User reviews

Gen V is every bit as good as I hoped it would be. This is a spin-off of the incredible series The Boys and much like that series this is a show for adults. Gen V tells the story of a premier college for superheroes called Godolkin University. The students there are looking to join the elite superhero teams across America. We get to see these young supes as they learn to become both superheroes and adults. Obviously, not everyone there is a good guy, there are also villains and this show turns very bloody very quickly. There are also plenty of cameos from the The Boys that pop up in this too. I'm so glad that they are expanding this universe and hope they do even more spin-offs. If you like The Boys I promise that you'll like this too.

As a big fan of The Boys I've been looking forward to Gen V ever since I first heard about it. Then after seeing the trailers my excitement grew even more. After finishing the first season I can absolutely say that without a doubt Gen V has not only met my expectations but has exceeded them in every way. It's as fast paced and entertaining as the The Boys series. Even though you'd probably enjoy this more if you've seen the The Boys, you don't have to have seen them to like this. The action scenes are as good as anything I've seen on tv, as exciting and as ridiculous as they are in The Boys. This spin-off actually connects to the original in major ways. You need to watch this so you can follow the story better in the newest season of The Boys. I can't stop watching this and really hope they plan on doing several seasons of this because I'm hooked.

Gen V is basically The Boys but for the college crowd, and it's WILD. Think superheroes, but with all the messy, chaotic, and straight-up disturbing stuff you'd expect from this universe. The cast is lit, with Marie, the main girl, pulling no punches-literally. There's blood, superpowers, and drama like Euphoria on steroids. It's dark, funny, and lowkey disturbing in the best way. The way it dives into trauma, mental health, and power dynamics while still giving us epic fight scenes? Yeah, it hits different. If you're into twisted superhero shows where the characters are all kinds of messed up, Gen V is your new obsession.

Events here take place between S3 and S4 of The Boys.

First thing I noticed and admired was the 2 strip coloring, It was visually appealing here and I forgot to mention it when talking about the boys.

The college setting worked so well and the episodes also kept me on my screen from start to finish.

I really enjoyed the diversity between the students and characters, their different abilities as well as their own personal issues. They were all unique in their own way but Cate, holyyy she was ao iconic, kind if like Carla in Elite. I feel she is going to turn out like Homelander but not in an annoying way plus her voice is also captivating.

Victoria and Ashley slayed in their Cameo appearances and it was not suprising at this point because I expected them to.

Marie is a strong and great character but one of the few things I did not like throughout the show was the idea of her trying to prove younger sister wrong each time it was brought up I felt as to fast forward.

At the final episode, we saw how Vought does what they always do, I can't wait to see how things turn out but In general, the boys universe is so good, unique and very different from other fiction or superhero shows to me. I just love it so much and cannot wait for more including the crossovers.

9.3/10.

Plot

From the world of "The Boys" comes "Gen V," which explores the first generation of superheroes to know that their super powers are from Compound V. These heroes put their physical and moral boundaries to the test competing for the school's top ranking.

Cast

Mostly unknown to me, but several were memorable due to fantastic performances including Jaz Sinclair, Lizze Broadway and London Thor. A few of the Boys cast momentarily jump over and veteran Sean Patrick Thomas was a welcome sight.

Verdict

I like The Boys, I think it's one of the better shows of the last few years partially due to the no holding back, hyper violence and it just being something different and that's really needed right now. I was skeptical about a spinoff as they tend to be mere shadows of what came before but Gen V actually managed to get and keep my attention throughout.

Is it laden with teen angst? Well yeah, but that was never in question and was always going to be a major factor here. But the teen drama crossed with the Boys adult material, it works fantastically.

Interestingly co-written by Seth Rogan and with a mostly unknown cast I have to say everyone did a great job, most of the cast are brilliant here and that's what more shows need! I want to see a character, not have that ruined by my seeing a familiar face all the time. Sinclair, Broadway and Thor were all great and thorough scene stealers.

The plot is uninspired but competently handled so you can get past that and it parallels The Boys perfectly and makes for a nice companion piece which if handled correctly could intertwine incredibly.

I love The Boys, I like Gen V, I'm very excited where this all could lead.

Rants

In a world that hates the young, inclusivity is the devil and diversity is "Woke" I'm surprised that Gen V has been met as well as it has. The Boys got hit with all those accusations and I'd argue Gen V is even more so, I'm resisting the urge for a change to jump to the 1/10 reviews as I know what I'll see. Closed mindedness, the W word on a loop, an ocean of misogyny and casual racism. What time to be alive, rampant tribalism at it's most primal.

The Good

Some great cast members Solid connections to The Boys Engaging stuff Some action packed and very funny moments

The Bad

A couple of weak links among the cast Plot could have been stronger.

The Boys show is amazing. Excellent casting along with compelling storylines and gruesome details. It has it all. This show is a spinoff in the same universe, though it never manages to reach the same heights or interest of The Boys.

If you've seen one modern teenage drama, you've seen them all. Basically it's about actors in their late 20's, playing as 18 years old, tackling the issues of identity, sex, evil senior leadership that is keeping a dark secret and modern diversity and inclusivity.

The show tries to make the story more interesting by using gruesome elements form the Boys universe (and that's the only reason that I gave it 6/10), but at its core it's still the same annoying teen drama.

Special effects and gruesome details are at par with "the boys", while acting and storyline is lacking in quality, boring and feel forced.

It still better than most of the superhero movies being released today, as it's not as predictable and stupid as the rest of them, but it's mostly due to "the Boys" universe and not as self sufficient as it might have been.

I hope they'll manage to improve and take it further to the insanely high level of the original show\comics.

I'm a little on the fence with this show, it has suberb production quality and great cast. Zero complains about actors and acting overall. Yet some bits of the plot aren't well fleshed out and some lack good reason, as to avoid spoilers any logic behind containment facility location is very questionable.

Cast is full of capable actors and they do get to show off in a good way, although with so many characters each of them were given a little back story and a little side story.

Unfortunately each of those stories weren't given enough time hence they weren't fleshed out well. What's really bad about this, is a fact they attempt to address very serious social issues in those little sub stories. Yet not given enough time, I'm left feeling like writers just didn't care enough about the subject and that is puzzling.

Plenty more examples of that shallow treatment of serious issues. There's a romance involving main character that comes out of nowhere and goes nowhere. I'm puzzled as to why even include them.

I was quite disappointed by conclusion one of the characters got, she tried really hard and was left really hurt by the end of it. Moral to her journey seemed to be quite depressing.

I was quite satisfied with the main plot it had surprising amount of twists and turns, even if dumb on occasion. It's a good watch even if a bit heavy handed with messaging.

It's rare to see good spin-off series and this one was entertaining.

As other 5/6 star reviews have pointed out, you would not watch this IF it were not related to The Boys.

There are many problems that the series creates for itself.

When the writers aim a show at GEN X but fail to understand that an audience has brains, watches better stories on various platforms and really have gone way past gross out moments (e.g visceral, bloody gory kills, unnecessarily gross sexual scenes, mental health treated like a joke etc). It doesn't really provide characters with....humanity. No real grey areas to the characters. Either it's black or white. Oh look what they did to us so I'm gonna go bat **** crazy and kill everyone.

It's stupid.

Whereas The Boys is the same, the end result is a well developed story with well developed characters and motivations. There is empathy within the madness.

In Gen V, they have decided to explore the various aspects of (super)humans that other series don't really go into. In doing so, they simply create cliché plots, with cliché bad guys, good guys, bad women, good women....and that's it.

Characters happen to run into scenes, have time to chat, act woodenly, before fighting.

There is so much better stuff out there that this is only being propped up because of it's links to The Boys.

Watch it. Don't watch it. I don't think you'll learn anything new. It's all really just a Vought money grab.

And because of it's association will probably be no. 1 on Amazon.

If you want to see violence and character development done right.....watch Blue Eye Samurai. Truly does the same job a 100 times better (albeit in Anime form).

This review was made after watching Season 1.

Good news, the show will have a second season 2. Sad news, sadly, one of the main actors passed away at 27. He was my favourite character in the series, I wish his family well, and I'm sure he made it to Heaven.

Ok let's review the show now. Is there gore? Yes. Is there nudity? Yes. Are there cool superpowers? Yes. That checks it for most of The Boys fans, but this series has more. Many current topics are tackled like eating disorders, self harm, parents acceptance and social media. The cg is good, the sets are good, and the acting is great. You really should give it a try.

Gen V, the spin-off of the hit series The Boys, throws us into the lives of hormonal, competitive superheroes-in-training at the prestigious Vought American University.

It's a potent mix of teen drama, superhero action, and The Boys' signature dark humor, but does it live up to its predecessor's legacy?

Gen V delves deeper into the inner workings of Vought, the corporation that creates and exploits superheroes.

We see the sausage-making of superhero creation, the ruthless marketing strategies, and the devastating consequences of their experiments.

The young actors bring their characters to life with genuine charm and vulnerability.

Jaz Sinclair shines as Marie Moreau, a troubled girl with a dark past and a dangerous power.

Gen V doesn't hold back on the violence, and it's often darkly funny. Think exploding body parts, superhero infighting gone wrong, and enough blood to fill a few swimming Pools.

The series tackles relevant themes like teenage anxiety, social media's influence on identity, and the commodification of bodies in the superhero industry. It's not afraid to get under the skin of these complex issues.

The overarching mystery can feel convoluted at times, with predictable twists and turns. You've seen these genre tropes before, and Gen V doesn't subvert them in any meaningful way.

The show sometimes swings wildly between gritty realism and over-the-top silliness.

It can be hard to find its footing tonally, leaving you feeling like you're watching two different shows taped together.

We're mostly confined to the university campus, which can feel constricting compared to The Boys' expansive universe.

A wider scope could have allowed for richer worldbuilding and exploration of superhero society.

Action sequences are well- choreographed and exciting, with impressive special effects for a TV series.

The soundtrack pulsates with a blend of edgy rock and synth- heavy electronica, capturing the show's rebellious spirit.

Cinematography is slick and stylish, with dynamic camerawork and striking visuals that evoke a hyper-real teenage world.

Gen V is a fun, albeit flawed, addition to The Boys universe. It's packed with sharp performances, brutally funny violence, and thought-provoking social themes.

However, the predictable plot, uneven tone, and limited worldbuilding hold it back from reaching the same dizzying highs as its parent show. Still, for fans of superhero satire and teen angst with a healthy dose of blood splatters, Gen V is a binge-worthy ride you won't regret.

Watch it if you enjoy The Boys' dark humor and superhero action, but temper your expectations for narrative originality.

I cannot fathom, in any way possible, that anyone would rate this show above 8.

This feels so weird to watch. You feel like it SHOULD be a good show, because it's set in the same universe as The Boys, right? But the more you watch, the more you feel like you're watching some weird teenage show , that the annoying girl from your old high-school class guaranteed you was sooo interesting. Kind of like Riverdale vibes (how was that ever popular??) And yet, you feel yourself drifting off into sleep, the more you watch.

I don't know man, I wished I like this, because The Boys is an amazing, innovative show, but this is just so half-assed and bad.

Please, just stop. Stop it now.

With The Boys Season 4 ongoing weekly it seemed appropriate to go back and watch Gen V for the first time, especially as characters from the spinoff are set to appear on the main show. I manage to watch the whole first season pretty quickly and here is my review for it. The premise of the show sees a group of students who are at superhero school deal with student life while attempting to expose a darker secret.

Main Character Jaz Sinclair plays Marie Moraeu and I really liked her character. We learn a lot about her during the show and how she differs from the other students that are kind of already in the system with Vought and used to the superhero culture. She definitely develops over the season and gives a strong performance, it also helps that her powers are some of the more unique ones in The Boys universe and adds some real creativity.

Supporting Characters Lizze Broadway plays Emma who is Marie's roommate and the two of them have really good chemistry together, at first I thought she was going to be a shallow character but no, they give her a fantastic character arc and I really did care about her as the season went on.

Maddie Phillips plays Cate, who is kind of treated like the popular girl in school but ends up by chance as part of this group of friends. She delivers a really good performance and the majority of her development happened towards the back end of the season but I thought it was really effective.

Jordan Li is an intetesting character and is a Bi-Gender Super Hero played by both London Thor & Derek Luh and the character really fits this universe. They are a determined individual and she was clearly the one who cared most about their hierarchy in the school but that is developed throughout the show.

Unfortunately, earlier this year Chance Perdomo died in a Motorbike accident with Gen V being one of his last roles as Andre and it is a shame that we won't see any more of this character in the future. Perdomo is great as Andre and he is another really well written character that was charming throughout.

This is a large cast and everybody does a fantastic job of delivering great performances that flesh out the universe of this spin off.

Story The story is good. This show does have some teenage angst stories but in this environment, I didn't really mind and it flowed nicely. There is plenty of intrigue and mystery to the plot and I remained invested as the season went on. The only issue that I had was the very ending of the show, it feels like lazy writing and someone enters the show that feels like a lazy excuse to set up Boys Season 4 instead of giving Gen V a true fulfilling ending.

Script The script is good, it has that familiar feeling to The Boys. I did think at first that there was just too much profanity but the more I think about it, that is how kids at schools act so it isn't that crazy and the fact that all films in school don't act like this is more crazy. I also liked the drama and did care about plenty of the characters which is great.

Style The style of the show is great, if you are a fan of The Boys then you will be expecting an over the top style and it is here in abundance. The show was paced really well too, with episodes flying by and having me intrigued throughout.

Overall Overall, Gen V is a fantastic spin-off and easily does enough to stand out on its own and become a must watch. Similar, to The Boys it is an acquired taste but if you can handle it Gen V is definitely worth a watch.

Rating - 9/10.

It's nowhere near as good as the boys there's no dark humour that makes the boys so good it's just a load of teen angst and I appreciate that as a 50 year old man this wasn't really made for me it's a young adult show but I was hoping it would be like the boys but sadly it wasn't that's not to say it's bad it's o.k if your it's target audience (young adult), there are a few funny bits but they just don't hit the mark, the acting is pretty good and the storyline is not bad it kept me entertained and I did want to know what was gonna happen so in that respect it's a good entertaining program but it's just lacking a little something.

A spin off set in the most incredibly thought through universe of recent times. Sounds too good to be true but they pulled it off in spectacular fashion. Looking at the Boys' universe from the lens of teenage superheroes as they realize what being a superhero means in the real world is refreshing.

The cast is good, although not at the level of The Boys but good enough. Jaz Sinclair (as Marie) in the lead is good, supported by Lizzie Broadway (as Emma), Chance Perdomo (as Polarity), London Thor (as Jordan Li) and others are also good.

The plot surprisingly ties in very well to the story of the main series and the cameos of the main show are extremely rewarding.

Good and entertaining to watch. Not a must though for the Boys universe.

Gen V

Gen V is basically season 3.5 of The Boys. We are introduced to teenagers that are in a school for supes, teaching skills to be able to interact with humans depending on their unique powers. The major themes of the show are acceptance of who you are and, fear and discrimination on all sides.

The challenge with self acceptance of being a minority in America is made worse due to the fact that they have special power that can be deadly, depending on the morality of the person. What makes this worse is the fact that these powers were given to the people as children by the parents, thus metaphorically giving the impression that they were born that way. The idea that a minority is stronger than the snobbish majority is a theme that has been shown a lot lately in fictionalized media. Dehumanization still remains which is also a more difficult issue for these people because any use of their power can be interpreted as threatening thus justifying the discrimination. It doesn't help that there are folks happy to be immoral because they believe themselves as unstoppable. This metaphor proves to be very interesting as self acceptance then becomes near impossible. Most of the characters do not like having their powers. Some use them accidentally causing harm or death to loved ones, increasing this self loathing. I definitely can relate as a gay man because self acceptance took many decades, even though my power to cause harm was emotional or mental.

Fear and discrimination plays out in abusing the supes' lack of self acceptance because we learn that the school is more than it appears. In the first episode, the boy considered the number one student murders a beloved mentor and then commits suicide with the audience left wondering what is happening with that character, and with the school that supported him. The Boys demonstrated this many times in their three seasons with the supes' behavior and arrogance, often hidden to prevent backlash. This fear leads to two types of people. Ones that wish to live in peace, and those that wish to promote their arrogance to squash the others. It's ridiculous as it happens today, but it is still fun to watch the lovable characters fight back.

I'm eager for Season 4 of The Boys, and this show just made my eagerness stronger.

I watched Generation V with a sense of anticipation, curious if it would boast any endearing characters or capture the cutting social satire that made its predecessor, The Boys, so compelling. Regrettably, it appears that the only common thread between the two lies in their penchant for shock value, sporadic action, and a hint of intrigue. In fact ironically it seems to take many of the things lampooned in the Boys seriously.

Is it entertaining? Well, in my opinion, it won't leave you utterly bored, but it's unlikely to evoke any profound affection for its characters or its world, nor will it really elicit laughter. If you do decide to tune in, it will likely be solely to follow the progression of the plot.

It's hard to imagine that a show like this, relying on the now shock tropes from the Boys as being safe, but here we are. The series adheres to the familiar tropes of a teenage action show, featuring spirited underdog protagonists who forge bonds and defy the odds within a flawed system, all while exuding an undercurrent of confused sexual desire. In comparison to other shows of its genre, it may surpass many in quality (it at least doesn't solely rely on sexual tension), but it fails to offer any significant character insights or compelling comedy. Whether you choose to watch it or not, chances are you won't despise it or love it. However, if you find yourself pressed for time, it might be wise to await a more compelling streaming option.

Primarily, the choice of actors for this could have been much better. The story in the series drags on slowly, monotonously and boringly, sometimes there is a bit of action to refresh it, but that's it. The episodes are full of twisted interpersonal relationships that want to be presented as normal. There aren't many visual effects, but what I saw was well done. It's quite bloody and in parts perverse, personally I'm not a fan of either. This is another one of those works where superheroes are portrayed as materialistic who only want fame. A good part of the characters is generic, they are portrayed as heartless, cold-hearted. Above all, the worst in everything is Jordan Li, everything around him is visibly forced and imposed, if this character was not there it would not interfere with the development of the story. I stopped watching in the middle of the seventh episode, I simply lost interest, I honestly don't care if they keep filming, I'm not going back to this modern whatever it is. Thumbs down, I don't recommend it!

It is not easy to find a Spin off of a successful series that knows how to live up to it. Much less that it surpasses it in some aspects. This is precisely what happens with Gen V.

Spiritually it's like watching The Boys but it also feels different considering the setting in which it takes place.

An explosive first chapter and a plot that develops very well.

With fair and necessary cameos, with the gore and risqué scenes that the franchise has already accustomed us to.

What has been achieved with that universe is not simple and I am grateful that it is already known when and how the mother series will end.

I really liked the characters of Marie and Jordan, as well as Andre (it is a shame that the actor died) although we still don't know how his story will be carried out.

As season 4 of The Boys progresses, we will see how the events of Gen V will connect and perhaps the key to defeating Homelander.

A must for fans and followers.