Baffled And Outraged Critics Declare The DCU Is A Disaster After James Gunn Puts An Orgy In The ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Premiere
Peacemaker’s second season is here and is already turning people off with its sharp pivot into mature content. If nothing else, the show earns its rating, but that isn’t necessarily bringing in the viewers or renewing faith in James Gunn’s vision. For those who haven’t watched the Season 2 premiere yet and plan to, this will be spoiler talk.
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For the skeptics who weren’t going to give the show a chance, however, you have nothing to lose and might thank us for the warning. The episode was written and directed by Gunn himself, and despite its connection to the more family-friendly (less edgy) Superman, it descends quickly into depravity.
Christopher Smith (John Cena), depressed that he’s not the celebrated hero he wants to be and that he and Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) aren’t an item, digs into his stash of marijuana and cocaine to unwind. And that’s not all: one second, he is snorting lines and lighting up a bong, the next, he is surrounded by a bunch of naked people getting freaky.
This is not a drug-induced hallucination. It’s full frontal, goes on for a few minutes, involves all sorts of acts, and nobody leaves anything to the imagination, especially Gunn. John Economos (Steve Agee) also shows up to keep tabs on Smith, which means he winds up snooping on the polyamory within the house from out in the yard.
Peacemaker still scores “Fresh” on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, but needless to say, not everyone agrees with that score. In fact, some are beginning to question the legitimacy of it as well as how much James Gunn actually cares about the brand he’s in charge of.
YouTube film reviewer Price of Reason has been following Gunn’s progress with the DCU, and is ready to call the endeavor a disaster after what went on in Peacemaker S2 E1. His biggest gripe is, if everything is supposed to connect, how does connecting the “extreme, vulgar, and naughty” Peacemaker series to Superman fix the Snyderverse’s problems with dark tones and adult themes?
POR believes Peacemaker S2 is even more vulgar than S1, to the point of excess, which leads him to question whether Gunn is the right person to run DC or if the filmmaker is too niche. Granted, POR is one YouTuber with this view, but he is far from the only one. Ryan Kinel of RK Outpost and Geeks & Gamers is as outraged and turned off by the direction Peacemaker is taking as anybody.
He doesn’t believe the show will appeal to the audience that went to Superman; he thinks the humor is “try-hard,” and more importantly for Kinel, Gunn strongly appears to be keeping continuity solely to give his wife (Holland) work and hold onto the characters he put his spin on.
Call me Chato reviewed the episode and, beyond questioning Gunn’s write-and-direct-everything “business model,” he criticized the orgy scene for being “gratuitous boob and penis flopping.” The hook of the season’s story doesn’t impress Chato either, as he is sick of Multiverses and “flitting” between realities.
“It’s a terrible plot device,” he says, that doesn’t make up for the three-year gap between seasons. In Chato’s view, making fans wait that long is unforgivable on its own. As a result, Chato gives Peacemaker S2’s premiere a basement rating we would rather let him explain.
Then there is social media’s favorite future ruler of Earth, Diktor Van Doomcock, who reviewed Peacemaker’s latest escapades (and sexcapades) all the way from the center of the planet. He and his minions were more forgiving of the orgy scene as fans of “Grindhouse” schlock. However, the Overlord admits coming away with disappointment and “melancholy” after viewing.
DVD was dismayed by the unnecessary retcon of erasing the Justice League, including Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and The Flash (Ezra Miller), from the opening recap. He believes it was an antagonistic move against Snyderverse loyalists and won’t unite the fans. He also thought the premiere lacked the humor and character dynamics of Season 1, which was more enjoyable for him.
Only one episode into Season 2, he had to struggle to recall things he liked amid mixed feelings toward characters and scenes that brought the mood down. By the end, he was left with “a bad feeling.” That feeling is beginning to spread and could spell “Doom” for this series and its universe.
