Spoilers Peacemaker Season 2 (Spoilers)

[Meech17]

If you told me a few years ago who out of John Cena, Dave Bautista, and Dwayne Johnson would be your favorite wrestler turned actor, I would’ve said Johnson no doubt. But in so many ways, I think Cena and Bautista have lapped Johnson because of their willingness to choose different projects that allow them show their acting chops or appear vulnerable, while Johnson really settled into that action role that felt more openly like personal branding.

Yep, these were the two movies I was thinking. Pain and Gain was another. I’ll be interested to see how he does with The Smashing Machine. End of the day, I think he can do it, it was just more of a business decision from his standpoint.

I agree wholeheartedly, and it's kind of funny. I think I have given Johnson extra charitability unfairly in the opposite way. I absolutely loved Pain and Gain, and I feel like that leads me to always finishing movies feeling let down by him. Like "Man.. I remember him being better than this."

Back on topic, Judomaster is my new favorite character. He's grown considerably and the scenes where he both:

Spoiler: Season 2, Episode 6 Spoilers

1. Saves Adebayo.
2. Backs Chris's version of events re: the return of the gateway.

Are great.

Judomaster really grew on me, and also, leaves me disappointed that we don't get a few more episodes. Just like back in season one when he and Peacemaker had their parking lot rematch, and he starts trying to make an appeal to Chris about the butterflies before Adebayo shoots him.

On one hand I think it's nice that Gunn treats us like grown-ups and let's us piece things together ourselves, like seeing Peacemaker save the butterfly, likely due to Judomaster telling him that they aren't what he thinks.

On the other hand, I think it would have made for enjoyable B-Plots to see what Judomaster was up to after he escaped in season 1, and before he saves Adebayo in season 2.

 

[gnarlygninja]

That keeps getting said, and really people run with it, but when you really look into it, it was a pissing game between him, Statham and Diesel and they had similar wording in their contract to determine who came out on top in these movies that had all of them in it. He's done several movies where he's taken a licking or lost a fight on screen. I'm sure if they play the Smashing Machine as it is supposed to be played, he will have to lose a fight on screen.

It's also not really that different from a thing that actors have always done, just turned up a few notches. William Goldman talks about actors being overly concerned with their image, and trying to exert control over the movie to protect it, in Adventures in the Screen Trade.