DC's Peacemaker Episode 1, 2 and 3. (Spoiler-Free Review)

Never would anyone be expecting, let alone wanting, a series centered around an unknown anti-hero from the DC comics brought to life by the enigmatic tet funny wrestler became actor, John Cena. It was hard to tell if he was just looking for roles that just made no sense, played no necessary contribution to a film until his portrayal of the Peacemaker in 2021's The Suicide Squad directed by James Gunn. Most of the characters there were kooky and had serious mental issues, but Peacemaker was, however, different despite his lack of social skills - he says the wrong things at the wrong time. 

As Suicide Squad was premiering in theatres as well as it was streaming on HBO Max, Warner Bros was so sure and confident of Gunn's work that they allowed him to write, direct, and produce a streaming series around the aforementioned character. The first three episodes premiered on the 15th and as silly as the trailers may have looked featuring scenes that teased Freddie Stroma's weirder portrayal of Adrian Chase to Cena dancing in his underwear, this solo series has more up its sleeve than one may realize. 

Taking place immediately after the events of The Suicide Squad, Chris Smith (and yes, that's his real name) is finally allowed out of the hospital after being shot in the clavicle by Idris Elba's Bloodsport only to be recruited by Clemson Murn alongside operatives that appeared in the Suicide Squad movie all of whom asnwer to Amanda Waller, director ARGUS. Peacemaker is to assassinate individuals apart of the Project Butterfly - not Starfish this time around - that sends these ragtag group of misfits from Waller's updated s-hitlist on a mission they can't help but wonder why they were put together to solve it. Considering this seems to following the footsteps of most Task force X missions, best to prepare for some government secrecy-type cliffhanger.

These three episodes not only reintroduce James Gunn's weird obsession towards comedy and violence that involve oddball-like characters but like I said, the show is as serious and as surprising as most superhero-like films and TV shows today (and I am pinpointing the great ones here). By the end of the first episode, you immediately would want to watch the next episode. Luckily, HBO Max provides the first three and by the end of the three, you'd think this is enough for a day but still would want to continue the rest a few hours later to see how it ends like most Netflix shows. Unfortunately, Peacemaker wants to leave homeviewers wanting more by the end of not one or two but three episodes. There's no doubt that Peacemaker seems to be shaping up to be as hilarious and as gripping as most superhero-themed TV shows. 

There's one other thing to highlight amongst these three episodes. Their runtimes go on for 46, 40, and 39 minutes accordingly, but unlike the recent Marvel Studios Disney Plus releases, each episode seems to feel longer than it's accounted something I consider great storytelling considering I am always clamoring for more runtime episodes. Peacemaker reveals that there is indeed a way to make an episode longer than usual even with a short runtime.. something Marvel should be taking notes for the upcoming slate of Disney Plus shows that have yet to be finishing pre-production. Hard to say the same with Moon Knight, Miss Marvel etc. 

Unlike the Marvel shows, Peacemaker is hardcore rated R and for good reason. Peacemaker is luckily not limited to being as explicit as it needs to be whether its through crude jokes or violent sequences. You can tell by such barriers being lifted, Gunn was once again given the utmost amount of freedom to write a show like this to be considered within the DCEU after having as much as fun as he did making The Suicide Squad or maybe even more . It was considerably revolutionary when it came to the 2021 sequel/soft-reboot and it continues to be that way with this new entry to the possibly soon-to-be-rebooted Snyderverse. 

With these episodes alone, fans of the underrated character and anything Squad style will have the time of their lives. With that said, I hope the show stays as fun and fresh as it seems to be all way to the finale.