Someone, after all, had to do it. Following the announcements and leaks this week regarding Warner Bros., HBO Max, and Discovery+, it’s impossible to have any comment other than “WTF is going on?” in regards to the content and future ambitions of these platforms. Prime Video’s The Boys made light of the chaos surrounding HBO Discovery by tweeting a parody of the Vought statement in response to titles suddenly vanishing from the library, highly anticipated projects being shelved, and producers being caught by surprise. The phoney statement lampoons HBO Max’s upcoming makeover, which will include Discovery+ and reduce original content creation to prioritise theatrical productions.
It needs a name, but what should it be? Before Max was introduced as a worldwide brand, this service had previously been relaunched twice, first as HBO Go and then as HBO Now. The Boys have announced Vought++, a streaming platform that incorporates numerous other streaming services for plus-plus enjoyment (at a greater fee) in the comfort of your own home, in an apparent jab at HBO as they run out of names. More than that! The more you read, the more you’ll laugh at the post’s many hidden jokes, such as a cheap shot at the short-lived streaming platform CNN+ (which was shut down by HBO Discovery mere weeks after it launched), a construction reality series that is obviously a parody of Property Brothers, and, of course, a tonne of references to the flagship super-hero content that is frequently used to attract new subscribers. The joke lands well due to the fact that the main characters in The Boys are transparent satires of DC’s most well-known superheroes.
With only the primary actors, we can immediately think of Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and Aquaman whenever we see Homelander (Anthony Starr), Queen Maeve (Dominique McElligott), A-Train (Jessie T. Usher), or The Deep (Chace Crawford). these heroes (and huge money-makers) find themselves caught in the crossfire. The fact that in The Boys’ universe, Vought is a mega-corporation that will do anything to keep the money rolling in adds another layer to the joke, as does the fact that the company is willing to make unpopular decisions, exclude key players for illogical reasons, and implement arbitrary policy shifts without regard for public opinion. This is not anything HBO Max Discovery++ Now is doing… You can’t blame anyone except Vought for that.
The whole three seasons of The Boys are available on Prime Video.