*Spoilers for episode 3 of Gen V below*
Gen V is a spin-off of the popular show The Boys, which is based on the Garth Ennis comic book of the same name. Gen V follows Marie Moreau, a young woman with superpowers, as she tries to navigate life at Godolkin University, a school that specializes in teaching young people with powers how to fight crime and promote themselves. Episode 3 explores the following themes: family dynamics and trauma bonding.
Episode 3 begins with a flashback of Luke (Patrick Schwarzenegger) and Cate (Maddie Phillips) visiting Luke’s brother Sam (Asa Germann), who is being held in solitary confinement due to his mental health issues. Luke manages to calm down Sam at first but the situation becomes drastic when Sam attacks and kills a security guard. Back in the present, Cate and Andre (Chance Perdomo) are able to safely escape from campus security and then form a romantic relationship. Marie (Jaz Sinclair) returns to her dorm and has an argument with Emma (Lizze Broadway) after she refuses to acknowledge the severity of her eating disorder. The next day, Marie meets up with Dean Indira (Shelley Conn) who convinces Marie to attend a fundraiser gala, meant to commemorate Prof Brinkerhoff (Clancy Brown), which Andre also plans on attending to please his father and make up for missing his interview in episode 2.
Later on, Emma is convinced by her mom (Rayisa Kondracki) to attend the gala and is given the opportunity to star in a reality show centered around her trauma. Emma ends up standing up to her mother and rushing off. Before she can leave the gala, she’s approached by Andre who lets her in on the secret that Sam is being held captive by the University and asks for her help to which she accepts. Marie meanwhile meets numerous talent agents thanks to Indira’s help though she feels conflicted about lying to them about her parents still being alive. Jordan’s (Derek Luh, London Thor) parents come to visit and attend the gala with them, where it’s revealed that they don’t accept Jordan as being bi-gender.
Emma breaks in to the facility where Sam is being held and ends up bonding with him. She also manages to convince Sam to escape by lying and telling him that she was sent by his older brother to save him. Andre tries to explain to his father (Sean Patrick Thomas) that the university is keeping Luke prisoner but his father becomes angry and warns him not to reveal his suspicions to anyone else. Marie bonds with Cate and Jordan after they share their traumatic pasts. The episode ends with security being alerted of Emma’s presence and her being captured after killing a security guard.
Episode 3’s most distinct characteristic is the fact that it focuses pretty heavily on the characters relationships with their parents. The audience learns that several of the show’s characters have toxic relationships with their parent. The dynamics that are explored are between Emma and her mother, who openly exploits her to further her own career, Jordan with their father, who doesn’t accept their gender identity, and Andre with his father, who is overbearing and keeps important secrets from him. Another strong point of episode 3 is the fact that it gives the audience more screen time with Sam, who so far has been one of the most interesting characters in the show. The episode’s biggest weakness is that the comedy feels pretty hit or miss throughout and causes the show to feel tonally confused. This is a pretty consistent trend in the show so far.
The strongest performance in the episode arguably comes from Asa Germann, who creates a lot of empathy for his character while also creating tension due to his unpredictable personality. The scenes which feature Sam are arguably some of the most interesting and powerful scenes in the show thus far and are definitely the strongest element of the episode.
7/10