James Gunn has provided clarification on howPeacemakerworks with the new DCU multiverse.Peacemakerseason 2returns to HBO on August 21, but it will notably be a part of a new franchise, as management has shifted at Warner Bros. and DC since the previous installment. The show is no longer in the DCEU, but part of Gunn’s DCU.
When asked about howPeacemakerwill incorporate the Multiverse (viaGamesRadar), Gunn clarified that"I think once people see the show, they’ll see how we’re using an alternate dimension so much differently than it’s been used in any other superhero show of any type.“Superhero media, such asThe Flash, used the Multiverse as a narrative tool for dimension-hopping conflicts.
James Gunn’s full quote, which can be read below, explains that the use of the Multiverse inPeacemakerwill be character-focused. The titular character’s journey to this alternate dimension will be for continued self-discovery, carrying on the show’s zaney but emotionally-driven story from the first season.
James Gunn:It’s not a Multiverse with all these different permutations. It’s one other dimension in which it seems as if it’s the perfect world that Peacemaker is able to use to learn something about himself. Everything for me in Peacemaker is a personal journey. You know, he’s clownish at times and oftentimes very funny. But I take this, the character, incredibly seriously, and I think that at the heart of this is the story of Peacemaker’s personal journey, his emotional journey, and that of the other 11th Street Kids. And that is what works with the alternate dimension.
What James Gunn’s Peacemaker Season 2 Comments Mean
Given the transition from the DCEU to the DCU, some audiences might find the shift in seasons confusing. For example, DCEU Justice League members like Jason Momoa’s Aquaman showed up inPeacemakerseason 1’s ending, while Peacemaker himself had a cameo in the recent DCUSupermanmovie.
In the season 2 trailer, audiences saw Peacemaker coming to blows with an alternate form of himself, a common trope in superhero Multiverse stories. This will likely be an absurd, ridiculous journey, with the character being forced to internally and externally reckon with himself.
James Gunn’s comments imply that audiences won’t see Peacemaker jumping around several dimensions, but simply swapping from one to another, where he’ll be forced to undergo a character-focused journey. This could mean that he thinks a fresh start in a new world is a cheat code to finally becoming a hero, only to realize it’s not that simple.
Our Take On James Gunn’s Peacemaker Season 2 Comments
Maybe I’m crazy for this, but the idea of canon has always seemed pretty reductive to me. Comics are complicated and weird, and so much changes between stories that neither Marvel nor DC has a concrete grasp on its own lore. That’s not a critique, that’s simply what the medium calls for. I just don’t understand why adaptations can’t do the same.
I’m surePeacemakerseason 2 will explain the semantics of why he’s now in this universe instead of the old one, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. This is a character-driven show that can stand alone as an individual story, and I’m all for it embracing the weirdness.
Either way, let’s just wait and see what the show has to offer before panicking. If the story suffers because of the Multiverse elements, that would be unfortunate, but I trust thatPeacemakercan survive the universe swap.
