“A Man is Only as Good as His Bird” follows the previous episode of Peacemaker season two with an exciting reminder of how human and brutal the show can be. The main plot of this episode picks up in Peacemaker’s inter-dimensional closet, where he must hide the body of his parallel-universe self. Similarly, Economos, Adebayo, and Harcourt deal with the consequences of the previous episode. Adebayo gets into an argument with her ex, and Harcourt miserably goes about her daily life. The plot line that shines brightest, however, is with Economos’ interactions with Fleury, an A.R.G.U.S. agent sent by the suspicious Rick Flag Sr. to keep an eye on Economos. The second half of the episode slows down, directing its attention to a rooftop party with Peacemaker and his friends, the 11th Street Kids, focusing on smaller comedic and dramatic character moments. Running parallel to this calm scene is the intense raid on Peacemaker’s house. Eagly, Peacemaker’s pet eagle, makes quick, brutal work of the A.R.G.U.S. agents. The cherry on top of the episode occurs when a drunk Peacemaker returns home and seeks solace in the alternate universe, with his heart set on the other universe’s Harcourt. 

If the first episode was an exciting, albeit safe, reminder of what Peacemaker’s first season was, “A Man is Only as Good as His Bird” is yet a shining example of how excellent the show can get. The standout scene of Peacemaker and Vigilante arguing and chopping up the other Peacemaker’s dead body flowed seamlessly between dark humor, small character moments (Vigilante’s jealousy over not getting invited to the sex party), and deliberate time spent on Peacemaker’s remorseful, existential psyche. Additionally, Agent Fleury was a refreshing standout in the episode. While he made an incredible impact in his first scene with Economos, noting his hilarious “bird blindness,” his snappy dialogue and off-putting corporate vocal tone continued into his later scenes. Notably, the climactic invasion of Peacemaker’s house effectively balanced the humor and brutality of Eagly’s decimation of the team while paying off an earlier joke about Fleury’s supposed “bird blindness.”  

Finally, the heartfelt character writing shone through in the rooftop party scene. Many of the early scenes, such as when Harcourt is confronted about her bruises by a stranger, are compelling enough to be engaging but play out fairly predictably. The rooftop party, however, allows the characters to breathe and interact as friends. Even when tensions rose, such as with Peacemaker and Harcourt, the interactions remained human, tender, and compelling. Overall, season two, episode two of Peacemaker, “A Man is Only as Good as His Bird,” began as a standard continuation of the previous episode, with the midpoint highlight being the body disposal. This episode truly shines in its second half, which not only highlights what makes Peacemaker entertainingly brutal and hilarious but also brilliantly displays the character dynamics that have always made the show so unique. 

Rating: 9/10