Review: Peacemaker Season 2 Premiere

Oh man, the first episode of Peacemaker Season 2, “The Ties That Grind,” is a real gut punch right from the start. After waiting forever for this show to come back, James Gunn basically throws us headfirst into the new DCU, and things are a mess. We pick up a few months after the whole Butterfly invasion, and everyone is in a pretty rough place, especially Chris.

The first season was all about Chris getting a handle on his identity, but now it feels like he’s lost all that progress. He’s trying to be a genuine hero, but it’s just not working. The new Justice Gang, with some familiar faces like Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern and Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, pretty much laughs at him during his hero interview. It’s pretty cringey (fun little Batman easter egg though) and you can’t help but feel for the guy. He’s putting on this big front, but you can see how much it hurts him when they just think he’s a joke.

But the real emotional weight of the episode comes from the multiverse. In a classic “what could have been” moment, Chris messes with a storage area in his dead dad’s house that turns out to be a portal to a parallel universe. He stumbles into a reality where his dad is a loving superhero and his brother (fans of the Office rejoice), who died in the main timeline, is alive and well. It’s a brilliant way to explore his trauma and a major departure from the first season’s big alien battle. This whole subplot is a gut punch, showing him the life he could have had without the abuse he suffered. The emotional baggage from this is going to be a huge theme this season, and it sets up a much more personal, character-driven story.

While the episode is a bit of a slow burn, taking its time to lay the groundwork for what’s to come, it’s still full of classic James Gunn humor and heart. It’s not as laugh-out-loud funny as the first season’s premiere (still getting used to the opening song and dance), but it lays a seriously strong foundation. The ending, in particular, throws a major twist at us that promises a whole lot of trouble for Peacemaker. He ends up killing the parallel universe version of himself in a self-defense situation, which leaves him with yet another huge secret to deal with on his quest to become a better person. I honestly can’t wait to see how he gets out of this one, and the show’s willingness to go to these dark, emotionally complex places is what makes it so much more than your average superhero show.