The Boys: Season 3 Ends, New Fears Begin

I assumed that Victoria Neuman, Senator Head Popper, would have been better exposed as the hypocrite she is (i.e. given more time to flaunt herself as the typical, albeit metaphysical, politician), but The Boys: Season 3 placed her on another of its slow burns. She'll resurface for Season 4, and I've no doubt there will be one. How could there not?

I don't want to reveal all that came down in this latest season for those who've still not indulged. That would be wrong of me, but it sure got down and dirty with a secret within the adversarial bond between Soldier Boy and Homelander, and (for the sake of a wee, significant spoiler) gave Queen Maeve a last-ditch turn at redemption. It doesn't settle all the deceit that's transpired, but at least (and again, here comes another wee, significant scoop) Butcher, Hughie, M.M, Frenchie, Kimiko and Starlight will keep their clandestine crusade going.

All the same, as morbidly fascinating as The Boys is, it does rub against my traditional, superhero strand. Yeah, I respect the artistic twisting of what I hold near to my heart, but man, do I ever require a reprieve from its unstable ugliness. Maybe a dose of Batman '66 or Superman: The Movie will get me into virtuous gear. They've not failed me yet, and I'm confident they never will. Now, that's what I call a nice, reliable feelin'. 

Amazon's The Boys: Season 3 (More Good Is Bad)

The Boys: Season 3 has crept its way onto Amazon Prime. The new season, based on the Garth Ennis/Darick Robertson/DC title, has been highly anticipated, but it's quiet advent works to its allegorical advantage. The Boys is a surreptitious saga, after all, and its subversive (and often outlandish and gory) tactics are most impactful when stoked by a slow burn. 

For the new jaunt, the incensed, rebel leader, Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), still pursues the great Vought reveal and deconstruction, empowered at this pivotal point by laser-zapping, Compound V (in)sight. That means he presses folks to know the dark underbelly of Homelander (Anthony Starr), a perverted, Kal-El knockoff, and his many fickle super-friends, but this time the stream  exposes the left (equipped with all the media horseshit that defines that sordid thing): a refreshing twist, which indicates that no one can be trusted, except of course, the stunning Starlight (Erin Moriarity) and (though it should go without mention) Butcher's tireless brigade. 

A "new" superhero of shaky morals joins the show's ranks, Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles). He's a Captain America doppelganger (with Bucky Barnes/Winter Solider modifications), but in a way, so is Homelander, though Soldier Boy was formed first. Soldier Boy is there to make us doubt our patriotic views. (Sorry, but I don't need to question my patriotism within The Boys' sprawling context. That's because Butcher is patriotic enough in his own whistle-blowing right: a blueprint for what the good ol' U.S.A. embodies. So much for the show's alluded cynicism. Thank you, Mr. Butcher, for setting us {pun intended} right.)

Crimson Countess (Laurie {The Walking Dead} Holden) also makes her debut this season. She's untrustworthy, self-serving, a swell singer/porno star and damn easy on the eyes: a visual combination of Marvel's Scarlet Witch and AC's She-Cat. Hey, good, bad or otherwise, I ain't complain'. 

In addition to the Countess, there's another newbie, Trenton, NJ's Blue Hawk (Nick Wechsler), a super-cop (not featured in the comics) who's as controversial as the other Vought creations (maybe more so, due to his explosive temper, which rivals even Homelander's). That he hails from my backyard is both exciting and unnerving, since he's to be portrayed as far from virtuous, but then again, some locals tell me the hometown references are are geared for superimposing (and clever dubbing), depending on where one watches, and if so, how insincere! 

The Boys is open to interpretation, and its layered meanings can reflect any number of ideas to those who dare bend their brains. Hell, there are even times (must I confess it?) when I identify with Homelander's ardent perspective (especially during those movie mock-up interludes), though only to the point that his fulsome arrogance (and heartless need to kill) seeps through. Does that make me a goodie or baddie? Who knows? But then such ambivalence is the core of The Boys' irony. 

The Boys: Season 3 commenced June 3 (with three loaded installments) and will run for a total of eight, with one, new episode premiering each week thereafter. Where this Brightburn-ish, upside-down world delivers viewers is yet to be seen, but they're assured to be big-time jarred along the delectable, Jitter Bean way.