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‘The Boys’ season 3 reviews promise everything fans want and more

In our review from Martin Carr we give the piece four stars out of five.

The Boys
Image via Amazon Prime Video

The next season of The Boys will be thrust upon viewers tomorrow, and, ahead of the debut of more blood, guts, superhero parodies, and gore, critics are saying the third outing with the characters is all anyone could want, and somehow, then some.

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Matt Donato of IGN writes in his review published on the site today the first three episodes waste no time getting back to bloody basics, and one of the best parts at the beginning is not Boys vs. Seven battles but rather internal politics at Vought International.

“Stan Edgar erases Homelander’s untouchable status around Vought Tower — Starr’s doing tremendous work as the world’s most powerful superhero must grin through apologies to America’s public. Tensions between Edgar and Homelander are oh-so delicious as the ruthless corporate titan shoves Homelander in his place, embarrassing the Compound V creation and almost daring him to push back. It’s the most exciting element of The Boys thus far, as Starr relishes the festering storm within.”

At Bloody Disgusting, Meagan Navarro is similar in her praise of the production. Navarro does not delve into too much detail about what awaits the world at large but does note the season has quieter moments, and the gore often used for laughs in the past appears now to highlight the pain and strain of living in a world where what amounts to corrupt gods can kill much of humanity easily.

“Kripke switches gears slightly to let the actors bring emotional heft. While season three does inject raucous moments of slapstick mayhem, playful style twists, and witty banter, it’s more subdued comparatively as the personal stakes reach new highs and lows. Instead of using insane gore as a release valve for cynicism, it instead frequently underscores the heavy toll of an enduring war between Supes and the Boys, and even Supes’ struggle to find their place in an unforgiving climate.”

While much of what is being published today about the season is mainly praise, Ben Travers of IndieWire is more critical in his commentary. He says the show seems to enjoy its macho moments too much, and there are blind spots and too blunt real-world references, but overall the episodes do not pull punches and most land while the series juggles being a number of things well.

The Boys is a black comedy, an action extravaganza, and a vicious editorial all rolled under the same cape. Doing any one of these things half as well as what’s seen in Season 3 would be a challenge, and doing them all while maintaining its own distinct identity makes The Boys that much more impressive. Still, after watching brawny men throw meaningless punches hour after hour, one can’t help but think of that old meme: Men will do just about anything to avoid going to therapy, which just so happens to be the solution to almost every one of the Boys’ problems. Self-examination, awareness, and forgiveness are mighty tools — and the series knows it. They’re all acknowledged in the end. They’re all integral to the lessons being imparted.”

And in the We Got This Covered review from critic Martin Carr, it earns four stars out of five. He notes that it gets dramatic in between beheadings. As he writes:

With flagrant side swipes at superhero cinema in titles such as Dawn of the Seven, the scathing satirical attacks on mainstream marquee films (especially those made primarily by Marvel Studios and DC Films) are just one element of a show which seeks to move beyond the more obvious targets to dive more deeply into the drama, as these characters start to come apart at the seams.

The first three episodes of the third season of The Boys drop tomorrow on Amazon Prime Video. New episodes will then be released weekly until the July 8 finale and the latest season of the show currently has a 100 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.