By
Dhruv Sharma
Published Feb 27, 2026, 8:59 PM EST
Dhruv is a Lead Writer in Screen Rant's New TV division. He has been consistently contributing to the website for over two years and has written thousands of articles covering streaming trends, movie/TV analysis, and pop culture breakdowns.
Before Screen Rant, he was a Senior Writer for The Cinemaholic, covering everything from anime to television, from reality TV to movies.
After high school, he was on his way to become a Civil Engineer. However, he soon realized that writing was his true calling. As a result, he took a leap and never looked back.
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One incredible Prime Video sci-fi show begins with such a shocking and hard-hitting opening twist that it becomes hard not to stick around for more.
A show's opening is one of its most crucial segments because it is responsible for hooking viewers and ensuring they will wait for its meatier bits. Owing to this, some of the best sci-fi shows find creative ways to intrigue viewers in their opening moments itself either by introducing compelling concepts or leaving viewers stunned with massive twists.
A Prime Video sci-fi series adopts the latter trick to catch audiences completely off-guard in its opening moments and make them look forward to what lies ahead.
The Boys Delivers One Of The Most Shocking Twists In Its First Few Minutes
Jack Quaid as Hughie covered in blood in The Boys.
Prime Video's The Boys begins like a typical superhero series. A bunch of criminals try to rob a bank before Queen Maeve steps in and stops them. When the criminals take two young boys as hostages, Homelander saves the day by using his iconic heatwaves. In a parallel story, a young ordinary man, Hughie, looks up to the supes and plans to take his relationship with his girlfriend to the next level.
However, moments later, while Hughie and his girlfriend, Robin, share a heartwarming moment, a speedster, A-Train, zooms right through Robin. Hughie is left with nothing but his girlfriend's arms in his hands.
After starting off like a typical superhero show, The Boys leaves a viewer as stunned and traumatized as Hughie by revealing the true nature of supes in its universe.
The brutality of the twist and A-Train's insensitive reaction to it makes one realize they are not watching a regular superhero sci-fi show. For some, this twist can even be a turn-off because it completely subverts the conventions of the superhero genre.
Considering The Boys' success, though, it is evident that the opening sequence effectively reeled most viewers in by bringing something new to the table in an age where superhero fatigue is on the rise.
The Boys’ Opening Twist Brilliantly Captures The Brutal Truth About Its Supes
Antony Starr Homelander looking on with disgust in The Boys
The opening twist feels crucial for the show because, like most viewers, Hughie, is portrayed as an average person with no special abilities. His sudden realization of the bleak world he lives in shatters the viewers' illusion of safety and heroism with which they approach superhero shows and movies.
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Explore more hard-hitting television analysis by subscribing to our newsletter: thoughtful coverage of shocking twists, character reveals, and what Prime Video hits like The Boys say about modern superheroes and corporate power. Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.The more the show progresses, the more it becomes evident that even the opening scene with Homelander and Maeve was a likely promotional campaign from Vought to whitewash the image of its supes.
The Boys season 5 is scheduled to be released on Prime Video on April 8, 2026.
Everything about these so-called "heroes" seems staged. This ultimately reveals that, in reality, they are all cruel corporate machines who care little about the well-being of the non-superpowered folks.
In just a few minutes, the Prime Video sci-fi show brilliantly peels back its glossy veneer with a well-timed twist to explore how, if superpowered people were real, they would never be as morally upright as Batman or altruistic as Superman. Instead, they would be greedy, corrupt, morally drained, and perfectly filtered through capitalism.
The Boys
TV-MA
Action
Drama
Crime
Comedy
7/10
243
8.7/10
Release Date
2019 - 2026-00-00
Cast
Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Antony Starr, Erin Moriarty, Jessie T. Usher, Laz Alonso, Chace Crawford, Tomer Capone, Karen Fukuhara, Nathan Mitchell, Colby Minifie, Dominique McElligott, Claudia Doumit, Cameron Crovetti, Nneka Elliott, Laila Robins, Shantel VanSanten, Aya Cash, Giancarlo Esposito, Jordana Lajoie, Katy Breier, Matthew Edison, Jim Beaver, Elisabeth Shue, Jensen Ackles, Simon Pegg, Susan Heyward, Valorie Curry, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Ann Cusack, Nicola Correia Damude, Christian Keyes, Sabrina Saudin, Malcolm Barrett, Liyou Abere, Jennifer Esposito, David Reale, Frances Turner
Showrunner
Eric Kripke
Directors
Erin Moriarty, Karen Fukuhara, Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Eric Kripke
Writers
Eric Kripke
Franchise(s)
The Boys
Main Genre
Action
Creator(s)
Eric Kripke
Seasons
5
Story By
Garth Ennis
Streaming Service(s)
Amazon Prime Video
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The Boys
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Explore more hard-hitting television analysis by subscribing to our newsletter: thoughtful coverage of shocking twists, character reveals, and what Prime Video hits like The Boys say about modern superheroes and corporate power. Subscribe By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime. Trending Now
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