Peacemaker’s Big Season 2 Alternate Universe Twist Is Clear After Episode 3 (Did You Spot It?)

Peacemaker Season 2 has been running a multiverse storyline that actually has a strong thematic core, as Christopher Smith/Peacemaker (John Cena) has been struggling with stumbling upon a new universe where his tragic life is traded for the life of a worldwide hero and major celebrity, who actually gets to live a happy life with his dad Auggie (Robert Patrick) and brother Keith (David Denman). Over the first two episodes of Season 2, it seemed odd that this “perfect” world was so perfect; however, by Episode 3, it’s all too clear what the twist is, and it’s almost embarrassing that it took us so long to spot it!

WARNING: Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 SPOILERS Follow!

In “Another Rick Up My Sleeve,” Chris goes back to the other universe to meet up with the alt-Harcourt (Jennifer Holland), only to find out she’s working at A.R.G.U.S. with Rick Flag Jr. (Joel Kinnaman) as her new boyfriend. Harcourt and Smith spend a lovely afternoon together, flirting with the possibility of rekindling their romance; that peace is interrupted when the “Sons of Liberty” terrorist group attacks a nearby government building and tries to detonate a bomb. Peacemaker leaps into action, saves the hostages, kills the terrorists, and defuses the bomb, earning him the heroic praise of the people and Harcourt, who notices a significant change in Smith.

Things move so fast in Peacemaker Episode 4 that most viewers may not slow down long enough to ask the question above. As the adage goes, ‘One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter,’ and that name, “Sons of Liberty,” is a pretty clear declaration as to what the group’s political stance is. So what is it that the “Sons of Liberty” group would even be battling against?

Peacemaker’s “Sons of Liberty” Are Fighting Against A Nazi World

James Gunn cleverly uses Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 to take us on a more expansive look at the alternate universe, while distracting us all from the obvious aesthetic difference that’s been right in front of our faces, all along: there are only white people walking around this world.

The biggest clues in Episode 3 are Peacemaker’s visit to the alt-universe A.R.G.U.S. and his impromptu date with Harcourt. Gunn cleverly uses the “A” and “B” storylines of the episode to show us two different versions of A.R.G.U.S. simultaneously: the main universe version, which is clearly diverse, with Tim Meadows’ Langston Fleury, Danielle Brooks’ Adebayo, and Sol Rodriguez’s Sasha Bordeaux all in the building. Meanwhile, the alt-universe A.R.G.U.S. office is distinctly all white. The same discrepancy can be seen during Peacemaker’s bike ride into A.R.G.U.S. HQ, and later in the town square, where he has his date with Harcourt: no black or brown people in sight.

Peacemaker Season 2’s Alternate Universe Twist Is Perfection

It makes so much sense once you see it: The Smith Family (Chris, Keith, and Auggie) are heralded as premier heroes of this universe because it’s a reality in which their combined strength helped Red (or rather “Blue”) Dragon achieve the goal of bending the world to his Arayan ideology. Moreover, it suggests that, like the main universe Peacemaker, the Chris Smith of that reality was in a deep place of self-loathing, given all the hints of the personal demons he was fighting (through substance abuse, etc).

While other franchises have turned multiversal stories into hollow fan-service indulgences, Gunn has used the device smartly, setting some intense stakes for the rest of Peacemaker Season 2:

1. The emotional hit of Chris learning that he and his family are still rotten in any world.
2. The psychological hit of Chris having to reconcile his attraction to a world his dad conquered, and what it says about him.
3. The physical and emotional hits to come from the inevitable falling out with Keith and Auggie over killing their version of Chris.
4. The existential hit of knowing his variant self died before ever getting himself or his life right, which could end up being the biggest motivator for main universe Chris to change.

Is This the DCU Earth-X?

DC Comics has established a history with a world where the Nazi regime and/or its propaganda became the new world order. “Earth-X” (or “Earth-10” if we’re going by DC multiversal numbering) is the world where the Allies lost WWII and the Nazi’s took over the world. In modern DC lore, that pivotal turning point hinged on “Overman,” a Superman variant who crashed on Earth and was raised by Hitler, and formed the JLAxis, with fascist variants of familiar heroes. Could we see something similar here? If David Corenswet has already played one “evil Superman” clone, why not a variant?

Earth-X has some deep lore behind it; no telling if Gunn is going to tap into all that, or just use its basic framework for this world Peacemaker has discovered. There’s always the rich potential that the cross-dimensional antics of Peacemaker Season 2 set up a later DCU event with Earth-X coming for revenge on the main universe. It worked for the Arrowverse; it could easily work here. It would also be James Gunn-brand humor to have the “Peacemaker” be the one who starts a cross-dimensional war (what a joke…).

Peacemaker Season 2 is streaming on HBO Max.

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