Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 Review: Chris Smith Explores New World in Best Episode of the Season

With Season 2, Episode 3, Peacemaker finally finds its groove. James Gunn balances sharp comedy, unapologetic brutality, and John Cena’s ever-reliable performance to deliver an installment that lives up to the high bar of the first season. After two solid but unspectacular episodes, the show feels back in top form.

Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 Overview

Gunn’s script and Greg Mottola’s direction drop Chris Smith into a startling new reality. It looks like the life he’s always wanted. In this world, Harcourt is openly interested; the public idolizes him, and his brother appears genuinely supportive. Still, Chris can’t outrun his past, facing a doppelganger of the man he killed: Rick Flag Jr. (Joel Kinnaman).

Back on Chris’s Earth, Harcourt, Adebayo, Chase, and Economos nurse hangovers after their rooftop bonding session. Their subplot sparkles with chemistry, especially in the sharp banter between Danielle Brooks and Jennifer Holland. Adrian’s obsession with spiders builds to Economos hilariously unloading unnecessary animal facts, easily the funniest gag of the season so far.

John Cena continues to prove why Peacemaker is his signature role. He balances humor and regret, portraying a man desperate for easy answers yet trapped by guilt. This episode also finally unleashes his physicality. A brutal one-man assault sequence stands as the season’s best action moment, rivaling Ballerina. David Denman impresses as Chris’s brother. Holland shines even brighter as the alternate Harcourt, her warmth and softer tone contrasting beautifully with her prime-universe counterpart.

The weak link lies in the ARGUS subplot. Acting under Rick Flag Sr.’s orders, Sasha Bordeaux (Sol Rodríguez) recruits eagle hunter Red St. Wild (Michael Rooker) to kill Eagly. Tim Meadows’s comedy works better here, but Rodríguez’s stiff delivery undercuts her authority in a role needing more weight.

Episode 3 is a significant step up. Gunn embraces heart, humor, and brutal action, delivering the season’s most complete episode yet.

Peacemaker is streaming on HBO Max.

A Whole New World in Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3

Just like his teammates back home, Chris wakes up hungover in the alternate universe. His brother Keith checks in, worried Chris might be abusing pills again, but relaxes when it’s only alcohol. Chris is eager to reconnect with Harcourt and heads out on the P-Cycle, greeted warmly by a public that adores him. That comfort vanishes when he’s greeted at ARGUS by Rick Flag Jr.—a ghost from his past who’s uncomfortably obsessed with Harcourt.

As Chris and Harcourt walk outside, we see the cracks in this universe’s version of their relationship. Here, Peacemaker constantly cheated on her, leaving Harcourt unsure of where she stood. Chris relates all too well, as he struggles to measure up to Harcourt’s expectations in his own world. Their talk is interrupted by an explosion in the park.

Without hesitation, Chris dives into the chaos without his suit. Harcourt is stunned by his initiative. What follows is a brutal one-man assault at the DMV, the first chance this season to see Peacemaker unleashed in combat. Chris is terrifyingly effective, improvising with office supplies and everyday objects to dismantle the attackers in a bloody, kinetic sequence.

Keith arrives just as Chris exits the wreckage, more worried than ever about his brother’s mysterious disappearances. Later, back at home, Keith voices his concern directly. But Chris’s time in this world is cut short, and he returns to his own reality, where an armed assault is about to begin outside his home.

Bonding over Spiders

Most of Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 unfolds in Chris’s strange new setting, but the episode opens with a surprising flashback. We see Harcourt in bed with Rick Flag Jr., suggesting a discreet fling before his Corto Maltese mission in The Suicide Squad. It’s a confusing start, but it reframes Harcourt’s hesitation with Chris. Even if her feelings for Flag were casual, Chris’s role in Flag’s death casts a shadow over any romance between them.

Back in the present, Adebayo wakes up hungover and marvels at Harcourt’s ability to function after their rooftop binge. She asks if anything happened with Chris, but Harcourt quickly denies it. Adrian chimes in with misguided confidence, insisting he’d know since Chris tells him everything—before veering into a bizarre monologue about spiders. He eventually checks on Economos, who’s equally wrecked by the night before.

Outside, Adebayo gently pushes Harcourt to open up. Harcourt resists, but her response to Adebayo’s prodding highlights the slow-building trust between the two women. Their dynamic adds warmth, grounding the episode’s heavier moments.

Meanwhile, ARGUS prepares its next move under Rick Flag Sr.’s orders. Sasha Bordeaux recruits eagle hunter Red St. Wild to target Eagly, while Meadows agonizes over Economos ridiculing his bird-blindness. The looming threat keeps tension simmering, reminding us Chris’s world is far from safe.

The balance of absurd comedy, heartfelt character work and looming danger makes this subplot one of the episode’s most engaging threads.

Peacemaker Season 2 Episode 3 Final Thoughts

Episode 3 proves that Peacemaker works best when it leans into contrasts. Absurdity collides with raw violence and heartfelt vulnerability runs alongside razor-sharp satire. Gunn and Mottola balance these tones with confidence.

The character pairings elevate the episode. Adebayo and Harcourt’s growing friendship is layered with humor and honesty, offering moments of warmth. On the other side, Rick Flag Jr.’s presence twists the knife in Chris’s guilt, grounding the otherwise surreal world with an emotional punch. Even the ARGUS subplot, though uneven, provides stakes that keep the narrative moving forward, hinting at larger conflicts just over the horizon.

This episode makes clear that Cena’s Peacemaker isn’t a one-note caricature. He’s a man whose bravado hides deep insecurity, someone capable of both slapstick idiocy and startling brutality. Watching him improvise carnage with office supplies is both funny and gruesome, exactly the tonal tightrope this show thrives on.

If the first two episodes felt like a warm-up, Episode 3 is the moment season 2 finally hits its stride. With humor, heart and hard-hitting action firing together, Peacemaker Season 2 now feels like it’s ready to live up to the first season.