"Peacemaker" is a show that shouldn't have worked but did. When hearing that the most loathsome member of James Gunn's 2021 "The Suicide Squad" was going to get his own series, the immediate question to ask was, "Why?" I'm sure John Cena's such a nice talented guy that anyone would want to make excuses to keep working for him, and he was funny in the role of the jingoistic and decidedly un-peaceful Chris Smith, aka Peacemaker, but it didn't seem obvious how that character could carry a whole series.

"Peacemaker" Season 1, while somewhat rough around the edges (you could tell Gunn wrote the whole eight-episode season in just two months), succeeded in making people actually want to see more of its protagonist. Never forgetting to make fun of Peacemaker for being a loser who sucks, the show proved thoughtful and sensitive in examining how he became a loser who sucks -- it's nurture, not nature -- while also offering a convincing arc of how such a sucky loser could seek to improve himself and at least partially succeed. Character was the show's strong suit, with Peacemaker's tragic past and personal evolution sticking in the memory far more than the actual saving-the-world plot (something with alien Butterflies? It's been three years, no shame in needing a recap before "Peacemaker" Season 2).

One full DC continuity reboot later, the second season of "Peacemaker" builds on the first season's strengths with a more focused story driven by its characters' conflicts and desires. Warner Bros. Discovery has only provided the first give out of the season's eight episodes for review, so I can't assess how it all comes together in the end. Based on what I've watched, however, I can tell you this is just what fans of the first season have been looking forward to: an irreverent, over-the-top, adults-only good time with enough heart beneath the crudity to give it a real impact.