Episode Review: Peacemaker 2x5 - "Back to the Suture"

Welcome back to the blog readers. Over the last few weeks since Peacemaker (2022-) has deservedly been back on our screens, I have been shouting from the rooftops of how much I have loved (and continue to love) this show. Last week's episode proves that despite not having much of a story to advance, the ever-present charm of this show still exists (and for the better too). Now that we have reached the point that the critics have, would this episode, titled "Back to the Suture," written by James Gunn, and directed by Alethea Jones, be a worthy addition to the Peacemaker pantheon? Stick around to find out.

NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the episode.

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Like I mentioned in my introductory paragraph, last week's episode proves that this show does not need to have a batshit crazy story to be memorable in its own way. With this being the point that the critics got to, and with us being on the same page in terms of distance in the show, I was hoping for an episode that could make us all excited for what is to come in the final three episodes. This, without question, is the best episode of the season thus far. From the performances (especially from Frank Grillo and John Cena) to the batshit story (and it truly is batshit), this episode had it all. One of my favorites of the year by far.

I want to start by talking about the performance of Frank Grillo. Like I mentioned in my review of the second episode (in which I also praised Grillo's short-lived performance in that episode), I have been a fan of his ever since Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014). This show goes further than that second episode to prove to me why that is the case. And it has all to do with the fire that is lit underneath the performance. There is a fury and a rage that Grillo gets to showcase in this episode, and it actually puts Rick Flag Sr. in the crossfire as our main antagonist in this second season. Grillo is intimidating in his role now, and it is kind of the reason why I love this character so much. Sounds like he may take a backseat in these last three episodes, but I hope that is not the case so we can see more of this awesome character.

And finally, I want to talk about the performance of John Cena. This is far from the first time I have individually praised Cena's work as Christopher Smith / Peacemaker in this season, but the soon-to-be-retired wrestler is admittedly putting in the best work of his acting career thus far. That is absolutely the case in this episode, as he really brings it all to bear. From the emotional vulnerability that he displays throughout the episode to the depression he feels near the end of the episode, Cena is really putting up a case to be named the best wrestler-turned-actor (unless Dwayne Johnson's performance in the upcoming The Smashing Machine (2025) is as good as everyone says it is). His complex, emotional, and layered performance is going to win a lot of doubters over, just you watch.

So now we get into the batshit crazy story. It is batshit for a lot of reasons: one being it pays off a ridiculous story in even more ridiculous fashion, and second, because it packs such an emotional punch. We start with yet another flashback, this time of the funeral of Rick Flag Jr. after he was killed in Corto Maltese. Economos, Harcourt, and Flag Sr. attended as Flag makes himself known to Harcourt. He tells her that he is not being allowed to see the files of his son's death and that he loved her as a friend. She tells him that she is being transferred to Evergreen to deal with a "Project Butterfly," and despite not being able to tell him what happened to his son, she will bring Flag Jr.'s killer to justice. Flashing forward to the present day, Harcourt is waiting for Chris to come so A.R.G.U.S. can bring him in for having the dimensional door. Chris shows up at the park dodging people, despite Harcourt having warned him that this was a trap. He rips her microphone off and gets right to the point: asking her if there is anything between them at all, to which she vehemently denies. He then asks if there was something between her and Flag Jr., and she says that he killed her only friend as A.R.G.U.S. prepares to bring him in. He is able to fight off the other agents, but when Bordeaux is tasked with delivering the kill shot, she reveals some sort of technical modification to her eye, but Harcourt jumps in and knocks Chris out.

As Chris is brought in by A.R.G.U.S., Harcourt has a change of heart and has John Economos book Chris in the system, so that Flag will have his hands tied and be unable to kill him, which is exactly what Flag tries to do. He has Fleury and Bordeaux leave the room and turn the camera off as Chris tries to express regret over Flag Jr.'s death. Flag Sr. does not listen and proceeds to brutally beat a Chris that will not fight back. Flag has Chris dead to rights until Bordeaux informs him of what Economos (who had just been given a new one by her) did, forcing him to let Chris go. He has Judomaster follow Chris to see what he is up to as Leota Adebayo and Adrian Chase come pick him up. While this was happening, Economos was telling Harcourt about how Bordeaux was in a plane crash and lost half her brain, leading A.R.G.U.S. to replace it with a machine. She is told by Flag what his plan is: to use the fact that Harcourt will protect Chris and use the guise that he is solely intent on revenge to secure the technology in "defense of the American people." On the car ride back to his grandfather's cabin, he tells Adebayo (who previously found someone who saw her ad for her security company) and Chase that he is done with all of this because he believes Harcourt betrayed him to get her job back.

While all of this is happening, Red St. Wild, the eagle hunter A.R.G.U.S. is consulting with to kill Eagly, has followed Eagly back to the same cabin. He initially tries to kill the eagle by feeding him a poisoned rat that a hyena winds up eating and dying from. He then takes a comically-large shotgun and shoots an eagle down that he believes to be Eagly, but a second eagle swoops in and takes him down. Eagly lands on a branch and reveals he truly is the primal eagle Red St. Wild thought he was, and he commands the other eagles that have landed in as well to tear the eagle hunter to pieces, later bringing a finger to Chris as a prize. Back at the cabin, Chris writes a farewell note to the remainder of the 11th Street Kids because he plans on permanently moving to the other dimension. He does not know Judomaster has followed him to the cabin and the "munchkin" witnesses Chris begin to close the door behind him. He leaves a note saying he followed Chris and Eagly in the dimensional door.

Adebayo receives a text from Chris saying goodbye and her and Chase run back to the house to see the door closing. They take the control panel-looking thing to an apartment where they assemble Harcourt and Economos to read the note. In the note, Chris entrusted Adebayo to say goodbye to the rest of the gang for him and claimed there was no redemption in this dimension for his past grievances. He will go to the other dimension, be a brother to Keith, a son to Auggie, and work on things with Emilia. A.R.G.U.S. makes it to the cabin, but Flag is pissed that there is nothing there but Judomaster's note. Harcourt rallies the 11th Street Kids to figure out the panel and get Chris back as we see him flying with Keith, Auggie, and Eagly, defeating a kaiju, and embracing Emilia to end the episode.

I do want to talk quickly about the end of the Red St. Wild story for a minute. While this was a story that admittedly started out as a total gag from Economos, I appreciate how it wasn't really dragged out over four episodes, because how long do we really want to see someone comically fail to kill an eagle? And let's be honest, the twist that Eagly really is the primal eagle and Red St. Wild got his is absolutely ridiculous, but would you expect ANYTHING different from James Gunn? Be honest with me. The man who brought us Polka Dot Man would do something crazy like this and make it work. I think this story was ridiculous by design, and I think for the total one episode-long story, it works because this show is supposed to not be taken seriously. For heaven's sake, Tim Meadows has used the nicknames "Mexicali," "Ginger cool," and "Titties," and said the phrase "I have bird blindness" with a straight face.

Peacemaker gives out its best episode yet with the most ridiculous of comedy (and a primal eagle story) heartbreaking story, and solid action where it exists. Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.