The first season of Peacemaker was a surprise because I really enjoyed it. For what it was, it was astonishingly good. I was taken aback because I did not know what to expect from it. The first trailer was interesting, but I only knew James Gunn from the limited films I have seen of his. So, with the restructuring of the DC comic book universe due to having a change in leadership over at Warner Bros. and due to the mentality the leadership at WB had trying to "catch up" to Marvel Studios, James has managed to continue the Peacemaker show and also make it fit within the new regime. With that said, I have been watching this second season, secretly. I say secretly due to not watching it through official channels, although I have the access, but at the same time, there are so many things to watch right now, it has been difficult to focus on the release date and time, so I cannot simply focus on this show, and ultimately, I am being lazy, I'll admit that. So, as this second season has been released and the episodes have come out weekly, I have caught up and I am fully up-to-date, and I am really loving where this season is taking Chris Smith.
Chris Smith, aka Peacemaker, has been struggling all season with being a hero, but everyone pretty much still dislikes him for who he is and his actions in the Suicide Squad movie. Spoiler alert! For The Suicide Squad, he kills Rick Flag, and he has been beating himself up over it ever since season 1. Having saved the world, he thought things might have changed, people's perception of him, but it had not. Whilst having feelings for Hardcourt, he really wants to see where they are going with their friendship and if it could be anything more following an incident which occured between them, and although Chris wants to feel loved and secure, and Hardcourt might be the person to help him with his feelings towards himself knowing someone loves him, and the fact he continues to feel alienated on his own planet, Hardcourt has her own issues and past and ultimately rejects Chris. He then decides to leave everyone to travel to an alternate dimension with a device he has had for years after discovering it in the woods as a kid. This new world seems great and is everything he has ever dreamed of, where people love him, he is adored for who he is there, even that world's version of Hardcourt, but being caught in the bliss of it all, Chris remains ignorant to what lies beneath and by the end of the episode, we find out, where Chris really is.
Leading up to this episode, John was spying on Chris, only to be asked by Rick Flag to find out what Peacemaker is doing, but as soon as Rick becomes head of Argus, Rick wants revenge. The episodes have been really good, and the gradual reveal of what we are getting into with the new world will be devastating for Chris. All the characters are great as they are all unique. Some characters are better than others, but they are written in a way by James Gunn with great dialogue and character interactions. The last episode, surprisingly enough, had me a little emotional because I can identify with a man trying his best and feeling like he is failing in every which way he can to fail and feeling like he is not loved or anything which he does matters. This show shines a light on men's mental health, and one of the reasons why a lot of men do not speak about their feelings or leave the planet. This show gives us Hardcourt, who is also messed up in her own way; they are both broken people for different reasons. One is broken, but sees love in another person, and that person is broken and doesn't know if she can love another person. This episode was the start of the rescue mission, and the next episode is where shit will hit the fan with a devastating, crushing blow to Chris, and a huge fight is likely to occur because of this. Also, Adebayo and Judo Master are definitely not in the best place, so the next episode might pick up with him and enemies might need to join forces to defeat the evil that is around.
