Peacemaker S2 is pretty good, but not as good as the 1st season

Since the start of the DCU, I’d say I was looking forward to the 2nd season of Peacemaker because of interest and curiosity more than anything else. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely had a blast with the 1st season and loved, but I had always wondered how James Gunn would bring Peacemakers to his universe and how the story can continue. As I do most of the time, I avoided all the promotion for the new season because I like to go in blind and I find it that even the smaller things revealed during trailers and such can be more surprising as I’m watching the show.

Following the events of season 1, everyone finds themselves in bit of a rough spot. Adebayo is having troubles with her relationship, Harcourt can’t be employed by any agency anymore, Economos is working in Argus but he’s not very happy with his job, and Vigilante ….. he’s just being himself really. Peacemaker is in turmoil after killing his father last season and, having a some soft of fallout with Harcourt, that we don’t know the full details of, he is left lost, trying to figure it how he can fit into the world in a way that he likes. One day, as he’s exploring the pocket dimension in his home, he finds a door that leads to a different universe, one where his father is alive. He tries to take it in and figure what to do with knowledge. Meanwhile Rick Flag Jr. has been given control of Argus and has his eyes on Peacemaker for killing his son.

Initially when I learned that there was going to be different universes, and hence multiuniverse stuff, I was a little concerned. Haven’t we had our share of multiuniverse stuff over the years? Marvel is still trying to do storylines based on that, The Flash did that, and now, the third piece of media from the DCU is doing it. Was it a wise choice to include it this early in the establishment of a new cinematic universe? Thing is, here the existence of the two universes is not tied to a fight over the multiverse or the preservation of humanity and such, it is centred around Peacemaker himself. The existence of another universe becomes important because it is important to Peacemaker. After tagging alongside this character for 1 movie and 2 seasons, we have seen how his life has turned out and how his mistakes from his past continuously haunt him. So while the connection with another universe might have greater consequences, such as the rift we saw in Superman, the more important side of it is that Peacemaker might actually be happy there. This feeling of his might collide with how the people around him feel about this situation and his decisions going forward. There is a good amount of emotions in this season. The first season had its serious and emotional moments as well but the second season has a lot more of it, and it is structured and written in a way so that the jokes and comedy do not interfere with these moments. This allows the actors to really stretch their acting muscles, with John Cena being the standout. He has reached a stage where he is an actor, not just a wrestler that does movies. He’s always been good at delivering jokes, but his strong emotions and heartfelt deliveries demonstrate how he has grown. The same goes for the rest of the cast, everyone get a moment to shine and deliver strong performances.

While in terms of emotions and character attachment this season is superior to the first one, how does the comedy hold up? Part of the reason that I enjoyed the first season so much was that it was hilarious. I found it so funny and laughed so much throughout. It felt like it hit all the spots that the Marvel comedy kept missing. Granted the tone and unhinged characters gave way to a lot of the setups and jokes, but it doesn’t change the fact that it was written well. With the second season, I still found it funny but not as much as the first season. I think that’s partly because this season is an important stepping stone in the DCU, hence they focused more on writing a story that is not just part of the new universe but also one that is consequential, that and developing their characters in a way that would naturally follow the first season and establish them firmly in the DCU. Also the first season was such a breath of fresh air in everyway, going into the second season you already have an idea about the tone and are familiar with James Gunn’s humor, so maybe that played a role as well. All that said, it wasn’t disappointing as I still had a good time with the comedy, but I just wanted to point out that it didn’t reach the same level as the first season.

In terms of story and plot, the second season had a good story to tell and it was well-paced. The episodes went by very quickly as they were filled with a bit of everything, character developments, story beats, action, comedy. It even had some cool twists. Even if you knew these were coming, you can’t help but look forward to their reveal. While I was on board with the story and was enjoying it, the finale did leave me a bit disappointed. There is a payoff to the and it does go somewhere important to the DCU and significant to the characters, but it just didn’t hit. Probably because the very last scene of the season is obviously setting up something in the future. Plus some characters behave in a way that is not like them, or do they do a sudden 180. Maybe after watching the podcast with James Gunn and seeing his reasoning I’ll come to understand it more but the moment the season ended, I felt a little dissatisfied.

Let’s not forget it is still a James Gunn project, even though he did not direct all the episodes. This means good music, good cinematography and transitions, and fantastic action. Can we just take a moment to appreciate the action in this season. Action sequences are usually not very long whenever they are in an episode, but man, are they good, very good. They are done better than in some movies. I am not just referring to the way they are shot and choreographed, but the the way the action feels. Punches, kicks, throws, everything feels impactful and so visceral. Some shots in this season made me squint my eyes and make a stank face because of how disgustingly good and painful they looked.

Now is a good time to talk about important question: Did I enjoy season 2 of Peacemaker? Yes, but not as much as season 1. The first season ,just by being different than everything else, had so much going for it, it felt different, like something actually new and fresh. That in addition to the great comedy, action, and pacing, just made it so enjoyable. The second season is still well written, decently paced, with good humor and writing, but it just doesn’t hit that high. Also the finale in my opinion doesn’t quite stick the landing. Despite that, it did its job. I enjoyed watching the show and it maintained my interest in the DCU.