Gen V Season 2 (2025) Review

The 5th and Final Season of The Boys has hit Amazon today and there was one part of the franchise that I hadn't caught up with and that is the 2nd season of Gen V. I really enjoyed the first season of the show, So I have now found the time to watch the 2nd season and here is my review for it. The premise of the show sees our heroes returned to University, where they must deal with the new headmaster and the complex views and divides between Supes and Humans. 

Main Character

Jaz Sinclair reprises her role as Marie Moreau and she is great. Her character is really explored this season and she definitely has had some upgrades since the first season of the show. She has her real issues but the show explores them well enough and she is a good lead character. 

Supporting Characters

For me, the best character in this season was the new Headmaster Cipher played by Hamish Linklater. He is the most interesting and intriguing character of the show. He comes out of nowhere and owns every scene that he is in. 

Sean Patrick Thomas as Polarity gets way more screen time this season and I thought he was good. His character arc is well handled and I liked the fact that he has way more to do here then he did in the previous season. 

Unfortunately, I didn't really care that much about the the students at God U. Last time we say them Cate played by Maddie Phillips and Sam played by Asa Germann they were bad guys working for Homelander. But this show kind of forgets about that and sets them both up for redemption arcs and I didn't really care about them or that story. 

Lizzie Broadway as Emma and Jordan Li who is played by both London Thor & Derek Luh are just kind of here. Jordans main part of the story is just their relationship with Marie which kind of goes nowhere. And Emma feels side lined all season and with very little to do apart from being a part of some half baked love triangle. 

Story

The story is okay. I found some things pretty interesting, especially when it is looking into the character of Cipher and what exactly he plans to do. The show also has a pretty interesting twist towards the end that I didn't really see coming. However, I thought a lot of the characters are underutilised and I just felt like the ending was more about setting up the fifth season of The Boys instead of giving this show a proper ending. 

Script

The script is pretty good, the balance of drama and humour is actually well handled here and helped with the characterisation. It made it feel like these were people at a school but also in the serious situations that they find themselves in. 

Style

The style is okay. the pacing of the show is well handled and I never felt bored watching the second season of the show. There is no doubt that some of the ludicrous and violent stuff that happens on the show are pretty cool but there is no doubt that sometimes it just becomes too much and it is just there for a gag instead of actually adding to the story. 

Overall

Overall, Gen V Season 2 is a good season of the show. It still has a lot of the qualities that I liked about the first season of the show but it has more problems. It has dropped quite a bit in quality but if you are still a fan of this franchise then it is worth a watch for sure. 

Rating - 7/10

Crime 101 (2026) Review

I was planning on watching this film in the cinema but things changed. Because of Amazons new release strategy, less then two months after hitting the cinema it is already available for streaming. So today I took time to finally watch Crime 101 and here is my review for it. The premise of the film sees a thief looking to achieve his final score, which becomes intertwined with other big personalities. 

Main Character

Chris Hemsworth plays the lead character and he is fine. Hemsworth has the natural charisma and charm to make him good enough in the lead role. But I must admit, I wasn't particularly invested in him or cared too much about the character. He was just a guy and I never really found anything that made him interesting. 

Supporting Characters

Mark Ruffalo plays Lou and he is probably the best part of the film. He is the detective that is after Hemsworth and I liked his personal story and how his life really develops throughout the film. Ruffalo seems to be really trying and is given more meat to work with then the rest of the cast. 

Halle Berry plays Sharon and she is good in the film, she is clearly fed up with her work and is struggling about her place in society. However, the character doesn't have that much function in the film and I felt like her presence was just their to pad out the runtime. 

Barry Keoghan plays Ormon and he is a wackjob in the film. He is a complete wildcard to the film and it does lead to some entertaining scenes. But again, he also feels like a character who is added about half way through and is just their to extend the runtime of the film. 

 Story

The story is a lot different to what was expected. It focuses on the everyday lives of these people and how they deal with their situations. As I mentioned above, I found Ruffalo's personal development the best in the film, mainly because it is actually linked to solving the crime. I think we did spend too much time just with slower scenes and that made the story feel elongated and lacking any real excitement to it. 

Script 

The script is functional, it has some decent drama and character building moments that made this film way more watchable. The issue is just how grim the film is, there is incredibly little humour and it makes it a long watch combined with the runtime. 

Style

The film has some pretty cool actions scenes, especially some cool car chases. Which makes it even more infuriating that there is barely any of it in the film. The pacing is super slow and it made this film a drag, had their been a better balance of character development and action then this would have been a lot better. 

Overall

Overall, Crime 101 is an Average film that mostly misses the mark. It has some decent acting and action scenes but the film is way too long with a lack of excitement. Unless you like these actors, I would give this a skip. 

Rating - 5/10

War Machine (2026) Review

I'm a bit late to the party but today I have watched War Machine from Netflix and here is my review for the film. The premise of the film sees a group of soldiers on a training mission when they come up against an unexpected enemy. 

Main Character

Alan Ritchson plays 81 and he is decent in the role. I think he has been an actor who has found his niche when it comes to being an actor and he does excel in these action roles, he is definitely the driving force in this film and does rise it up. However, I didn't really care to much about the character, I think he is a really basic character and I just didn't think he was written well enough to make me really care about him. 

Supporting Characters

There are some big names in pretty small roles here. Jai Courtenay, Esai Morales and Dennis Quaid are in this film and do fine with the very little screen time but it was nice seeing some star power on display. 

Unfortunately, the crew that are with Ritchson are super annoying and are not likeable at all. I mean the soldier numbered 7 played by Stephan James is fine but the rest of them aren't good and to be honest you are just watching to see how they are going to get taken out. 

Story

The story though is really where the film falls down. The whole concept of these troops trying to escape from this unknown enemy has been done thousands of time and this film offers nothing new to the genre. We have no idea why the enemy wants to go after them and very little character development, even that is very bland. With an ending that is basically just trying to set up future instalments of this franchise. 

Script

The script also has plenty of problems. The main one being a clash between trying to be this super serious film or trying to be this 80's action film that has some funny one liners. It doesn't do either particularly well and it does feel like this was a big afterthought here. 

Style

The best part of the film has to be the style. For a Netflix film it clearly has a big budget and it does have some pretty impressive action sequences with plenty of violence. It is also a pretty brisk watch, I was never bored during the film and it was an easy watch in terms of runtime. 

Overall

Overall, War Machine is a Below Average Action Film that feels like a slightly higher budgeted version of a thousand films that get made. I would say to give this one a skip unless you really have a desire to give it a go. 

Rating - 4/10