Review: The Boys S3 Episode 1

The Boys are back in the third season of Amazon’s savage superhero satire show. 4 stars.

(Image: Amazon Studios)

The second season of The Boys was, well, explosive to sum it up in one word and if the first episode of S3 is anything to go by then the new season is going to be just as enjoyable and full of incredible satire and sharp writing.

Things have calmed down a little bit since the last season. We first meet all our favourite- and least favourite supes- at the premiere of their new film The Dawn of the Seven where they’re dealing with the fallout of the Nazi superhero Stormfront from the previous season. Hughie is now working for the government trying to bring the supes down. But for both Hughie and Butcher, there’s still something missing in their lives. They itch to return to all the blood and gore and leave this peaceful life behind.

Giancarlo Esposito’s cold Stan Edgar is still running Vought, but he’s got a new toy this time around. His scientists have developed a new drug that could be even more dangerous than Compound V. It has the ability to turn people into supes, but for only 24 hours. Edgar very much likes the sound of this as it will give him far more control over his team of superheroes if he can just take away their powers at any second. But when Hughie and Butcher find out about it, and when Homelander starts to get a little bit too pissed off, things aren’t going to end well.

The first episode of S3 continues with the same high level of witty and bitingly satirical writing that graced the first two seasons. It’s incredibly funny, taking digs at the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement as well as letting us see superheroes in a completely different light than how we normally do. There’s one supe we meet with the ability to shrink, very much like Ant-Man, but what happens on screen is entirely different to anything we’ve ever seen Ant-Man do in a Marvel movie.

Even just one episode into the new season, it’s setting itself up very nicely for what’s to come and it’s already proving just how fun and entertaining this irreverent TV show is. Antony Starr as always is absolutely fantastic as the horribly menacing Homelander, who’s already up to no good and yet even worse evil than normal. But will The Boys be able to finally stop him this season? Who knows?

The Boys S3 will premiere with the first three episodes on Friday, 3rd June, and new episodes available each Friday.