Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: John Cena, Danielle Brooks, Freddie Stroma, Chukwudi Iwuji, Jennifer Holland, Steve Agee, Robert Patrick, Annie Chang, Lochlyn Munro, Dee Bradley Baker, Elizabeth Faith Ludlow, Rochelle Greenwood, Zak Santiago, Nhut Le, Christopher Heyerdahl, Viola Davis, Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller.
Despite the often-overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Marvel does not have it all their own way when it comes to producing films and television fantasy and superhero comic book serials that capture the imagination of the viewers, even in a world where they have become the dominant force, they are arguably pushed by the appearance of the unexpected, the one series that rivals all of theirs; and in the case of Peacemaker, it is one that is absolutely and adorably near perfect.
From its outrageous opening credit titles and through its gory dispensing of violence that is everything the self-righteous Comic Code Authority, which was set up in the early 50s, would have hated, despised, and possibly would have tried to ban in their Macarthy like stance against the various depictions on offer.
That is not to say Peacemaker is a series which is inherently graphic, nor is it one that should be avoided for fear of corrupting younger minds, for in the John Cena led action-comedy drama, what is startlingly obvious is how the need for the anti-hero and their redemption is needed in a world always willing to only see the black and white issues.
Much like its animated stablemate, Harley Quinn, D.C. comics and its film making studios have hit a high note by giving what was once considered a minor figure in the publications history and making them a stand-out character, flawed, full of fears, anxious, dedicated to their cause, fun to watch, easy to love, and with that over reaching disrespect for certain ideals and institutions that makes them more human than some of the more keenly watched heroes that always have the screen time allotted to them.
The big surprise is John Cena himself, not one to whom people would normally associate with as being the big main lead, indeed arguably almost anything he has been involved on film he has had to fight hard just to be seen as an actor plying his trade; and yet that is the comfort of the part, the release of the straight jacket role in which he has become bind with comedies and the downright pastiche of dull, and for which, alongside his work with Robert Patrick, Jennifer Holland, Danielle Brooks, and Freddie Stroma, pushes Peacemaker up the viewing list.
The vigilante trope is one that either grinds or fails, but to mimic it such a wonderful fashion deserves upmost praise, Peacemaker knows exactly which buttons to press and which weapons in its television arsenal it requires to be taken seriously, and watch it become an outstanding comic adaption. Ian D. Hall