Summary
- Gen V takes place shortly after the events of The Boys season 3, with references to recent events such as Starlight leaving the Seven and the aftermath of the battle against Soldier Boy.
- The timeline gap between The Boys season 3 and Gen V is only a few months at most, with ongoing plotlines like the presidential race and the Homelander controversy still unresolved.
- Gen V is positioned as a bridge between The Boys season 3 and season 4, setting the groundwork and foundations for the season to maintain franchise cohesion.
When Gen V follows original characters such as Marie Moreau and Golden Boy as they train to become the next generation of supes in a college created by Vought.
While Gen V can be enjoyed with only minimal knowledge of The Boys, the spinoff contains plenty of connections to Amazon's main show. Gen V features a lot of familiar faces - A-Train, Ashley Barrett, and "Dawn of the Seven" director Adam Bourke, for example - references numerous events from The Boys seasons 1-3, and drops a wide array of Easter eggs. Through this connective tissue, it is possible to pin down more or less exactly where Gen V sits in Amazon's wider The Boys timeline.
Gen V Takes Place After The Boys Season 3
As confirmed by dialogue and onscreen references, the events of Gen V take place shortly after The Boys season 3's ending. In the opening minutes of Gen V episode 1, one of Marie Moreau's fellow residents at Red River says, "Ever since Starlight left the Seven." Annie officially quit Vought's superhero team following The Boys season 3's Herogasm event, shortly before the finale. Elsewhere, a news report in Gen V shows a destroyed Seven Tower, revealing the aftermath of The Boys season 3's battle against Soldier Boy, and there are also allusions toward the murder Homelander committed against an unarmed protestor.
All of these details put Gen V's timeline placement directly after The Boys season 3. It is also clear that only a small amount of time has ed. Seven Tower is still being rebuilt, the Homelander debacle has still not been settled one way or the other, and the Red River resident speaks of Starlight quitting the Seven as if it only happened recently. Furthermore, the presidential race involving Victoria Neuman remains ongoing. Given all of this information, the gap between The Boys season 3 and Gen V can only be several months at the most.
Gen V Takes Place Before The Boys Season 4
Given that Gen V is following directly on from season 3, it's logical to ask whether Amazon's college-based story will overlap with the forthcoming The Boys season 4. Based on what cast and crew have said in interviews, this is unlikely. Instead, it seems The Boys season 4 will take place after Gen V, with the spinoff serving as a bridge between seasons. Victoria Neuman actor Claudia Doumit explained, "Gen V lays a lot of the groundwork and a lot of the foundations that season 4 will be built on for The Boys." Showrunner Eric Kripke also previously acknowledged how The Boys would carry Gen V storylines "into season 4" (via Deadline).
These comments suggest that after the small hop from The Boys season 3 into Gen V, there will be another small hop of similar length from Gen V into The Boys season 4. That will help maintain franchise cohesion, and ensure major events that transpire in one show will not be ignored in the other. Exactly how much time elapses, however, will only become clear when The Boys season 4 premieres.
Sources: Deadline
Gen V continues Fridays on Amazon Prime Video.
