The Boys

The Boys has been one of the best shows on television for years now, and continues to cement its place in the pantheon with its deft blend of drama, gore, political commentary, and surrealism. The series is a pressure cooker that only gets hotter and tighter as it goes on.

As sharp as anything on television—not to mention as outrageous as ever, its satire infused with trademark X-rated explicitness.

It’s mostly impressive how deftly “The Boys'” dramatic side balances its many arcs, while the black comedy’s demented inventiveness helps distract from any lingering deficiencies. Rattling them off would spoil the weekly joy of discovering each bizarre development, but rest assured: My notes on Season 4 are littered with “oh god’s” and “hoo boy’s.”

It felt like a show that was running out of ideas by the end of year three. One of the greatest TV surprises of 2024 is that the opposite is true. “The Boys” may finally be growing up.

What’s changed since Season 1 is that while the cheeky nods to superhero culture remain present, The Boys has evolved into a show remarkably well-positioned to comment not just on pop culture, but on society at large.

The Boys continues to build towards a climactic confrontation, but with a story that has reached the point where it’s become personal and intimate. We hope that continues, even if it exists alongside the action and funny moments.

The Boys combines sledgehammer political commentary, thrilling and macabre action, and a cynical deconstruction of heroism. For all the underlying gloom, a gleeful irreverence is The Boys’ own superpower.

The Boys’ latest season is its best yet, finding new ways to up the ante for both superpowered outrageousness and meaningful character drama. Wherever it goes next, we will gladly follow.

Beyond the gross-out moments and fun fight scenes, it feels like the series is finally growing up, without losing its urgency or build-up to a phenomenal season finale. If anything, the languid pace aids in multiple points of no return, and it’s clear that once this season is over, the universe “The Boys” exists in will forever be changed.

"The Boys," quite simply, is back like it never left. The two-year wait was worth it, the cast is still giving it everything they've got, and this show refuses to let up even for a second. It's still one of TV's wildest rides, and its superpower seems to be never losing that gift.

It may not be quite as exhilarating or propulsive as season 3, but that isn't exactly a damning statement – this is still a strong entry in the show's run to date, and will leave fans not only excited for more, but also reassured that there are no signs of The Boys losing flight anytime soon.

Since its 2019 debut, the show has unabashedly poked fun at everything while still being gory and inventive. But as seen in “Department Of Dirty Tricks,” it’s inching dangerously close to reality in a way that threatens to dampen its unique, most welcome commentary.

“The Boys” grapples with a certain pressure to fulfill those expectations for the faithful. In its totality, the eight-episode season largely manages to clear that bar (or should one prefer, limbo under it), including a few explosively funny (and not incidentally, grisly) visual gags.

"The Boys" is still really good, so here's hoping that they don't get lost in the misery porn of it all and can right the ship next season. The world is bleak enough as it is, so something this depressing needs to feel like it has a point.

This season, more than any other, feels like a solid setup for the eventual endgame — not just Homelander's, but a natural, compelling, and most importantly satisfying, endpoint to the entire series.

The Boys Season 4 is a solid crash back to earth for Prime Video’s anti-superhero satire. With so much ground to cover – both ongoing stories and new plotlines – Season 4 could have benefited from being a couple episodes longer.

We mostly watch The Boys for gnarly violence and otherwise graphic material. While the show still leans too hard on that aspect—there are so many floutings of taboo that it all begins to feel curiously banal—much of its excess is guiltily appreciated. One watches the series eagerly awaiting the next gruesome thing. Such anticipation goes a considerable distance in covering up season four’s erratic plotting. There are myriad story threads tangled together, longer arcs and shorter digressions that, in their abundance, try patience.

Varied threads, which don’t even include various team members of the namesake crew struggling with guilt from their traumatic pasts, already make the season feel less focused than its immediate predecessor. .... Season 4 starts to show the strain of that effort, both on the viewer’s tolerance for despair and the series itself.

Alas, the multitude of storylines fail to cohere in a satisfying way.