The Boys‘ spinoff series Gen V is doing its own thing with a slowly unraveling mystery at Godolkin University. But that doesn’t mean these shows aren’t closely intertwined. For college supes like Marie Moreau, the impact of the Seven looms large over their lives. In fact, the deification of superheroes led some parents to inject their babies with Compound V in hopes that they’d gain powers. This drug is a big part of The Boys’ overall history and future storylines. So, let’s dig into all things Compound V, its different forms, and what it means for the characters of Gen V and The Boys. 

The History of Compound V and Compound V24 in The Boys, Explained

The first season of The Boys introduces us to Compound V. It is a blue serum that can give both humans and animals extraordinary abilities. Nazi scientist Frederick Vought created it during WWII to turn adult soldiers into supes. Over the years, Vought International continued to make and manipulate his formula. The abilities a person can get are random and, if there are multiple doses, the powers can change based on how it mutates in the body. Interestingly, Compound V has a better survival and success rate with babies and young children versus adults. It is not a guarantee that anyone who takes Compound V will develop powers at any point in their lives. And, as expected, higher doses for those who can successfully process Compound V makes them stronger/faster/etc. This is why Queen Maeve and Homelander are so wildly strong.

In The Boys, we see an adult and already superpowered A-Train and his then-girlfriend Popclaw take Compound V. They use it in regular, small doses to enhance their abilities, much like a steroid does for normal human athletes. Unfortunately, it can cause the opposite effect and weaken their powers or cause major damage to their organs. That’s what happens to the speedster A-Train, who ends up needing a heart transplant.

The Boys season three gives us a different form of the serum with Compound V24, which is also known as Temp V. Compound V24 is a green super serum that allows a regular person to be a supe for 24 hours with just one dose. It is expensive—two million dollars, to be exact—and doesn’t seem to be addictive. Well, unless you count a person’s ego boost as addictive. Butcher gets his initial dose from Queen Maeve in hopes of being able to fight Soldier Boy and the Payback collective. Hughie also takes some of it so he can gain powers and feel more useful in general. 

Like any drug, Compound V24 has side effects. It made Butcher vomit green blood, drizzle goo out of his ears, and eventually led to such severe sickness that he only has months to live (allegedly). Starlight reveals that Compound V24 is fatal after three doses and Butcher has hit that mark.

Compound V24 will surely come into play in The Boys season four as we learn more about Butcher’s fate. 

Compound V in Gen V, Explained

It’s pretty obvious that Compound V plays a role in Gen V. It is right there in the show’s name. According to Indira Shetty’s conversation with Ashely Barrett in episode two, 400 kids (including Marie) found out that they weren’t born special but were drugged with Compound V as babies. Luke and Sam further discuss this in an episode three flashback. Sam is understandably furious when he finds out but Luke tries to defend his parents, saying they just thought they were giving them powers.

Why would a parent give their child a dangerous and potentially fatal drug? We assume most parents did this in hopes of making their kids wealthy/famous like the Seven. That is the case with Emma’s mom for sure. As we discover in Gen V, many of these young supes don’t know how to control their abilities when they first activate. Like Marie, some of their powers don’t kick in until puberty or another life-altering event and they are completely shocked.

They often end up in places like the Red River Institute, which is a supe orphanage. After a certain age/timeframe, they “transition” to a facility like Sage Grove psychiatric hospital or Elmira Adult rehab center where they are locked up or killed. Some supes like Sam have to grapple with mental health hurdles, too.

Marie’s power may not be as “marketable” as being a speedster or having super strength; however, she’s still one of the lucky ones. Landing at God U seemed like the best fate given her traumatic past. But we now know that the school is a front for gruesome experiments. Interestingly, we discover more about Marie’s powers, including her ability to suss out Compound V in a person’s bloodstream.

With the mysteries of that weird facility known as “the woods,” we may discover something new about Compound V soon. Vought is always “refining” the process of creating Compound V and there are probably science researchers at this university. How will it affect this generation as they come fully into adulthood? The answers could be lurking in the shadows of God U.

Originally published September 29, 2023.

The post Compound V and Compound V24 in THE BOYS and GEN V, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.

Godolkin University is a place where you can thrive, cause chaos, and apparently run head first into murder. The Boys‘ spinoff Gen V draws from a bizarre The Boys comic arc with a wild roster of new characters who boast a bevy of powers. Compound V is one hell of a drug, right? And, as the show transpires, we will learn even more about each supe’s power and how it plays into all the bloody action.

Here is every new Gen V hero and what you need to know about their powers. 

Gen V’s Godolkin University Student Hero Lineup and Their Powers

Marie Moreau (Power: Hemokinesis/Blood Manipulation)

Our main girl Marie Moreau is an 18-year-old superhero with the power of hemokinesis, which is the ability to control and weaponize her own blood. We saw her use her power in the Gen V trailer as she uses blood tentacles of sorts to whip around and destroy things. The first episode of Gen V reveals that Marie’s powers activated when she began her menstrual cycle at around 10, even though she was injected with Compound V as a baby. She panics in the bathroom and accidentally ends up killing her parents because she doesn’t know how to control her weaponized blood. We also learn that she frequently uses her powers by cutting her hands and manipulating the blood.

Unlike most kids who end up at Red River Institute and later go to Elmira Adult Rehabilitation Center where they are either locked up or presumably killed, Marie gets into Godolkin University. But she still grapples with her past and how people view her presently. That is, until Golden Boy’s death and some PR foolery by Godolkin and Vought leads her to become ranked in the top ten. Her newfound fame goes over well with everyone except Jordan Li (obvious reasons) and Polarity, who wants his son to be the sole star and finds Marie’s powers “unsanitary.”

Marie doesn’t seem to regret her powers but she is soon disillusioned with being the diversity showpony for God U. She moves up in the rankings to #2 in episode four; however, she’s now fully into exposing the nefarious woods. We get to see a different side of her powers when she explodes a fellow student’s penis after he tries to sexually assault her. Marie isn’t sure how she did it but being able to control blood within another person’s body is a new part of her abilities.

In episode five, Marie humorously reveals that she can sense when a person is about to start their menstrual cycle. More importantly, Marie is able to sense when there’s something obstructing blood flow, which is how she discovers the tracking device implanted in her neck. She can also sense Compound V in a person’s blood, which happens when she meets Victoria Neuman in episode seven. Honestly, her powers are the coolest.

Andre Anderson (Power: Metal Manipulation and Superhuman Strength)

Andre is a junior at Godolkin University with magnetic powers and, of course, superhuman strength. We assume his powers are like his father Polarity considering he’s set to take his place after retirement. And if being charming and handsome are superpowers, then he has those too. He not only draws a metal bottle straight to his hand but also causes two trucks to smash together and capture a fleeing man. But that doesn’t mean his powers are dangerous. He nearly kills a woman after doing a “magic trick” with a piece of metal but Marie saves her, thankfully. Andre’s father pushes him even harder after Golden Boy’s death when he becomes the top-ranked student.

As Andre begins to investigate Golden Boy’s death, his powers come into play quite often. Unfortunately, the soldiers protecting the “woods” secrets have a device that can subdue his powers. But when that device isn’t in play, Andre can be a dangerous guy. He launches a refrigerator at Sam to subdue him and, in episode five, Andre uses gardening tools to pin (and nearly decapitate) Rufus in a moment of anger.

Emma Myer/Little Cricket (Power: Size Manipulation/Reduction)

Emma’s supe moniker Little Cricket is due to her ability to get super small. She’s much like Termite on The Boys, except she’s a YouTuber who makes fight videos with her rodent pet David Caruso. Her power also shines in the Gen V trailer when she crawls out of a dead man’s ear. Fantastic. In the show’s first episode, we discover that Emma sadly has to force herself to vomit in order to get small. People are either cruel to her online, fetishize her in real life, or use her to forward their own agendas. Justine is a terrible person. Emma’s own mother wants to use her to create a TV show. Things are rocky between her and Marie for a bit but they become friends, which brings some light to her sad story.

She also gets close to Golden Boy’s brother Sam. This relationship causes Little Cricket to use her powers in a different way in episode four. Sam is having a mental breakdown and all the blood and metal moving powers in the world won’t stop him. Little Cricket is at her regular size and gorges on food to get super big. She’s able to subdue him and also shocks everyone with her new (to them and us) ability. Emma’s new power reveal (and a video of her getting loose) increases her popularity and makes her rise up the student rankings.

Cate Dunlap (Power: Mind Control)

Cate can make people do anything she asks by simply touching them with her hands. Of course, she uses this to her advantage, like sliding her way into a packed nightclub, and is super popular. She can also use them for revenge or to save someone in a tight spot. Like Marie, her powers accidentally destroyed her family after she told her brother to leave and never return. Her powers do have side effects from severe headaches to seizures if she takes things too far.

Unfortunately, Dean Shetty is using Cate’s power to her advantage. Cate is able to wipe people’s memories, which she did to the group to make them forget The Woods. She was also responsible for mind-wiping Golden Boy to make him keep forgetting his brother Sam. When Cate is not under strong meds, she’s able to hear everyone’s thoughts around her.

Jordan Li (Power: Gender/Body Transformation, Superhuman Strength and Durability, Energy Blasts)

They can change between male and female forms. Depending on their form, this hero has access to different power sets that we see in Gen V. The man is dense and indestructible, while the woman can use energy blasts and appears to be quick. They put up a formidable fight against Golden Boy towards the end of the first episode. Jordan doesn’t fit the social bill to be the hero of Godolkin so we will see how that affects their future.

Thankfully, Jordan can kick down doors, which helps save Marie from a campus creep. This, along with their obvious tension with Marie, leads to the pair hooking up. Love to see it.

Luke Riordan/Golden Boy (Power: Pyrokinesis/Fire Manipulation and Superhuman Strength)

Luke Riordan can light his entire body on fire and apparently use it as a shield. It seems he is this universe’s version of the Human Torch. But there’s a lot more to this pretty boy than meets the eye. Sure he’s all charms and smiles with Marie; however, Luke is dealing with something heavy. He keeps seeing visions of the mysterious “woods” and discovered the truth about what happened to his younger brother Sam. The visions cause him to go on a rampage, killing his supposed buddy Brink before he flies in the sky and explodes himself.

His story and the ongoing mystery about the woods unfolds over the first three episodes.

Other Gen V Characters Who Have Powers

When Marie Moreau arrives at Godolkin University, we see a lot of ancillary students with a bevy of powers. It remains to be seen if we will get to know any of them in the season but there are some other Gen V characters who play a role and have powers.

Maverick (Power: Invisibility)

Maverick is Marie’s RA who makes an appearance a couple of times. He’s pretty witty but we don’t get a ton of him this season.

Polarity (Power: Metal Manipulation and Superhuman Strength)

Like we mentioned earlier, Polarity is Andre’s father and has the same powers. He is also well-aware of the secrets of the woods and, after falling into some serious illness in episode seven, could end up being a victim in the finale.

Sam (Power: Superhuman Strength and Invulnerability)

Sam is a troubled supe (and Golden Boy’s brother) who is trying to escape his unfortunate circumstances. He is a former resident at Sage Grove psychiatric hospital and a part of the sinister secrets of the woods facility, trapped in a lab where he is subject to torture. He’s extremely powerful with super strength and invulnerability but he also has to deal with hallucinations that blur the lines between reality and fiction. Luke was told his brother is schizophrenic but we aren’t sure if that is his true diagnosis or not.

Sam is perhaps the most powerful supe in this series but he’s also been through a lot of physical and mental trauma. But his powers, inside knowledge of the woods, and his brother’s tragic death all make him an asset in taking down God U and Vought.

Originally published September 29, 2023.

The post Every New GEN V Hero and Their Powers on THE BOYS’ Spinoff appeared first on Nerdist.

There are a new class of supes who hope to join the Seven in Gen V. Marie Moreau, Andre Anderson, and others are fighting for the coveted #1 spot at Godolkin University and all the perks that come with being great. It’s an exciting new direction for The Boys universe but our hearts are always with characters like Hughie, A-Train, and even Homelander. We know that a few characters from The Boys are coming to Gen V throughout its first season. But how will their stories intertwine with God U? Here’s what The Boys characters are doing in Gen V. 

A-Train Is a Beacon of Hope in Gen V 

It’s not clear if A-Train will make his way to God U before the season ends. We do see him in the show’s opening scene, which is a flashback from eight years ago. Marie’s dad is proud to see a Black man make it into the Seven. If he only knew the truth about that organization. A-Train’s draft clip is the only time he appears in the first three episodes. 

Ashley Barrett Continues to Lie for Vought in Gen V

Ashley Barrett appears at the end of episode one after Golden Boy’s rampage and death by suicide. Of course, the Vought CEO lies and says that there’s nothing wrong at Godolkin. She calls Golden Boy “psychotic” and a “drug user.” Then, her clip pulls us back into our reality before we get a taste of what will happen this semester. 

She shows up early in episode two on a board meeting/phone call with Godolkin University president Indira Shetty to discuss Golden Boy’s death. Ashley quickly creates a narrative to push Marie and Andre as the “Guardians of Godolkin” who saved the day so they can score points with the public and the NAACP. Jordan Li is purposely left out of the narrative because of their race and gender identity. A private conversation between Indira and Ashley reveals that the woods being exposed is a big and, in Ashley’s words, a “potentially fatal” problem. Indira assures her that she will handle everything from a PR perspective.

Adam Bourke Is a Godolkin Professor in Gen V, Apparently

Adam Bourke shows up exactly where we thought he would in Gen V—the school of performing arts. The famed director tells his acting class to use their grief over Golden Boy’s death to push forward. His appearance is hilarious with a pitch-perfect monologue about the importance of the artist. Apparently, his students have to “bring the funk and not the junk” to get a passing grade.

The Deep Ranked #6 at God U and Loved Brink

The Deep (well, his photo) shows up in a Godolkin University orientation video in episode one. While Queen Maeve and A-Train were #1 in their classes, The Deep came in at #6. Honestly, I’m shocked he made it that far up the rankings. He’s not qualified to be a professor but he did send in a video for a fundraiser gala honoring Brink. In episode three, The Deep says Brink helped him hone his skills and sharpen his mind to turn him into the intelligent man he is today. He tells him to “rest in peace bro.”

This will probably be the only time The Deep makes a Gen V appearance but it is a fun cameo.

Soldier Boy’s Gen V Cameo Is a Dirty Delight

It only took six episodes for Jensen Ackles to return as Soldier Boy in Gen V. His appearance wasn’t technically the real him but rather how he exists in Cate’s mind/imagination as her childhood crush. He meets Marie and company, tells them a little too much info about Cate’s masturbation methods, and dies after being struck by a burst blood vessel. Everything about him showing up is awesome, especially when you consider that Ackles improvs his lines.

Victoria Neuman Is on the Campaign (and Chaos) Trail 

Victoria Neuman makes her Gen V debut in episode six. The head-popping VP candidate is at a Godolkin Town Hall trying to repair her image as a supe hater. Predictably, the town hall goes completely off the rails and Victoria is rushed off stage only to be accosted by Marie Moreau. Through their conversation, Victoria affirms that she also has blood manipulation powers. Marie hands her information about Vought and The Woods (which she may have been at least vaguely aware of) and Victoria uses that to kill Dr. Cardosa and take vials of the supe killing virus. She will be a big antagonist in The Boys season four and surely this virus will be a part of her nefarious plans. 

The Boys‘ Grace Mallory Makes a Surprise Cameo Appearance in Gen V

Grace Mallory, the former CIA Deputy Director who was caring for Homelander’s son Ryan, is known for being the founder of The Boys and working closely with Butcher. She appears briefly in Gen V in a scene with Dean Shetty, who tries to convince her to use the supe killing virus. Grace refuses and then calls a mysterious person (Butcher, maybe?) to make sure they got the recording. So, it looks like The Boys collective will be trying to stop this horrific virus in season four. 

Originally published September 29, 2023.

The post Here’s How THE BOYS Characters Show Up in GEN V appeared first on Nerdist.

The Boys is known for its bloody and oft-gross world full of deceptive supes and shady corporate shenanigans. So it’s fitting that Gen V, the show’s spinoff series, is delivering that same energy in a college setting. Class is in session and there’s a lot of gross, shocking, and plain old weird moments in Gen V that are prime fodder for GIFs and memes. 

Here are all the scenes that will never leave your mind (and timeline).

Jump To: Episode 1 // Episode 2 // Episode 3 // Episode 4 // Episode 5 // Episode 6 // Episode 7

Gen V Episode One’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “God U”

Marie’s Bloody Supe Origin Story

Gen V wastes no time getting into some dark and bloody s**t. At first, things seem normal with a preteen Marie starting her first menstrual cycle. She’s understandably unnerved by her bleeding but she becomes terrified when her blood starts to float towards her face. Her screams lead her mom to break down the bathroom door.

Marie isn’t able to control her newfound powers and a stream of her blood slits her mother’s throat. Her dad comes in to help but Marie’s panicking causes her blood to also kill him in a brutal fashion. Her sister comes in to see their parents dead and Marie on the floor in shock. 

Not Suitable for School Sex Videos

A now-teenage Marie is at Red River Institute, an orphanage for young supes, and simply wants to use a computer. But one of her housemates is using it to watch sex videos. Weirdly, he’s watching it with no headphones in a room with others around. Marie rightfully calls him a perv and tells him to move. She also has to, um, clean the keyboard before she can use it. 

Little Cricket Vs. David Caruso the Gerbil 

This is tame for Gen V and The Boys’ universe but it is still very weird. We meet Little Cricket a.k.a. Emma, who shrinks down and makes fighting videos with her pet gerbil. It’s strange and fun and I’m okay with it. 

Golden Boy’s Arm-Ripping Techniques 

Golden Boy is the man at God U. So of course he has to battle his fellow classmates in a gladiator-style battle, right? He turns on the flames and quickly takes out an opponent. The fight ends with him ripping the other guy’s arms off for a burst of bright red. Thankfully this supe has healing powers and his arms are reconnected to his body. 

Hella Strong Supe on the Loose 

Marie and Andre both discover a supe running across campus as armed guards chase him. They use their powers to apprehend him but not before he’s able to toss some vehicles and people around. This sets up a big mystery and goes against the picture perfect image that God U maintains. 

A Night Out and a Throat Slashing (Again)

As a freshman, Marie is living the dream. Andre invites Marie to hang out with him, Golden Boy, Jordan Li, and Golden Boy’s girlfriend Cate. Are they supposed to leave campus? No. But college life is all about breaking the rules. Things are going well until Andre gets drunk and decides to manipulate a coin into a bird to impress a girl at the bar. Someone bumps into him and the coin slices a woman’s neck. Marie is able to save her life but it begins a downward spiral that nearly gets her booted from school.

Little Cricket’s Goes on a Wild and Woeful Ride

Little Cricket didn’t get a chance to hang out with Golden Boy. Instead, she hooks up with a random guy who is a fan of her online videos. Predictably, he only cares about her getting small so she can, um, take a ride on his private part. She isn’t thrilled about it but in the midst of her sadness she does it anyway. We also discover that Little Cricket has to force herself to vomit in order to get small. It really brings her story and powers into a sad focus. 

Golden Boy’s Killer Rampage and Explosive Ending

Marie decides to fight back against Professor Brink’s decision to expel her in order to protect Golden Boy and company. What she didn’t bargain for was seeing Golden Boy burning Brink alive before turning his attention to her. Jordan saves the day (even though they barely survived) but Golden Boy makes it outside. In the end, Golden Boy says goodbye to his bestie Andre before floating up in the sky and exploding himself. His blood and guts rain down on everyone below as they stand in a state of shock. An explosive ending to an episode, indeed. 

Gen V Episode Two’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “First Day”

Guts Cleanup on Godolkin Campus

The first scene of the episode shows the gory aftermath of Golden Boy’s death. Chunks of his flesh and blood are all over the place and it is terrible.

Nancy Reagan That S**t

Justine will do anything to get views, including telling others that Emma purges to get small. While that is gross and shocking from a moral perspective, Justine is also a creep. She convinces a supe to suck her tail on camera, telling her to “Nancy Reagan that s**t” in a calm voice. Yuck.

A Dive Into Polarity’s Private Parts

Andre finally pieces together what Golden Boy said moments before his death. “Your dad has it” wasn’t meant to be taken literally after all. It turns out Luke/Golden Boy hid a secret phone in the crotch of the Polarity statue, which Andre opens and retrieves.

Cate Saves the Day with Dirty Mind Control

Andre’s mission to find out about Luke and Sam goes awry when guards catch him. Cate comes in and uses her mind manipulation powers to convince one guard to suck on the others flashlight before it goes, well, where the sun doesn’t shine. Cate is so creative and clutch.

Gen V Episode Three’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “#ThinkBrink”

The Fist Up the Throat

Sage Grove doesn’t seem like a fun place to be. In a flashback, Luke and Cate go to visit Sam. Besides seeing a very long “love sausage” they discover that Sam is quite upset after learning the truth about Compound V. Luke calms him down but an officer shoots him, which leads to Sam punching an officer so hard in the chest that his fist comes out of his mouth. Delightful.

Well, That’s One Way to Grieve

Cate and Andre are both mourning Luke’s death and trying to piece together this mystery. In the midst of it all, college hormones take over and they have sex. Somehow, we don’t think Luke would be pleased.

Jordan Li’s Little Romp

This show changes scenery and tone at the drop of a hat. One moment we are grieving with Golden Boy and the next one Jordan Li is having a tryst in their room with a lot showing in broad daylight. Gen V really does embody the spirit of The Boys well when it comes to random shocking moments!

A Little Cricket Ear Adventure

Little Cricket meets Sam and they actually get along quite well. Soldiers come in and hit Sam with a taser. She chooses to defend him by crawling into a man’s ear and going all the way through to the other side. It’s bloody, weird, and a moment that no one will forget.

Gen V Episode Four’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “The Whole Truth”

Sam’s Trail of Carnage Candy

Sam is on the loose and he leaves a lot of carnage candy in his wake. Dean Shetty discovers a gruesome scene with most of her soldiers’ bodies twisted and bloody in a hallway. It’s not the first time we have seen Sam deliver blood to the screen and it certainly won’t be the last. 

I Exploded His D**k

Yes, Marie is a supe and currently #2 at God U. But that doesn’t mean she isn’t still a naive freshman who doesn’t know what’s going on sometimes. Marie is desperate to find Emma, so she seeks out Rufus, an upperclassman with psychic and telepathy powers. She wants him to use his abilities to locate Emma and he agrees, coercing Marie to sit close to him.

However, he somehow portals them to his dorm room after knocking her out with some sort of pheromones. Marie is confused and horrified when she discovers that he’s wearing a robe and fully exposing himself to her. Jordan shows up and creates a distraction. Marie holds her hands up and it causes the blood to rush to his penis. It explodes and that situation is a wrap. 

Marie and Jordan Hook Up

There’s been a ton of tension between these two and not in a sexual way. However, Marie finally telling the truth and Jordan coming to her aid sparks a flame between the pair. They share their first kiss before Emma barges in and end up having sex later in the episode. It’s not the graphic fare we’d expect in Gen V, but this moment is still shocking nonetheless. 

Tek Knight Is Humpin’ Around

Tek Knight’s extracurricular activities become his downfall in this episode. Dean Shetty discovers that his brain tumor leads him to engaging with inanimate objects in a sexual way. We actually get to see a few, including a donut, traffic cone, hand dryer, and even a tree. What a swell guy!

Emma Goes Giant

This episode reveals more about Emma’s abilities. Apparently, she can consume large amounts of food while regular sized and turn into a super-sized version of herself. This comes in handy when the God U crew tracks down Sam and tries to subdue him. Emma eats spaghetti and gets very big (and naked), holding Sam down and talking to him gently until he calms down. 

Gen V Episode Five’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “Welcome to the Monster Club”

The Dolphin Blowhole Sex Scene

The God U crew wakes up at a house party and doesn’t remember anything from the night before nor the woods. Andre and Cate walk through the house, where all sorts of wild things have happened. But nothing is like what they see in one room. A guy who can move his hand really fast sticks it inside of a girl with a blowhole. And um… she has her climax and shoots fluid out of the hole.

Who the Hell Is Sam?!

Things take a complete turn when Sam shows up. Emma and Marie have no idea who he is and remember nothing about The Woods. This is when we know something truly terrible has happened to our crew.

The Violent Puppet Scene

Dean Shetty’s guards/soldiers descend on Sam’s hiding spot. He takes them out in extremely brutal fashion but it seems less horrific because the fight is seen through his eyes. Everyone, including Sam, appears as a puppet. It’s only in the end where we see the true carnage that Sam left behind. The more you think about his puppet connection, the sadder it becomes.

Cate’s Deception

Marie discovers a tracking device in her neck and goes to Cate to see what to do next. Unfortunately, Cate reveals herself to be the one wiping their minds. Is she a horrible person? No. But it still makes everyone angry, especially Andre.

Gen V Episode Six’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “Jumanji”

Hello Soldier Boy

Everything about Marie, Jordan, and Andre’s encounter with Soldier Boy in Cate’s mind is weird and gross. He reveals that he is her childhood crush as well as all the ways she would masturbate to his image. We get great terms like “flick the bean” and “diddle that skittle” to describe it all. What a fun and wild cameo that ends explosively.

A Little Sex and an Emma Puppet

Is there anything else to say? After getting her memories back, Emma finds Sam and shows him the way to Pleasure Town. During their interaction, Sam briefly sees Emma as a puppet before she becomes herself again.

The Dean Shetty and Cate Connection

Well, well, wellll. It turns out Dean Shetty preyed on Cate at a young age after she’d been ostracized for nine years. Now we have a better understanding of why Cate would betray her friends and help Shetty in her dangerous mission.

Andre and Jordan Are Full of Sordid Secrets

Cate’s mind tells everyone’s personal business. While the revelation about Marie’s dark past made everyone feel empathy for her, Jordan and Andre’s secrets were of the anger-inducing variety. It turns out Golden Boy knew that Andre and Cate were sleeping together before he died. Spicy. And Jordan saw a confrontation between Golden Boy and Brink, but chose to stay quiet about it in exchange for their TA position.

Gen V Episode Seven’s Most Gross, Shocking, and Weird Moments  – “Sick”

Infected Andy Enters The Woods

Sam is out of The Woods but the horrors continue for the other supes there. We see the full scope of Dean Shetty and Dr. Cardosa’s nasty virus thanks to infected Andy. He looks like something from a zombie series in the grossest way possible. 

Dean’s Shetty’s Shocking Truth 

Marie and Jordan do a little snooping around in Shetty’s office and make a big discovery. It turns out Shetty’s family died in the flight that Homelander and Queen Maeve crashed in The Boys season one. This is why she’s dead set on killing all supes. For more about that crash and what this connection could mean, check this post out. 

Sam Explores Emma’s Underwear 

Sam is left to his own devices while Emma does a supply run. While it seems like a terrible idea to leave someone like Sam alone, Emma also knows he’s a wanted man. Sam explores Emma’s room and discovers her underwear drawer. Interestingly, she has underwear in all sizes and he takes a liking to her tiny ones. In fact, he begins to act out a weird scene with them to entertain himself. How can you not love him?

Polarity’s Onscreen Breakdown and Crushing Ride to the Hospital 

Polarity is back in Gen V and preparing to interview Victoria Neuman at a God U Town Hall. Things quickly go awry when Polarity goes into some sort of shock on live TV. Andre is watching and rushes to see about his estranged father. Polarity’s powers go off the rails, causing metal to fly all around and his ambulance to start crushing in on itself. Thankfully, Andre contains everything but it raises some unanswered questions about what happened to him. Is it connected to The Woods? 

Victoria Neuman’s Power Reveal

After a terrible Town Hall, Victoria Neuman and Marie Moreau sit down for a little chat. Victoria confirms that she also has blood manipulation powers, which makes sense because she pops people’s heads for fun. Maybe we will see a bloody battle between the two in the future.

Dean Shetty Dies Under Cate’s Control

The frankly awful relationship between Dean Shetty and Cate Dunlap comes to a tragic end. After years of feeding Cate meds to control her powers and coercing her to protect The Woods’ secrets, Cate is over Shetty. She gains mind control over her, making her confess all her sins before forcing Shetty to slit her own throat. This action causes some division among the group and sets Cate up to be a new antihero.

Popping the Doctor

Oh Marie. She tells Victoria Neuman all about what’s going on with The Woods and it immediately leads to mess. Victoria tracks down Dr. Cardosa, gets all the virus vials, and promptly pops his head before heading off to parts unknown.

We can’t wait to see what other gross, shocking, and weird moments will happen in Gen V.

Originally published on September 29, 2023.

The post The Most Shocking, Gross, and Plain Weird Moments of GEN V appeared first on Nerdist.

Well, that was one hell of a ride. Gen V’s seventh episode was a complete doozy with tons of new revelations and The Boys’ character cameos. And boy did that ending set up the season finale well. It’s enough to make your head want to, ahem, explode. There has been lots of small connective tissue between The Boys and Gen V, from Queen Maeve posters to Adam Bourke showing up as a professor. However, things between these series are a lot more intertwined than we originally thought. Gen V reveals that Victoria Neuman and Marie Moreau are more alike than we thought and Dean Shetty harbors a personal vendetta against all supes, specifically Homelander, which explains why she is creating a supe-killing virus. Let’s get into how Gen V is perfectly setting up The Boys season four.

Dean Shetty’s Motivations in Gen V and Her Ties to Homelander’s Cruelty in The Boys

At the end of episode six, we discovered that Dean Shetty wants to use Dr. Edison Cardosa’s virus to infect all supes. Of course, this is in direct conflict with Dr. Cardosa’s intentions, which aren’t totally clear but apparently are not this nefarious. We knew we’d get an explanation behind her motivations at some point. It did seem odd to want to kill supes considering she is the dean of a university for supes. Now, we know that Dean Shetty hates supes because her husband and daughter died in the Crash of Transoceanic Flight 37.

In case you forgot, this is the plane crash from The Boys’ season one, episode four where Homelander and Queen Maeve attempt to stop hijackers on a commercial flight. They kill three of the hijackers but when Homelander discovers a fourth in the cockpit, he recklessly kills him with his laser eye powers. This destroys the plane, causing it to start crashing. Despite Maeve’s pleas to save the passengers, Homelander doesn’t want any witnesses. So, he leaves with Maeve and they watch everyone crash and die.

Indira Shetty is very well connected and a smart human. So it is not shocking that she knows the truth about this flight. It also seems that she hasn’t been the dean at the school for very long. She previously told Marie that she was previously a behavioral therapist and reminded Ashley that Vought hired her because she’s a “problem solver,” hinting that she came along in recent years. We’d bet his happened three years ago and she came into this sham of a school to continue studying supes. But unlike her predecessors, she’s taking her experiments to a dangerous new level.

In this episode, Shetty goes to Grace Mallory, the former CIA Deputy Director and the founder of The Boys. Or, as Soldier Boy calls her, Captain Lesbo. Shetty tries to convince her that they can work together. Grace obviously declines this offer and makes a phone call to a mysterious person. She asks if they “got that” and hinting that “they” are on to her.

We don’t hear the voice on the phone, but it is possibly Butcher on the other end. Dean Shetty’s goals threaten every supe in this universe—both good and terrible. The Boys are not on that wavelength, especially with Starlight on their team. They will have to deal with this virus threat next season among other things. Vought is aware of The Woods and experiments, they don’t know that Shetty wants to kill all supes. Godolkin University is a front to study supes to craft new abilities and keep their business going. 

Any hopes of Dean Shetty appearing on The Boys are gone before the end of the episode. Cate controls Dean Shetty’s mind and makes her admit the truth to her friends. Then, she exacts her revenge by making her former mom figure slit her throat. Cate also prevents Marie from saving her, sending the God U crew into shock. Loyalties become divided with Sam believing that Cate delivered righteous justice while Emma, Marie, and Jordan believing she made a terrible choice. We wonder which side Andre will ultimately take. 

The Boys‘ Victoria Neuman Comes to Gen V and Changes the Game

Now, it’s time for the Victoria Neuman drama. The former (??) anti-supe (but actually a supe) activist turned Vice Presidential candidate is at God U hoping to win over its students. Predictably, things go awry and Victoria has to leave the stage. Meanwhile, Marie sneaks in to speak with her directly, hoping that Neuman can use her political power to expose The Woods. She’s shocked when Victoria willingly invites her into a room for a conversation. Marie gets more than what she bargained for after Victoria Neuman invites her to analyze her blood. She realizes that the political powerhouse is herself a Supe and Victoria reveals that she also has blood manipulation powers. This makes a lot of sense considering she blows up folks’ heads on the regular.

Victoria also reveals that she went to the Red River Institute and played a small role in helping Marie get into Godolkin. (RED. FLAG.) Marie divulges all the information to her and Victoria tells her that she will “handle” it. She also tells Marie to go back to being a student, lest she want to cause trouble that will end with Vought shipping her to an adult facility. Victoria says the first Black woman in the Seven would have real power politically and culturally. She tells Marie to choose a path and that they will “keep in touch.”

This complicates things greatly for Marie because she could risk ruining her entire life behind exposing The Woods. At the end, Victoria takes the virus and kills Dr. Cardosa, so she will likely take off with the virus vials and use them to her advantage in The Boys season four. So while Dean Shetty is gone, Victoria Neuman is taking up the mantle of stirring up drama in the supe world. 

We know that Gen V will get another season that will build on whatever goes down in The Boys season four. What will Victoria do with the supe killing virus? How will Dean Shetty’s death change Cate and the rest of the God U crew? The plot thickens, indeed.

The post How GEN V Expertly Sets Up THE BOYS Season 4 appeared first on Nerdist.

Gen V’s sixth episode takes Marie, Andre, Jordan, and randomly Dusty on a trip inside Cate Dunlap’s mind. After she restores their memories, Cate goes into a seizure and her powers create a state that drags them into her head. They witness the moment that changed Cate’s life: when she commanded her brother to go away and he walked off to never return. Poor Cate wasn’t aware of her newly activated mind control powers. Their peeping is interrupted by the very unlikely presence of Soldier Boy, whom we got (uncomfortably) familiar with in The Boys season three. What is Soldier Boy doing in Gen V? Let’s get into his wacky and brief cameo.

Soldier Boy approaches the group and wants to know why these “greasy sack of f**knuts” are there. Of course, they recognize him and ask him why he is in Cate’s mind. Soldier Boy reveals that he was Cate’s imaginary friend/boyfriend from her childhood. This makes sense considering that Soldier Boy is aesthetically appealing and presented as a heroic figure. (We all know the truth about his actual antics.) The scene quickly goes left field as Soldier Boy opens up about how he taught Cate to masturbate, revealing some very weird information that she wouldn’t want her friends to know.

Soldier Boy recognizes Andre as Cate’s new f**kboy and admits that she really loves him. Andre and Jordan accuse him of being a Russian agent (thank you Vought for the false information). Soldier Boy denies it because he’s a red-blooded (not “Commie red”) American. He finally explains that Cate wants them in her brain for some reason and says they need to figure out why before they become trapped forever.

According to him, Cate’s brain is unraveling, as evidenced by several strong sparks in the atmosphere. He says they need to know one really important thing and never finishes his sentence. A strike of “lightning” burns him to a crisp, which encourages them to hurry up. Andre comments, “That guy was a dick, right?” and we certainly agree. Jensen Ackles is so good at being a terrible supe like Soldier Boy.

We spoke with Gen V showrunner Eric Kripke, who revealed that Jensen Ackles actually improvised a lot of his lines for the Soldier Boy cameo. For more on that conversation (and a little Taylor Lautner chatter), check out our interview.

So far, The Boys character cameos have been fun and nonsensical, with the exception of Ashley Barrett. While this technically wasn’t the real Soldier Boy, we know that he will likely return for more chaos in The Boys season four. Until then, we really hope that the God U crew doesn’t ask Cate about her childhood crush.

The post GEN V Brings Back Soldier Boy for a Hilarious and Uncomfortable Cameo appeared first on Nerdist.

Gen V’s sixth episode is an incredible mixed bag of revelation, heartbreak, a hot hookup, and a splash of humor thanks to Soldier Boy. Marie, Jordan, and Andre get more than they bargained for after ending up in the recesses of Cate’s mind. Their darkest secrets come to light and they leave with a deeper understanding of why Cate betrayed them. Now more than ever, the God U crew is a united front determined to take down Dean Shetty and her cohorts at all costs. We caught up with Gen V showrunner Eric Kripke and executive producer Michele Fazekas to chat about that Soldier Boy scene, the Taylor Lautner cameo that almost happened, creating Cate’s world, and much more. 

Nerdist: Gen V does a great job of capturing all the wonderful things we love about The Boys, but it also feels wholly unique. What were some of your guiding principles and goals when you started crafting this series? 

Eric Kripke: Thanks for saying that because it is very intentional. [The Boys and Gen V] need to live as their own shows that have their own reasons for being beyond money, you know? We were really scared of appearing like we were selling out… In The Boys, the superpowers are a metaphor for the broadest possible social issues. They’re metaphors for celebrity and authoritarianism and fascism, and so as we were developing [Gen V], we said we should continue to use those metaphors, but we should use them for what young people are going through, and their own specific character and psychological issues.

Buffy was a really inspiring show for me in my developmental years and the way it used the metaphor of high school as literally hell was really smart. The idea that these powers you have are both advantageous to you, but also that wounds that you’re carrying around, felt like a good way into this story.

Michele Fazekas: One thing I recognized very early was the heroes in Gen V would be the villains in The Boys, but we’re getting to them before they’ve been corrupted. And so we actually get to see that moment that everyone deals with in adolescence of, “What kind of person am I going to be? Now that I don’t have my parents telling me what to do, I get to decide what I want to do.” You see that very important moment in these kids’ lives, but they just happen to be superheroes.

And we definitely see a lot of important moments of growth and discovery in episode six. It really takes us into some dark places for all of the characters, but specifically for Cate because we get to live in her mind and see her past experiences in such an interesting way. What went into creating those sequences from a visual and a storytelling perspective?

Fazekas: From a storytelling perspective, we really liked the idea of looking at these key moments in Cate’s life and letting our characters live through them with her. These were the things that shaped who she is, that maybe tell you why she betrayed her friends in such a huge way. She’s not just evil, she had reasons, and this sort of brings you to who she is as a person, so you have maybe a better understanding of her.

And visually, it was a big undertaking. How do we show a world that is a dream world? It’s like the world is crumbling around her, but we’ve seen a lot of dream worlds. So I think the challenge is, how do you do it in a way that you don’t feel like I’ve seen it a million times? So it was a lot developed with our visual effects team… What will look cool? What will look unique?

It came together beautifully. Of course I have to ask about Soldier Boy! Can you talk about what went into the decision to bring him back and what was it like crafting the dialogue? Every word that comes out of his mouth is absolutely hilarious and on brand.

Kripke: Yeah, a lot of that is from Jensen [Ackles]. The part called for Cate’s imaginary crush to guide [the group] into her mindscape. In a very early draft of the script, it was Taylor Lautner. So [in the episode] it’s like, “Taylor Lautner, what are you doing here?” And then it’s, “Oh, I’m Cate’s crush and here’s the rules of the world,” and then he explodes.

I love it!

Kripke: I forget whether we even brought it to Taylor Lautner or, very wisely, he passed, but suddenly Taylor Lautner wasn’t on the table. And we were trying to get Soldier Boy into the spinoff and we said, “Well, this is actually the perfect spot because he can be alive and well in a dream sequence, whereas in the reality of the show, he’s unconscious in a CIA basement somewhere.”

And so I called him and I said, “You’re suiting up. We need you.” He was awesome as always. He was shooting this show, Big Sky, and he moved around his dates and came in. His only request was, “It needs to be funnier.” And I said, “Totally,” and I was actually going to be there in Toronto at the time anyway. So I’m like, “I will be on set, I will be standing next to the camera, and you and I will riff until you are happy.” 

It was one of the most fun days I’ve had on a set. He’s there, I’m right behind the camera, and we’re just rolling. And he’s like, “What if I say this?” I’m like, “Say it.” And then, “What if you say this?” We must’ve come up with 100 euphemisms for jerking off, and we’ve only used 10% of them. It was a blast because he’s so good at improv, he always has been, so it was just him and I throwing stuff back and forth and rolling film on it.

I love that. So what can fans expect from these final two episodes of Gen V?

Fazekas: …Everything races to a head and everyone’s been set on these paths, especially Cate, because Cate sort of breaks. And then her friends have to decide, what side are we going to be on here? Because sides are going to form. We had to set up something to launch us into season four of The Boys, and so we did that as well. There’s a handoff between our show and their show.

Oooh that’s so exciting! Can’t wait to see what happens next.

The post GEN V’s Eric Kripke and Michele Fazekas on Jensen Ackles’ Soldier Boy Improv and Cate’s Mind appeared first on Nerdist.

The first season of The Boys spinoff series Gen V is giving fans a wild ride at Godolkin University. It turns out this school is not a safe space for anyone to thrive. The heartbreaking experimentations happening in a secret facility are slowly unfolding towards chaos that will change this entire universe. So, it’s not shocking Gen V is coming back for its sophomore year. That’s right, Gen V has been renewed for season two.

The Prime Video show’s official X page shared the delightful news with fans. We really love the video of the God U crew celebrating their good fortune.  

Vernon Sanders, head of television at Amazon MGM Studios, spoke further about the future of Gen V in a Variety statement. “Expanding the universe of The Boys with a series as bold as Gen V has been an incredible journey for us and our wonderful partners at Sony. From our first conversation with showrunners Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters, along with Eric Kripke, Evan Goldberg, and Seth Rogen, we knew Gen V would push the boundaries. Their unapologetic approach is exactly what audiences love, and it has helped Gen V become the No. 1 series on Prime Video in over 130 countries. Gen V is Prime Video’s most acquisitive new Original series of 2023, and we’re excited that our incredible cast and crew are going to continue telling brave and bold stories from Gen V to our customers.”

And there’s certainly a lot of storytelling potential here. We know Dean Shetty is doing some horrific experiments on supes like Sam. She’s in cahoots with Vought, which means her reasons for maintaining The Woods have to be nefarious. There’s also still some major questions about the details behind Golden Boy’s mental unraveling, Marie’s sister, and how Andre will deal with his father. We are glad that Gen V is renewed for season two because we need answers… and more puppets. 

The post GEN V’s Sophomore Year Is Happening Thanks to a Season 2 Renewal appeared first on Nerdist.

Gen V’s fifth episode completely flips the series around with a wild reset. The end of episode four suggested some trickery was afoot as the “save Sam” sequence abruptly cut to Marie Moreau and Jordan Li in bed together. This proved to be true with the entire crew waking up at a wild party and not remembering anything about what happened the night. Even worse, they don’t remember anything about Sam nor the woods. It set them on the path towards Rufus, the psychic supe, because all signs pointed to his involvement. Rufus is disgusting, but he’s not the culprit behind their major setback. It turns out Cate Dunlap is deeply involved with Dean Shetty and covering up what’s happening in The Woods on Gen V. 

In the episode, Marie, Jordan, Andre, and Cate try to remember how they all ended up at a wild house party. Jordan notes they never black out and a whole day has gone by without any of them remembering it. Later on, Marie and Emma are confronted by Sam, who is much calmer than when they last saw him. The problem is, they don’t remember him at all. Sam tells Emma there are dangerous people at the school who don’t want them to know about him. He says he will find a way to fix it and leaves.

Marie and Emma catch up with the group again and Cate suggests Rufus is probably behind their memory loss. It’s a convenient lie considering Rufus is 1) a horrible predator and 2) mad at Marie for exploding his penis. Marie also discovers a tracker is embedded under her skin, which is likely true for the others. She goes to Cate to update her and Cate uses her mind control powers to make her forget. Of course, Marie isn’t able to expose Cate’s deception because she cannot remember anything (again). 

However, Cate isn’t straight up evil like Vought. She tearfully tells Dean Shetty she can’t keep lying and pretending to be someone she’s not. Cate says her friends will eventually figure it out and Dean Shetty simply apologizes for what’s going on. Meanwhile, Emma finds Sam, who reveals Cate made Luke forget Sam over and over again. Everything crashes together when Jordan and Marie find Rufus, who says he can’t manipulate anyone who isn’t physically close. Emma calls and reveals Sam is Golden Boy’s brother and Cate is behind it all. Andre shows up with Cate and he’s very angry, nearly killing Rufus before Cate admits her deception and restores his memories. He’s visibly heartbroken and calls her a monster before walking off. 

Despite the circumstances, it’s hard to not feel sorry for Cate Dunlap. She genuinely cares about Andre and the others and doesn’t take pleasure in manipulating them. It’s not clear why Dean Shetty chose Cate as her reluctant accomplice. It’s possible that there’s some part of Cate’s past that Dean Shetty is able to use as a bargaining chip. Maybe Cate has some kind of connection to the woods that Gen V will reveal soon. Either way, Cate knows something—if not everything—and the crew will have to get that information out of her. The good thing about Cate being a decent supe at her core is that she can still use her powers to help stop Dean Shetty’s nebulous plan. The plot continues to thicken in this quest to take down God U and The Woods.

The post GEN V Reveals Cate Dunlap Was Behind the Mind-Wiping Confusion appeared first on Nerdist.

Gen V has many questions that need answers. What is Dean Shetty up to in The Woods? When will we see Soldier Boy? When do any of these kids do their homework? But there’s one question fans have had since the show released its trailers. What is up with the puppets in Gen V? We know they have a connection to Sam and how he mentally processes information. And, in episode five, we discover that the puppets’ relationship to Sam is kinda similar to one we have seen in The Boys.

In the last season of The Boys, Black Noir’s past plays out in front of him in the form of cartoon figures. He also sees these cartoons at random times and they are invisible to others around him. Years prior, Soldier Boy brutally beat Black Noir and the incident led to severe physical and mental changes for him. He became the same mental age as a young child. These cartoons from his childhood act as his friends and allow the viewer to experience things from his unique perspective.

This is very similar to what we get with Sam in Gen V. In episode three, Sam imagined a TV with a Sesame Street-like program playing. A man and a Deep puppet push him to kill Dr. Cardosa, which he attempts before Emma calms him down. Like Black Noir, Sam has been through a lot of physical trauma that affects the way his brain works. He doesn’t have the mental age of a child; however, he certainly isn’t used to socializing with others. People treat him like a monster but, in reality, he’s a rather sweet young man you want to help. Sam has been trapped and used for experiments in The Woods for a long time, which is certainly contributing to his current (and not clearly defined) mental status.

In episode five, Sam is dismayed Emma and the others have been mind wiped to forget him. He is alone with his racing thoughts when a puppet version of Emma shows up. Puppet Emma says things are bad and that Sam needs to save her. Sam says he will save the real Emma and that she’s not real. She questions him, saying “Real like that?” and points to a swath of soldiers invading his hiding spot. The scene switches over to all puppets (including Sam). A violent and gory fight scene breaks out with puppet Sam ripping everyone apart. At the end, puppet Emma sadly says Sam needs to stop hurting people right before we see that the violent fight was real. 

It seems Sam uses these puppets to dissociate himself from the violence. This makes sense considering Sam’s long-term experimentations that lead him to retreat to his inner child for some semblance of safety. He spends a lot of time reading and maybe watching movies/old TV programs, both methods of passing the time and escaping his reality. These puppets are probably in the style of a kids’ program that he grew up watching before his life went down a dark path. It is his way of processing all of his trauma and trying to deal with the ramifications of his (as he puts it) “broken brain.” 

Like The Boys, Gen V teeters on the line between bizarre entertainment and heartbreaking revelations with remarkable care. Sure it is a way to amp up the violence even more without virtually getting banned from TV. But it is also a window into the very real pain and trauma that Sam is experiencing. Maybe one day, Sam will find his way to a freer and healthier life where he doesn’t have to be violent for his own survival.

The post The Heartbreaking Reality Behind GEN V’s Puppets appeared first on Nerdist.

The world of The Boys and Gen V never fails to leave us with questions that need answers. Butcher’s grim health diagnosis aside, one of the biggest mysteries leading into The Boys season four is about Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s mysterious new character. A lot of fans, myself included, assumed that Morgan would portray Tek Knight, a character from The Boys comics. We soon discovered that wasn’t the case. Gen V actually introduces Tek Knight, played by Derek Wilson, in its fourth episode. But who is Tek Knight and what role does he play in The Boys’ universe? Let’s get into his history, powers, and much more.

The History of Tek Knight in The Boys Comics and TV Show, Explained

As we all know, The Boys characters are (mostly) evil parodies of Marvel and DC Comics icons. Tek Knight a.k.a. Robert Vernon is no different as a mashup of Iron Man and Batman. In the comics, he is a founding member of the Payback collective despite having no clear superpowers. Instead, technology and intelligence are his powers; however, he uses them for nefarious reasons. Tek Knight is rather homophobic and engages in bizarre sexual behaviors, some in reality and others during moments of imagined psychosis. But compared to other villains he was mostly harmless, at least in the eyes of The Boys. Tek Knight’s behavior is explained due to a tumor in his brain. Eventually, a psychotic episode leads to his death. He thinks he’s saved Earth by having sex with a meteor but a falling wheelbarrow actually hits and kills him. [Editor’s note: A whole lot to unpack there.]

The Boys TV show mentions Tek Knight a few times throughout its three seasons. We know there’s a movie called Tek Knight Lives and that he’s made some tech in the universe. And Tek Knight was apparently a part of a hostage situation that left a woman paralyzed, as evidenced by a newspaper clipping in MM’s closet. So he’s certainly been in the ether but we haven’t met him… until now.

Tek Knight’s Motivations, Powers, and Place in the Gen V Spinoff 

Gen V’s fourth episode is very, very Tek Knight heavy. We meet him through a Vought+ commercial for his crime investigation series The Whole Truth. Tek Knight is a famous Godolkin University alumni who is back on campus to dig into Golden Boy’s death. His presence is unsettling for many, especially Dean Shetty. She’s very busy trying to keep the truth about the woods, Golden Boy, and Sam’s escape under wraps. Dean Shetty reveals that many of Tek Knight’s interview subjects end up dead or badly beaten after crossing his path.

Unlike the comics, Tek Knight does have some level of special powers. He’s able to sense that Dean Shetty has adrenaline coming from her pores and is apparently ovulating. Tek Knight later uses his powers to break down Andre after smelling Maddie’s, erm, hole on his breath. He later agitates Marie, calling her a liar when her pupils dilate during an impromptu class interrogation. Thankfully, Andre calls him out for being a hack and a “small man playing f**king hero” because he’s never been one. Still, Tek Knight is so unnerving that Marie ends up admitting the truth. She tells the room about what happened with Golden Boy, finally giving Jordan their due credit.

Tek Knight is willing to do anything to continue to increase his celebrity and popularity, including fabricating wild lies as the truth. He tells Dean Shetty that knows the complete truth and tries to blackmail her into taking the fall for Golden Boy’s death. Mr. Knight says he will go to Vought about Sam’s escape but he underestimates the power of a human dean with a lot to lose. 

Dean Shetty gets the last laugh with some dirt on Tek Knight. Like the comics, Tek Knight has a fatal brain tumor that causes him to do sexual things with pretty much any object that has a hole. She shows him video evidence of his odd trysts and threatens to leak them online if he doesn’t get out of God U’s business. Tek Knight flips his story, saying Golden Boy’s death is nothing more than an unfortunate tragedy. He goes about his business but not without having a couple intimate moments with a tree and a bathroom hand dryer. Thank you, sir, for your contributions to our post about Gen V‘s gross and shocking moments.

Will Tek Knight Return to Gen V or Appear on The Boys?

Tek Knight is alive so there’s a chance he could show up on either show again. We don’t know if Gen V will get another season or not so it depends on what happens with a renewal. As far as The Boys, it is quite plausible for Tek Knight to pop up there and stick his nose (and another body part) where it doesn’t belong.

The post Who Is Tek Knight on GEN V? THE BOYS’ Comic Character’s History, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.

The Boys‘ supes are neither beacons of justice nor protectors of the innocent. They are amoral, self-centered agents of death and destruction, willing props for a society that turns great power into great profits. Starlight and Kimiko are exceptions that prove the rule exemplified by sociopaths like Homelander and Soldier Boy. That inversion of traditional superhero stories and its resulting exploration of unfettered power is a big reason why the Prime Video show is among TV’s best. And since monsters come from somewhere, it was easy to assume the incredible youngsters on Gen V, The Boys‘s new college-set spinoff, would follow in The Seven’s awful footsteps. How could its batch of Compound V-filled co-eds not be their show’s main villains? Especially when its proverbial big man on campus is literally called Golden Boy?

Because just like its predecessor, Gen V succeeds by playing against expectations. Only, the series is flipping its own franchise’s superhero script. The burgeoning supes of Godolkin University aren’t antagonists like on The Boys. They are a group we cannot only root for, they are worthy of our compassion.

Despite filling the roles of stereotypical college assholes out of an ’80s movie, the students Marie and Emma met at school are actually good people. That includes the literal Golden Boy of Godolkin and his beautiful blonde girlfriend. Same for the nepo son marked for greatness and the renowned professor’s beloved student. They’re far from perfect, yes. That near-fatal incident at the bar certainly proved they’re capable of The Boys‘ level mayhem and lack of accountability. But they’re not evil. More than that, they want to be good. Unlike The Deep and his ilk, these kids have the capacity to feel empathy. It pushed them to be real heroes who stand up for others when needed, even at great risk to themselves.

That’s enough to make them supes worth rooting for. And with no Billy Butcher to serve as a counterpoint, the show needs protagonists beyond Marie and Emma we want to see win. But in just three episodes Gen V established itself as a worthy companion to one of television’s smartest, most entertaining, most thoughtful shows by doing more than just giving us likable main characters. Gen V‘s stars are also compelling because they themselves are victims of a system that abused them in hopes it would one day profit off them.

Every superhero in the world of The Boys had parents who pumped their babies full of powerful, life-changing drugs. Whether well-intentioned or not, those caregivers put their kids on a path of unknown consequences none of their children ever consented to. That revelation was so powerful it helped humanize even the worst adult superheroes on the original show. (Something the original series excels at.) It’s an unimaginable betrayal by the people who should love you most. But Gen V, by the very nature of its setting, cuts even deeper into that monstrous act. It highlights how a corrupt capitalistic system—exploited by Vought and the government eager to empower itself on the back of America supes—manipulates its victims. It takes kids, given abilities they never asked for, struggle to control, and in many cases never wanted, and turns them into the monsters we know from The Boys.

In this world you can accidentally kill your own parents with powers you didn’t know you had. Then the people who did that will throw you into an orphanage to deal with your trauma alone. From there you can meet an educator who claims to care about you while she secretly uses your trust for her company’s own gain. Your own mother can even turn your pain into a reality show pitch, no different from a fame-hungry jerk in the dorm room next door.

Being everyone’s Golden Boy and a kind, generous kid won’t protect you, either. All your powers won’t stop your mentor from locking your brother away. And when you stop a real monster, the same people who championed you will tell the world you were a villain. Only then will your friends who knew your true heart care enough to right that wrong.

The students of Godolkin University are incredibly powerful. But that’s exactly why they should be treated and cared for as the innocent, vulnerable young people they are. They should be nurtured during a time when they’re learning who they are and who they can be. They have a burden most will never know. Instead, just as it has been their entire lives, the adults who should look after them use those kids as pawns in a game they never consented to play. They’re not treated or even thought of as real people with real feelings. They’re commodities in a society that raises them to think they’re special specifically so it can exploit that specialness.

And now, because we’ve seen what the young supes of Gen V could be and want to be, we know that if the real villains stopped worrying about making money and instead worried about making the world a better place, they could do just that. The cadre of super cretins that populate The Boys are not an inevitability; they are a tragedy. They could have been real heroes with just a little nurturing.

Gen V‘s main characters are good people now, but they might not end their story that way. Like Homelander, Black Noir, and the rest, they will ultimately decide what path to go down in life. They will then own the responsibility for their choices. But it’s obvious how easily the very system that created them actively pushes them in the wrong direction. It doesn’t want or reward them for doing the right thing. It actively punishes them when they do. Even Marie, who knows better than anyone the true horror Vought creates, almost lost herself that way in just a matter of days.

That sad truth makes for an engaging, heartbreaking story that is both of The Boys and different from it. Because supes aren’t born, they’re made. Just not by Compound V alone. They’re made by the worst kinds of monster. They are people who victimize kids, because the only power they believe in is the power of money.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. He doesn’t have any super powers as far as you know. You can follow him on  Twitter and  Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post GEN V Succeeds By Flipping THE BOYS’ Script on Superheroes appeared first on Nerdist.

Gen V is obviously set in the bloody and supe-laden world of The Boys. The show takes us to Godolkin University with a slate of college-aged superpowered people, including Marie Moreau, who want to use their powers for a bigger purpose. Some of them want to follow in Queen Maeve’s steps and become the #1 so they can secure a spot in the Seven. There are certainly some spots open there after The Boys season three. How long has it been since Homelander lasered a Starlight supporter in front of his adoring fans, anyway? Let’s get into Gen V and The Boys timeline shenanigans. 

When Does Gen V Take Place in The Boys‘ Timeline?

The answer to this is fairly simple. Gen V takes place between The Boys season three and whatever debauchery we will see in season four. The Boys confirmed this via X (forever Twitter in our hearts). So there are things that could happen in Gen V that will set the stage for next season of The Boys.

Honestly, after seeing the Seven in shambles, we are not sure why anyone would want to be a part of this mess. Vought International must be more convincing than we thought. 

Does Gen V Reference The Boys Season Three Moments? 

Why yes, Gen V does affirm that it takes place after The Boys season three. Gen V’s first episode shows Marie in a Red River Institute group meeting where one person says that Starlight leaving the Seven encouraged them to speak their truth. There’s a Vought news broadcast that claims the Russians plotted the attack at the Seven’s tower. Homelander also appears to be on trial with his lawyer saying he simply stood his ground. 

There’s internet chatter about Queen Maeve’s death and autographed merch for auction. In episode two, we see a student wearing a red “Keep America Safe” hat, which is a Homelander slogan that his followers have adopted. Many of them were wearing the same type of paraphernalia when Homelander lasered introduced his son. 

None of this puts a super specific pinpoint on how long it has been since the season finale. But it can’t be any more than a few weeks to months after all of this took place. All of these events seem to be very fresh in everyone’s minds.

We will have to wait and see if future episodes give us more insight into Gen V’s timeline in relation to The Boys.

The post Here’s When the GEN V Spinoff Takes Place in THE BOYS’ Timeline appeared first on Nerdist.

Class is almost in session for Gen V, the college spinoff series set in The Boys’ universe. There will be secrets, blood, and even a puppet in the mix of whatever’s going down at Godolkin University. It’s safe to say that Marie Moreau and her fellow students could use some words of wisdom and comfort as they embark on a brave new journey. Never fear, a few familiar faces are here to do that for them. Behold this video of The Boys cast welcoming the Gen V cast into the fold in a hilarious and lowkey offensive way. 

Actors Karen Fukuhara (Kimiko), Antony Starr (Homelander), Jack Quaid (Hughie), Jessie T. Usher (A-Train), Erin Moriarty (Starlight), Colby Minifie (Ashley Barrett), Claudia Doumit (Victoria Neuman), and Cameron Crovetti (Ryan) wish everyone a warm and seemingly normal welcome. That is, until a few of them give the classic salute of The Boys: a middle finger. Some of them double up on it for extra care and affection. We can already feel the warm and fuzzy feels brewing between The Boys and Gen V casts. 

Jessie T. Usher doles out solid advice about avoiding early morning classes. Jack Quaid also gives necessary tips on how to clean up loads of blood. Apparently, shampoo, shaving cream, and two showers will do the trick. Marie Moreau’s power in Gen V is blood manipulation, so this advice from The Boys star will come in handy. Karen Fukuhara tells them to not trust Vought but, of course, Colby Minifie says they should always trust Vought. She does portray the very-shady CEO of Vought International, so that totally checks out.

The Boys cast wishes the Gen V cast the best of luck in the video and encourages them to make good grades. We are sure they won’t have time to study because, well, everything is f**ked at God U.

The post THE BOYS’ Cast Welcomes GEN V’s Cast in a Heartfelt and Hilarious Video appeared first on Nerdist.

In The Boys universe, Compound V babies are growing up and going to college in their own live-action spinoff, Gen V. How will the series connect to the original show? What can we expect from a Vought-led school of hero higher learning? Well, we can’t say for sure yet.

Here’s everything we know about Gen V so far.

Title

The title of this The Boys spinoff is Gen V.

Gen V‘s Plot

Here’s the initial Gen V synopsis from Prime Video and Sony:

Set at America’s only college exclusively for young-adult superheroes (run by Vought International), Gen V is an irreverent, R-rated series that explores the lives of hormonal, competitive Supes as they put their physical, sexual, and moral boundaries to the test, competing for the best contracts in the best cities. It’s part college show, part Hunger Games—with all the heart, satire, and raunch of The Boys.

Gen V will take place at Godolkin University (and within its “School of Crimefighting”), an exclusive university of higher supe learning. The series will borrow from The Boys comic, specifically from the “We Gotta Go Now” arc.

This Gen V trailer reveals that Victoria Neuman, Ashely, and Adam Bourke will appear alongside these new characters. And Marie, whom we previously saw a photo of on The Boys in a Red River Institute file (more on that later), is the main character. Love that for her… or maybe not.

And, yes, there will be puppets.

We also know what The Boys‘ spinoff’s college student union and dorm rooms will look like. Gen V‘s setting is looking pretty clean… for now.

We also have quite a few new photos of all the characters we will see in Gen V. They are also remarkably clean for now. Well, except poor Andre.

Click To View Gallery

Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, speaking with Empire, promise there are some shocking scenes to come. Rogen notes, “Gen V has some really crazy shit in it. The fact that they’re in college, they’re a little younger, makes it more shocking, maybe.”

And more widely, Rogen offers this insight into creating The Boys‘ worlds. “In general, if you’re making an R-rated thing, they let you do whatever the fuck you want, unless there’s some real legal thing that they think you might be bumping against… With The Boys, maybe it requires one extra five-minutes phone call, where they’re like, ‘Really?’, and you’re like, ‘Really.’ There are other things you’re on hours of phone calls about that are so much less interesting than that.”

Gen V‘s Connections Within The Boys Universe

The Boys Presents: Diabolical‘s second episode introduced the Red River Institute. It’s a group home for abandoned and parentless super-powered children. But the animated series (with the exception of the final episode) is not canon. The Boys season three made Red River canon when Hughie discovered that congresswoman Victoria Neuman was a secret Supe named Nadia. She grew up at the not-so-great Red River Institute after accidentally killing her parents.

Some children at Red River—whose ages range from 3-17 years old—ended up there for similar reasons. But others had been left/abandoned to Vought’s care when their parents decided they either couldn’t or wouldn’t raise their super-abled child. The case files Hughie stole from the group home included a photo of Gen V‘s main character Marie Moreau.

The Boys‘ showrunner Eric Kripke has said Gen V will react and continue building on events introduced during the original show’s third season. Here’s what Kripke told Deadline:

There’s definitely crossover, and we’re doing our best to design a universe that sees some of the issues and storylines in Season 3 hand off to the first season in Varsity (the previous working title of the show). Like there’s a presidential campaign happening in the background of that season, and there’s certain things that are happening at that school that are both in reaction to Season 3 of The Boys. There’s Soldier Boy, etcetera, but also some new storylines that are happening in that season of the spinoff that we have to pick up and take into Season 4 of the show.

Gen V‘s Cast

Jaz Sinclair (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) will star as Gen V‘s lead Marie Moreau, an 18-year-old Godolkin freshman who can control and weaponize her blood. She wants to be the first Black woman in the Seven. Sinclair will star opposite fellow co-ed Emma, a supe called Little Cricket played by Lizze Broadway, and Chance Perdomo’s Andre Anderson, the son of the famous supe Polarity, played by Sean Patrick Thomas. London Thor and Derek Luh both play the college supe Jordan Li, who can change between man and woman forms. Patrick Schwarzenegger is Luke Riordan a.k.a. Golden Boy, a Godolkin senior set to be in the Seven.

Maddie Phillips portrays Luke’s girlfriend Cate Dunlap, a junior who can encourage people to do as she wishes with the touch of her hands. Clancy Brown is Professor Rich “Brink” Brinkerhoff, the professor of crimefighting who trained several members of the Seven. Asa Germann is Sam, a troubled and very powerful supe and Shelley Conn is Indira Shetty, the dean of Godolkin University who surprisingly doesn’t have any powers. Marco Pigossi is Dr. Edison Cardosa, a doctor with ties to Godolkin University. Alexander Calvert and Jason Ritter will also appear in recurring roles. For more info about Gen V‘s characters, check out our character guide.

One interesting addition is Derek Wilson, who will portray Tek Knight. This is shocking to a few fans who assumed that Jeffrey Dean Morgan would portray the character in The Boys season four. The plot thickens, indeed.

Speaking of The Boys, actors Jessie T. Usher and Colby Minifie will make appearances as A-Train and Ashely Barrett, respectively. And P.J. Byrne’s Adam Bourke will also show up on campus to make the next great Vought movie. Propaganda really, but whatever. We will also see Victoria Neuman, played by Claudia Doumit, in some capacity.

Entertainment Weekly reports that Chace Crawford will reprise his role as the Deep on Gen V. We don’t yet know how this aquatic Supe will figure into the Gen V world, but we do know that we’re excited and a little terrified to see him.

Additionally, Jensen Ackles, who played Soldier Boy on The Boys, teased a cameo in Gen V at a fan convention. Entertainment Weekly reports that Ackles shared the following:

Soldier Boy pops up for a brief moment in this new spin-off of The Boys. In fact, there’s a few cameos from the mothership that come into this spin-off. My little bit there was heavily [improvised].

Behind the Scenes

Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters will serve as Gen V’s showrunners. They will also executive produce alongside Kripke, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Neal H. Moritz, Ori Marmur, Pavun Shetty, Ken Levin, Jason Netter, Garth Ennis, Darick Robertson, Craig Rosenberg, Zak Schwartz, Erica Rosbe, and Michaela Starr. (That’s all?!) Brant Engelstein also joins the show as co-executive producer.

As with The Boys, Sony Pictures Television Studios will produce Gen V alongside Amazon Studios.

Gen V‘s Release Date

Gen V will release its first three episodes on September 29, with weekly releases to follow.

Early access tickets for a screening of the first two episodes of Gen V are now available. These screenings of The Boys spinoff will take place in a number of theaters and will occur on 9/27, two days before Gen V releases on streaming. If you want to try your luck at getting tickets, head to this page now.

Finally, Little Cricket on the BIG screen🍿

Prime members have the chance to receive early access to watch the first two episodes free in select cities! Use code GENV to secure your tickets at https://t.co/MKLujTryJm pic.twitter.com/bcFI6io62l

— GEN V (@genv) September 19, 2023

Originally published on September 9, 2022.

The post Everything We Know About THE BOYS SPINOFF GEN V appeared first on Nerdist.

Is God U the right place for you? Sure, if you’re a young supe with hopes of making it into the Seven. That’s what The Boys‘ spinoff series Gen V will explore when class begins session on September 29. It’s almost time to begin our freshman year alongside Marie Moreau, Andre Anderson, Little Cricket, Golden Boy, and a slate of college superheroes and characters at Godolkin University. We know that this institution for higher learning isn’t what it seems and, if you’re a comic book fan, there’s a pretty disturbing arc that this The Boys show will draw inspiration from. A new Gen V trailer dives into the bloody dark side of God U, and, well, it is indeed f**ked up. 

In the Gen V trailer, Marie is hype about being at God U for her freshman year. She quickly meets a few new faces, including the very handsome Andre. (We love the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina reunion here.) Speaking of Andre, whose father is a famous supe, he knows something dark and can’t talk about it. As confirmed by Entertainment Weekly, we also meet Derek Wilson’s Tek Knight in this Gen V trailer. This is pretty shocking considering many people thought Jeffrey Dean Morgan would be Tek Knight in The Boys season four, but he is not. There’s also Sam, a weird dude who can flip cars and refuses to go “back to the woods,” where something is happening that could cause a catastrophic problem.

A puppet (possibly with powers?) is in the mix in the Gen V trailer. Sick experiments are going down in the depths of God U. Little Cricket pulls a Termite (but less gross) and takes a trip through someone’s head, coming out of their ear. And there’s blood …a lot of blood. But we’d expect nothing less from a trailer for a The Boys spinoff series—good job, Gen V. There are also evil people at the school, and Marie tells her crew that they need to make things right. We will have to wait and see how this crew of young heroes will save the day. 

The Gen V trailer mixes in a few familiar faces from The Boys, including Victoria Neuman, Vought leader Ashely Barrett, Sean Patrick Thomas’ Polarity, and the not-so-great film legend Adam Bourke. He’s probably already making plans to turn these events into a flick full of lies. You gotta love The Boys universe and all of its twisted shenanigans.

Originally published September 6, 2023.

The post GEN V Trailer Reveals Sinister Woods and Evil Experiments at Godolkin University appeared first on Nerdist.

The Boys’ college supes spinoff Gen V starts class on September 29. There are a ton of new faces and potential foes among a group of superpowered young adults who are battling for a coveted spot in the Seven. Gen V will once again expand this wild universe where heroes are horrible and aligned with corporations. There’s a lot of questions about how The Boys’ current storylines will intertwine with this new slate of drama and what this series will set up next. And some fans are probably wondering if the Gen V spinoff series is based on The Boys’ comics. The answer is indeed yes. Gen V draws comic inspiration from The Boys‘ source material. 

Which The Boys’ Comic Arcs Will Gen V Cover? 

Gen V will loosely bring The Boys’ “We Gotta Go Now” comic arc to life. This arc is the seventh one in the comics’ original 72-issue run. Interestingly, this is also the name of The Boys comic’s fourth trade paperback collection as well as a season two episode of the TV series.

What Happens in The Boys’ ‘We Gotta Go Now’ Comic Arc?

The “We Gotta Go Now” story is relatively self-contained. It makes sense to draw from this short arc considering Gen V will open up potential for new avenues. In “We Gotta Go Now,” The Boys collective are investigating the G-Men, an obvious reference to Marvel’s X-Men. Some of Gen V‘s characters might be a play on X-Men members. For example, Gen V‘s superstar supe Golden Boy can light his entire body on fire similar to X-Men character Pyro.

The G-Men’s leader is John Godolkin, hence the name of Gen V’s Godolkin University. Right now, it’s not clear if the university is named directly after a live-action version character or if it’s just a clever comic nod/Easter egg. God U, as they call it, is similar to Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. Anyway, the “We Gotta Go Now” arc is full of some sick material, even by The Boys’ standards. John Godolkin kidnaps kids and injects them with Compound V. The ones who survive the chemical get an array of superpowers.

Based on its trailer, it seems Gen V will borrow from this idea. Marie and others realize that Godolkin University has some dark secrets, including experimentations and torture. What the show will hopefully leave behind in the comics is the rampant sexual abuse of minors and deaths by suicide to escape a life of slavery. Horrible. The comic ends with Godolkin and the G-Men’s eradication, thankfully. 

The Boys TV show has done a great job of taking the stronger elements of the comics and building on them. Gen V will likely follow suit, even though it is based on a disturbing comics stuff from The Boys origin material.

The post Is the GEN V Spinoff Series Based on THE BOYS’ Comics? appeared first on Nerdist.

Class is about to be in session for Godolkin University students. The Boys spinoff Gen V is giving us more supe action combined with the oft-brash stupidity and hyper-competitive nature of college age folks. No one under the age of 21 should have all that power, tbh. Thanks to Prime Video, we finally have a final roster for all the major characters who will appear in Gen V’s upcoming season. Some of them are students fighting for a coveted spot with the Seven, while others are somehow trying to wrangle superpowered young adults. Here are all the new characters we will meet in Gen V when The Boys‘ spinoff releases in September. 

Who Are The Boys Spinoff Gen V’s Main Characters?

Godolkin University Student Supes 

Obviously, this series will center on Godolkin students. Let’s meet our new supes. 

Marie Moreau, Gen V’s Main Character

Anyone who has seen a Gen V trailer or paid close attention to The Boys is familiar with Marie. She’s the show’s primary protagonist, an 18-year-old superhero with the power to control and weaponize her own blood. As an incoming freshman at Vought-run Godolkin University in Gen V, Marie Moreau is eager to prove she has what it takes to join The Seven, but is sidetracked by a mystery she begins to unravel at the school.

Played By: The character of Marie Moreau is played by Jaz Sinclair in Gen V.

Andre Anderson 

Andre is a junior at Godolkin University—and this Gen V character has magnetic powers. He’s Golden Boy’s best friend and the son of famous superhero, Polarity; Andre has big shoes to fill as he’s set to take over the Polarity name once his dad retires. When Andre realizes that something is afoot at the school, he takes it into his own hands to try and figure out the mystery.

Played by: The character of Andre Anderson is played by Chance Perdomo in Gen V.

Emma Meyer (Also known as Little Cricket)

On Gen V, Emma is also known by her superhero name, Little Cricket, thanks to her ability to get super small. Though insecure and naive, which often leaves her in compromising positions, she becomes close friends with her freshman roommate, Marie, and together they navigate the mysterious dangers at Godolkin University.

Played by: The character of Emma Meyer is played by Lizze Broadway on Gen V.

Cate Dunlap 

Cate Dunlap is a junior at Godolkin University who is good friends with Jordan and Andre. On Gen V, the character of Cate has the power to push people to do anything she commands using the touch of her hands, which she uses to her advantage. Powerful and confident, she’s also Luke’s girlfriend, making her one of the most popular supes on campus.

Played by: The character of Cate Dunlap is played by Maddie Phillips in Gen V.

Jordan Li

Jordan is a competitive student at Godolkin University who will do anything to get to the top. They have a unique ability of changing between male and female forms, through which different powers manifest— the man is dense and indestructible, while the woman is agile and can launch energy blasts. Their distinct sets of powers make them a standout TA at Brink’s School of Crime Fighting.

Played by: The character of Jordan Li is played by London Thor and Derek Luh on Gen V.

Luke Riordan (Also known as Golden Boy)

Luke Riordan is a Gen V character also known by his superhero name, Golden Boy, on The Boys spinoff show. This is because of his power to light his entire body on fire. He is a senior at Godolkin University and is in the top rank, having the brightest prospects of joining The Seven.

Played by: The character of Luke Riordan/Golden Boy is played by Patrick Schwarzenegger on Gen V.

Godolkin University Staff, Parents, and Other Gen V Characters

What’s a college supe story without alumni, professors, and other miscellaneous people?! Here are the main Gen V characters who are not college students. 

Polarity 

The supe known as Polarity is Andre’s father and a largely celebrated Godolkin University alumnus and trustee. Polarity expects his son to follow in his footsteps by taking over the Polarity name when he retires. He believes Andre is destined for The Seven and will stop at nothing to make his dream become reality.

Played by: The character of Polarity is played by Sean Patrick Thomas on Gen V.

Professor Rich “Brink” Brinkerhoff 

This Gen V character is a renowned professor of crime fighting at Godolkin University who taught superheroes such as A-Train, Queen Maeve, and The Deep. He is dedicated to finding the top new talent at Godolkin University to join The Seven, and believes Golden Boy has what it takes to be next.

Played by: The character of Professor Rich “Brink” Brinkerhoff is played by Clancy Brown.

Dr. Edison Cardosa 

Dr. Edison Cardosa is a gifted doctor with ties to Godolkin University. Hmmm.

Played by: The character of Dr. Edison Cardosa is played by Marco Pigossi on Gen V.

Indira Shetty

Indira Shetty is the dean of Godolkin University. She doesn’t have powers, but her background in superhero psychology and her peerless ability to analyze what makes supes tick make her indispensable to the school. Her goal is to transform Godolkin University into the most elite college for supes and she takes a special interest in Marie when she arrives on campus.

Played by: The character of Indira Shetty is played by Shelley Conn on Gen V.

Sam

Sam is a troubled supe who is desperately trying to escape his unfortunate circumstances. He’s extremely powerful, with super strength and invulnerability. Despite having a good heart, this Gen V character is plagued by his hallucinations, which sometimes make it hard for him to discern between what is—and is not—reality.

Played by: The character of Sam is played by Asa Germann on Gen V.

Of course, we will also see The Boys characters like A-Train, Vought’s Ashley Barrett, Victoria Neuman, and (terrible) filmmaker Adam Bourke cross over to Gen V. They will give the show more of a tie to the main series, but there’s a lot of exciting stuff to explore with these new characters. 

Gen V will hit Prime Video on September 29 with its first three episodes followed by weekly Friday releases.

The post Here’s Every New Character We Will Meet in THE BOYS Spinoff GEN V appeared first on Nerdist.

Welcome to Godolkin University! The Boys universe is expanding to college with Gen V, a spinoff series hitting Prime Video on September 29. The series will follow college age supes who are learning how to become “heroes” (using that term loosely because, well, Homelander exists) through competitive training. We get to see a glimpse of that and darker secrets lurking beneath this esteemed university’s surface in a full Gen V trailer. It brings the blood, the gore, the powers, the one-liners, and much more. 

Our main girl is Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair), a Godolkin student who could become the first top-ranked freshman in history. She’s set her goals even higher than this, desiring to be the first Black woman in the Seven. Marie discovers that there’s something amiss at her new school. Or, as she eloquently puts it in the Gen V trailer, everything is f**ked. We can all rest assured that we’re in the world of The Boys at this point. We see secret experiments, slaughtered bodies, sex, and apparently, Marie exploded someone’s private part. It is a glorious ending. 

Here’s an official synopsis to further bring together what we see in the Gen V trailer: 

From the world of The Boys comes Gen V, which explores the training of the first generation of superheroes to know about Compound V, and that their powers were injected into them, rather than God-given. These young, competitive heroes put their physical and moral boundaries to the test, competing for the school’s highly coveted top ranking. They quickly come to learn that ambition comes with sacrifice, and the difference between right and wrong is not as clear as they once believed. When the university’s dark secrets come to light, the students must come to grips with what type of heroes they are going to become.

Gen V also stars Chance Perdomo, Lizze Broadway, Shelley Conn, Maddie Phillips, London Thor, Derek Luh, Asa Germann, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Sean Patrick Thomas, and Marco Pigossi. And, we will see familiar faces from The Boys in Gen V like A-Train (Jesse T. Usher), Ashley (Colby Minifie), Adam Bourke (P.J. Byrne), and Victoria Neuman (Claudia Doumit).

As we already know, Victoria Neuman is incredibly dangerous, powerful, and set to be the major villain of The Boys season four. She shares something in common with Marie as a former Red River Institute resident, except she’s been using her powers to literally and politically bust heads. We can’t wait until class is in session and the “We Gotta Go Now” comic arc begins.

The post GEN V Trailer Brings Blood, Secrets, and THE BOYS’ Vibes to College appeared first on Nerdist.

What’s (potentially) worse than a group of terrible adult supes who are wreaking havoc? A group of college aged supes who are doing the same thing. We all know that time of our lives is not when we make the best decisions, generally speaking. Fans of The Boys will get a taste of what university life is like for a group of supes with Gen V, a spinoff series coming our way in 2023. The first look at Gen V finally came to us in the form of a high-octane trailer that’s full of blood, twists, and a couple of familiar faces. 

In the Gen V trailer, we find ourselves at Godolkin University, a safe space for students to thrive. Yeah right. Nothing is safe in this wild universe. Things immediately go awry for Jaz Sinclair’s Marie, who runs into lots of blood, dead bodies, and the word “murderer” scrawled in red across a dormitory door. Apparently, there is a series of Hunger Games-style challenges for this young supes, and, well, things go how you’d expect. Vought International runs this school, so nothing good can come from being here. The question is, who is a “good” supe and who is there on some Homelander-type stuff? That remains to be seen, and we can’t quite tell from this first look offered by the Gen V trailer. 

Gen V’s timeline runs concurrent with season four of The Boys TV show and is (loosely?) based on the “We Gotta Go Now” arc of The Boys comic. So it is a mixed bag in terms of how things will play out in the series. One thing we do know for sure is there will be a few familiar faces in the mix. First, there’s the appearance of A-Train, who is wearing a white “The Seven” hat and looking like he’s doing pretty well considering the events of The Boys season three. Vought Studios legend (haha) Adam Bourke will also get into the mix in some way.

And we also see Ashely for a split second in the Gen V trailer. She seems to have come around to being a slightly better human being; however, she still works for Vought, so we don’t trust her. But it is really about getting to know these new faces, their wild powers, and how their time at the School of Crimefighting will change the world. We can’t wait until class is in session.

The post THE BOYS Spinoff GEN V Spills Buckets of Blood in First-Look Trailer appeared first on Nerdist.

The Boys season three is done and we are left with a huge hole in our TV programming. Is there another show with as much blood, NSFW content, sex jokes, social commentary, and overall wild supe action to replace it? Absolutely not. It’s probably going to be a while before we see Homelander and the titular Boys crew again. But until then, we’ve got something to celebrate. As we already knew, this wacky universe is expanding with a college spinoff following a gang of superpowered students. Now, we have a name for it. The Boys spinoff is aptly titled Gen V. Love it already. 

And we love it even more after seeing the Gen V title announcement featuring some of the cast. (We don’t see Sean Patrick Thomas nor Marco Piggosi here. But they are certainly not the college kids.) The group of The Boys college supes includes not one but two Chilling Adventures of Sabrina alum—Chance Perdomo and Jaz Sinclair. Fans knew them as Roz and Ambrose, respectively.

Gen V also stars Lizze Broadway, Shelley Conn, Maddie Phillips, London Thor, Derek Luh, Asa Germann, and Patrick Schwarzenegger. They all appear together to talk about Gen V, saying it will have The Boys’ intensity and grit while bringing in the classic raging hormones and drama of college life. As Chance Perdomo says, “It’s f**ked up. You’re gonna like it.” Sounds like the The Boys college spinoff will be the good time we all signed up for when we became The Boys fans. 

We also have a clearer synopsis of Gen V that teases some competitive supe action: 

Set at America’s only college exclusively for young-adult superheroes (run by Vought International), Gen V is an irreverent, R-rated series that explores the lives of hormonal, competitive Supes as they put their physical, sexual, and moral boundaries to the test, competing for the best contracts in the best cities. It’s part college show, part Hunger Games—with all the heart, satire, and raunch of The Boys.

Right now, we don’t have a release date for Gen V. But we are ready for this The Boys spinoff whenever it wants to hit us with nonstop chaos.

The post THE BOYS Spinoff GEN V Lands Title, Promises HUNGER GAMES Action appeared first on Nerdist.