By skyforbes 
As season two wraps up, what can we expect from the future of the DC Universe?
James Gunn‘s latest ragtag group of misfits undergoes a wild ride throughout these eight episodes. But does the second half of the season live up to the hype?
In my last article for Trill Mag, I discussed the first half of ‘Peacemaker’ season two. I gave the first four episodes a solid 4/5 score, emphasizing that they were “consciously designed as buildup for a second half payoff”.
The first half of ‘Peacemaker’s sophomore season was much more of a personal look at Chris Smith than season one. It posed the question: Can such a broken man be able to forgive his past sins and move towards a happier future?
Episodes 1–4 featured everything from a new opening (to the tune of Foxy Shazam’s ‘Oh Lord’), a retcon of season one’s events, an exploration of the multiverse and parallel earths, to the introduction of new faces like Tim Meadows’ hilarious Langston Fleury.
For a deeper dive on these episodes, check out my midseason review article.
Episodes 5–8
(WARNING — Spoilers ahead)
Episode four left viewers on a cliffhanger, with A.R.G.U.S., at the behest of the vengeful Rick Flag Sr., executing a full-on invasion of Smith’s home. With the full disposal of A.R.G.U.S.’ agents at Flag’s command, plus martial artist extraordinaire Judomaster and the self-proclaimed best eagle hunter in the world, Red St. Wild, Peacemaker had no choice but to run.
True, the 11th Street kids did the best they could to aid Smith. Harcourt and Economos, even as A.R.G.U.S. operatives, acted behind Flag’s back to warn Smith of the General’s plans. Meanwhile, Vigilante and Adebayo spared no effort to aid Peacemaker’s and Eagly’s escape. But the reality is that our protagonist had all the odds stacked against him.
So, he ran. Both from his enemies and from himself. Under a selfless pretext, Smith chose to start a new life in the alternate dimension. But the truth is this decision couldn’t be any more selfish. We all know running from your problems never leads to anything good and this was no exception here.
Even before the bombastic reveal that Peacemaker’s perfect world was in fact a reality where the Nazis won WWII, fans had been speculating that season two’s seemingly innocent dance number hid a darker message. This even led to Fortnite banning the dance emote, with Epic Games saying they were “inquiring into our partner’s creative intentions in this collab emote”. It would be naïve to say the hand gestures were a mere coincidence. Gunn was obviously foreshadowing the Earth Xtwist from the very first episode.
So, with Smith trapped in a Nazi-ruled world, the 11th Street kids ran to his rescue. But it wasn’t easy. For starters, they were risking everything to bring Peacemaker back; their jobs, lives and even the strong possibility that they would be trapped in Earth X forever.
“To the 11th Street Kids. We came, we motherf*ckin’ rocked it. No matter how far away we are from each other, even our boy Economos, no one will ever break us apart.”
Chris Smith in episode two.
With Smith (and his alien technology) seemingly gone, Flag had to put all his cards on the table to bring him back. While Flag always justified his pursuit of Smith due to the possession of dangerous technology, it couldn’t be clearer that it was personal. The General wanted Chris to pay for killing his son.
So, he turned to an unlikely ally: Lex Luthor, who is imprisoned in Belle Reve after ‘Superman’s events. Lex Luthor offers Flag the technology to track Peacemaker (and the dimensional rift) down. Included in the bargain are all his lackeys: Otis, Happersen and all the Lex Corp. gang.
The controversial finale
Episode seven, titled “Like a Keith in the Night” (a play on words on Chris’ brother’s name), is arguably the best of the season. Fast-paced, eventful, and full of unexpected twists and turns, it’s everything fans have come to expect from a James Gunn production.
The 11th Street kids manage to return to their home dimension all in one piece, alongside Chris, who is more disheartened than ever. He has to relive the trauma of his dad and brother’s (near) death, which makes you question: How much is too much for a single man?
Losing a dad and a brother is trauma enough. Being responsible for each of their deaths could already be insurmountable. Now, Chris has to see each of them die again, once more being (at least partially) responsible for their deaths.
Back home, Chris is a resigned man. He turns himself into A.R.G.U.S.’s hands, half expecting to spend the rest of his days rotting in prison.
“I’m the angel of f*cking death.”
Chris Smith in episode eight.
As he declares, Chris feels like he ruins everything he touches. Incarcerated, he rejects the visits of his closest friends. That’s when the 11th Street kids have to make one final push to save one of their own.
Using Vigilante’s “blood money”, they post Peacemaker’s bail. Even then, Chris doesn’t want to see his friends, spiraling into a self-destructive depression. The 11th Street kids (and Harcourt especially) must remind him of all the good that he’s done. Not everything he touches goes wrong. Rather, Chris has impacted numerous lives more positively than he’s harmed. Chris is valued and, most of all, he is loved. At least by this ragtag group of goodhearted misfits.
The 11th Street kids, then, (alongside a few additions) unite to form their own intelligence agency: Checkmate. Not dictated by the wants and needs of governments, but by what is morally ethical and correct.
Ah, and Chris gets the happy ending he deserves.
Short-lived, true, as Flag practically immediately recaptures him and dispatches Smith to his “prison dimension”.
This might make you wonder: Why is the finale controversial at all? Isn’t all of this a neat and tidy conclusion, James Gunn-style? The issue is that many were expecting an epic, action-packed finale, filled with unexpected cameos. David Corenswet’s Superman, maybe? Perhaps even Milly Alcock’s Supergirl.
Superhero shows have led us to believe everything must be grand and bombastic. Which is why such a personal and heartfelt conclusion feels like a subversion of sorts.
You can’t say, though, that the finale is poorly written or incoherent. True, it’s not perfect by any means. Flag capturing Peacemaker yet again in the end feels too much like a convenient plot recourse. But it is also true that Gunn must set up season three and the future of the DC Universe at large.
Whether you enjoyed the finale or not, it is undeniable that it is deeply personal to Gunn. Art, in the end, is subjective, and I feel it is far better to watch something authorial and not like it than to view a generic, studio-mandated “crowdpleaser”.
Trill’s rating: 4/5 ⭐
With such a momentous season, fans are left wondering what Gunn has in store for the future of the DC Universe. Next year holds both the ‘Supergirl’ and ‘Clayface’ films, as well as the ‘Lanterns’ HBO Max show. Also in store is the ‘Man of Tomorrow’ sequel to ‘Superman’ in 2027.
“‘Man of Tomorrow’ was an idea I’ve had for a long time. I think I know the next few I’m directing, so I already know, frankly. Because it’s a part of the plan of the DCU, there is one big story.
On the one hand, I want everything to be okay to watch by itself. But also, there’s a bigger story being told that involves, say, Salvation and that story involves Rick Flag, it involves Lex and Superman. There’s those movies that I’m going to be directing.
That’s the plan right now, at least. I may get so f*cking tired that I can’t do it, because I’m pretty tired, but we’ll see. But there’s a plan that I’m going to do a couple more, at least.”
On that note, I’ll leave you with Foxy Shazam’s ‘Oh Lord’ performance from episode eight.
Learn more about ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Review: The 11th Street Kids Unite!