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Amazon's The Boys: how to watch Prime Video's superhero satire (and spinoffs Gen V and Diabolical) in order
Want to check out Amazon Prime Video's bloody and bombastic superhero series, plus its spinoffs? We've got you covered
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Maybe this year’s US election results have left you feeling like the system may be broken, Prime Video’s The Boys is here to make things seem a little bit better in comparison. After all, at least the real election didn’t end in a complicated conspiracy theory where the President was arrested for being ensnared in a plot to kill his political rivals, leaving someone else entirely in charge of the country and ushering in an era of martial law. (Well, yet, at least.) Yes, it’s been a busy year for The Boys — and I’m not just talking about the fact that the series has grown to become an entire franchise, complete with spinoffs also streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video platform. With that in mind, we've assembled The Boys watch order (including those spinoffs), so that you can fully prepare for the American carnage to come.
Based loosely on the comic book The Boys by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, Prime Video's The Boys is a distinctly more gritty take on the superhero genre. Most heroes in this world have either been corrupted by their power or are simply sociopaths waiting for a chance to let their worst side out to the world. Following the success of the Amazon TV show, multiple spin-offs have been announced including Gen V and Diabolical, with more to come. If you’re not sure how best to watch every show in The Boys franchise in either chronological or release order, here is exactly what you need to know.
How to watch The Boys in chronological order
Most episodes of The Boys take place in the order they are released, though there are some flashbacks used to flesh out certain characters’ backstories and motivations. The biggest wrinkle in the show’s watch order is the animated series Diabolical. Some of these shorts take place in the main show’s timeline, while most take place in an entirely different universe. According to showrunner Eric Kripke, only three episodes of Diabolical are considered canon to the main show. Every other episode is included on this list but noted as non-canon to avoid confusion.
If you want to watch The Boys in chronological order, here is what we suggest.
- Diabolical – Episode 1: Laser Baby’s Day Out – Note that this episode is considered non-canon to the main show’s timeline.
- Diabolical – Episode 8: One Plus One Equals Two
- Diabolical – Episode 3: I’m Your Pusher – Note that this episode is considered non-canon to the main show’s timeline. It incorporates many elements from the original comics and was written by Garth Ennis, so it is most likely part of the comic universe but this has not been confirmed
- The Boys – Season 1: Episodes 1-8
- Butcher: A Short Film – Note that this was a 5-minute film released via The Boys X account
- The Boys – Season 2: Episodes 1-3
- Diabolical – Episode 2: An Animated Short Where Pissed-Off Supes Kill Their Parents – Note that this episode is considered non-canon to the main show’s timeline.
- The Boys – Season 2: Episodes 4-8
- Diabolical – Episode 4: Boyd in 3D – Note that this episode is considered non-canon to the main show’s timeline.
- Diabolical – Episode 5: BFFs – Note that this episode is considered non-canon to the main show’s timeline.
- Diabolical – Episode 6: Nubian vs Nubian
- Diabolical – Episode 7: John and Sun-Hee
- Seven on 7 – Episodes 1-7
- The Boys – Season 3: Episodes 1-3
- Deeper and Deeper – Note that this is a podcast hosted on Audible featuring The Deep and his wife Cassandra discussing their relationship up to this point in the show.
- Seven on 7 – Episode 8
- The Boys – Season 3: Episodes 4-8
- Mr. Butcher: A Proper Education – Note that this was a 1-minute short released via The Boys X account
- Seven on 7 – Episode 9
- Gen V - Season 1
- The Boys Season 4
How to watch The Boys in release order
If you’re not worried about keeping the timeline straight, it is much easier to watch The Boys in release order. Other than the occasional short that is released between episodes, most of the content in The Boys is released in easy-to-follow seasons. Here is how to watch everything that has been released for Amazon’s The Boys series in release order.
- The Boys – Season 1
- The Boys – Season 2: Episodes 1-3
- Butcher: A Short Film – Note that this was a 5-minute film released via The Boys X account
- The Boys – Season 2: Episodes 4-8
- Seven on 7 – Episodes 1-7
- Diabolical – Episodes 1-8
- The Boys – Season 3: Episodes 1-3
- Deeper and Deeper – Note that this is a podcast hosted on Audible featuring The Deep and his wife Cassandra discussing their relationship up to this point in the show.
- The Boys – Season 3: Episode 4
- Seven on 7 – Episode 8
- The Boys – Season 3: Episodes 4-8
- Mr. Butcher: A Proper Education – Note that this was a 1-minute short released via The Boys X account
- Seven on 7 – Episode 9
- Gen V - Season 1
- The Boys - Season 4
Where can you watch The Boys
The Boys is one of the most popular shows on Amazon's Prime Video and they have the exclusive rights to stream it worldwide. Even the Deeper and Deeper podcast is hosted on the Amazon-owned Audible service. The only exceptions are the Seven on 7 episodes, which are hosted on YouTube, and the two short films, which were posted by The Boys’ X account.
When is The Boys Season 5 coming out?
Following The Boys season 4, the obvious question is when is the next season coming out? The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke confirmed it is happenning, but it's bittersweet - as it'll be the last. It's expected to drop at some point in 2026, with Kripke saying in an interview that the writers' room got together a month or so before the June 2024 launch of the show's fourth season, and noting that it usually takes around two years from that point for the show to stream.
Is The Boys getting a prequel spinoff?
Indeed it is! Confirmed at San Diego Comic Con 2024, Amazon Prime Video is producing a prequel series to The Boys called Vought Rising, which will star Jensen Ackles as Soldier Boy. It's rumored that the series will not only feature Ackles, but also Stranger Things alum Mason Dye as new character Bombsight, who's already been announced as appearing in the final season of The Boys. Aya Cash is also expected to appear.
Does The Boys TV show follow the comics’ storyline?
When you’re adapting a property from comic books to TV screens, you have to expect some changes. The Boys gives some characters a new look, such as giving Billy Butcher a rugged beard, when it translated them to screen. Several characters got their backstories updated for the modern era and others, like Soldier Boy, got a complete personality overhaul to help them fit into the TV show.
The broad premise of The Boys TV show remains similar to the original comic. It follows a group of vigilantes who are tasked with holding superheroes accountable for their actions, but most of the details are very different. Considering the explosion in superhero films since The Boys comic book debuted in 2006, there are more nods to properties like the MCU mixed into the TV show, for example. Homelander is far more controlled and intelligent in the TV show, making him a more menacing, unpredictable villain.
The result is that The Boys TV show will feel familiar to fans of the comics while still offering plenty of surprises. Major story beats are presented in vastly different ways, so don’t worry if you’ve never picked up a single issue of The Boys. There is no required reading to enjoy the show.
Is there a season 2 of Gen V?
Yes, the spinoff series Gen V is getting a second season, which will follow up on that blood-soaked first season finale. The show will be absent the character Andre Anderson after the tragic death of actor Chance Perdomo, with Prime Video announcing that the role will not be recast. It's expected that the second season will debut at some point in 2025, but no official announcement has been made.
What happened to The Boys Mexico spinoff?
Fans with long memories might remember that Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal were revealed to be collaborating on a spinoff of The Boys set in Mexico alongside Blue Beetle writer Garth Dunnet-Alcocer in November 2023... but, a year later, we've still had no official word from Prime or Amazon about the project. That's because it's not actually a done deal just yet, according to franchise mastermind Eric Kripke. Back in May 2024, he said that while the writer "has an amazing pitch, and we all giggle and think about how fun it would be [...] there are a lot of hurdles for that show before it's a real show. He's got to write an amazing pilot, he's probably got to write an amazing episode 2. I think he can and he will, but we're a while away from truly starting to drop in the Easter eggs and the setups and stuff."
Since then, we've heard no updates, but let's assume that progress is being made... just very, very slowly.
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