Why did the Boys go downhill after season 2?

I’m not looking to ruffle any feathers but I’ll give you my two cents. The only big bad is Homelander. You can only spin the same villain season after season so many times before the bit gets old imo. My fix would’ve been to add another element at the start of the show to make Homelander more “bendable”. Like if he had to team up with the boys for a season because of a bigger threat. Maybe every country has a Homelander. Maybe a meteor landed and there’s a bug or alien that’s strong or replicating. Etc. Another layer would’ve definitely added some more fun. I understand why people like it. Because it’s a fun show. Great characters. But I can also see why you’d make this post. And I can look at it from your perspective too. And you’re not wrong lol.

I liked it 🤷‍♂️

I’ve still been enjoying it. A few moments in season 4 lost me a little cause it went beyond madcap sexual humor into some kinda gross mean spirited stuff, but generally still a solid season. It also dragged a little as it slowed things down to fit the five seasons, so if you don’t have a lot of patience, it can seem slow. It’s the curse of being a big show. It’s gonna lose some of its subtlety in its commentary, it’s gonna lose some fans as things change and elevate. It has pretty simple gimmick, but I think it does enough to keep things interesting and parody new elements of the culture.

It became the thing it was parodying. There was no need for multiple spin offs and they never had a plan with the story. Although the comic has it's haters, it had places to go. Making Homelander the main antagonist on the show really backed them into a corner despite the excellent performance in the first 2 seasons. The comics had a whole world of superheroes and The Boys acting as a police force to keep them in line, not a group of rebels fighting for good.

The third season finale was wasted potential. I loved season 3 and then it just went back to the status quo at the beginning of the Season. Season 4 set up new characters in the 7, some less interesting than others. The obvious Butcher twist was weak. Frenchie had a weird subplot, but the finale was good and set this season which will be how most people will end up judging it.

According to RT: Season 1 85%, S2 97%, S3 98%, S4 92%, S5 96% so far.

\*grabs popcorn\*

Season 1 had a heavy plot focus. Season 2 had a good arc with Stormfront. Season 3-4 were too decompressed and not as memorable. Soldier Boy or whatever the s4 plot was (genuinely cannot remember) weren't as engaging. Season 1 is easily the best. You really feel Hughie's anger. The show lost that emotion as it went on.

IMO, because it went 5 seasons. A lot of what made season 1 was the tension. The boys had  no way to stand up to the seven, never mind Homelander. Anyone could die as far as we knew, and the show DID kill big players (Stillwell). The big scenes had this tension of not knowing who lived. You kinda guessed Huguie and Butcher were safe, but characters like Frenchie or MM were definitely not. Then in season 2 we got increasingly dangerous situations… and everybody got out. Then again, and again, and again, except vilains or redeemned vilains. Show tried to up the stakes with shock value, but it’s no match for tension. This is also why the newest season is so well liked so far. By being a known last season, the tension is back. Kinda. They still have to show they will kill more than a redeemed villain at best imo.

By the last season (before this one), it felt like watching something 7th grade boys put together. Gross out sexual humor just to have it and with no purpose. Characters that felt like wasted potential or odd storylines. Repetitive character beats.  I really liked it in the beginning and now I won't be watching the final season because it feels like a waste of time and energy. 

It absolutely didn’t lol, revisionist history. Up until the finale season 3 of The Boys was absolutely the peak of the show hitting new highs every week. Then we got Gen V S1 which was also highly praised. I do agree that season 4 was weaker, and Gen V S2 while good just was too predictable, but the show has at least stayed solid/interesting. And the first two episodes of the final season were very good imo.

I still like it a whole lot. Annie too. \*shrug\*

Show has felt constant through the whole run. Not sure what you're talking about.

Homelander going from calculating and unhinged to just a screaming manchild was the biggest loss honestly. They flanderized him hard and it dragged the whole show down with it.

I’m going to be honest, I never thought it was that great to begin with. It was fun and the political commentary was great. That being said it always reminded me of rated R CW tv.

Victim of its own success. Season 1 had lots of gross out isn't that shocking content. I wouldn't say it was a grounded show at the start but it tooks its coherence a lot more seriously. They tried for a certain amount of plausible which made the villains threatening and the heroes threatened. What the writers learned was, people really like really graphic scenes. And they stopped earning them. For example the start of season 1 Hughie and the girlfriend have this entire prelude conversation about their future and love for each other and A Train turns here into paste out of nowhere. Horrifying, but so shocking it came around the other direction into funny. It was like a sped up version of the bit in Wolf of Wall Street where Leo is trying to crawl to his car. It goes from desparate to hilarious. Then you fast forward to season 3 start, some exposition I can't even remember oh and antman is on coke and he's in a guy's d***. Gross but just boring unless that unlocked something inside of you. Its like they tried to learn from the algorithim about why the show was popular. People like swearing and making references in dialogue! Kimiko can talk now, she's unfiltered and nothing about her ever remotely suggested she would have an internal monologue like that. That's okay, I'll still keep drinking that garbage. I still watched it.

It didn’t. People on here just love to moan about it constantly for some unknown reason It’s always been one of the most entertaining shows on tv with the quality being consistent for the most part

The more they made the nazis the bad guys, the more I enjoyed it.

Omfg every show that last longer than 3 seasons has to deal with this shit...yall can stop watching and unsub. You know that right?

Season 3 was the best season

Probably like every genre based show they have a bunch of whiny ass fanboys who act like they always know better than the writers and producers. Then the same people attack everyone involved in the production until the show is canceled or nobody enjoys any aspect of it anymore.

It didn't

I liked season 3. I'm not on this bandwagon personally

It didn't...

It went from being somewhat more neutrally cynical in how its politics are presented to overtly partisan and preachy.

Because they had to live up to their reputation for shocking violence/gross out moments and constantly one-upping themselves while also preserving status quo for way longer than the story would reasonably allow. And f*** Trump but Homelander as a Trump metaphor got old fast. Reality became stranger than fiction around the time they decided to parody it.

I think the show went too far for most of us, and they leaned into courting a trench coat mafia audience.

Starlight and homelander made it. Then starlight went all Botox and lip filler, which didn’t really fit the character at the time. Normally it would not matter, but the whole idea of starlight was being the innocent, naive southern girl… and the casting fit was just so perfect. Then it sort of went on its head, and the show rather than adapting and immediately making the story “starlight went plastic and fake”, to explain it(which would have been awesome)… they kept pretending nothing changed. Homelander I think also was at his best when the writers kept it ambiguous as to whether you could like/agree with him. It’s sort of like norm Macdonald said… parity only works if you try to like or respect the person you are parodying … because most most people like themselves(which is why SNL parody often falls flat). I think after too many people were using homelander memes in a non ironic way… the writers hand held the audience, and in a hamfisted way tried to make it clear you aren’t supposed to like him, and it became clear the writers hated him, making the parody less successful, or interesting, devolving into more of the same… thin partisan commentary. The boys was awesome for its awesome characters, awesome casting, and how it was originally a counter culture type of show. Then it became a typical sell out show, becoming what it once parodied (shameless superhero money grabs). Starlight to me was just the icing on the cake… even the actors turned into the typical fake Hollywood shit that everyone hates with the over the top plastic surgery and lip fillers. It felt different. Now it just feels like another marvel flick with some cursing. It’s still decent. But it had a chance to be something special and that was lost somewhere along the way.

Kripke became obsessed with exclusively satirizing Trump and American politics instead of what seasons 1 and 2 did best.

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It should have played out more like invincible tbh

It didnt, it only got better. Season 4 had a slow start, but besides that theyre firing on all cylinders right now.