Last week, “Peacemaker” season two finished airing on HBO Max. Out of all the projects filmmaker James Gunn has done, this series includes all of the ideas that Gunn loves to incorporate into his various properties.
After defeating the invasion of the butterflies in season one, Peacemaker/Christopher Smith (John Cena) and his friends are in lower spots in their livelihoods. Smith is less seen in his Peacemaker uniform compared to the first season.
Vigilante/Adrian Chase (Freddie Stroma) is still working as a restaurant busboy, and John Economos (Steve Agee) continues to work for A.R.G.U.S. Whereas Leota Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) and Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) were released. Rick Flag Sr. (Frank Grillo) has taken over as director of A.R.G.U.S., replacing Amanda Waller (Viola Davis).
For those unaware, Flag Sr. is the father of the late Rick Flag Jr. (Joel Kinnaman), who Peacemaker murdered during the climax of “The Suicide Squad.” Likewise to season one, season two has a plotline that fans will not expect if they go in completely blind.
Season two follows Smith discovering an alternate universe where his father, Auggie (Robert Patrick), and brother, Keith (David Denman), are alive in a seemingly happy world where he and his family are celebrated as heroes.
Following the dimensional rift that tore apart the city of Metropolis in “Superman," Flag Sr. and all of A.R.G.U.S. are after any signs of interdimensional tampering. They start to pick up on clues that Smith has access to a gateway between Earth and access to other universes. With the help of his friends, Smith must battle, reliving his past trauma and trying to avoid new trauma while Flag Sr. is on his tail.
Something that Gunn has always done well in his career as a screenwriter is writing characters that likely would not get the spotlight if the project were under the supervision of a different creative mind.
He puts so much emphasis on developing each and every one of the characters that appear in both “Peacemaker” and the films he has directed. Characters that are not really worthy to be deemed members of the main core have their moments here and there.
Judomaster (Nhut Le), who was mainly an antagonist in season one, has some wonderful moments while interacting with people the audience likely would not expect.
Vigilante and Economos are just as important to Gunn as David Corenswet’s Superman/Clark Kent is or Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord/Peter Quill. His “Guardians of the Galaxy” (2014-2023) trilogy has proven each character is worth spending some time on. It’s never a dull moment for him to allow someone like Adebayo to take the spotlight from Smith.
Other than the writing, the performances by all of the actors in season two are spectacular, especially Cena. He already proved himself to be a charismatic performer in season one, but this season, his character is given far more nuance. Holland, Gunn’s wife, is easily the second-best performance alongside Cena.
The audience gets a sense of how lonely and desperate Harcourt is to be back in the good graces of Flag Sr. and have her job back in A.R.G.U.S. She and Cena have what is possibly the best scene of the season, where it’s the two of them alone in a room. There is no exciting action scene going on—it’s just a scene where the two of them argue. It’s a terrific moment written by Gunn, performed by Cena and Holland and captured for viewers to witness.
The concept of Smith interacting with alternate versions of his deceased father and brother is a touch by Gunn that is also well done. Having Smith understand that his true father and brother are dead in his universe but have the chance to be with them and loved by them in another is a great use of a moral dilemma.
Gunn’s direction and writing, as well as Cena’s performance, make season two an entertaining watch. Fans of the first season will likely enjoy this one too. It is a show that shouldn’t work; however, thanks to the right vision, it is able to thrive immensely.
Rating: 4/5
