Set to the tune of Imagine Dragons’ new single “Bones,” the long-awaited teaser trailer for season 3 of Prime Video’s deliciously diabolical series The Boys has finally arrived.
The Boys is based on the comic book series by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. It’s a fun and irreverent take on what happens when superheroes — who are as popular as celebrities, as influential as politicians, and as revered as gods — abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good. It’s the powerless against the super powerful as the Boys continue on a heroic quest to expose the truth about The Seven, and Vought — the multi-billion dollar conglomerate that manages these superheroes and covers up all of their dirty secrets.
We still have a few months to go until season 3 premieres, so in the meantime, we’ve broken down some notable details from today’s teaser trailer.
Butcher is going to take Compound V
As previously teased on a poster released earlier this week, Billy Butcher will be leveling the playing field against the Supes in season 3 by enhancing himself with Compound V, the drug that gives Supes their powers. While it may seem out of character for the show, given his downright hatred for them, Butcher and the rest of his crew regularly dosed Compound V in the comics to keep up with the Supes they were fighting against. With plenty of exciting new things on the menu for season 3, seeing Karl Urban decimate his enemies with laser eyes and super strength is certainly one that’s up at the top of the list.
In the words of Urban himself, “Who’s your laser baby now?”
Black Noir is back in action
The mysterious and stealthy Black Noir, a member of The Seven, found himself at the mercy of Queen Maeve after she caught him choking Starlight in season 2. She then proceeded to force-feed him an Almond Joy, a deadly move … given his tree nut allergy. As he went into anaphylactic shock, Maeve threw his EpiPen out of his reach so she and Starlight could escape. Black Noir survived, but he was left in a vegetative state. An episode of Seven on 7 then later confirmed that he had recovered and was back in action, which is why we see him a few times in the trailer.
For what it’s worth, a restaurant called Buster Beaver’s was introduced in Seven on 7. At one point in the trailer, Black Noir appears to be having a very sad meal of baked beans inside of the closed restaurant. Later, he’s shown drawing the restaurant’s mascot. What could it all mean …
Hughie can never catch a break
At the end of season 2, Hughie had high hopes to start living a normal life again … one with less blood and gore in every waking second of it. His choice to work for Congresswoman Victoria Neuman was unfortunately ironic because the finale revealed that she was the Supe responsible for all of the mysterious exploding heads. Whoops. An episode of Seven on 7 revealed that in working for Congresswoman Neuman, Hughie had become a Senior Analyst at the Federal Bureau of Superhuman Affairs, a new government agency.
Later in the trailer, we see Kimiko break Hughie’s arm (something that happened in the comics, too, albeit under different circumstances) as Butcher calmly takes a sip of a drink. It’s unlikely that we’ll see Hughie walking around for the rest of the season with a broken arm, so this may hint that he will also be taking Compound V.
We got work to do
There’s a brief moment in the trailer where M.M., Butcher, and Hughie are shown staring down as they open something. The Boys Twitter account shared a screenshot of this clip with the sentiment, “We got work to do.” This is an Easter egg for showrunner Eric Kripke’s television series Supernatural, which The Boys season 3 newcomer Jensen Ackles also starred in. A similar shot of Sam and Dean Winchester opening the trunk of Baby the Impala (along with the aforementioned quote) first appeared in the Supernatural pilot episode and would go on to happen again several more times throughout the show.
Kendall Jenner Pepsi commercial spoof
The trailer contains a spoof on Kendall Jenner’s real-life failed Pepsi commercial that was instantly met with a barrage of backlash in 2017.
A look at Crimson Countess
We’re given a brief look at Laurie Holden’s Crimson Countess. An episode of Seven on 7 previously confirmed that she works at an attraction at Vought Land, where she sings in a musical called Soldier Boy, Ahoy! She appears to be at Vought Land in the trailer.
The Deep is still a creep
There’s a brief clip where we see The Deep in the middle of sexual intercourse … and he happens to be staring directly at a squid that has attached itself to the window of the tank in front of him. So yep, he’s still a creep.
Ryan is back
It looks like we’ll see the return of Ryan, the son of Homelander and Becca, this season. Perhaps it’s time to get revenge on Daddy for killing Mommy?
American Hero
Early on in the trailer, Starlight’s ex Supersonic can be seen in one clip dancing on stage with a group and then on a different stage by himself in a second clip. We see A-Train on the same stage later on in the trailer with the words “American Hero” on the screen in the background. As revealed in Seven on 7, this is a competition show (hosted by Starlight) in which its contestants are fighting to earn a spot amongst The Seven — and Supersonic is a contender.
Homelander + milk is unfortunately still a thing
If you thought we could somehow escape this show’s twisted obsession with Homelander and milk, you’re wrong. Audiences may have temporarily felt triggered by the Seven on 7 commercial that referred to the color of a pair of bedsheets as “milk,” but nothing compares to the moment in the trailer that featured Homelander … milking a cow. He looks as disturbed as we all feel.
Frenchie and Kimiko: The Musical
“What is the point of life without dancing?” Frenchie says this to Kimiko in the middle of the season 2 finale after she asks him if he dances. At the end of the episode, when the Boys all part ways, these two leave together. Frenchie takes Kimiko’s hand and he twirls her around on their way out. In the trailer, they’re shown dancing together in what appears to be a musical.
Homelander and Butcher
As the trailer comes to an end, there are two brief clips that make it appear as if Homelander and Butcher are sitting opposite one another. While this could easily just be conveniently edited to look this way, it wouldn’t be surprising to see these two sitting down for a chat at some point in season 3.
Soldier Boy
Jensen Ackles will be joining the cast of The Boys for season 3 as the Supe known as Soldier Boy. He’s shown several times throughout the trailer, including a scene that might be archival footage of him from the past, a scene where he’s punched in the face, and a scene where he’s fighting off soldiers. However, there’s also a brief tease of him at the end, which shows Soldier Boy shirtless with messy hair and a bushy beard. Was he perhaps in cryostasis prior to season 3?
Watch the teaser trailer again below.
The first three episodes of season 3 of The Boys will premiere exclusively on Prime Video on June 3. The show will then switch one episode per week on Fridays for episodes 4 through 8. Stay tuned for our episodic recaps, reviews, and more!
In the meantime, make sure to check out the brand-new anthology series set in The Boys universe — The Boys Presents: Diabolical — now streaming on Prime Video.
