Review by 021325_a

There was a really weird moment in the second season of The Boys. Suddenly, the show went from high-stakes world-ending drama to the memories of one specific character. Do I remember what happened in these flashbacks? Not really. But I think you can chalk that up to execution rather than intention. The first season of The Boys was world-building, the second was world-building with some character interactions to the side, and now with the third, they've gone full-steam ahead on the character work. In my opinion, it's a smart direction to take the show in. They're never going to have the budget of an MCU movie, and even if they did, who would watch that for eight episodes? Part of what makes The Boys entertaining is that it's not like that. It's similar to a form of narrative punk rock, a defiance of the mainstream trends we've been seeing so much of lately. And it doesn't always nail the landing, but it does it with enough consistency for that to be its main selling-point.

I say all of this to hammer home the point that I get the disappointment that this episode has generated. All of the major world-altering stuff is fading into the background. It's there, but it's clear that the show is focusing its aim on something else. I personally don't mind it going in that direction, but if you fell in love with this show because the first two seasons were so laser-focused on the world they created, I can understand why you might think that nothing happened this season. Things did happen and their implications on where the show goes next could be massive. For those of us who like build-up and strong character dynamics, this season probably rocked. If you think having a whole season dedicated to both of this equates to little more than a filler arc, you do you.

I will say that I would prefer it if the show ended sooner rather than later. The issue I have with this finale is that those implications I mentioned could mean nothing if someone in the chain of command decides we need four more seasons. More of a great thing can be good sometimes, but occasionally, you get to the point where you have enough of a good thing and it keeps going for longer than it should. I really don't want that to happen to this show.