Review of Season 3 of The Boys
Published on December 9, 2024
From the very first season of The Boys, it was clear we were seeing a fairly explicit depiction of the conflict between the Republican and Democratic parties in America. But in Season 3, this theme becomes even more pronounced.
This article is being written at a time when the Republican Party has won the real-world presidential election, and this coincidence reminds me of a question that often occupies my mind: Why is political satire and comedy so prevalent in America, even though powerful figures in such a society could easily retaliate against those who try to turn them into a laughingstock?
I think something like liberal beliefs and the ideals of the Democratic Party are the best products such a society can offer the world and profit from. That is, the Republican ideals are more of a local and native concept, and if they try to present them in their films and series, both non-native residents in America and many people around the world who look up to American life and dream of migrating there would be offended. Although the storyline of this series addresses the conflict between good and evil in a very superficial way and gradually turns into a heavily marketed product, its overall orientation has become a theme that can attract fans not only in America but also in other countries.
Republicans in this series are portrayed as extremely radical and deranged individuals who secretly commit horrific acts and are not held accountable for their evil deeds. They are intensely racist and tribalistic and cannot stand to see anyone other than a “true American” benefit from the privileges of life.
As for someone like Homelander, he lacks any special compassion even for Americans themselves and is willing to sacrifice them for his selfish interests.
Warning: The rest of this article contains Season 3 spoilers.
The deeper we get into the world of this series, the more superpowered individuals we encounter. The word “superhero” implies a person’s intent, but it’s hard to find characters in this story who have a clear understanding of good and evil and have consciously decided to serve society.
The number of superpowered individuals is very high, and as time goes on, it becomes harder to consider them a minority. Nevertheless, the culture that this growing group is forming is chaotic and lacks a proper foundation. It doesn’t feel like they’ve learned the ethics of using power while gaining it. What makes them more dangerous to society is that they are practically unbeatable, and intellectually, they follow the same toxic ideas prevalent in society. American culture is highly competitive, and people try to shape their identity by pursuing paths that distinguish them in terms of skills or academic level. It doesn’t really matter how these powers are obtained or how deceitfully someone harms others in the process of achieving their goals.
However, the portrayal of people’s superficiality in this series isn’t entirely accurate. In both Season 3 and previous seasons, you repeatedly see characters trying to use social media to influence public culture and provoke people to take specific actions.
Superpowered individuals practically become a kind of celebrity like singers and actors, using their fame to control public culture or comment on political issues. What happens in this series is that these celebrities have a high chance of success and can at least create a short-term wave. But during the recent U.S. elections, we clearly saw that celebrities aren’t as influential as they seem.
Many real-world celebrities tried to support the Democratic Party, but ultimately, they couldn’t bring their preferred party to power. The satire directed at public culture in this series underestimates people, assuming that superficial behavior and statements can easily provoke them into action. But even if many cheer for a clever remark, it doesn’t mean they’ll act on it without receiving a logical reason.
This series also repeatedly addresses the issue of monetizing everything and the viral patterns of capitalism, but it uses those same patterns to make the show more appealing and extend it into future seasons. Extreme violence, sexual content, and the breakdown of story arcs and dialogue are things we’ve often seen in multi-season series or film franchises, and it’s happening here too.
It seems the screenwriter was merely inspired by the conflict between Democrats and Republicans and repeated common Democratic rhetoric, without adding any real concern, critical perspective, or progressive approach to the story. You could say the main challenge was creating an exciting superhero show—even if that excitement is achieved through abnormal and extreme means or with a distorted rhythm.
Conclusion
Butcher approached superpowered individuals with the view that they were entirely negative and deserved death. Even after meeting his ex-wife’s son, he struggled to accept that superpowered people are also human. Initially, Butcher seemed like a victim or a positive character, but in Season 3, it becomes increasingly clear that he’s disillusioned with humanity itself. His problem with superpowered individuals is that they’ve acquired power they don’t deserve, and since people are disappointing, there’s no reason to expect this group to use their power responsibly.
His love for his wife can also be seen as an unhealthy obsession that doesn’t necessarily relate to her kindness but rather gives him an excuse to express his inner violence with less restraint. It’s undeniable that Butcher is a highly violent character who enjoys it, and something like superpowered individuals puts him in an extremely unequal competitive situation where he knows he doesn’t stand much chance of winning alone. His opportunistic alliances with others stem from his desire to eliminate potential rivals, and there’s minimal empathy to be found in Butcher’s character.
