What ‘Supernatural’ Can Tell Us About ‘The Boys’

Before crafting The Boys into an Amazon multi-media sensation, showrunner Eric Kripke already had a long-running, hit TV show under his belt: Supernatural, which Kripke created in 2005.

Despite their differences, there are a lot of ways in which these two shows are similar.

Looking at the structure of the first five seasons of Supernatural offers some clues as to how The Boys might end. And while The Boys is generally a much bleaker show than Supernatural, there are some hints that The Boys might end on a slightly hopeful note.

The Similarities Between Supernatural and The Boys

Aside from having the same creator, the two shows do have some things in common.

Supernatural and The Boys offer many types of humor to help contrast the dark content of both series. The humor adds levity to the series and gives hope that everything will turn out well in the end.

Supernatural is a horror-adventure series starring two brothers, the Winchesters, traveling to the United States to hunt against monsters and other supernatural beings. The Boys is a violent superhero show that satirizes and critiques the superhero genre.

Though they are part of different genres, both series share a tongue-in-cheek attitude towards its premise while keeping everything serious.

The Winchester brothers in Supernatural would constantly crack jokes, and there would usually be an off-the-wall episode approximately every season. Examples include when the Winchesters get trapped in different television realities on Supernatural Season 5 Episode 8, “Changing Channels,” and Supernatural Season 8 Episode 8, “Hunteri Heroici,” where they are forced to follow the rules of Looney Tunes logic.

The Boys is a more direct critique and meta-contextualization of the current real-life superhero craze. A lot of the jokes are meta references to superhero cliches and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Both series also feature plenty of dark humor.

The best example of the show’s wicked sense of humor is a scene where the Winchesters warm their hands in a fire in an open grave they recently dug up on Supernatural Season 8 Episode 13, “Everybody Hates Hitler.” The Boys’ dark humor stems from the outlandish and deplorable things superheroes do in secret.

However, while both shows take jabbings at their own genres, they also feature some of the best elements of their respective category.

When Supernatural wants to be scary, it can be effectively frightening, and The Boys has some of the best superhero action scenes on streaming.

The big difference between shows’ tone is that Supernatural is more of a loving tribute to American Urban Legends, while The Boys is way more cynical towards the superhero genre.

The Five-Season Structure

Supernatural’s season structure is similar to how The Boys is playing out, foreshadowing how the latter series will end.

Though Supernatural lasted for 15 seasons, Kripke only acted as showrunner for the first five seasons and stated that he originally envisioned the show to end with Season 5. The Boys is set to end with season 5.

The first two seasons of both shows follow one main story throughline, climaxing in the Season 2 finale.

Supernatural Season 2 Episode 22, “All Hell Breaks Loose,” ends with the brothers successfully slaying the demon that killed their mother, which they had been hunting since Supernatural Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot.”

In contrast, The Boys Season 2 Episode 8, “What I Know,” ends with the leads clearing their names after being charged on The Boys Season 1 Episode 8, “You Found Me,” and blackmailing Homelander.

The third seasons of both shows serve as a bridge to the fourth and fifth seasons while serving as a semi-standalone season.

Supernatural Season 3 centers on the new rise of demons in the United States and one of the brothers facing his mortality. The Boys Season 3 is primarily about Soldier Boy, who serves as the main antagonist of that season.

Seasons four and five of Supernatural are more directly linked, serving as the final act of the ongoing narrative that began with “Pilot.” Those seasons deal with the pending war between Heaven and Hell, while The Boys Season 4 has the leads trying to prevent a corrupt super-powered person from entering the white house.

Both shows’ season 4 ends on a major cliffhanger that leads directly into season 5.

It’s Not All Doom and Gloom for The Boys

Each season of The Boys gets angrier and angrier, offering a bleak view of humanity. After The Boys Season 4, you might wonder if there will be a light at the end of the tunnel.

If Supernatural is anything to go by, there is still some hope in The Boys.

Supernatural season 5 ends on a bittersweet note with the Winchesters successfully preventing the war between heaven and hell, yet at great personal cost. The Boys comics on which the series is based ends on a similarly bittersweet, yet hopeful, note.

Seeing as how there is still levity in The Boys, as well as characters like Starlight and Hughie who genuinely want to help people, it’s not too far of a stretch to believe that The Boys won’t end on too somber of a note. However, we should probably expect to shed some tears.

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Do you think The Boys will end on a similar tone to Supernatural? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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