DC Comics reviews 5/2/23 – The Flash #798, SHAZAM! #1

Peacemaker Tries Hard #1

I wasn’t a huge fan of the Peacemaker show finding it a little too over the top and goofy. With Peacemaker moving forward as a big player in the DC Universe from James Gunn and Peter Safran, it makes sense for DC to shift its portrayal of the character to more of the one that resonated so strongly with audiences and fans of the show.

Kyle Starks proves more than capable of writing Peacemaker just as buffoonish and clownish as he was in the series. This sounds like a dig, but it’s more an appreciation that Starks voices the Gunn Peacemaker so seamlessly in comic book format while dialing down a quarter of the dumbness to just make for a violent action-comedy comic.

Starks writes Peacemaker as still completely obnoxious and a little too clueless. He’s Amanda Waller’s blunt weapon and not even his teammates in the Suicide Squad want anything to do with him. The dialogue is wild, but Starks somehow makes the John Cena-inspired Peacemaker less of a cartoon character in a comic than the show version.

Waller tasks Peacemaker with breaking up a terrorist cell and he meets a puppy, which then gets kidnapped by an unlikely pair of villains.

Steve Pugh’s art is terrific thanks to his knack for making characters highly expressive and posing them full of personality. Pugh’s artwork goes a long way in making the comedy elements connect and each page has some tremendous comedic moments. Jordie Bellaire’s color work is sensational as always with bold colors embodying Peacemaker’s loud and in your face style.

The language shifts this book to a Black Label title, but it’s the Peacemaker that’s gained a following from the TV series ensuring that this series is one that already has a ready audience. If they can forgive the lack of a pet eagle.

Rating: 8 out of 10