote:
They really should've only released the first two episodes though

Spoiler:

just so we could witness people espousing their love for Stormfront for a solid week.

In hindsight, I kinda agree with you.

Up until that moment I was 100% onboard with Stormfront. She seemed to be making sense and saying what everyone should be thinking.

And then...

 H.B.M.C. wrote:

 trexmeyer wrote:
They really should've only released the first two episodes though

Spoiler:

just so we could witness people espousing their love for Stormfront for a solid week.

In hindsight, I kinda agree with you.

Up until that moment I was 100% onboard with Stormfront. She seemed to be making sense and saying what everyone should be thinking.

And then...

I've not started season 2 yet but am interested in the gender-swapped Stormfront. The character as written really has to be a man, but updated to the modern era, and with the supea origin moving forward in time in the show, I see it working better as a woman.

nfe wrote:
I've not started season 2 yet but am interested in the gender-swapped Stormfront. The character as written really has to be a man, but updated to the modern era, and with the supea origin moving forward in time in the show, I see it working better as a woman.

The original one was probably a bit outdated, so I don't mind ,especially since the whole show steers in a different direction anyway.
What annoys me is that they teased the new season for a few months now and only release 3 episodes.
I want to binge that stuff, who knows if the world still exists in a few weeks XD

I think the comics kinda sucked TBH - a lot of interesting ideas, but it had too much puerile edgelord stuff slathered all over it.

The show's adaptation is much, much better to my thinking.

I read through a detailed synopsis of all The Boys comics prior to the start of Season 1, back when the first trailers came out.

My comment at the time "... they better have some paramedics on hand to help after they cut themselves on all that edginess", but thankfully the show has't been the comics (even if I do like the Homelander/Black Noir twist). The show has been far better at showing restraint.

As far as Stormfront goes, I don't think they'll just do the original backstory with just a gender-swap. I think that they'll update it somewhat.

It's literally the the best improvement over source material that I know of next to Last of the Mohicans. Maybe you could count reimagined BSG as well if you consider the OG series to be the source material.
I wonder how the creator feels about it. He's probably making a pretty penny, but reading online about how much people prefer the show to your comic has to smart.

Statistx wrote:

nfe wrote:
I've not started season 2 yet but am interested in the gender-swapped Stormfront. The character as written really has to be a man, but updated to the modern era, and with the supea origin moving forward in time in the show, I see it working better as a woman.

The original one was probably a bit outdated, so I don't mind ,especially since the whole show steers in a different direction anyway.
What annoys me is that they teased the new season for a few months now and only release 3 episodes.
I want to binge that stuff, who knows if the world still exists in a few weeks XD

I've watched the first two, I really like how they've done Stormfront so far, though I'm watching it assuming what the twist is


I guess they might take an even bigger diversion from the comics, though.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 trexmeyer wrote:
It's literally the the best improvement over source material that I know of next to Last of the Mohicans. Maybe you could count reimagined BSG as well if you consider the OG series to be the source material.
I wonder how the creator feels about it. He's probably making a pretty penny, but reading online about how much people prefer the show to your comic has to smart.

He says he likes it - as he does Preacher - and while he's not Alan Moore, he doesn't seem like someone who'd hide his true feelings on it, but I think there are plenty people who far prefer the comics.

I like both, comic and show, as two different entities, which is possible since they divert a lot. I accept that the comic is very edgy, but I also would have loved to see the internet shitstorm to some of the original ideas, if they had brought them to the mainstream TV.
I watched the show before I read the comic too.

Statistx wrote:
I like both, comic and show, as two different entities, which is possible since they divert a lot. I accept that the comic is very edgy, but I also would have loved to see the internet shitstorm to some of the original ideas, if they had brought them to the mainstream TV.
I watched the show before I read the comic too.

Same here. Comic is probably one of my favourite series. I don't care how edgy it is.
The Amazon show does a good job, but it really only takes core concepts from the comic.

 Hanskrampf wrote:

Statistx wrote:
I like both, comic and show, as two different entities, which is possible since they divert a lot. I accept that the comic is very edgy, but I also would have loved to see the internet shitstorm to some of the original ideas, if they had brought them to the mainstream TV.
I watched the show before I read the comic too.

Same here. Comic is probably one of my favourite series. I don't care how edgy it is.
The Amazon show does a good job, but it really only takes core concepts from the comic.

Did you see that a current running sequel-ish series came out?
It's called "Dear Becky", not sure what to think of it so far

I read Dear Becky #1. Butcher's writing is interesting, but Hughie in the pub is a car crash.

nfe wrote:
I read Dear Becky #1. Butcher's writing is interesting, but Hughie in the pub is a car crash.

His stuff has no real substance I feel, but the Butcher parts evolve to similar stuff like in the older ones, going after groups and such, just without Hughie.
Some gory fun ensues with "Stormfronts children"

I think it suggests Butcher started off not unlike Hughie, and the pub scene is obviously meant to suggest Hughie ends up as cynical as Butcher. It's just that the pub scene is horribly delivered. I can't decide whether Hughie is meant to come over as a grumpy boomer or whether that's accidental.

I agree that purely for impact on people who don't know the comics or haven't had it spoilered, a week between Ep2 and 3 would have been the best.

It was like watching people love on Jon Snow, while grinning at the immense pleasure you would take at their pain when it so suddenly happens.

 Hanskrampf wrote:

Statistx wrote:
I like both, comic and show, as two different entities, which is possible since they divert a lot. I accept that the comic is very edgy, but I also would have loved to see the internet shitstorm to some of the original ideas, if they had brought them to the mainstream TV.
I watched the show before I read the comic too.

Same here. Comic is probably one of my favourite series. I don't care how edgy it is.
The Amazon show does a good job, but it really only takes core concepts from the comic.

I liked the book as a slap down to the fup awful 90s grimderp period in comics, it mis-stepped from time to time but was quite the ride

The show feels more of a poke at the MCU, WB et al which to the Big Bang generation are the defacto version of capes, and getting a lady Thor before the official version was cheeky clever

Episode #4 is out. Looks like everything is going to be a day early for Texans.

 trexmeyer wrote:
Episode #4 is out. Looks like everything is going to be a day early for Texans.

Spoiler:

Holy heck. The Stormfront Everyone Homelander meme.

All of those were pretty good really.

Just watching the first few episodes and I have read all the comic. I don’t get the people saying it’s this deep and realistic take on superheroes. Even as a satire and parody it’s incredibly hypocritical. I can understand that it’s very saturated and there’s a desire to see it taken down a peg; but this just isn’t it.

The Boys are a superhero team. You have a group of vigilantes who take it upon themselves to use violence to solve their problems. Just because they wear normal clothes and don’t live in a tower doesn’t change that. Even more absurd when some of them actually have superpowers. So it’s extremely convenient that they are not themselves a danger that could cause collateral damage and a menace to society. If the show isn’t going to aim at criticising this element of superhero stories then it’s only a superficial and two faced one.

The 7 are super villains, not heroes. Given the amount of elseworld stories and even just super villains I can’t get how people think it’s prophetic or insightful. Every comic is replete with power mad and corrupt individuals. Comics certainly have considered and taken this into account. Our Heroes are exceptional because they’re held against that standard. So it’s not a criticism of superheroes because they aren’t superheroes. The whole Heroes Journey, reluctant hero and all that isn’t just window dressing that you can strip away and then claim you’re satirising Superheroes. It’s gutting the genre and not taking it on its own terms.

The whole premise is absurd. Sure, a pharmaceutical company creates superheroes as a publicity stunt. These are pampered celebrities. Fine. How would this result in them being anywhere near as violent and sociopathic? Why would they want the responsibility and danger when they could just be pampered WWE and film stars? With no external threat and the government for some reason not interested in weaponising this; that is the realistic outcome. This is why Hancock and One Punch Man do a much better job of parodying the genre and are far more believable.

They have to resort to making the characters insane. Considering the acceptance of the hand wave explanation that power corrupts it sure is bizarre how these stories require their characters to be insane to work. This is because the writers are fully aware that the main check on people cutting loose is because the bonds of society and people’s need to be loved and respected by people would act against such impulses. It is improbable that such a collection of psychopaths would hold a monopoly on superpowers. Plus, by changing Superman’s origin entirely he is no longer Superman at that point and so it’s not making a relevant critique.

Making the powers not work at the convenience of the plot. Superman can lift a plane. Homelander cannot because reasons. He can have eye lasers to casually murder people but he can’t have powers when he would be inclined to save people. That is a contrived situation and isn’t a valid or meaningful criticism.

There is this obsession that heroes cause collateral damage. Again, why Vought would make its WWE stars get involved in violent confrontations is beyond me. But again, this is absurd. Conventional armies cause far more collateral damage. If they had to roll out the ordinance to meet the threats superheroes do; they would kill vastly more people. Will superman kill more people punching Doomsday into space or the Government bombing metropolis or sending Raptor jets/Apache gunships into a city. Plus, the level of threat that would require Superman to use his powers is almost always so extreme that there is no choice and he isn’t the cause of the conflict. Without that threat, of course it’s absurd that a bystander might die from a bank robbery. Not so absurd if all of humanity is about to be consumed by Brainiac and it’s either fight him or let him do it. Characters that actually fight crime like Batman make a great show out of not killing. Superman and Wonder Woman don’t really fight crime like this and what they’re killing is monsters. So it’s a huge leap to cast them as jack booted thugs.

I think it’s well done and works fine as yet another multiverse tale where the Justice League are villains. But it’s no where near as transcendent and pulling the veil from our eyes as people are making it out to be.

I feel like you missed the point or at least one of the more serious ones.....



These aren't direct ports of superman/wonderwoman/batmat etc. They're not even "dark verse" versions. They are literally normal humans with powers that the original author clothed in the most well known super hero tropes to help tell the story.

 Hulksmash wrote:
I feel like you missed the point or at least one of the more serious ones.....

Spoiler:

Nazi scientist makes super serum. Runs for hills with super serum to escape the impending german loss. Founds company that secretly experiments on people creating super beings. Most/all of those beings are still being raised in a fairly normal home and are people that have people issues.

Enter Homelander. They were still experimenting. Created a super super. Said super super is experimented on and raised by a scientist as a lab animal constantly being poked and prodded. As such he has RAD (Reactive Attachment Disorder) and hardcore sociopathic tendencies. Once he's out there is zero controlling him outside of mind games. He starts to twist the 7 (remember he picks the original 7) to be more like him.

These guys are almost never out there doing tons of saving/stopping crime. The 7 basically show up for photo op crime events and use them to promote films and themselves. They literally get prepped for crime fighting by legal and PR.

These aren't direct ports of superman/wonderwoman/batmat etc. They're not even "dark verse" versions. They are literally normal humans with powers that the original author clothed in the most well known super hero tropes to help tell the story.

I get that the focus is a critique on the corruption of big business, abuse and celebrity culture. However that’s very far from how the show is being discussed and the comic was far more critical of the genre generally. If so many Youtubers and commentators take the story to be premised on “saving us from superhero stories”; then I am left scratching my head. There’s an insinuation that it’s the superpowers that are the problem. Butchers solution is to murder all the superheroes (the same motivation as Modok in the Avengers game funnily enough). There’s very little discussion on destroying Vought or attacking the company and it’s employees. I get that impression that if Butcher and the Boys could kill the Superheroes and keep Vought they would be happy with that. So I think there is an anti-superhero agenda and the anti corporate stuff might just be window dressing.

For example when Butcher tells Hughie that superheroes get away with it because people like the idea of somebody saving them rather than helping themselves. That is a spectacular distortion of the moral behind every superhero story. The whole purpose is that they are coming of age tales designed to instil a sense of personal responsibility and obligation to other people. It is not there to teach you that the state and big business will handle everything for you. It would be pretty bad WW2 propaganda if it had that message. In fact, the Boys comics pro military stance and endless droning on about how everything should left to the experts and top men. I mean that’s actually the Hobbesian ideal; not as Butcher frames it here. Plus, again there’s the hypocrisy of the Boys being a superhero team who want to kill all superheroes. If you’re okay with the idea of a vigilante group going out to get revenge and using super powered violence; then that’s a very shaky criticism of superheroes.

Are you saying they aren’t trying to make a satire of the Justice League? Surely that has to be the goal here?