‘The Boys’ – ‘Barbary Coast’ – Review
We’re well into the madness of Season Three of Prime Video’s hit series The Boys. And it’s awesome! Now arriving at Episode Three, ‘Barbary Coast’, the stakes could not be higher, and the tension is ramping up.
After his explosive outburst, Homelander (Antony Starr) is now up, and a loyal following of disenfranchised Americans has pushed his ranking through the roof, throwing him into a head-on collision with Annie January/Starlight (Erin Moriarty) as to who controls the Seven. And he has some very interesting ideas which he wishes to act on. Then there’s Billy Butcher (Karl Urban), who, having tasted the power of ‘the supes’ first hand, is left reeling from his experience and it’s one awfully painful hangover. Then there’s the question of Payback and Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles), and the truth is just as messed up and twisted as you’d expect it to be.
Things take a turn for the interesting in Episode Nineteen of The Boys, ‘Barbary Coast’ as Homelander learns that his grand outburst in ‘The Only Man In The Sky’ has taken him right back to the top and it’s the confidence boost he desperately needed. And it spells bad news for Annie January/Starlight. While she earlier had Homelander on the ropes, popularity is all that matters at Vought International, and the world’s greatest superhero is revelling in his newfound attention and fame. While Homelander and Starlight have never seen eye-to-eye she does try to play her trump card on Homelander in relation to a critical decision. And it’s one of the most terrifying confrontations that we’ve yet seen in this show. Calling her bluff, Homelander makes it known just how powerful and psychopathic he truly is and threatens her into submission, proving the point that he’s even more of a monster than we already thought he was.
Then there’s the long-suffering aquatic hero Kevin Moskowitz/The Deep (Chace Crawford) who has somehow managed to resurrect his terrible image and now wants back in on The Seven. Making his return to The Boys, alongside his sadistic and shifty new wife Cassandra (Katy Breier), The Deep is soon put in his place once more by Homelander who revels in his ‘very personal’ form of psychological torture that he directs towards The Deep and it ain’t gonna be smooth sailing for this defender of the Seven Seas. Reggie Franklin/A-Train (Jessie T. Usher) is also on the rebrand trail and even though it’s a complete charade he might be able to do some good for those around him. Well, kind of anyway.
Let’s not also forget about supe-basher Billy Butcher, who has had a taste of V24 and liking the power, now suffers from one hell of a hangover. It’s not a good time for Butcher in ‘Barbary Coast’, and past secrets again come to life. As to where he’ll draw the line with this new weapon is still to be seen and Butcher’s definitely up to something. Frenchie (Tomer Capone) also finds himself in a heap of trouble when he’s confronted by a Russian mob boss, and his former dominatrix lover, Little Nina (Katia Winter), who has a job for him to attend to, and she puts him back in his place. Yep, ‘The Boys’ are still a mess, but that’s to be expected and it’s only about to get more difficult for them.
Fans of The Boys will also be excited to get their first taste of Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy. As the world’s first superhero and a WWII legend, we finally get a peek at Soldier Boy in action. And while he might be an effective killer, he’s rather deranged and has a severe personality disorder. While it’s only hinted at, it’s great to see Ackles get to go to work as this gung-ho superhero who has his quirks and it’s certainly something different for Ackles to get to play with. It’s clear that Ackles is going to leave his mark on this show and it’s going to get very interesting moving forward.
‘Barbary Coast’ is an episode that moves the narrative of The Boys forward in a big way and audiences are bracing themselves for what comes next.
The Boys streams every Friday on Prime Video
Image: Prime Video
