S01.E01: A Whole New Whirled

[AnimeMania]

After making a miraculous recovery, Peacemaker returns home – only to discover that his freedom comes at a price.

Original Airdate: Thursday, January 13, 2022

Edited January 13, 2022 by AnimeMania

[AnimeMania]

I really liked this, just when you are starting to feel like you are in the real world, they jar you back to the world of the superheroes where anything is possible.

I was surprised that Peacemaker gave the taxi driver his helmet, he was at his home, he could have gone into the house and found him something else, maybe a Glock, a Katana or a Handgrenade. It did give him another reason to go and visit his father, although Eagly is more than enough reason (stealing the show).

I loved the improvised karaoke scene with microphone.

I did not see the Peacemaker aftershow podcast “Podly” on HBO Max. I will have to check back later to see if it is there. James Gunn is the guest.

[Nellise]

This was really fun. I had no idea what this was going to be but it really worked. It's weirdly grounded and crazy at the same time, in a good way, like the characters understand it's crazy. Peacemaker being amazed Eagly hugged him was great.

Edited January 13, 2022 by Nellise

[rwlevin]

16 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

I loved the improvised karaoke scene with microphone

That was not a microphone…

[AnimeMania]

Just now, rwlevin said:

That was not a microphone…

I know, that is why I included it 😫🎶

[Zonk]

Those opening credits were perfection. Until then I had no idea that James Gunn was also doing this show. Afterall he has to be really busy with two superheroe franchises. But at that point it was unmistakeable. I dind't even need the writing on the screen to confirm it.

The rest of the episode was really fun, too. They even got Viola Davis for a small cameo.

Was that Cheetah at the end? I mean it can't get much worse than the Kristen Wiig (and I usually love that woman), but that would make a pretty big villain be dispatched pretty fast.

[thuganomics85]

Whelp, I think this show already is in the running for having the best opening credits out there!  Didn't think it could get any better until even Robert Patrick himself got involved with the dancing!  Definitely won't be skipping this one!

As my screen name suggests, I was a huge fan of John Cena "back in the day", and while I've been a bit more mixed on his acting career, I thought he ended up being perfection as Peacemaker in The Suicide Squad.  So, I'm all for more of the character and curious to see how this plays out.  I worry that they will try and push aside his past misdeeds in order to make him work as a main character, but so far I like that he is pretty much still under Amanda Waller's thumb and is basically still the douchebag asshole he always was: just one who will hopefully go after worst people!  But I imagine the more we see of him and father, the more we will understand how he became the messed up individual he is now.

Also like how they are using this to expand on some of the secondary characters from the film like Harcourt and Economos.  And, of course, I'm really interested in Leota Adebayo.  At first, she seemed like she was going to be the newbie/stand-in for the audience, but she is actually Waller's daughter?! (complete with a surprise Viola Davis appearance!)

I know nothing is off the table for James Gunn, but nothing better happen to Eagly!

Whoever Peacemaker was fighting was giving off some Cheetah vibes.  I wonder if they are going to be connected, somehow?

[Spartan Girl]

Watched the first episode for free. It was hilarious. I still haven’t forgiven Peacemaker for Flagg, but like Leota (Waller’s daughter!) said, there’s something about him that just makes you pity him. And I meant that in the loosest term because he really is King Douche. Harcourt’s smackdown of him in the bar was well-deserved.

Love Eagly!

Edited January 15, 2022 by Spartan Girl

[Lantern7]

Well. That was something.

This is one of those things where we get a show we don’t need, but the world is a little better because of it. Of course, I just started the next episode. For all I know, the third one ends with Christopher killing his supporting cast . . . in a non-hilarious way. You type out “Peacemaker has a one-night stand and winds up killing her,” that sounds nasty. You’d have to mention the hair metal (“Quireboys” was actually a band? Hooray for homonyms), our hero protagonist getting tossed around, and that he shot a sonic hook to obliterate her. And yes, it was from his helmet. Just a nice amount of absurdism.

Is Eagly real or CGI? Wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the latter. Wouldn’t be put off, either. Either way, he looks like he’s got personality. Eagle Hug FTW.

On 1/14/2022 at 1:17 AM, Zonk said:

Was that Cheetah at the end? I mean it can't get much worse than the Kristen Wiig (and I usually love that woman), but that would make a pretty big villain be dispatched pretty fast.

I was good with her until she transformed. It’s the whole “Wait, so wishing to be Diana ecentually turns you into a humanoid cheetah?” thing that threw me off (among other things). But no, that probably wasn’t Cheetah. I don’t think we would see characters that would be well-known by “mainstream” audiences. Maybe she’s a distant relation to Weasel? 🤓🤷‍♂️

(Yeah, I remember Adrian Chase and Vigilante in Arrow, but I’m thinking this one is a whole different thing)

Off to see the second episode. And no, I didn’t skip the credits.

[shrewd.buddha]

It looks as if James Gunn has found an outlet for his unbridled outrageous humor (with a low-key emphasis on subliminal rage). 
John Cena is a likeable actor and appears to be "all in" for this show -- willing to bare it all.  The other characters are okay, in their respective D-list kind of way.  In the Suicide Squad, Peacemaker really sparked by having a competitor like Flagg or BloodSport. 

This first episode felt like a very long road to get to an action sequence -- but it was a satisfying one.  

Parts of the show feel very sluggish.  And I don't know which chaffs me more,  the widespread incompetence or the intentional racism.
But if I can turn my brain off and enjoy "Emily in Paris", I can do the same for this  ... most likely. 
 

Edited January 18, 2022 by shrewd.buddha

[tennisgurl]

Looks like James Gunn gets another franchise to unleash his total insanity onto! I wasn't totally sure what to expect going onto this, but I thought this episode was a ton of fun. I am impressed at how hard John Cena is committing to Peacemaker, even when he's being ridiculous he has this sincerity that really works for him, and while Peacemaker is presumably going to be of the "pretty terrible but also hilarious and with some decent traits" variety of heroes, getting into his backstory with his awful father should at least give us more context into how he got to be this way. I am not even close to being over him killing Rick Flagg, but I am curious about where he goes from here. 

Nice that they are using some of the secondary characters from The Suicide Squad like Harcourt and Economos, and they managed to surprise me with who Leota's mother really is. Nice that they got Viola Davis to do a quick cameo, I wonder if she will appear in the flesh? For the season finale? 

Of course the two best things about the show so far? That amazing title sequence, and Eagly! Our true winged hero!

[absnow54]

On 1/17/2022 at 7:31 PM, Lantern7 said:

Is Eagly real or CGI? Wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the latter. Wouldn’t be put off, either. Either way, he looks like he’s got personality. Eagle Hug FTW.

I can only assume he’s played by Sean Gunn. 

[Bruinsfan]

Damn, it's been a few years since I saw Robert Patrick in anything, but what happened? He looks like Father Time jumped him in an alley and beat the crap out of him!

[Lantern7]

On 1/20/2022 at 9:45 PM, absnow54 said:

I can only assume he’s played by Sean Gunn. 

Turns out it was Dee Bradley Baker as Eagly . . . or at least the voice.

Quick question about the opening sequence: what does "Throw your dog the invisible bone" mean?