The Boys season 1: 6 reasons why this show is more than just violence

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The Boys has made its debut, and it’s a groundbreaking project for comic book fans and future comic book show creators.

The Boys was one of the more hardcore and unapologetic comic books. Garth Ennis created a world where superheroes were real, and they were deplorable people. The funny thing is that it was popular and even nominated for awards. No one would have thought this would eventually become a TV show. With all of the foul language, extreme violence, nudity, and more, there’s no way a network would take a chance on it. And it didn’t help that a couple of networks did in fact turn it down. Thankfully, Seth Rogen kept pushing, and Amazon’s streaming service picked it up.

Season 1 of The Boys started streaming on July 26th (July 25th if you have Amazon Prime), and no one knew what to expect going in, even the fans of the comic book series. As a huge fan of the comic, and after watching all 8 episodes in a sitting, I have to say this was an incredible adaptation. It gave fans everything they could have wanted from start to finish. More importantly, it also gave people who know nothing about the comic something to enjoy. Allow me to explain what made The Boys the success it is.

Photo: The Boys.. Jan Thijs/Amazon Prime Video

Changing just enough

One of the biggest problems with creating comic book movies and shows is that you can’t follow the story 100%. Some things will have to be changed. A character may have to look different to fit better on screen, and sometimes parts of the stories will be cut because they just don’t work. It stinks, but it’s true. The Boys is no different. There were too many parts of the source material that are too raunchy for a show, even if was going to be uncensored. There were also characters whose looks were too ridiculous to recreate. For example, in the comics, The Deep wore a silly, old school diving helmet. There’s no way that translates well, and changes like this helped the show.

There were also some adjustments to the characters. Butcher wasn’t with the government, Mother’s Milk, Butcher, and Frenchie didn’t have powers, and Queen Maeve is gay. These changes may seem minor, but helped the story. Queen Maeve had a deeper story. In the comics, she was just a drunk. With Maeve leaving a woman she loved, you can understand why she became so cold. Especially since Homelander pretty much said he’d kill any person she was with.

Then there’s the relationship between Stillwell and Homelander. When you see what’s going on with them, it gives Homelander more layers. They’re somewhat disturbing layers, but they help make him who he is. While there were some alterations to the source material, they did leave in the most crucial elements.

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While staying true to the characters

The Boys has a plethora of incredible characters. They were changed a bit, and it was for the good. Changing too much of the characters from the source material can turn fans off. Otherwise, it’s not even a true adaptation of the comic; it’s different entity all together. This show did a phenomenal job of keeping the things that matter. Mother’s Milk’s need for things to be in the right place, Frenchie’s love for the Female, and how much Butcher hated Homelander are all perfect examples. All of this will be needed to keep this series going.

Another perfect example is the moment that set Hughie on his mission. Hughie was with his girlfriend Robin, and she was killed by A-Train, an accident due to A-Train’s recklessness. Originally, this happened at a fair. This time, however, it was in the street. The setting wasn’t important, but the moment was. As gruesome as it was, this was important, and it had to happen this way. Hughie’s hatred for A-Train was a staple in the comic book. It’s also how Hughie gets introduced to The Boys in the first place. Even though things between A-Train and Hughie escalated faster in the show, it didn’t matter. The crucial parts were spot on.

Image Source: Comixology Digital Comics

Hughie and Annie

On the surface, this series seems like it’s all about the violence and cheap laughs. The trailers for  didn’t help the cause much, either. But all of the random sex scenes, blood, and gore that was shown in the trailers doesn’t tell the entire story. The more you get into the show, the more you realize that it’s more than that. In the comics, The Boys had an important meaning — one about finding people. The Boys found each other and became a family. This was pivotal in the comic book and will remain so in the show. This was highlighted the most with relationships between Hughie and Annie (Starlight). Their story is the most important part of this series.

One of the best moments from season one of the show and volume 1 of the comic is the talk Annie and Hughie have on a park bench. They were both at a crossroads in their lives and happened to be in the right spot at the right time. This one moment leads them into a relationship they weren’t expecting. Especially since they’re different people, from their tastes in life to how they were raised. As they said on the bench, “They found each other.” It was a beautifully done in the series. They changed the dialogue, but who cares? The message was there, and the scene was flawlessly executed.

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The disgraceful and deplorable antagonists

As it was stated earlier, the heroes are actually the antagonists here. They weren’t concerned about the well-being of regular people. They wanted money and the fame. Starlight was the only person with any intention of being a real hero. She wanted to save people. Meanwhile, A-Train was taking performance-enhancing drugs to make him the fastest man alive, and superheroes don’t cheat. Homelander threatened people with violence and death to get what he wanted. And The Deep was just disgusting on a level that you have to see to believe. As bad as they are, Vought American may be worse than the heroes.

Vought American is the corporation behind the heroes. Like a lot of companies, their biggest concern was making as much money as possible, even if it meant people were hurt in the process. They saw the heroes and thought about nothing but dollar signs, endorsements, public appearances, and using them to brainwash religious people.  They were even selling them to cities that needed help keeping citizens safe. The big money was in getting a government contract. Selling superheroes to the military would keep them rolling in billion dollar contracts for the rest of their lives and then some.

Worst of all, they even turned a blind eye to the horrible things that were going on. They just have them make a public apology (that they wrote) and relocated them to other places. This way, they could keep their revenue stream going. Vought American may be the true villain here.

Final thoughts

On a scale from 1-10, The Boys is a solid 9. You’re getting everything you want from a comic book show: action, a great story, and one heck of a cliffhanger at the end of the season. That last element is something that didn’t happen in the comics, but gives the viewers something to look forward to next season. Also, count of episodes is perfect. Get in, get out, and leave everyone wanting more. There wasn’t nearly as much violence and lude behavior as they advertised. There was just enough to remind people that, as the video above says, “This is NOT the Super Friends.” There was a superhero sex club, extreme dolphin love, and creatively done violent scenes. There were also some moments that may make people uncomfortable. Nonetheless, these are moments that highlight troubling things that happen in our society today.

The Boys is going to do what Blade, X-Men, and Deadpool did for movies. This is going to allow for more comic books to become shows, and do it their way. Wanted was based on a comic and was a poor representation of the source material. There was so much that couldn’t be used due to the graphic things that went on. Now, they won’t have that problem. Wanted can be redone and the creators hopefully won’t have to worry about their work being recreated to appeal to everyone. In ten years, pieces are going to be written about how The Boys changed the way comic book shows are produced.