Tag Archives: Garth Ennis

The Boys – trivia nad easter eggs from Amazon tv series

“The Boys” is an adaptation of a comic book series with the same title. It was created by the Irish writer Garth Ennis. Here are some interesting facts about “The Boys”.

SPOILERS!!!!!

Punisher kills the Marvel Universe

“The Boys” is an expansion of Garth’s idea from one of the first comics he created for Marvel – “Punisher Kills the Marvel Universe.” In this comic, Frank Castle’s family dies as a result of the actions of superheroes. It turns out that there are more people who have lost loved ones in similar circumstances. Punisher agrees to work for a secret organization that fights superheroes. From that point on, he systematically kills all Marvel heroes. In the end, only one hero, Daredevil, is left alive. Frank manages to defeat him, but to his horror, he discovers that he has killed his childhood friend. Seeing that he has become what he fights against, he decides to kill the last living superhero – himself.

The Boys film adaptation

The comic book was originally planned to be adapted as a movie. The director was Adam McKay (Succession). Unfortunately, after several years, the project got stuck in development hell. Several studios refused to produce it because they were afraid of the R-rating, which marketing experts believed would lead to a financial failure. It was not until a few years later that movies like Deadpool and Logan proved that even with an R-rating, a superhero movie can be sucesful.

Cancelation

“The Boys” was canceled after only six issues. The publisher deemed it too violent, vulgar, and obscene. The rights reverted back to the creators who quickly found a new publisher, and the work resumed. In total, 72 issues were produced.

Herogasm

In addition, a six-issue spin-off series titled “Herogasm” was created. The raunchy comic book depicts the sexual exploits of The Seven. Pretending to have a mission to save the world, the superheroes go to a Vought-owned resort and participate in orgies for a week. “Herogasm” was used in the sixth episode of the third season. In the TV series, the event is organized by former members of Payback.

Censorship

Although the Amazon executives were aware they were making an obscene series, some scenes were blocked by them as too explicit. One of the scenes that fell victim to the cuts was the one where Homelander masturbates on a skyscraper. It was originally filmed for the first season, but only after the success of the first season were they allowed to use it in the second season.

Simon Pegg

One of the more well-known cast members is Simon Pegg. His presence in the cast is not accidental. Hughie was inspired by Pegg’s appearance. Actors are often very sensitive about their image and in many cases, this could result in legal intervention. However, Pegg not only had no objections, but even wrote an introduction to the first album in the series, “The Name of the Game.” Pegg also had the opportunity to play Hughie in an animated series spin-off called “The Boys Presents: Diabolical.”

Hughie Campbell

Jack Quaid (Hughie Campbell) is the son of the queen of romantic comedies, Meg Ryan, and actor Denis Quaid. The parents met on the set of the thriller D.O.A.

Justice League vs The Boys

The Boys is inspired by the Justice League, but some characters are endowed with powers from the Avengers and X-Men. Homelander is obviously Superman. Queen Maeve is Wonder Woman. Black Noir is a combination of Batman and Black Bolt. The Deep is a parody of Aquaman. A-Train is Flash. Starlight is a combination of Dr. Light, Dazzler, and Jubilee. Translucent is modeled after the Invisible Woman from the Fantastic Four. In the comics, this character did not appear at all.

The fictional film Dawn of The Seven, an obvious parody of Zack Snyder’s Justice League.

In contrast to his TV counterpart, the comic book Soldier Boy is cowardly and very naive. In one scene, he is sexually abused by Homelander, who convinced him it was a “test” to become a member of The Seven. The hero did not have a destructive beam – this is a creation of the tv series writers. Another difference is that Soldier Boy is not a character but a title in the comic book mythology. There were three successive Soldier Boys in the comics. The comic book Soldier Boy does not seek revenge on members of his team as it was not they who abandoned him, but he fled himself. Butcher kills the members of Payback.

In the comics, Stormfront is a man. The pseudonym comes from the name of an online neo-Nazi forum. The comic book Stormfront was the first superhero. More supes were created from his DNA, including Homelander.

The Deep is an obvious parody of Aquaman. However, his comic book counterpart resembles Black Manta – Aquaman’s enemy. The comic book version wears an old diving suit and claims he cannot take off his helmet due to a curse. In terms of character, the comic book Deep is the opposite of his TV counterpart. He is mature, serious, and often disgusted by his companions’ behavior. His biggest concern is money – he often initiates arguments about profit sharing.

Starlight is very similar to her comic book counterpart. The difference is the scene of her joining The Seven. In the series The Deep sexually assaulted her, but the other members are not aware of what happened. In the comics, Starlight was assaulted by Homelander, Black Noir, and A-Train.

Both Karl Urban (Butcher) and Antony Starr (Homelander) are from New Zealand. They both previously starred in the series Xena: Warrior Princess. Starr played two different characters, and Urban played four.