In the words of Snap!, “It’s getting’, It’s getting’, It’s getting’, kinda heavy” in the latest episode of Peacemaker. Courtesy warning, spoilers ahead!
After a successful…a somewhat successful mission getting rid of the Butterflies in the previous episode, Murn recruits Adrian Chase a.k.a Vigilante to be a part of the team. Murn then confronts Chris Smith a.k.a Peacemaker (Duh!) about failing to kill the Butterfly kids in his hesitance. While explaining the morals he stands by, Peacemaker also solidifies that he will never kill kids without purpose. Peacemaker also makes a potential conclusion about Project Butterfly, however, Murn dismisses it without question. Sometime after, Smith and Chase begin to form something of a love-hate relationship as Chase drives Smith to his father’s home.
While inside his father’s home, Peacemaker gathers all of his different helmets and notices that his father isn’t home. Things begin to get heavy as the next door neighbor reveals to Peacemaker that his father had been arrested and that he’d one day end up like him. It is then revealed that Murn’s team are the potential culprits behind Smith’s father’s arrest and that he was blamed for Smith’s past actions to keep the police off of Smith’s tracks. In the midst of this revelation, Smith and Chase put aside their differences…beginning to hover more to the love side of the love-hate relationship.
Murn convinces Adebayo to talk Smith out of seeing his father in jail, which may lead to complications. Just before Smith can get inside of the jail, Adebayo arrives to stop him. Smith deduces that Agent Economos was directly behind his father’s arrest. Adebayo informs him that his information about his crimes was switched out for his father’s, leading to the police accusing him instead. Thereafter, Smith and his father have a very…what’s the opposite of a heartfelt, type of conversation, which resulted in his father threatening to rat out the team, showing his true feelings toward Smith, which involves much dislike. Almost the equivalent to hatred.
After being captured by the team, Judomaster escapes from his restraints and Smith goes after him. Smith and Judomaster engage in a rematch, with Smith gaining the upper hand this time around. Right before Judomaster could give any information regarding Project Butterfly, Adebayo arrives and shoots him. Later on, Adrian is arrested for breaking a window at the jail, which allows him to cross paths with Smith’s father. Smith returns to his home and reveals that he actually kept the Butterfly creature from Senator Goff’s corpse.
Later on, he reminisces about his tortured past involving his father and his deceased brother. While in jail, Chase attempts to engage Smith’s father after learning how bad of a parent he is to Smith. Harcourt bounds Chase out of jail after he fails to kill Smith’s father. Adebayo soon discovers a potential lead involving the Butterflies and informs Murn of this. Murn is secretly revealed to be a Butterfly himself. What did Snap! Say in his lyrics again? Oh, that’s right, “It’s getting’, It’s getting’, It’s getting’, kinda heavy”
One aspect about this show that has become a loveable thing is the pacing, oh the pacing. When it comes to pacing, viewers should have the opportunity to marinate in the gravity of what the characters go through in any story that’s displayed. This show, this episode has done just that beautifully. Nothing is rushed and we’re not made to deal with it too quickly. There’s also beauty in visual storytelling. This episode just as much as others we’ve seen, or will see, gives us an amazing amount of visual storytelling than it does verbally. This show continues to show us the growing relationships between all of the characters, especially the relationships that involve John Cena’s character.
Let’s talk about John Cena. Thank God, or whomever you believe in for John Cena. Cena gives us a more tortured and more vulnerable Chris Smtih/Peacemaker in this episode. It’s almost heartbreaking to hear and see that a grown man still longs for the validation of his father, while painfully understanding deep down that he’ll never get it. While there are a number of similarities between father and son, there’s a deep disconnection that’s not only heard, nor seen, but it can be felt through your tv screen or whatever type of screen you watch this on.
Robert Patrick did an amazing job as Peacemaker’s father. A little too well some may say. He was such a few words that shouldn’t be used to describe someone. He just made you want to rough him up. Like Freddie Stroma’s character, Adrian Chase (Vigilante), who was so affected by Smith’s story of his father he wanted to kill the man himself. Speaking of Vigilante, he was definitely one of the standouts in this episode. He gives a little bit of a Deadpool type of vibe. If you know, you know.
He’s definitely got a few loose ones in the ol’ thinker. Which of course makes him all the more entertaining to watch. Like the rest of the show up to this point, this was a well-shot episode. For those of you who are cinematography junkies, I think it’s safe to say that DC’s recent films and now t.v. shows have a great track record of being well-shot entities. Peacemaker is no exception whatsoever. This was definitely enjoyable to watch and sure it will be more than that as it progresses. Another solid episode for the best worst superhero!
Want to discuss things further? Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. For more film, gaming, anime, and TV news, trailers, and updates make sure to keep it locked right here at The Nerdy Basement. While you’re here, please consider supporting us on Patreon! It’s an easy way of supporting us so we can keep proving you with your Nerdy News!