Then comes the gut punch. Peacemaker mentions that his brother (the deceased vigilante from The Suicide Squad ) is gone. White Dragon leans in and whispers: "You were always the wrong son."
White Dragon doesn’t ask about his son’s well-being. He berates him for "wearing a fanny pack" and questions his masculinity. Peacemaker, desperate for approval, tries to joke about his pet eagle, Eagly. His father’s response? A cold, silent stare that says, "You are a disappointment." Peacemaker - Season 1- Episode 2
But the real tension isn’t the bug in the jar. It’s the bug in Peacemaker’s ear: his newly appointed "partner," Clemson Murn (Chukwudi Iwuji). Murn, the ruthless team leader, makes it painfully clear that he doesn't trust Peacemaker for a second. He assigns him a "babysitter": the stoic, no-nonsense Leota Adebayo (Danielle Brooks). Then comes the gut punch
It’s here that the episode reveals its thesis: Peacemaker doesn't kill for justice; he kills because it’s the only language he speaks. When Adebayo screams at him for going rogue, his reply is chillingly simple: “They were bad guys.” He doesn’t understand why she’s upset. The violence isn't malice; it's reflex. While the action is visceral, the emotional core of the episode belongs to a quiet, devastating scene in a diner. After the mission, Peacemaker invites his father, the white supremacist supervillain White Dragon (Robert Patrick), for a cup of coffee. On paper, this is a mistake. In execution, it’s a masterclass in toxic family dynamics. He berates him for "wearing a fanny pack"
John Cena’s performance here is extraordinary. He doesn’t cry. He doesn’t shout. His face just... crumbles. He looks like a little boy who just realized he will never be loved. In that moment, the loud, vulgar killer disappears, replaced by a broken child who only knows how to destroy things because that’s all his father taught him. As the credits roll over a classic hair-metal needle drop (Warrant’s “Cherry Pie”), the show sneaks in a final, quiet twist. Back at the team’s hideout, Adebayo is alone. She opens a secret file on her phone. The text on the screen reads: “Project: Butterfly. Objective: Monitor Peacemaker. Source: Waller.”