“The Boys” Season 3 Arrives on Amazon With Hype to Spare
In one narrative thread of season two of Amazon’s gleefully unhinged superhero sendup The Boys, Homelander (Antony Starr) pursued a very messy relationship with Stormfront (Aya Cash). Their budding romance became problematic when Stormfront was revealed to be a full-blown Nazi, a public relations nightmare for the slightly more subtly sadistic Homelander, and it ended, as many relationships do in this show, in an abundance of gore.
Season three has now arrived, with Homelander out there trying to tell anyone who will listen that he’s been chastened by falling for the wrong girl and has learned invaluable lessons. This, of course, is his public face. In private, the sociopathic supe is hellbent on making his enemies pay, and everyone else bend the knee to his obvious supremacy. Yet he has other problems, namely a new-and-improved Billy Butcher (Karl Urban). Thanks to a serum delivered by Stormfront’s former number two Maeve (Dominque McElligott), Billy can now become a supe for 24 hours.
Season three will also reveal and explore the life of Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles) while introducing more new supes like Blue Hawk (Nick Wechsler), and the Crimson Countess (Laurie Holden). Meanwhile, returning champions will have their own stories to tell, including Hughie (Jack Quaid), Starlight (Erin Moriarty), A-Train (Jessie T. Usher), Mother’s Milk (Laz Alonso), The Deep (Chace Crawford), Frenchie (Tomer Capone), and Kimiko (Karen Fukuhara).
So what are the critics saying? Largely, that The Boys season three manages to juggle the increasingly complex storylines and fan expectations with aplomb, delivering the kind of gory catharsis that the show’s become beloved for.
“Kripke successfully maintains the series’ high caliber consistency with season three. The Boys continues its streak of anarchic energy, sardonic humor, and self-indulgence made all the more entertaining by its bursts of extreme gonzo violence,” Bloody Disgusting‘s Meagan Navarro writes, calling out showrunner Eric Kripke.
The Wrap‘s Karama Horne says that “Executive producer Eric Kripke and the show’s writers find new and inventive ways to freak us out.” One of those ways is by upping the ante on just how evil Homelander can get, as he steps “fully into the role of supervillain this season, threatening a ‘scorched earth’ scenario unless everyone bends to his will.”
“Through it all, the moral murkiness and messy consequences are never less than compelling in a season that blurs the line between the good guys and the bad guys more than ever before,” says Empire Magazine‘s Amon Warmann.
YouTube‘s Perri Nemiroff writes The Boys return is “An expansive exploration of power and what it means to have it. That theme amplifies quite a few character arcs, but Annie and Kimiko’s journeys prove to be the Season 3 standout.”
You can decide for yourself—The Boys season three is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
For more on Amazon Prime Video, check out these stories:
Composer René G. Boscio on Scoring Teenage Turmoil in “Emergency”
“The Boys” Season 3 Trailer Reveals Billy Butcher’s Super Status & Newcomer Soldier Boy
Ben Affleck & Matt Damon Teaming for Film About Nike Landing Michael Jordan
Amazon in Talks to Assemble “Voltron” Movie With “Red Notice” Director Rawson Marshall Thurber
Featured image: Featured image: Karl Urban (Billy Butcher), Antony Starr (Homelander). Courtesy Amazon Studios.
