Peacemaker (2022)
Created by: James Gunn
Directed by: James Gunn, Jody Hill, Rosemary Rodriguez & Brad Anderson
Written by: James Gunn
Starring: John Cena, Danielle Brooks, Freddie Stroma, Chukwudi Iwuji, Jennifer Holland, Steve Agee & Robert Patrick
The first four episodes of Peacemaker are streaming on HBO Max, and I had the opportunity to check out most of season 1 in advance. The show is a spin-off of The Suicide Squad and focuses on the eponymous character, as he is recruited by A.R.G.U.S. to join the mysterious Project Butterfly. It is the first television series set on the DC Extended Universe. The first season will have 8 episodes.
Having seen 7 out of the 8 episodes, I can’t help but describe this show as insane. In the best possible way. The show is clearly a James Gunn production, not just tonally-wise, but in pretty much every aspect of it. It is bloody, colorful, funny, dirty, but also heartfelt and emotional. Exactly what you should expect from a James Gunn production.
The show excels at character development, much of it because of Gunn’s amazing writing and character work. Peacemaker might be the best DCEU character so far due to the fantastic arc he gets over the course of the show. And while that is, in part, because of Gunn’s writing, John Cena’s acting is what really makes you love and root for the character. Cena is a fantastic actor with great comedic timing and a lot of dramatic potential. And Gunn knows exactly how to explore that.
Speaking of characters and acting, Danielle Brooks and Jennifer Holland are also fantastic and worth mentioning. While Brooks’ Adebayo is pretty much the heart of the show, Holland’s down-to-earth Harcourt helps us remember that the DCEU world is bigger than the craziness of Peacemaker. They are both very relatable characters, and their actors do an amazing job, as does the rest of the cast. I’m especially excited to see what Harcourt’s future will look like since she will appear in Black Adam this June. My one character-related gripe is that Steve Agee’s John Economos doesn’t seem to have a lot to do. I’d love to see him being more integrated into the story in future seasons.
Overall, Peacemaker is a very fun and wild experience that will definitely please fans of Deadpool and The Suicide Squad. It makes great use of the television medium while still maintaining movie levels of directing and production value. I’m very excited to see the season finale and cannot wait to find out what’s next for all these characters. There’s a lot of potentials there, and, hopefully, HBO Max will bring the show back.