Apparently, this show was entirely conceived in eight weeks, in which James Gunn wrote all the episodes. As someone who knows how difficult it is to write a script for a short film, it's almost inspiring that Gunn felt so connected to this ridiculous character to the point where he didn't even have to spend that much time coming up with an entire show for him. And judging from the appearance in "The Suicide Squad," this is not necessarily the first character that come to mind when thinking about a potential spinoff show. But Gunn saw the potential in the character, and by his great mind, came up with a show that would further develop and utilize the character in the best ways possible. What he's doing with this show, though, is asking the question of whether or not this character is thoroughly evil or if he has a moral compass, despite his claims during the events of the film. If that's the thing that's gonna keep me invested, then let that be it, because so far, I haven't seen anything from this show that's going to convince me that hanging on and believing that this is great is a bad idea. In the third episode, we see the characters on a mission to assassinate a family where the patriarch may be a "butterfly." And the reason why this episode hit a lot better than the other two great episodes is because of the emotional pull and the character development, especially that of its lead.
We got the idea from "The Suicide Squad" that Peacemaker was a character who stood by his beliefs and would kill anyone to acquire peace. This show is silently pulling that belief apart and giving us a more vulnerable character with a lot of trauma. The reason why he's doing all of this and wants to belief that he'd do anything is because of how he was brought up. We've already been introduced to his crazy father and have seen his roots, so the fact that he'd hide under this tough persona makes so much sense in the long run.
However, the emotional pull of the episode and the dive into the character of Christopher Smith over his persona as Peacemaker, is wonderfully balanced out by the incredible humor. Never have a torture sequence been as funny as it is here, and never had I enjoyed watching casual murder more. Gunn is someone who will do whatever it takes to get a laugh, even if it means making a funny situation out of something macabre. Luckily, he also knows good comedy and makes every joke laugh harder than the last until you can't possibly laugh any more, which you do.
The show is giving us a great bundle of characters to follow. This episode took more time to put Vigilante into the mix and it ended up providing a clearly psychopathic character, who is just a kid on the inside. Knowing Gunn and his beliefs, I'm sure that he meant this to be a comment on today's youth and the double standard of many people in the U. S. Showing the innocence underneath the crazy, but not humanizing the deeds that they're committing. Gunn is a good enough writer to make it feel honest, and he certainly does with this character.
They also decided to pump up the action for this one. They introduce a character called Judomaster, and every single scene with him ended in ass-kicking fights that mostly ended with his opponents on the ground. Gunn makes these fight scenes feel really grounded through the way he shoots them and goes in close on every punch. It's still very stylized and quick, but it's done with a lot of passion and a lot of vision. The participants do their job marvelously, but Gunn brings it all to life with his vibrant direction and knowledge of gritty and nutty action.
"Better Goff Dead" puts this character into a different light, finally showing him as what he really is: a character with a lot of doubt. He's not a hard badass as we've been led to believe and that makes him so much more compelling but doesn't stop him from actually kicking ass when it's needed.
