How The Boys Set Up Season 2s New Political Message

How The Boys Set Up Season 2’s New Political Message

After tackling the #MeToo movement in season 1, white supremacy and racism will be addressed in The Boys when Butcher and the gang return in season 2.

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How The Boys Set Up Season 2s New Political Message

Racism and the Black Lives Matter movement look set to be key topics in season 2 of The Boys. In the original comic book by Garth Ennis, The Boys gave a subversive take on the superhero genre, and that approach continues full-throttle in the Amazon Prime TV adaptation. Led by showrunner Eric Kripke, The Boys doesn’t exactly tone down the comic book material, but rather modernizes it and adds a layer of social context relevant to the current era. Season 1, for example, tackled the key issues of sexual misconduct and the #MeToo movement.

In the comic books, the innocent, bright-eyed Starlight joins The Seven as their brand new member, and is immediately sexually assaulted by The Deep as some kind of sick initiation. The scene is an indication of how despicable, hypocritical and out of control The Seven are, but The Deep’s actions go largely unpunished for a long time. In the TV version of The Boys, a sense of justice is achieved when Starlight publicly outs The Deep as a predator and garners widespread support, leading to Vought exiling The Deep from their elite septet. This felt like a more modern take on the source material, and one that directly amplified social issues occurring in the real world.

At The Boys’ recent SDCC 2020 panel, Kripke revealed that the series would be taking on different subject matter in its second season, citing white supremacy and racial inequality specifically. While this isn’t an area The Boys explored whole-heartedly in its debut run, the groundwork has been laid for storylines inspired by the real-world fight against racism. The most overt set up came during A-Train’s drug-addled emotional slump in the second half of season 1. While the majority of A-Train’s arc revolved around a Compound V addiction and the circumstances surrounding his girlfriend’s death, one scene saw Jesse T. Usher’s character enduring racial profiling from a shop security guard, exploding in a fit of anger that was caught on camera by the sea of raised smartphones.

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The moment was a relatively small one in A-Train’s season 1 development, but carried a powerful message nevertheless. The idea that a world famous superhero usually treated like royalty could remove his recognizable costume and instantly be subjected to discrimination is a strong, damning indictment of how widespread racism can be, and could provide a springboard for a sharper focus on racial issues in season 2. While the character is certainly a villain, A-Train hit rock bottom during his fight against Starlight – surely the only way is up for the speedster. The Boys’ season 2 trailer proves that A-Train hasn’t immediately tattled on Starlight, perhaps suggesting he’ll evolve into a more sympathetic figure. By making A-Train less villainous, The Boys can shine a light on the racism he suffers.

It’s surely no coincidence that season 2’s focus on white supremacy coincides with the arrival of Stormfront, played by Aya Cash. This superhero is an outright Nazi in the comic books and while there’s no explicit sign of that grim moral alignment in the TV iteration just yet, the hints are certainly all there. In true The Boys style, it’s unlikely that Stormfront will be a direct transfer of the comic character, but will instead take the form of a more modern bigot. Cash’s character is already confirmed to be a social media expert; it’s possible that Stormfront’s extreme right-wing views and social media savvy will play into a scathing commentary about far-right politics in the real world.

The SDCC panel also featured some pertinent comments from Laz Alonso, who plays Mother’s Milk in The Boys. Outlining what motivates his character as opposed to the comic incarnation, Alonso stated that MM is driven by a desire for freedom and justice that extends beyond himself and into future generations. That justice could simply mean punishing heroes for acting like spoiled super-brats, but MM’s ideals could also play into the Black Lives Matter ethics of The Boys season 2, giving the character a clear reason to put up with Butcher’s questionable antics.

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Link Source : https://screenrant.com/boys-season-2-political-message-setup-blm/

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