WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Peacemaker, now streaming on HBO Max.
In the premiere episode of HBO’s Peacemaker, the audience meets Adrian Chase, aka Vigilante, a sociopath who looks up to Peacemaker as a hero and older brother. Adrian serves as a goofy and annoying foil to Peacemaker, who he considers his best friend. Though the character is frequently played for laughs, the audience quickly discovers that his true temperament is not so mild. In Episode 2, Adrian shows up announced to Peacemaker’s house as Vigilante and attempts to cheer him up. There, he casually expresses how much he enjoys killing his foes, no matter how big or small the crimes they committed may be. In the following episode, Peacemaker struggles to pull the trigger when tasked with assassinating a family. Ultimately, he relinquishes his weapon to Adrian, who quickly kills the mother and two children without remorse.
While his wayward sense of justice seems to be a cornerstone of the character, he also acts as a loyal confidant to Peacemaker. Interestingly, his characterization as an obsessive fanboy in Peacemaker is far from his more serious comic universe depiction. Putting Adrian’s new occupation and team affiliation aside, his personality differs significantly from his comic counterpart. Fans familiar with the source material know Adrian is less wacky and not prone to hijinks than his on-screen equivalent. He also does not consider Peacemaker a friend but his sworn enemy.
Adrian is the second character to claim the Vigilante title in the comics. He was a former Manhattan district attorney and eventual judge who would stop at nothing to bring the wrongdoers in New York’s criminal underworld to justice. Unfortunately, his persistence lands him in the crosshairs of one of the most powerful mafia families in the city. While Adrian was collecting information on a dangerous mob head, he discovered that his wife and children were assassinated by the man and his goons when a bomb exploded in his apartment. Consequently, Adrian dons the moniker of Vigilante to hunt down and punish criminals that evade the justice system.
After training beside a desert cult to become a skilled hand-to-hand combatant with and without weaponry, Adrian as Vigilante took to the streets to fight crime. However, soon after, his time as an anti-hero began to take a toll on his mental wellbeing. Growing increasingly more violent as the days, weeks and months led on, Adrian began to lose sight of his initial pledge to avoid the use of lethal force and minimalize casualties. Eventually, Adrian became the very thing he once fought against, so he quit due to his increasingly unhinged behavior, knowing that he would be better off as a judge and not a crime-fighter.
After some time, Adrian’s bailiff, Dave Winston, took on the mantle of Vigilante in his friend’s place. However, since he refused to use lethal force, he was killed in action by Peacemaker, causing Adrian to become the Vigilante once more to avenge Winston’s death and protect his loved ones. Later, Peacemaker defeats him in battle and unmasks Adrian on live TV, ending his secret identity and causing him to remain as Vigilante full time. Understandably, after everything he had been through, Adrian falls into a deep depression, plagued by his guilt and increasing paranoia. Ultimately, Adrian succumbs to his violent thoughts and stops caring about civilians or cops caught in the crossfire of his disputes with criminals. Finally, after living a tortured existence for some time, he tragically decides to end his life.
In Peacemaker, both the titular character and Vigilante’s backstories and personalities change to make them more suited to James Gunn’s specific style as a writer and director. Their transformations translate to many laughs, zany antics and wild action sequences that make the HBO series brutally entertaining. However, altering their origins also allows the dysfunctional family dynamic that Gunn’s characters are famous for. Peacemaker is a show that’s as much about exploring a human being’s capacity to change as it is about the missions they bond with each other on. Even though Vigilante underwent extensive modifications to his character, his makeover fits the tone of Peacemaker much better than his comic book variant would.
To see how Vigilante differs from his comic book counterpart, Peacemaker‘s first three episodes are now streaming on HBO Max.
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