The Boys seems like the perfect superhero series for an era in which trust in institutions is dying. In this series, our protectors are only pretending to be heroes as they live lives of casual corruption and a disdain for their fellow men.

The first episode of The Boys begins with a horrific, superhero-caused tragedy that is so ingeniously shot that I admired it even as I knew I would have trouble shaking it. Certainly one of the most disturbing things I've seen for a while, but I will acknowledge that the premise requires some horror.

That premise is that the most famous Superheroes, a group known as the Seven, is made up of psychopaths supported by a vast conglomerate that relies on merchandising and media. These superheroes mix the arrogance of celebrity with the monstrousness of unchecked power, but a small group of normal people are determined to bring them down for past crimes.

The one good superhero is Starlight, who looks like an Iowa beauty queen and has always dreamed of saving the world. She wins a role as one of the Seven and finds herself in a pit of snakes. She is harassed and objectified, but is too caught up her dream of doing good to walk away.

The series has a gritty, sour quality to it that made me uncomfortable. It's just such an awful world and even the human heroes are not necessarily the best of people. Starlight's degradation is disheartening, and Hugh's tragedy is heartbreaking and relentless.

What I'm saying is, as Superhero series go, this one isn't a lot of fun.

There are some clever visual ideas, an interesting plot, and good actors. But I couldn't get into it. The first episode is overshadowed by the opening tragedy. The second episode was better, although still dark and disturbing. By the third episode the unpleasantness became too much for me and I stopped halfway through.

I'm not saying don't watch it. I might have liked this series when I was younger and more open to grim experiences. But it's not the series for me.

(Funny thing; one of the other user reviews says the series starts slow but gets really good around episode 5. Someone else said the series started strong but was terrible by episode 5. So go figure on that one!)