The Boys Presents: Diabolical TV Review

Plot: From Homelander’s first mission/mistake and a home for kids who didn’t quite get the A-list superpowers, to Butcher and Hughie in the style of the original comics, The Boys Presents: Diabolical has something for everyone—everyone who enjoys blood-drenched but also shockingly emotional television. It’s cartoons with the safeties off!

Review: It should go without saying that Prime Video’s The Boys is a big hit. The extreme violence mixed with a relevant superhero story has made for one of the more unique genre offerings in recent memory. As Garth Ennis’ fictional universe expands, we are graced with the animated spin-off Diabolical. While many of you may be waiting for the live-action college set spin-off G-Men, this animated offering not only shows us different aspects of The Boys universe but also provides a range of writers and animators free reign to tell their stories. The resulting series is diabolically funny as well as a welcome homage to different eras and styles of cartoons.

Each of the eight episodes that comprise the first season of Diabolicial are from different animation studios, countries, and styles. From the Looney Tunes-esque “Laser Baby’s Day Out” to the anime-inspired “John and Sun-Hee”, Diabolical ranges from ridiculously funny to sincere and dramatic. What is consistent across all of these stories is The Boys’ trademark violence and mature themes which know few limits, especially in animated form. In fact, the closest animated series that I can think of that compares to this is Prime Video’s similarly anti-authoritarian adaptation Invincible, based on the comic by Robert Kirkman. Neither series holds back when it comes to the wanton gore and profanity that would exist in such a world and therefore both series manage to come across as far more realistic than anything from Marvel or DC.

There are some stand-out episodes in this batch of eight stories and what is most impressive is the range of talent scripting as well as voicing this anthology. In “Laser Baby’s Day Out”, Ben Schwartz provides the human voice to the script by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. The second episode, from Rick & Morty scribe Justin Roiland, feels right at home in this world and showcases a massive cast that includes Christian Slater, Kenan Thompson, Cobra Kai’s Xolo Mariduena, and Kevin Smith as the funniest and most unfortunate superhero ever. “Boyd in 3D” by Eliot and Ilana Glazer is a fun romantic-themed entry that looks the most like a cartoon while telling one of the more developed stories in the series. The same goes for “John and Sun-Hee” which was written by Andy Samberg. While you may expect it to be hilarious like his work with The Lonely Island, you may be pleasantly surprised at how unexpected it is.

Other episodes are not as strong, namely “I’m Your Pusher” written by Boys creator Garth Ennis. While it features Antony Starr playing Homelander and Dominique MacElligot as Maeve as well as Jason Isaacs as Butcher as well as Kieran Culkin, Michael Cera, and Simon Pegg, the episode ultimately feels the safest and most generically animated of the series. Awkwafina’s entry, “BFFs”, is similarly underwhelming although I do give it credit for once again trying to do something different from the rest of these episodes. “Nubian vs Nubian”, written by Aisha Tyler and featuring the voice of Don Cheadle, is another entry that I applaud for bringing something distinct to the series but could have benefited from a little more running time to really flesh out it’s story.

Season closing episode “One Plus One Equals Two” features most of the main series cast including Starr, Giancarlo Esposito, and Elisabeth Shue, and provides an origin story for Homelander. This episode is what I originally expected this anthology to showcase by giving us a backstory for one of the Vought-created heroes. In fact, this series could easily do nothing but origins and have more than enough material to fill countless seasons. By being animated, Diabolical has no budgetary constraints compared to a live-action series.

By giving a global roster of filmmakers and writers the chance to explore the world of The Boys, Diabolical is a success in throwing everything at audiences to see what sticks. Some of you may appreciate different episodes than I did but what is certain is that there is something here for every fan of the franchise to dig into. Like Marvel’s What If? series, Diabolical offers a chance to see stories that otherwise would never make it to the main series. While I wish it was overall more consistent, there is a nice mix of funny, scary, touching, dramatic, and silly. I hope we get additional volumes of this series that give even more unique animators and writers the chance to play in this universe.

The Boys Presents: Diabolical premieres on March 3rd on Prime Video.

The Boys

GOOD

7