MUMBAI : For those suffering from what James Cameron called ‘Avengers fatigue’, the first season of Amazon’s The Boys came as a breath of fresh air. Even for us, who do love superheroes, The Boys was a singular take. It upended the popular perception that people in possession of superpowers will use them for good.

The Boys said no, people are people. Some good, others bad. And also fame and all that power tend to go to even the good one’s heads.

In the second season, Karl Urban-led band of rebels wishing to take down Vought are back and in hiding. Urban’s mercurial, cunning and charming ex-CIA operative, Billy Butcher, finds his way back from Homelander’s clutches and once again entraps the rest of the team in his plan.

Every major member of The Boys, the Seven and others get meaningful development in the second season. It is amazing how the writers have managed to write better character arcs despite a bigger number of characters. The relationship between Frenchie and Kimiko is nurtured, almost tenderly. Karen Fukuhara’s character may not speak, but she uses her dazzling smile and eyes to communicate a lot. The Boys might be depressing otherwise, but this relationship is one of the best things about

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Meanwhile, the Seven have a new member: Aya Cash’s Stormfront. Easily my favourite character in the second season so far, Stormfront is a social-media-savvy, devil-may-care supe with Shazam or Thor-like powers. She is also the first person who truly unnerves Homelander. Apart from bolts of lightning she shoots, she also has an arsenal of memes and trolls. She gains fame in no time, and this puts her at loggerheads with Homelander.

Cash is absolutely sublime in the role, and I cannot wait to learn more about her character in the show. In the comic series, Stormfront is a male and has somewhat …unsavory associations. It remains to be seen whether that translates to the show as well.

And, of course, The Boys remains as gory and gratuitous as ever. Heads explode with alarming frequency, people are laser-ed to tiny bits of meat, and the Boys continue to play as dirty as ever. The stakes are higher this time around, and there are several surprises in store.

SOURCE- THE INDIAN EXPRESS

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