Gen V Review Episode 1-3: Perfect Balance Between Mystery, Teen Drama, Superheroes | Prime Video
Cast: Jaz Sinclair, Chance Perdomo, Lizze Broadway
Created By: Craig Rosenberg, Evan Goldberg, Eric Kripke
Streaming Platform: Amazon Prime Video
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 4/5 (four stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Gen V, a TV series developed by Craig Rosenberg, Evan Goldberg, and Eric Kripke, and a spinoff of The Boys, a cult series based on the comics by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson (also authors of the spinoff), will be released on Prime Video on September 29th. If you are looking for confirmation, or rather reassurance, on the fact that Gen V is up to the standard of the “mother” series, we tell you straight away that this spinoff is – from what we have seen so far – a real bomb and it is not a TV for teenagers despite the story it tells. If you want to know more to decide whether to start it or not, then follow us in this review of Gen V, starting with the summary of the premise and the plot, obviously without spoilers. The world of The Boys has always been something very fascinating and full of potential. In addition to the main plot, both the comic and the Prime Video TV series also offered parallel stories and brief insights into a universe that certainly has a lot to say and tell.
Starting from this premise, Gen V, the new spin-off created by Craig Rosenberg, Evan Goldberg, and Eric Kripke, out on September 29, 2023, with its first three episodes, tries to shift attention to a new group of protagonists who they still have everything to discover, bringing a breath of fresh air to a story with dark and corrupt tones. The opportunity to explore new themes, while remaining faithful to the narrative material (in terms of spirit and universe) introduced by The Boys, allowed us to develop an equally raw and extremely over-the-top story, paving the way for a series of new food for thought, social criticism and incredible developments, perfectly in line with the satire seen so far also in the comics by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. After having had the opportunity to preview the first 3 episodes of the series, we began to form an idea about its potential and the choices made up to this point, hoping for future confirmations.
Gen V Review Episode 1-3: The Story Plot
The story of Gen V is as direct as it is complex and is extremely accessible, especially to those familiar with The Boys and its one-of-a-kind pulp style. Fans of the series and the comic will easily find and recognize some central stylistic elements in the other products too, in a journey that in these first 3 episodes seems extremely fascinating and original. At the center of everything we find Marie Moreau (played by Jaz Sinclair), a teenager with a difficult and complex past, gifted with the power to control blood, who manages to be admitted to the prestigious Godolkin University School of Crimefighting, a student campus dedicated to preparing the Supers of the future, all under the solid jurisdiction of Vought International. The first meeting with the other students will not be easy, as will the road towards personal fulfillment, which does not seem too within its reach.
In parallel, however, Gen V immediately lays the foundations for a context with particular and mysterious features, alternating a pseudo-teen spirit with a reality stained by some shadows that at the moment have not yet found definitive confirmation, placing itself in a period easily recognizable by fans. The first scene, which we will not describe to you so as not to ruin the surprise, takes us immediately into the universe of The Boys, with that abundant dose of blood and other bodily fluids that are intended to warn the most sensitive: “look more, it’s Better”. However, we get to know Marie Moureau (Jaz Sinclair), a girl with the power to use blood flows as if they were weapons, as she enters Godolkin University School, practically the university for superheroes managed by Vought, the company that, as we discovered in The Boys not only manages and manages the superheroes and their affairs, but created these superheroes by injecting into their bodies as children, with the complicity of their parents, “Compound V“, or the substance that causes the onset of superpowers.
We also meet Emma Meyer (Lizze Broadway), Marie’s college roommate and with the power to shrink down to a few centimeters; Golden Boy (played by Patrick Schwarzenegger, Arnold’s son ), the most popular student, who lights up by burning clothes and opponents; Andre Anderson (Chance Perdomo), another student capable of bending metal; Professor Brink (Clancy Brown) and his/her assistant Jordan Li (London Thor and Derek Luh), student number 2 and able to change sex faster than Ranma 1/2. Marie wants to “make a career”, she wants to save the defenseless and defeat the bad guys: in short, she would like to enroll in the faculty of criminology, but her CV is not important enough and she is “relegated” to following courses in figurative arts and performances. But then something happens that is destined to upset everything, in Marie’s life and beyond. We won’t tell you anything else to avoid spoilers, but take a look at the trailer for Gen V.
Gen V Review Episode 1-3 and Analysis
As mentioned before, despite being about a group of kids, this series is not a teen drama with kids who fly. It is part of the world of The Boys, from which some special guests also come. And it is part of it in every sense, but above all for the style, or the mood. There are splatter deaths, there are scenes that will make you gag and in general it’s full of moments that will make you think “Are those crazy screenwriters competing to invent the most disgusting thing?”. And the answer is probably yes. Long live Gen V, then, with the hope that the spinoff will not suffer from what in our opinion is the limitation of The Boys, that is, a story that – beyond epic clashes and spectacular battles – moves forward slowly. But we are confident: these kids will have to graduate, at least some of them, right?
If The Boys is the vehicle with which the screenwriters analyze current society in all its facets, Gen V instead focuses mainly on teenagers and their growth and mainly on how the system, led by unscrupulous adults, exploits them by playing on their insecurities. The star system and the exploitation of the image of young stars, incapable of managing the pressure of expectations and success are the topics that emerge most in these episodes and in fact, the viewer’s thoughts immediately go to the so-called Disney Channel generation which over the years has produced a lot of teenage stars who have not been able to handle the weight of fame and success and, in some cases, have destroyed their careers which at the time seemed to be on the launching pad.
If the writing of these first three episodes is excellent, the cast, composed mainly of young actors, is no different, among them all standout Jaz Sinclair who plays the main protagonist of the series Marie Monreau, Lizze Broadway, interpreter of Marie’s roommate, Emma Mayer, a YouTuber capable of shrinking and Patrick Schwarzenegger, son of the good Arnold and interpreter of what, at the moment, is considered the most promising student of GodU: Goldben Boy. Despite many references, at the moment, apart from a few quick archive images, there has not been any cameo of the characters from the main series, but the presence of Jensen Ackles in an upcoming episode.
Absolutely yes, at least based on what we have been able to see so far. We are talking about a spin-off that fully embraces the “touch” that has always characterized the developments of The Boys, mixing the adolescence of its protagonists with a context that does not give discounts to anyone. The satire on modern American society, therefore, returns more relevant than ever, visible and incisive, opening the way to a series of new reflections that range from purely subjective internalization to easily shareable and understandable mass identity, up to touching the social and family expectations distorting the narrative possibilities to the extreme. We once again have in our hands a product that uses its characters to discuss different themes, managing to construct a choral plot that does not hesitate to be raw and brutal when it intends to denounce something.
Thus, the hardships of adolescence are easily exaggerated when they clash with an adult society dominated by success, in which falsehood is the only rule to be strictly followed to shine at the expense of others. In this sense, Gen V, at least up to this point, is similar to The Boys but offers the chance to explore the corruption seen thus far through the perspective and naivety of young people who are approaching it for the first time. In the context of Gen V, we find self-acceptance, problems related to family and identity in adult society, sexual racism, the rejection of social progress and the morbid capitalization of what young people desire and think without any kind of sincere support, and many other criticisms, even direct ones. This shows that a world like that of The Boys still has a lot to tell and express; it is sufficient to shift the attention elsewhere, away from Butcher and him, for everything to change, while remaining profoundly coherent with the source material.
The authors’ voice, here, returns more powerful than ever and without compromise in illustrating the vicissitudes involving Marie and her campus companions, constantly highlighting numerous contemporary hypocrisies that are part of our own lives. We don’t yet know how this TV series will develop, but it is certain that it has captured and intrigued us, offering a narrative plot capable of involving viewers from the beginning, proving fascinating and mysterious. While everything evolves, therefore, we remain hopeful that the other 5 upcoming episodes will also confirm and enhance what we have experienced now, in a story that we are certain has yet to fully exploit its potential. The brutal satire, the gratuitous violence, the bold choices, and the growth path of a group of teenagers in a world as sick as ours are just some pearls of a journey that certainly started on the right foot.
We’ll just have to wait and see how Gen V will develop and what surprises it will hold in terms of originality and visceral rawness towards the hypocrisies we all know so well and face every day. However, it remains interesting to note that, at least so far, general accessibility is certainly not universal, fully maintaining the spirit of the spin-off which may not be entirely clear to any viewers who do not know The Boys. Gen V is the perfect example of how to creatively expand a series without falling into banality. The series is not a teen drama that would have attracted a smaller audience, but an expansion of the themes of The Boys by focusing less on well-known and recognizable characters and more on the story. Paradoxically, Gen V has the potential to become a better series than The Boys because it does not have to satisfy personalism, it does not have to deal with well-known and recognizable characters, and can develop its plot based on a style and ground that the public already knows.
The school dynamics soon give way to a full-bodied plot which takes the viewer into the folds of a conspiracy linked to Vought which could also have repercussions in the main series. Gen V is an expansion of The Boys that must be seen by those who have followed The Boys and cannot be followed independently of the main series. And everything suggests that season 4 of The Boys will have strong ties to Gen V. Gen V wastes no time setting the tone for the series. He begins by “homageing” the main series with a splatter scene full of blood that immediately makes us understand the difficulties of a generation of forced heroes, forced to become something different at the behest of others. Parental pressures are therefore addressed from childhood with a simple injection. But not everyone can be a superhero. So, some study to become a dancer on Dancing with the Stars or to participate in yet another reality show. The important thing is to take advantage of being heroes.
Gen V immediately shows an excellent cast of characters that mix powers, innocence, and devastating hormonal waves, an old-school plot with evil scientists who experiment on kids, and the promise that the plot of Gen V will connect to that of The Boys, with some important cameos already confirmed. Gen V is more than just a luxury extra for fans of The Boys. If you want, you can enter the world of the super crazy from here, without knowing anything about Homelander and Compound V. It’s difficult to find a flaw in his series of starter episodes. It’s a well-made product, a textbook spin-off: it’s capable of maintaining the approach of the mother series but declining it in a way different enough to have its voice and to appear like Tenn’s version of The Boys, perfect to also excite the audience that hasn’t been a teenager for a while.
Gen V Review Episode 1-3: The Last Words
The Boys spinoff is the perfect example of how a franchise expands, creating a series that must be seen by those who have followed the other, dragging the audience into a world that they already know and that does not have to be presented, but finding its independent road. Differentiating without detaching yourself. And above all, it is not a teen drama. With a young and well-blended cast, the new Amazon series promises a dazzling, extreme, and very incorrect season as the world created by Garth Ennis and reimagined by Erik Kripke has accustomed us for years. It was no small mission, but from what can be deduced from the first episodes, Gen V is a worthy offshoot of The Boys and among the best series started this autumn: passed with flying colors, in light of the first two episodes.
Gen V Review Episode 1-3: Perfect Balance Between Mystery, Teen Drama, Superheroes | Prime Video - Filmyhype
Director: Craig Rosenberg, Evan Goldberg, Eric Kripke
Date Created: 2023-09-29 13:10
4
Pros
- Strong cast of characters
- Engaging story
- Willingness to tackle difficult subjects
- Humorous and dark tone
- Gratuitous violence and gore
Cons
- Can be inconsistent in tone
- Some of the characters can be annoying or underdeveloped
- Some of the plot twists are predictable
