James Gunn has done it yet again with bringing his own love of music and musical elements into his work. We know that part of what makes the Guardians of the Galaxy movies so special is the soundtrack that Gunn includes, and he’s bringing that same love of music into the fold with Peacemaker. HBO’s The Suicide Squad spinoff series follows Chris Smith, a.k.a. Peacemaker, played by John Cena, as he works to catch the Butterflies. In doing so, we learn more about his upbringing and the struggles that Chris faces, but we also learn of his love of ’80s hair metal.
In a unique opening credits sequence, we get to see Chris and the team he’s working with dance to an ’80s hair band song that oddly fits perfectly with the show. The song is called “Do Ya Wanna Taste It” by the band Wig Wam. Does this opening credits sequence make sense for every episode? Sort of! The show loves to be fun and weird while packing a punch, like in episode 4, when Chris has an emotional journey in his home while he’s getting high and thinking about his brother. But the opening credits sequence is one that fans have all decided we cannot skip. (And you can’t. You just have to embrace it.)
You can see the opening number here:
But what makes it so special? Frankly, it’s just that it’s silly. For so long, DC comics’ movies have been dark and gritty. Since Man of Steel, the series has been a bit darker than superhero properties before it, and so it is nice to have something like Peacemaker embrace the chaos and just have some fun with the story they’re telling. It helps that Peacemaker allows them to take jabs at the “supervillain” and explore what his ideas of heroism mean in the grand scheme of things.
Pair that with a fun opening dance number and Chris Smith constantly learning new ways to exist in the world after being imprisoned, and Peacemaker is a fun and delightful entry in the DCEU.
The music of Peacemaker
One of the delightful aspects of the series is the hair bands that Chris Smith clings to. He loves an ’80s power ballad, and it lends itself to brilliant storytelling. Whether it is John Cena dancing around in his underwear or an emotional moment when he is lying on the floor and clinging to a picture of himself and his brother, the music of the show works to pack an emotional punch in a surprising way.
But the established love of hair bands from Chris makes moments like the opening credits into those more poignant moments have that emotional weight to them, and it is a credit to Gunn’s ability to weave his own love of music into his work. If Peacemaker wants to keep giving us fun dance sequences, we’re not going to complain about it.
(image: HBO)
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