MovieChat Forums > The Boys (2019) Discussion > Is this review accurate?

Is this review accurate?

posted 5 years ago by kuku (3510)
18 replies | jump to latest

The reviews are quite good. Thinking about watching it. Found this review in imdb. Is this accurate?

Starts off great, bait'n'switch towards the end...
Mesuzah 30 July 2019

The first four episodes are just downright amazing, reminiscentt of the times prior to all the PC/SJW nonsense. I had the time of my life throughout episode four, haven't laughed that hard in ages. Really great up until episode five.

Episode five itself isn't all that bad, but you notice that the tune of the series turns around from humor to darker and worse preachy. Yes, the PC crap slowly finds its way back sadly in to the series. Characters whine more, cry more, sorry for this and that, by the end of the season the humor is stale, stilted, rough and not in a good way as there can be funny rough humor but that wasn't it. You then start to have those token 'gay relationships' that has to be there to make that look normal as well like all other 'PC' series.

Not to spoil anything but the series opens up with a really funny moment that for a PC crowd may be hard to swallow, and regular folk laugh like crazy but this does not go unavenged sadly and we're back to the script of the past twenty years.

Not sure what happened, maybe producers, investors or otherwise saw the material up until episode 5+ and said it was too much out of line with the mainstream narrative and it had to be brought back in line or if this was the plan all along, to bait people to start watching then go back to regular PC 'programming'.

I started watching this series because of the humor element, and the return to saying and doing anything without having the make excuses for it later in some form of punishment for characters or constructed morals and that failed towards the end. For those that speed ran the series, reflect on this and rewatch it and you will eventually notice that the tone changed utterly from what it started as.

Cast itself, as you can see from the first four episodes, are really well put together and are able to deliver when they have great material. Karl Urban carries the show to some extent, but it is a team effort and the others do really well too.

My wish for season two, if I am ever to watch it, is that they go back to unapologetic delivery like they started off with, back to humor being front and center, and consequences of such be darned.

[–] zeesha (1760) 5 years ago

This reviewer is obviously offended by Episode 5. I guess he is actually a "Christooza", disguised as a "Mesuzah".

[–] GordianNott (137) 5 years ago

Not accurate at all. First, there was nothing "funny" about Robin being obliterated by A-Train, unless you're a 12-year-old brat. Yes, it was shocking, and yes, the rather bland romantic banter preceding it lulled you into a state that you were totally shocked by it. But Hughie didn't find it funny, and it sent him down a dark road where he was manipulated and turned him into a murderer.

But that's just one point. The show was consistent from one episode to the next: dark humor, moments of anti-heroism, people struggling with their agendas, outright funny moments like MM whining to his wife about missing Downton Abbey, etc. I agree with Zeesha: this is just another hypocrite who likes to make fun of everyone but evangelicals, and when evangelicals get mocked, suddenly they are offended little snowflakes.

Rant over. :)

[–] kuku (3510) 5 years ago

Thanks!

[–] papamihel (1579) 5 years ago

He\She's not wrong about the first half of the season being the closest to the original - darkly humorous and totally irreverent. Episodes 5 to 8 are a little too serious. It's understandable due to the changes the writers made to the story but still makes the show lose its momentum somewhat.
I don't agree that the show gets into "regular PC programming". IMO the authors exercised an almost inhuman level or restraint and managed to keep references to modern politics to one (totally random) mention of the "Deep state".

[–] kuku (3510) 5 years ago

OK. Thank you very much. I'll give it a try.

[–] papamihel (1579) 5 years ago

All in all, both the comic and the show are about money and power - not politics.
And the reason they send the Seven to some Christian convention is simply to make sure a certain demographic group is covered. There are other teams who cover other social groups, trends.
For example in the comic books there are G-men - they are not the strongest superheroes but due to their image as edgy rebels they are the biggest earners. So if you get triggered by the anti-religious message just imagine that at the same time some G-men are gangbanging Antifa chicks and\or sniffing coke our of violated assholes of BLM homeboys.

[–] kuku (3510) 5 years ago

Don't get me wrong. I'm not Christian. I'm actually Atheist and I have been quite critical with Christians my whole life. I share Dawkin's point of views about this subject, and as him, I think Christians have become a punchbag while another particular religion which is actually way worse is given a free pass and even praised for the sake of 'diversity'. I don't mind some anti-religious message, I mind when the anti-religious message is actually a cloak to pass an anti-western message.

That said, I'll trust you and GordianNott and I'll give it a try.

[–] ColdOfWinter (145) 5 years ago

Actually both of the religions you are referencing are open for target by the show. So its fair game. I suppose the Christian is a little more out front and obvious, but they don't bow down to making all terrorists represented, to be white alt right figures.

I guess I can see a little uptick of PC in some of the later episodes, but I didn't think it was anything that pulled me out of the show. Normally I couldn't care less about this stuff as long as it doesn't jar me out of the story with over the top messaging.

[–] GordianNott (137) 5 years ago

All in all, both the comic and the show are about money and power - not politics.

Good insight.

[–] asom (6515) 5 years ago

Just how the left sees racists everywhere so the opposition sees PC everywhere.

Even if there are PC elements those are not "in your face" or annoying.

[–] kuku (3510) 5 years ago

Truth is you have a good point there. However, given what Hollywood has become, that's to be expected.

[–] Jehosaphet (1055) 5 years ago

Uh...this isn't a review, this is just some anti-pc/sjw guy who can't grammar, yodeling on about how well he thinks the show does in that limited context.

He also saw the opening scene as "really funny", remarking that regular folk laugh like crazy...the PC crowd may have a hard time swallowing it...what's he talking about? He thought that scene was funny? Regardless, what does PC have to do with any of it?

Want my guess? I'm guessing that you should have been able to tell at a glance as to how much credence to lend this guy's "review" and that you just passed this along as your own little shout-out for the cause. Because dude is an absolute idiot. And if you needed others to point that out for you, then...come on guy. You're asking yourself whether or not what this person is saying is true when you should be asking yourself why you wasted your time reading the ramblings of a single-minded imbecile.

[–] kuku (3510) 5 years ago

Want my guess? I'm guessing that you should have been able to tell at a glance as to how much credence to lend

Actually, I do.

For example, when at a glance I see a comment that doesn't address the message but the messenger, I use to dismiss that comment.

[–] aristide (260) 5 years ago

He thought that scene was funny?

you do realise that this is a black comedy right?.

I thought it was hilarious as well.

Then again, I think Happiness is the funniest film that I have ever seen (granted it became funnier with repeated viewings, the first time I missed a lot of the humour on account of being too stunned to get it).

[–] McQualude (4231) 5 years ago

Episode 5 does have a different tone and doesn't fit well with the previous 4 episodes. It has that feeling like the showrunner was forced to make and include it to appease gay Hollywood power brokers and #metoo champions. Now whether post-feminism bothers you or not is up to you but the reviewer is being fair in his or her criticism. The lesbian relationship has nothing to do with the plot and adds nothing to the story. It could have been a man, a woman, or a monkey and nothing that followed would have changed. There could have been no relationship and nothing that followed would have changed. It was tacked on for reasons other than storytelling.

And I hate to burst the bubble of post-feminist millennials but you didn't invent girl on girl sex. The way girls act now is exactly how girls acted in the 80's, the 90s, and the early 2000's. Your uptight soccer loving mom was sucking girl face and licking nipples in clubs while sucking down free shots of tequila when she was in her 20's, just like girls today. She was also flirting with guys to get free drinks, just like girls today. All the people you believe are "offended" aren't really offended, they are just pretending. I was there, I saw what your mom did. And in 20-30 years, you too will be pretending to be offended in front of your kids.

[–] kuku (3510) 5 years ago

Yeap, I guessed the truth should be somewhere in between. Anyway, I have it queued. Worst case scenario, I'll enjoy at least the first half of the series. Nowadays, that's enough to me.

PS With regard to the 80s stuff, you're right. Actually, western society has become more conservative since the 70s/80s.

A good indicator about how conservative is a society is to check whether characters that belong to some specific group are systematically portrayed according to some archetype. A conservative society defines roles and expect you behave according to that role. That's what's happening now.

[–] McQualude (4231) 5 years ago

Interesting observation, I'll think on it; and I agree our society has become more conservative since the 80s. The Boys actually pokes fun at post feminism when the assistant tries to convince Annie the skimpy costume was feminist.

[–] TandyMan (10398) 5 years ago

This was my exact takeaway from the series. I watched it in two halves. First night, the first four eps. And I loved it. Thought this was one of the best new shows in years. Second night, here comes the propaganda. Macho characters are suddenly neutered, the nutso element suddenly disappears, and in a lot of respects it becomes a chick show. It was very disappointing.