When you find out the school bully stole your favorite light-up sneakers and you’re debating whether to throw your pudding at him, no archetype is more appealing than that of the superhero. Our affinity for superheroes never seems to age; Marvel’s success echoes this eternal desire for caped saviors. Amazon’s new series, The Boys, dismantles the notion that “supes” can do no wrong. It strongly asserts that we’re all obsessed with enhanced individuals and might need to move on from tights and testosterone. But do we have to? Let’s pit The Boys against The Avengers and see what becomes of nostalgia. Warning: minor spoilers for both The Boys and The Avengers ahead!
Photo: Amazon Studios and Marvel Studios
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The traditional superhero may be a little cliché or contrived at times, but it’s just so damn irresistible. Nostalgia is one iron-clad, superhuman, badass motherfucker. Grit is all well and good, but it can take a toll on viewers. Not to mention, The Boys could use more female characters with their own agency. Big money is on the fact that Starlight follows Captain Marvel on Instagram and not the other way around.
Overall Winner: The Avengers
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A Mandatory Superhero Battle: ‘The Boys’ vs. ‘The Avengers’
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Originality
There’s comfort in knowing who to root for; both The Boys and The Avengers do an excellent job of presenting us with instantly likable characters that are brilliant, attractive, righteous, and doped up with super strength. Are these types of characters relatable, though? The Boys presents us with characters like ourselves: people who initially marvel at the idea of superheroes. “The Boys” themselves are a group of disillusioned dudes fed up with superheroes abusing their powers, so they aim to take down the conglomerate that covers all that shit up. While Marvel’s The Avengers is a byproduct of 80 years’ worth of awesome storytelling, The Boys is clearly trying to touch upon something new.
Winner: The Boys
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Faithfulness To Source Material
The first season of The Boys is a faithful enough adaptation of Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson’s comic. A few plot lines are attributed to other characters and the overall tone is a little less bleak (believe it or not), but the goods are there. That said, the finale of The Boys’ first season is a huge departure from its source material.
The reason The Boys can't compete with The Avengers, however, is because of the sheer number of intricacies of the MCU. Marvel has taken the idea of a shared universe, which was only previously thought possible on the page, and made it a reality. Small things have been changed, but the MCU has brought the mythology of the comic book genre to the forefront of entertainment. If that’s not faithful, we don’t know what is.
Winner: The Avengers
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Realism
If The Boys were a film, it would be rated a hard R. Gore and profanity abound. The Boys approaches the whole “corrupt superhero” thing with a jarring amount of realism. It tackles the type of societal issues that are all the rage right now. Also, it’s doubtful that there are any talking aliens in the VCU (the Vought Cinematic Universe), and if there are, they probably don’t speak English.
Winner: The Boys
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Talent
The writing and acting on The Boys are top-notch. Eric Kripke (Supernatural’s original guru) puts ink to paper like a pro and Karl Urban is entertaining as vigilante ringleader Billy Butcher…until he’s not, spitting truth in a quirky Cockney/New Zealand accent? Let’s be honest, no one is competing with Marvel’s ability to secure top tier talent. The second Robert Downey Jr. appeared on screen in the back of a Humvee, effortlessly charming the vehicle’s other occupants, it was game over.
Winner: The Avengers
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Fighting Prowess
The Boys parodies DC more than Marvel. For example, there are carbon copies of Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and The Flash (a quasi-Justice League called the Seven except they're all dicks). So, could The Justice League beat The Avengers? With Batman, probably. The Seven has some character named Black Noir, but he's no Batman. If there’s one thing The Avengers’ triumph over Thanos has proven, it’s the legitimacy of their namesake (avenge: to inflict harm in return). They’ll find a way to deal with The Seven’s only real threat, Homelander (a psychotic Superman). "The Boys" themselves wouldn't stand a chance.
Winner: The Avengers
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Overall Message
When you watch a good show or movie, something happens; all those thoughts of late rent, flat tires, douchebag bosses, and annoying exes just fade away. It’s less about realism, all about escapism. When you look at The Avengers you think less about the fact that they are “superheroes” and more about their individual stories: the lost soldier, the awkward scientist, the family man, the prodigal son, the conflicted assassin, and the billionaire playboy who maintains the irreverence of a child. Enjoying big dramatic battles, over-the-top villainous monologues, corny relationships, and self-sacrifice somehow helps us cling to the vitality and wonderment necessary to enjoy a good meal at the shawarma restaurant that is life.
Winner: The Avengers
