If you were to ask me what my favorite movie from 2021 was, I would say that I don’t know and that I need to give it a lot of thought. However, James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad would be in consideration for my favorite film from last year. During that miserable year for film, The Suicide Squad was a raw, purely fun time. So naturally, when I heard John Cena’s character Peacemaker was getting his own spin-off show on HBO Max with James Gunn still at the helm, I became moderately excited for the show. 

However, upon watching it, I have many complaints and not a very positive opinion. To get my first complaint out of the way, the show isn’t funny. I am not someone who laughs very easily at the movies or shows I watch, but it is always a negative when I watch a whole show to only laugh once or twice, if at all. And although humor is subjective, it seems to me like public opinion agrees that Peacemaker does not elicit the most laughs. Too much of the show feels like bad James Gunn jokes dragged out for a whole episode. 

I also found the plot rather boring. I won’t divulge too much information, but the series is about the delusional murderer Peacemaker being recruited to stop aliens … again. The plot is an entirely standard and uncreative alien invasion storyline. It feels like the most watered-down alien invasion story I have seen in a long time. Even the aliens’ motivations, which I believe are supposed to be a twist reveal, are also boring. It was completely predictable and didn’t contain a single unique idea. In all honesty, it was very disappointing, and the alien plotline was entirely uninteresting. 

The show had two main running plots. The alien invasion is unfortunately the primary conflict, but there is a secondary conflict between the character of Peacemaker and his father. This plotline was much stronger. There are interesting ideas that arise from this unique conflict: a murderer who wants to be a good man struggling with overcoming his domineering father, who is solely responsible for why he is so damaged. The plotline shows hints of promise, and I am interested to see where it goes next season. However, this element of the show is stuck in the shadow of the aliens’ hugely important A-plot.

Overall, the show was generally a large disappointment. It was a good enough show for me to play when my brain needed a rest, but Peacemaker is not a show I plan to rewatch or think about much in the future. 5/10.