As fans wait for season 3 of The Boys to arrive, the new animated series The Boys: Diabolical allows them to return to the dark world of superheroes. The anthology series is a collection of different stories set in the universe of The Boys, each with its own distinct style and tone.
It is a wild and thrilling animated series, but with only a handful of short episodes, fans will quickly be looking for the next thing to watch. Luckily, there are plenty of other shows, both animated and live-action, that capture the same elements that make The Boys: Diabolical so fun.
10 The Boys (2019-)
This choice seems like an obvious one, but there are few fans who will not feel the urge to rewatch The Boys after watching this animated spinoff. Of course, it is also possible that some people checked out The Boys: Diabolical before seeing the series that started it all.
Based on the comics by Garth Ennis, the show is an outrageous, violent, and entertaining look at a reality in which superheroes exist as corporate figures and a team of operatives work to keep them in check. Various characters from the series, like Homelander and The Deep, even pop up in The Boys: Diabolical.
9 What If…? (2021 -)
It is an interesting idea to allow a spinoff show to explore some different corners of the universe in The Boys that would never be tackled in the actual series. That is a similar kind of freedom that is enjoyed in the Marvel animated series What If…?
Though it technically takes place in the MCU, the series focuses on The Watcher, an all-knowing being who looks at alternate realities featuring some of the MCU’s biggest characters in new stories. This includes an episode focusing on the Marvel universe overrun with zombies and another in which T’Challa becomes Star-Lord.
8 Legion (2017-2019)
While The Boys: Diabolical features some of the popular characters from the show in mostly smaller roles, its main focus is on new characters who operate somewhat on the peripheral edges of The Boys‘ main universe. It makes for a fun way to see this world fans know well from a new perspective.
The series Legion also has fun with that kind of story as it is set within a universe where the X-Men exist without focusing on the characters fans know and love. It follows a schizophrenic man who discovers his own special powers. Like The Boys: Diabolical, Legion is also not afraid to get weird with its superhero storytelling.
7 Peacemaker (2022-)
As the pop culture obsession with superheroes continues to grow, there seem to be more and more spinoffs coming to the small screen including the recent hit show, Peacemaker. After debuting in The Suicide Squad, John Cena’s titular vigilante headlines his own wild series in which Peacemaker is recruited for a government mission to save the world.
Along with being another superhero spinoff, Peacemaker features a very dark sense of humor and plenty of gore that are front and center in The Boys: Diabolical as well.
6 Black Mirror (2011-2019)
An interesting benefit of anthology storytelling is that each episode of The Boys: Diabolical can tell a new type of story within this universe. While all the episodes deal with the dark aspects of the world, like violence and corruption, they can take different approaches, like a silly comedic style or a more dramatic one.
This is something that helps make Black Mirror such a captivating series to watch. The anthology series explores the dark side of technology with each new separate story. It is thrilling for audiences to go into each new episode not knowing what kind of tale will be told.
5 Rick And Morty (2013-)
The Boys: Diabolical managed to bring in a lot of very talented people to write the individual episodes. One of the episodes that focuses on a group of young kids with less-than-impressive powers seeking revenge on their greedy parents was written by Justin Roiland.
Fans of the episode will likely be interested in checking out Roiland’s other series, Rick and Morty. The animated show has a similar style to Roiland’s episode of The Boys: Diabolical while also mixing outlandish humor with fun genre stories.
4 Preacher (2016-2019)
While Garth Ennis’s comic books serve as the basis for The Boys, Ennis himself got involved with the spinoff series by writing one of the episodes. The episode which features his creations of Butcher and Hughie includes Ennis’s typical off-the-wall ideas and plenty of gore.
For fans of his style, Preacher is another adaptation of his work also produced by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg who are behind The Boys: Diabolical. The show follows a Southern preacher who goes on a quest to save the world after being given the power of God.
3 Love, Death & Robots (2019-)
Along with telling different stories with each new episode, The Boys: Diabolical has a lot of fun with continuously switching up the animation style in each episode as well. While one is styled after Looney Tune cartoons, another is inspired by anime.
This is a similar approach taken in the animated anthology Love, Death & Robots. The series finds new animation teams from across the world taking on each new episode while also being quite varied in their genres, from comedies to fantasies to science-fiction.
2 Harley Quinn (2019-)
Though The Boys can often be a very dark and twisted show, fans will recognize by the first episode that The Boys: Diabolical is not overly concerned with telling a serious story in this world of superheroes. It is bloody and violent, but also wacky and hilarious.
This is a similar approach taken in the animated series Harley Quinn. The show takes place within the DC universe but focuses on the titular villain as she gets out from under the shadow of Joker and forms her new path, with plenty of blood and vulgarity along the way.
1 Invincible (2021-)
As fun as the wholesome superhero characters like Spider-Man and Captain America are, it seems like audiences are also drawn to stories about the dark side of superheroes. The Boys: Diabolical gets to tell this story on a huge scale thanks to its animated format.
Invincible is another animated superhero show that is decidedly not for kids. It is the story of the young son of the world’s greatest hero who begins to discover his own path as a hero while also learning a dark truth about his father.
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