"The Boys" on Amazon Prime Video

**Tippster** · 08-04-2019, 09:30 PM

Fucking great show. Your thoughts?

**dookeyXXX** · 08-04-2019, 09:55 PM

I dunno if I would go so far as to deem it "fucking great", but it is entertaining more often than not.

As an on again/off again comic nerd, I read the whole 90 issue run of The Boys by Garth Ennis (Preacher) and Darick Robertson prior to watching the Amazon show.
They changed a ton of stuff; some of the changes work, some don't.
I also found some of the casting to be off, in terms of how characters are portrayed in the comics. For example, I am not feeling Karl Urban as Butcher (Gerard Butler would have been a better choice, imho) or the Quaid kid as the Hughie character (in the comics Hughie is Scottish). Also the Queen Maeve actress is wrong for the part, imho (Lucy Lawless would have been perfect). Frenchie and The Female and Mother's Milk are spot on, though.
Additionally, they switched ethnicity and sex on a number of characters, which really makes no sense to me (in the comics The Deep is black; A-Train is white; Mallory is a man). They added new characters not in the comics and got rid of others altogether (in the comics there is a character named Jack From Jupiter who is replaced with Translucent in the show. There is another character named Our Father in the comic who is replaced by Ezekiel).
Some of the changes I've really dug, others not so much.
The cliffhanger ending of Season 1 was completely WTF? (WAY different from the source material). Even though I am not terribly taken by the show, I will watch Season 2 just to see where they go with the new material not from the comics.
FWIW, as mentioned above, the comics were written by Garth Ennis (best known for Preacher). I have not seen The Preacher series on AMC yet, so have no comparison as to how his work is being adapted to the small screen. I haven't seen any interviews with him knocking either series, fwiw.
That said, I powered through all 8 episodes last week and like enough of it to keep watching, though I think I ultimately dig the comics a bit more.

**Jacques Strap** · 08-05-2019, 01:20 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

OOC, have you read the source material (i.e. the comic books by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertston)?...dig the comics a bit more.

This is where I fall on every Ennis adaptation. His Punisher run was absolutely fan-fucking-tastic, but the movies it inspired were so fucking bad.

Preacher was a blast, the show was just alright. I'm with you on your take on The Boys.

I just pray they never try and make a Hitman movie or series.

**MTT** · 08-05-2019, 03:31 AM

I just kinda bing watched the season the past days. I guess I will wait for another season.

I Like Ms Maisel better

**JimmyCarter** · 08-05-2019, 07:31 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

OOC, have you read the source material (i.e. the comic books by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertston)?

I think it's probably "fucking great" if you have not read the comics. Otherwise, it's just okay.

I am an on again/off again comic nerd. I swing by the local comic shops every few months to see what is out and buy a few things here and there based on buzz and established names whose work I have enjoyed in the past. Had the whole 90 issue run of The Boys and powered through it a few weeks ago because of the show dropping.
They changed a ton of stuff, some works, some doesn't.
Some of the casting is off, imho, in terms of how characters are portrayed in the comics. For example, I am not feeling Karl Urban as Butcher (Gerard Butler would have been a better choice) or the Quaid kid as the Hughie character (in the comics Hughie is Scottish). Also the Queen Maeve actress is wrong for the part, imho (Lucy Lawless would have been perfect). Frenchie and The Female and Mother's Milk are spot on, though.
Additionally, they switched ethnicity and sex on a number of characters, which really makes no sense to me (in the comics The Deep is black; A-Train is white; Mallory is a man). They added new characters not in the comics and got rid of others altogether (in the comics there is a character named Jack From Jupiter who is replaced with Translucent in the show. There is another character named Our Father in the comic who is replaced by Ezekiel).
Some of the changes I've really dug, others not so much.
The cliffhanger ending of Season 1 was completely WTF? (WAY different from the source material). Even though I am not terribly taken by the show, I will watch Season 2 just to see where they go with the new material not from the comics.
FWIW, as mentioned above, the comics were written by Garth Ennis (best known for Preacher). I have not seen The Preacher series on AMC yet, so have no comparison as to how his work is being adapted to the small screen. I haven't seen any interviews with him knocking either series, fwiw.
That said, I powered through all 8 episodes last week and like enough of it to keep watching, though I think I ultimately dig the comics a bit more.

So wait...in the comics the worlds fastest man is white and the greatest swimmer is black? I'm not saying i agree with Amazon's change, but I understand.

**JimmyCarter** · 08-05-2019, 07:35 AM

Also, Garth Ennis thinks they nailed the casting, FWIW.

"Karl Urban as Billy Butcher is as close to perfect as I could imagine"

**Supermoon** · 08-05-2019, 07:49 AM

I haven’t read the source material, but I really liked the show. Watched it over the course of a week, but sat down for the last three episodes last night.

Was surprised that Starlight didn’t play a bigger role in the end game there, but I imagine season 2 will be her coming out party.

**dookeyXXX** · 08-05-2019, 09:21 AM

Originally Posted by JimmyCarter

Also, Garth Ennis thinks they nailed the casting, FWIW.

"Karl Urban as Billy Butcher is as close to perfect as I could imagine"

Interesting. My thought was "why did they get a NZ bloke to play an Eastender?"

PB · 08-05-2019, 09:26 AM

Originally Posted by Supermoon

I haven’t read the source material, but I really liked the show. Watched it over the course of a week, but sat down for the last three episodes last night.

Was surprised that Starlight didn’t play a bigger role in the end game there, but I imagine season 2 will be her coming out party.

Same here; seems like it's best to be comic-illiterate.

**dookeyXXX** · 08-05-2019, 09:26 AM

Originally Posted by JimmyCarter

So wait...in the comics the worlds fastest man is white and the greatest swimmer is black? I'm not saying i agree with Amazon's change, but I understand.

In the comics The Deep was an enigma and really didn't play that big of a part in the story. For example, in the comics he did not force himself on Starlight (it was, in fact, Homelander, A-Train, and Black Noir triple teaming!)

This is The Deep from the comics, fwiw. As you can see, they took some liberties to make him much more of an Aquaman spoof in the show.

Attachment 290232

**MTT** · 08-05-2019, 09:43 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

Interesting. My thought was "why did they get a NZ bloke to play an Eastender?"

To most of the people west of the Mississippi they all sound the same - From another Country

**JimmyCarter** · 08-05-2019, 09:56 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

Interesting. My thought was "why did they get a NZ bloke to play an Eastender?"

It may also have implicitly meant "Karl Urban is as close to perfect as our budget would allow" or "I'm under contract to pump up the show so I will say whatever you want me to"

**dookeyXXX** · 08-05-2019, 09:58 AM

Originally Posted by PB

Same here; seems like it's best to be comic-illiterate.

Touche

**Tippster** · 08-06-2019, 12:14 PM

I'm not a fan of comic books. Seems you're picking nits. However, I am a Fantasy nerd and had the same nits to pick about GOT. I just didn't, because it was a well made show.

Really - someone's gonna bitch about a Kiwi playing an East-Ender and not about a Brit playing an American dad? I thought both Urban and Pegg nailed it.

Oh, and Dominique McElligott (Queen Maeve) is beyond hot.

**Elkhound Odin** · 08-12-2019, 07:40 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

FWIW, as mentioned above, the comics were written by Garth Ennis (best known for Preacher). I have not seen The Preacher series on AMC yet, so have no comparison as to how his work is being adapted to the small screen. I haven't seen any interviews with him knocking either series, fwiw.

The TV production of Preacher took great liberties with the comic. The casting of the Preacher falls a bit short if you don't think an Englishman should play a Texas redneck. Should a short black Englishwoman play a leggy southern blond? Meh, I didn't have issues with that. I didn't want the show to be exactly like the novels. The show has certain limits of where they can film, so they punched story lines out of sequence or changed location to fit their limitation. Some story lines they just deleted, but as is common when books are converted to film.

I have not read the novels yet, but I thoroughly enjoyed The Boys show. The same knuckleheads that produced Preacher brought out The Boys. (Seth Rogan & Evan Goldberg) I don't know if they got better writers or just learned from mistakes of Preacher, but The Boys show has a much more compelling story than the Preacher show. It's not as fragmented and the actors seem to be selling their characters better. I think Carl Urban with the beard is more believable than without.

I liked the show so much, I picked up a copy volume one of the novels. I just got through the first few pages and the only thing that came to mind was a young Simon Pegg could have been Hughie. Which is probably why he was cast as the dad.

**dookeyXXX** · 08-12-2019, 08:52 AM

Originally Posted by Elkhound Odin

I liked the show so much, I picked up a copy volume one of the novels. I just got through the first few pages and the only thing that came to mind was a young Simon Pegg could have been Hughie. Which is probably why he was cast as the dad.

I thought The exact same thing!

The major difference between comics and novels is that a comic is filled with artwork which shows you exactly what the characters looks like. Granted, most novels describe characters in detail, but the rest is left up to the reader's imagination.
And I am sure that myriad factors come into play whe9 casting, such as budget, friendships, I am sure the prodcers have their wish list and the screenwriters have theirs, and the studio, as well, etc.

For the record, I enjoyed the show, but the comics have so,e deeper storylines and more characters, so they are richer and more involving.

**dookeyXXX** · 08-28-2019, 05:51 PM

If you are a comic nerd (or even just a semi-nerd) and you have been digging The Boys, I highly recommend checking out X-statix, the comic that rose from the ashes of X-Force back in 2001.

Written by Peter Milligan and illustrated by Mike Allred, the series explored many of the same ideas as The Boys, just 5 years earlier.

**Jacques Strap** · 08-29-2019, 01:12 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

X-statix

Seconded. Classic.

**Woodsy** · 09-04-2019, 08:48 AM

Originally Posted by PB

Same here; seems like it's best to be comic-illiterate.

Digging the show a lot, 1/2 done. Never read the source material.
But yes as a full blown Marvel obbsessant from the 80s, I cannot fucking stand the MCU.
Avengers & Iron Man 1 were good, but the rest is crap and a waste of amazing source material.

Xmen, both timelines, have been hit and miss but when on were at least semi true to the books.

**bodywhomper** · 09-04-2019, 01:14 PM

I’ve been enjoying the series. I’m several episodes in, but currently distracted by the dark crystal series.

**Drazzamatazz** · 09-05-2019, 12:01 AM

Originally Posted by dookey67

I thought The exact same thing!

That's an intentional Easter egg. Comic Hughie was based on/inspired by Simon Pegg's character in Spaced.

I never actually got around to finishing the graphic novels as I got caught up with graduating/becoming an adult (not intended as a "comics are for kids" dig), but I did read up on how things ended. I thought the show was very satisfying so far. I'm glad there are some changes and new storylines as it helps to keep things fresh, and I'm interested in the direction they are taking things in.

For reference, I didn't even make it through the first season of Preacher before I decided it was too meh. But I loved that source material much more so possibly that tainted me. Though from the sounds of it I didn't miss out on too much.

**Jacques Strap** · 09-06-2019, 03:37 AM

Originally Posted by Woodsy

full blown Marvel obbsessant from the 80s, I cannot fucking stand the MCU.

I'm an incorrigible Marvel fanatic since the mid-90s. In every instance, I'd prefer to read 8 comics than watch 1 comic book movie, but you're going to have a hard time convincing me that nearly all of the MCU movies are at least pretty good; that the Cap, Thor, Avengers, Black Panther, and Doctor Strange movies didn't capture the characters almost perfectly; or that the Iron Man and Guardians of the Galaxy movies aren't way way better than any comic with their names on the covers.

As for the Fox side of things... X-Men: Apocalypse was bad. X-Men 3 was absolutely awful. And there is no excuse for the atrocity of X-Men Origins: Wolverine. I haven't summoned the courage to brave X-Men: Dark Phoenix yet...

**Woodsy** · 09-06-2019, 08:00 AM

Originally Posted by CS2-6

I'm an incorrigible Marvel fanatic since the mid-90s. In every instance, I'd prefer to read 8 comics than watch 1 comic book movie, but you're going to have a hard time convincing me that nearly all of the MCU movies are at least pretty good; ..

Bucky is dead man, dead.

the first X-men first class was well done, but yeah the separation of the 2 parts of the Universe definitely is part of my loathing. That and the ridiculous Thanos story arc. And Spiderman again and again.

Back to the Boys, finished it and want more. Like that it has changed ( total hypocrite from above yep) so I cant go see ow the story ends from the comics. Makes me want Season 2 more.