After a troublesome spell of bad news for fans of the DC Extended Universe, (the end of the “Snyderverse”) hopes were slowly revived in recent times with the new addition of DC’s HBO Max Original TV show “Peacemaker.”
“Peacemaker,” under the helm of director James Gunn, starring the infamous pro-wrestler turned actor John Cena, returns to the role of the super soldier and ridiculously raunchy elite killer Peacemaker, after starring as the crime fighter in 2021’s “The Suicide Squad.”
Peacemaker is definitely an excellent watch, and one that is highly recommended. As long as it is watched with the right mindset and preparation for absolutely anything if you aren’t familiar with James Gunn, and “The Suicide Squad” is a perfect stepping stone for that.
The titular Suicide Squad was known as Task Force X, which is a group of hand-picked convicts who work for the government in exchange for time off their sentences in prison.
In the 2021 film (also directed by James Gunn), they are sent to destroy an alien starfish, which is a mission (and film) filled with graphic brutality, triumph over past struggles, ethics in the darkest of situations, impractical destruction and a lot of vivid death in general that all made for a beautiful concoction of cinematic madness.
Like “The Suicide Squad,” the show “Peacemaker” is comedically dark on the surface but takes a lot of time to address important themes (constant internal struggles with masculinity) while mixing in some crude remarks and outspoken violence to complete the show.
The premise of the show “Peacemaker” begins after the events of “The Suicide Squad.” After Peacemaker takes a bullet to the throat and has an entire building collapse on him, he is medically treated and almost immediately thrown back into the field to battle an impending alien invasion.
John Cena takes his nonsensical and almost chaotic antics from the role in “The Suicide Squad” and multiplies them by 100.
Some of which are too graphic to mention, but when it comes to naming 80 celebrities to rightfully imprison (in an improvised scene), having a father that is a white-supremacist themed super villain called The White Dragon (portrayed by Robert Patrick of “Terminator 2” fame), or taking care of the leader of a power-hungry alien species, nothing is ever “normal” with this show or its characters.
Accompanied by the sick-minded and self-proclaimed crime fighter (and extremely annoying), Vigilante (played by Freddie Stroma) and members of government assigned specialists (played by Jennifer Holland, Danielle Brooks, and Steve Agee), Peacemaker and crew set out stop an alien species called “Butterflies” from inhabiting the world by killing off humans and taking on their bodies as hosts.
All in all, despite the chaos that ensues during the show, it’s an extremely fun watch that is worth the price of admission. The only thing I may want to point out is that there are a lot of derogatory terms in this show that may offend some audience members.
These terms mainly come in the form of The White Dragon (Peacemaker’s father). As his character entails, he’s a stark racist, sexist, and is homophobic. The relationship between Peacemaker and The White Dragon is one that addresses a generational divide when it comes to the views of the world and how society views aspects like race, gender, and sexuality.
However, similar to some of the themes in “The Suicide Squad” (drug use, family dysfunction, acceptance, and trust issues), these derogatory and triggering terms are only there for the sake of giving perspective, as Peacemaker grew up in a neo-conservative and hateful environment thanks to his father, The White Dragon.
Despite certain aspects like these that some would consider problematic, “Peacemaker” is the best thing DC has going right now. It has already been picked up for a Season 2 with an unannounced release date, and it’s keeping fans in anticipation for Peacemaker’s return.