James Gunn knows how to bring third-rate comic book characters to the forefront – Season One of Peacemaker has been an absolute joy to watch. John Cena shines as the titular character who has to deal with a heap of demons. Note, we haven’t seen The Suicide Squad so we can’t comment on that, though it wasn’t a necessary watch for this show. Also, this is not a review but an editorial on the evolution Peacemaker goes through.
We wanted to break down a few of the relationships Chris has in the series and how they evolve to the point they’re in during the finale.
From One Team To Another
It is no secret that Christopher Smith is a pretty big asshole, which is no big surprise given how he was raised. Also, let’s not forget he was on a team of killers who kill for a good cause. Though, they are constantly threatened with having their heads blown off if they don’t comply. Yeah, sounds like a great way to build team morale.
Anyway, for Peacemaker, he trades one team for another. It’s equally as disastrous. After a four-year stint in prison, he shows remorse for killing Rick Flag, as seen in flashbacks from the events of The Suicide Squad. Project Butterfly is made up of Emilia Harcourt, who works under Amanda Waller, Clemson Murn, who is a secret butterfly, Leota Adebayo, the daughter of Waller, and John Economos, a constant target of Smith’s bullying. Oh, and there’s Adrian Chase, also known as Vigilante. He’s a sweet guy but is a sociopath due to his job as a sniper and inability to feel anything towards his victims.
While these characters all might seem like misfits, they are more alike than they care to realise.
The Real Asshole Is Auggie
Chris deals with a lot of childhood trauma throughout the first season. One aspect of evolution Peacemaker goes through is dealing with his father, Auggie. As we first see, the Smiths aren’t your typical family.
Auggie is a selfish, racist asshole who doesn’t know the first thing about love. From what it’s implied, he never liked Chris and favoured his eldest son, Keith, who we learn died at his younger brother’s hand.
For years, Auggie blamed Chris for Keith’s death. He also traumatised his son to the point that he made him into a killer. Despite the horror of his childhood, Peacemaker is not entirely corrupt. He showed to hesitate when assassinating Goff and his family as he didn’t enjoy killing children. This leads Vigilante to step in and do the job for him.
Auggie’s heavy belief in white supremacy didn’t rub off on Chris as Peacemaker has a great deal of respect for Leota, who understands him better than he realises.
Leota: The True Friend Peacemaker Always Needed
While Eagly and Vigilante are up there on Chris’ friends’ list, Adebayo is probably the only member of Project Butterfly who makes an effort to befriend him, and it almost costs her. She becomes a willing puppet to her mother’s plan to frame Peacemaker. However, she comes to see him as a friend and forms a bond with Eagly.
She is probably the only member of the team who can see what a lost soul Chris is. However, she doesn’t try to redeem him. Leota can see that Peacemaker wants to change and sees he needs to do it on his own. Yes, he’s had to struggle with his father’s influence all his life, but if he were to break free, he’d have to do it himself.
The Death Of Keith
When Chris was a kid, he and his older brother Keith were made to fight each other, which they were willing to do. However, it ended up turning fatal when Keith was hit fatally and ended up seizing. Auggie blamed his younger son and never got over it.
Chris was traumatised by it, and as Leota points out, it was an accident. However, Keith’s accidental death was the trigger that brings Peacemaker to become the man he was. The flashbacks we get throughout the season of him killing a man after his brother dies shows Auggie’s influence, and the guilt Chris feels is real and triggering.
Losing Keith and his father not being a parent to him pushed Peacemaker down a path he couldn’t escape.
Peacemaker And The Eagle
Finally, we reach the end of this post. One of the most important relationships Peacemaker has in the series is with Eagly, his pet Eagle. If there is one individual who has never questioned him, it’s the bird. He doesn’t turn his back on him and is always there when Chris needs him.
It’s sweet to see. Moreover, it shows that Peacemaker does have a heart. Ultimately, this is something that not even Auggie can take away from him. Unlike the racist who would never get father-of-the-year, Chris’s love for his pet displays a softer side to his personality.
When Eagly jumps in to protect his owner from the White Dragon (Auggie), he gets knocked out cold. Chris flies into a fury, terrified he’s lost his best friend to the one person he hates the most.
Eagly is rushed to a vet, where he eventually comes around. He hugs Chris. This surprises Leota, who happens to be watching the moment through the window.
