DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn is making a big change for the Peacemaker Season 2 finale that is bound to please fans. As the TV-MA-rated superhero action-comedy makes the jump from the DCEU to the DCU, almost four years after the first, the reviews are as strong as ever. Superhero veteran Gunn took a slight step back this season due to his new role leading DC Studios, directing three episodes instead of five while still writing all eight. But that wasn't enough to stun Peacemaker Season 2, as it currently sits at a 96% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes, surpassing the highly acclaimed Season 1's 93% score.
While fans are loving the character-driven tale that delves into the psyche of John Cena's Christopher Smith, along with a twisted alternate DCU, Earth X, that's not to say there haven't been criticisms this season. Some have argued Peacemaker Season 2 lost what made the first so special, abandoning its hero vs. villain narrative focus for one that prioritizes character and comedy. Furthermore, as with many modern pop culture series, the DCU project received significant week-to-week backlash for its disappointing runtimes, dropping to just over 30 minutes.
Peacemaker Season 2's runtimes began strongly around 45 minutes, but disappointed fans around the middle, dropping as low as 33 minutes for the penultimate chapter. Fortunately, Gunn took to Threads to confirm that Episode 8, "Full Nelson," will raise the bar to "over 57 minutes" for the Season 2 finale.
The almost-one-hour-long finale will be Peacemaker's longest episode yet by around eight minutes, topping Season 2, Episode 1's previous record. This will leave the sophomore season totaling 334 minutes (5 hours, 34 minutes), with an average episode runtime of just under 42 minutes:
- S2 E1: 45 minutes
- S2 E2: 49 minutes
- S2 E3: 38 minutes
- S2 E4: 39 minutes
- S2 E5: 37 minutes
- S2 E6: 36 minutes
- S2 E7: 33 minutes
- S2 E8: 57 minutes (approx)
By contrast, Season 1 ran from a slightly longer 349 minutes (5 hours, 49 minutes), with the episode average runtime sitting just under 44 minutes:
- S1 E1: 47 minutes
- S1 E2: 41 minutes
- S1 E3: 40 minutes
- S1 E4: 47 minutes
- S1 E5: 43 minutes
- S1 E6: 47 minutes
- S1 E7: 39 minutes
- S1 E8: 45 minutes
As "Full Nelson" will run for almost an hour, Gunn will have plenty of time to not only close out Peacemaker Season 2's storyline, but also fulfill his promise to set up Man of Tomorrow, his next DCU movie, which will debut on July 9, 2027.
What Will Happen in Peacemaker Season 2's Big Finale?
Warning - The rest of this article contains spoilers for Peacemaker Season 2, Episode 7, "Like a Keith in the Night."
While Peacemaker and the 11th Street Kids have escaped Earth-X, they may not be done with that twisted Nazi dimension yet. For one, Keith Smith, aka Captain Triumph, looks placed to recover from his injuries and could go on a revenge mission, causing chaos for Peacemaker and the DCU.
Not only could Keith hunt down our Peacemaker for killing his brother and his role in his father's death, if he were to find himself in the main DCU, he could take some strong opposition to its progressive ideals, given his Nazi Earth origins.
There is also a dangling thread to resolve with the "will they, won't they" romance of Peacemaker and Jennifer Holland's Emilia Harcourt, as it is easy to see them going either way after the last two episodes.
Furthermore, Frank Grillo's Rick Flag Sr. is now in possession of a dimensional portal, and the promo indicates he will be sending ARGUS agents in to investigate what is behind its many doors. Harcourt noted they are looking for "resources [and] new ground for overpopulation," which could have implications for the DCU going forward, as these otherworldly resources may not be all good.
Flag Sr. also teased, "We're gonna find what we need in there, and everything we talked about is gonna come to fruition." This may tie back to whatever plans the ARGUS boss is hatching with Nicholas Hoult's Lex Luthor, who could make another cameo to set up Man of Tomorrow and the next big conflict.
Outside Man of Tomorrow, Gunn also looks to be setting up the 11th Street Kids' next adventure, as he hinted fans will "find out a little bit more" about what comes next for them in Episode 8, and that may not be in Peacemaker Season 3.
Interestingly, in that same comment to Deadline, he noted "some of these characters will continue," which may suggest fans will bid farewell to at least some of the gang, possibly through some heartbreaking deaths:
“You’re gonna find out more in Episode 8 because it’s not necessarily that. Some of these characters will continue, but also, it’s not exactly [Peacemaker Season 3]. I’m not ruling it out. You’ll see Episode 8, and maybe you’ll find out a little bit more.”
