Peacemaker season 2, episode 3 is now streaming on HBO Max, and, as we expected after the title reveal, "Another Rick Up My Sleeve" features the DCU debut of a character we haven't seen since The Suicide Squad.
Major spoilers ahead.
Yes, the "jarhead" Chris' brother Keith referred to in the season premiere was indeed Rick Flag Jr. (Joel Kinnaman)... or at least, a far less confident and capable "variant" of the character. We also learn that Emilia Harcourt was sleeping with Flag prior to him leaving on his fateful mission to Corto Maltese.
During a flashback, we find out that a character from David Ayer's Suicide Squad that didn't appear in Gunn's requel - June Moon, aka The Enchantress - is now DCU canon (though whether we'll ever hear of her again remains to be seen).
“Joel and I are good friends, so I asked him to do me a favor, but I also wanted to give him an opportunity to do something that’s purely comedic, because he’s a really funny guy,” Gunn tells TV Insider. “He’s never been in a comedy his entire life, so being able to show him doing this sort of namby-pamby version of Rick Flag Jr. … every time I watch those scenes, I laugh out loud.”
Gunn discussed also discussed the episode's DCEU nods in the latest episode of The Peacemaker Podcast.
We also have a preview of next week's episode, which will see Rick Flag Sr. and A.R.G.U.S. close in on Peacemaker, who has another pint-sized problem to deal with in the form of Judomaster.
Critics were only provided with the first five episodes for review purposes, and Gunn recently explained why.
"I am the one who's keeping the three episodes away from everybody because there are too many surprises in those last three episodes," he revealed. "Especially 6 and 8, they are just crazy, my favourite things I've ever done of anything."
Will David Corenswet's Superman make a cameo? That's the prevailing theory, but there's a chance Gunn will take the opportunity to reintroduce some characters from The Suicide Squad.
"The new season follows Christopher 'Chris' Smith, aka Peacemaker, the vigilante Super Hero as he struggles to reconcile his past with his newfound sense of purpose while continuing to kick righteous evil-doer butt in his misguided quest for peace at any cost.
In season 2, Peacemaker discovers an alternate world where life is everything he wishes it could be. But this discovery also forces him to face his traumatic past and take the future into his own hands.”