Now that the brand new DCU is in full swing, it’s time for co-honcho James Gunn to indulge in a little retconning in order to bring his other superhero opus fully into the fold. No, I’m not talking about Super, but rather the fact that the first season of Peacemaker (and by extension, 2021’s The Suicide Squad) seems to be awkward straddling across the divide left between the DCU and the DCEU. If that’s your main issue with Peacemaker Season 2 – or if you’re wondering if “Do Ya Wanna Taste It” by Wig Wam still opens the show – then Gunn makes things pretty clear right off the bat with the first episode.
Audaciously including an altered scene in the “Previously on…” segment that swaps out the DCEU’s Justice League with the DCU’s Justice Gang, and including a new opening dance sequence set to “Oh Lord” by Foxy Shazam, it seems that Gunn is anxious to get both of these questions out the way fast in order to focus on some multiverse related shenanigans. No wait! Come back! This is a totally different multverse than the MCU!
As we rejoin the group of that once saved the world from an invasion of body possessing alien butterflies, we discover that that the various, we find that it’s various members aren’t doing so good. Christopher Smith, aka. formally amoral vigilante Peacemaker, is on a quest to finally be taken seriously only to face a major setback when his attempt to join the Justice Gang ends in humiliation, but while his future seems bleak, especially as he’s still trying to move past shooting his own white supremacist, super villian father in the head. Elsewhere, hard edged former agent Emilia Harcourt has been blackballed by a vengeful Amanda Waller and can’t find work anywhere which has led to feeling of immense rage and toxic feelings on inadequacy that she indulges by getting beaten to shit while starting bar fights. Leota Adebayo has temporarily split from her wife and John Economos has returned to A.R.G.U.S. and is spying on Chris for its new boss, Rick Flag Sr. who is aware that Peacemaker is responsible for the death of his son.
However, wracked with depression and finding that a drug fueled orgy isn’t hitting the spot quite like it used to, Chris does have one alternative left to him. It seems that not long after the death of his father, Chris discovered that his T.A.R.D.I.S. like armoury is actually a Quantum Unfolding Chamber that contains portals to other realities. Deciding to revisit a reality he visited once before where Peacemaker is a respected hero, his father Auggie isn’t a hateful racist and his brother, Keith, is alive and well and is the third member of their heroic supergroup named the Top Trio.
However, Chris’ foray into a better world predictably ends in tragedy when the Peacemaker of this universe proves to be understandably pissed that an intruder wearing his face has spent an evening drinking with his family.
While we wait for the newly minted DCU to start increasing productivity and start churning out more diverse fare, it really does seem that so far it’s a one man show. Even discounting the leftovers from the DCEU, it’s thus far been the James Gunn show with the head honcho himself either writing and/or directing both Superman and the animated shoe, Creature Commandos. Thankfully, Gunn seems thus farctotally up for the challenge and has delivered consistently enjoyable results that bode well for when other directors and script writers final get to add their input. But for now, we’re pointed directly from Superman’s colourful positivity and dumped right back into the twisted humour and perverse tragedy that not only ramps up the personal trauma, but now also makes us deal with the incredibly strange fact that the DCU now officially already contains both a scene of a graphic orgy that features full frontal nudity and a moment where Superman rescues a Squirrel from certain death.
Anyway, despite a basic plot that starts a bit too much like Deadpool & Wolverine (despondent, foul-mouthed superhero engages in multiversal fuckery after a rejection from a major superhero team), Peacemaker Season 2 is clearly looking to put its cast through some emotional lows right from the word go. We find John Cena’s lead backsliding horribly after getting callously mocked by Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner and Sean Gunn’s Maxwell Lord in an audition that feels like low rent version of X Factor, and this gives the actor free reign to start the season in unrestrained, self hating mode which kicks off his desire to leave to a universe where he can mean something. This misery is transferred to the rest of the former 11th Street Kids who are dealing with being tossed out with the trash after saving the world.
Some are admittedly dealing with it quite well as Adebayo seems quite hopeful about her marriage split and even is still proving to be a good and caring friend to Chris and the unflappable Vigilante (aka. Adrian) is quite happily spending time working in a restaurant while phoning Economos daily on his lunch breaks. However, while Economos is essentially doing his old teammates dirty by spying on Peacemaker for A.R.G.U.S. after his first multiverse jaunt spiked some alarms (after what Lex Luthor did to Metropolis with his own dimensional gate, do you blame them?), it’s Harcourt who’s really doing some damage. Shutting everyone out, shooting down Chris’ attempts to rebond and brutalising bikers in bars until sheer forces of numbers bring her down, the blacklisted agent is apoplectic to discover that she’s suffering from a form of toxic masculinity, but doesn’t have a Quantum Unfolding Chamber, or the access to orgies complete with a surprising amount of full frontal male nudity to blow off steam.
Of course, sneaking into another dimension and spending time with a loving family you never had could hardly be described as healthy and after spending a night drinking with far nicer and more supportive versions of his dead dad and brother, Chris has to pay the piper when this universe’s Peacemaker shows up. Only – he doesn’t and in the violent brawl, the other Chris is accidently killed leaving the other universe wide open for him to visit. Thus this is how Gunn’s multiverse differs from the way it’s used primarily in the MCU; while Marvel has been using to fulfil the nostalgic earnings and fan casting dreams of the fans, the DCU is using it to fulfil the yearnings of its main character and thus drive the story.
Of course, despite Peacemaker Season 2 kicking off in a much sadder, depressed place than its predecessor, it still contains that typical, smash mouth, James Gunn humor. When a malfunctioning two-way microphone means that Maxwell Lord realises that he’s been pointing out the exposed camel-toe of a auditioning White Rabbit, or John gets progressively irked by a fellow multidimensional being not returning his hellos, you know you’re safely in Gunn-ville with the safety off. Yep, for the first episode at least, Peacemaker’s back, the DCU is continuing to set a high standard and if you haven’t already, you really should try to give peace a chance.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
We Have Issues 