Peacemaker’s second season has come to a close and with it an interesting take on the DCU. Somehow the new universe is able to exist side by side with the uplifting recent Superman film, and the violent potty humor of Peacemaker. With that in mind, I couldn’t help but review the second.
As always, we break down our reviews by story, acting, and overall. Let’s jump on into it!
Story 7/10
Starting right off from the events of last season, if not a couple months after the last series, the show starts off. More importantly, the previously on segment showcases the final moments of the last season retconning the heroes that actually showed up to save the day to being the Justice Gang, and not the Justice League. There you have it, Peacemaker is now in the new continuity of the DC comic movies and universe.
But what follows through with this season is a heartbreaking story of a man who no matter how much he tries, feels like he’s never good enough and the world will never accept him for who he is. This journey makes him lean upon the technology of his father when he discovers an alternate world just steps away from where he sleeps.
In this new world, his father is still alive and loves him, and his brother who we killed when he was a child is not only alive but thriving. The three of them live together and are incredibly happy. This world tempts Peacemaker, but after he murders the alternative version of himself on accident, it becomes clear there’s something dark lurking underneath it all.
This all builds and builds as Peacemaker has to choose between the two worlds and chooses the alternate, forcing his friends to come and save him. This leads to the rest of the group learning what Peacemaker was blind to in his joy of reuiniting with his family, that this new altenative world has been Earth X all along.
Earth X from the comics is a world in which the Nazis won World War II and America has been forever changed.
With this new World shattered, and his second chance for a family destroyed, Chris is forced to face the music back home as everything crumbles around him.
Acting 10/10
John Cena acts the hell out of this season. The internal strife the suffering are all on full display and John Cena showcases that he is not just a wrestler who is acting but an actor who once wrestled.
The whole season you see Peacemaker being pushed to the breaking point. You see so much anguish, exhaustion, and sorrow on his face. When his world in Earth X shatters and his family is destroyed, you can literally see his soul snap. Surprisingly, this might be the best performance of John Cena’s career.
Jennifer Holland who plays Harcourt court also has to play double duty this season. Switching up her personality from that of the original series to her bookish and intellectual version from the alternative Earth is quite the change. But we have to also talk about her emotional journey as her world has crumbled around her and in her broken state she just defaults to anger and violence. She spends the season trying to fight her way through those feelings, even if it might kill her.
I also have to give credit to Judomaster and Adebayo actors, Nhut Le and Danielle Brooks, whose heartfelt connection and growth together in the penultimate episode was a beautiful and fun journey as they played Scobble.
Auggie Smith and Keith Smith, Peacemaker’s family, also had to go through a large emotional journey this season with Robert Patrick, once again, giving a amazing performance. This time switching from racist to an honorable man in a dark world, while newcomer David Denman did a great job of picking up the laboring ores of the strife and pain from Earth X which might spill into our world in the near future.
Lastly, Freddie Stroma who plays Vigilante can do no wrong.
Overall 8.5/10
This season does an amazing job, not only developing and delivering and emotional journey and experience through the season, it is a true journey through the concepts and experiences of grief, pain, and self-worth. It is insane how amazing and impressive this season is in comparison to the first. While the first season was a fun journey, this season opened so many emotional doors for the characters and forced them to walk through them.
Conner’s Final Thoughts
If this is the final season of Peacemaker, it is sad to say that we will be robbed of another dance number in the opening credits of the show. At least we do have the first season and second season. These dance numbers are some of the best interpretive dance, and an interesting telegraphing of what to expect in the season, laid out all in front of us.
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