As an aspiring director and screenwriter, after watching The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, I have never felt so inspired from James Gunn’s directing and writing. I don’t think I’ve ever truly recognized how unbelievably skilled he is at creating amazing plots along with such riveting characters, until now.  

Personally, I don’t think I’ve ever emotionally attached myself to characters as quickly as I did watching The 11th Street Kids or Task Force X, especially with Adrian Chase aka vigilante (played by Freddie Stroma). 

You may have heard of James Gunn before, but if you aren’t already familiar with his work, he’s a very successful (deservingly so) screenwriter and director. He’s been a part of the production of many popular films such as, the live action Scooby-Doo franchise (writer), the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise (director and writer), The Suicide Squad (director and writer), Avengers Infinity War and Endgame (executive producer), and of course, the show Peacemaker (director, writer, executive producer, and creator). 

He also happens to be (at the time of writing), my second favorite role model behind David Dastmalchian, who just so happens to play Polka-Dot man in The Suicide Squad. Therefore; my opinion might be just a slight bit biased.  

I admire the way James Gunn used Peacemaker’s character as a “hero” who isn’t completely good. I think the main reason for Chris being such an easy to watch character despite him being such a conventionally “unlikeable character,” springs from the fact that we saw him as a sort of villain in The Suicide Squad. 

After the incident with Rick Flag and the rest of task force X, we perceive Peacemaker as a bad person, especially for betraying his team, blinded by his vow to “get peace at any cost.”

As soon as you get a look into his backstory and the reason he does it, you start to emotionally attach to him. James Gunn uses your empathy for this character, to flip the script on how you perceive him now, versus after watching The Suicide Squad. Personally, I think it’s absolutely brilliant.   

Another big reason why I think Peacemaker and most of Gunn’s work on Peacemaker and many of his other projects is so impactful on the viewer is the way he uses the casting process. He not only looks for people who can play the character correctly, but also actors who he can easily interact and be friends with. He simultaneously creates an amazing cast and a group of people he knows are genuinely good people. 

This is another reason people are so drawn to the show. Not only do people get a good show, they also get an amazing new group of actors and an amazing dynamic between the actors who play those characters. 

Now, I’m not saying that you wouldn’t get a good chemistry between actors from other casts, but what makes the Peacemaker cast so special is that they also have that chemistry with the director. They get to execute that job with the help of someone they trust. 

I admire this because it’s something that I hope to do with my future casts as well. I want to establish a trust with people who are helping me create something that came straight from my brain. Yes, it’s a work environment, but it’s also a place where you should be able to feel comfortable to be yourself without fear.

Another big plus for the show is Leota Adabios relationship with her girlfriend. It’s so refreshing to see a healthy representation of a queer relationship. 

Lastly, I want to just share one thing about the plot that I and so many other Peacemaker fans found so unbelievably heartbreaking. The fact that Chris chose to make Adabio to be his best friend, over Adrian. Honestly, I found this so disrespectful for Gunn to do to us as viewers. After watching Vigilante pretty much beg for Peacemaker to accept him as a best friend since the first episode, and protect him at any chance he got, Chris still chose the person who betrayed him over Adrian. I bet you James Gunn was cackling as he wrote it too!

In conclusion, I definitely think that Peacemaker was an absolute masterpiece and I’m convinced that it changed me as a person, and hopefully as a future director/screenwriter as well.