John Economos

: "Don't fuck with John Economos, Motherfucker."
: ―John Economos to Judomaster[src]
John Economos is a snarky but well-meaning member of A.R.G.U.S., and an aide to Amanda Waller. Economos was part of mission control support for Task Force X during the mission in Corto Maltese, after he and his team disobeyed Waller to help the squad in defeating Starro. As revenge, Waller placed Economos and Emilia Harcourt on Clemson Murn's team and put them in charge of bringing in Peacemaker on a mission to save the world by going from the threat of Butterflies.
Recruiting Smith, Economos began to have a rivalry with him who started making fun of his dyed beard, just as Economos caused the arrest of Smith's father. During the attack on Royland Goff, Economos managed to stop Judomaster and take him with the team to guard it, when the team went on a massacre operation to investigate the butterflies, where Economos killed a gorilla saving the team and beginning to forge a friendship with Christopher Smith and the rest of the team. Economos later continued to research butterflies and helped Peacemaker stop the Aryan Empire during a manhunt. Having reunited with the team after the Butterfly invasion spread, the team turned their efforts to killing the cow.
== Biography ==
=== Early life ===
==== Childhood ====
: "I saw them in Finland when I was 14, when I studied abroad. Got this right after."
: ―John Economos to Peacemaker[src]
John Economos was born in 1967. During his childhood, John read the Berenstain Bears books, believing that they were spelled "Berenstein Bears". Growing up, Economos traveled to Finland to study as he started to love listening to rock music, in 1981 at the age of 14, Economos attended a Hanoi Rocks concert and became a fan of them, even getting a tattoo in honor of their song 11th Street Kids shortly after. At some point, John finished studying in Finland and returned to the United States of America, nonetheless he has never had a girlfriend in his entire life.
==== Working in A.R.G.U.S. ====
At some point in his life Economos became a member of A.R.G.U.S.. He became a member of the ground crew of Task Force X, and was tasked with helping coordinate missions and control dangerous criminals like Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, King Shark, Savant, and more.
=== Mission in Corto Maltese ===
==== Recruiting Task Force X ====
: "She's gonna kill his kid?"
: ―John Economos to Harcourt and Crawley[src]
John accompanied Amanda Waller along with Emilia Harcourt and Flo Crawley to recruit Bloodsport for Task Force X. John was scared because Waller threatened Bloodsport with his daughter. After this, John and the team finished recruiting the members by forming two teams to go to two different parts of the island of Corto Maltese. Three days later, the first strike team would be sent to the shores of Corto Maltese, so Economos, Emilia, Flo and other workers made bets on who survives and who dies.
==== Battle on the Corto Maltese Beach ====
While they were betting, Waller would arrive to interrupt them by ordering them to get into position since the squad had reached the Corto Maltese beach. John and the team quickly positioned and they watched as the squad arrived, but the operation quickly hit a snag when Weasel started to drown. Rick Flag angrily asked whether anyone had bothered to check if Weasel could swim. In response Waller silently turned her eyes to John, which seemed to fill John with fear and anxiety, indicating that it had been his mistake that allowed the oversight to happen. As the minutes ticked by, team one was quickly killed and Economos became angry because he had a bet on Weasel. After the battle ended with Harley Quinn and Rick Flag as only survivors and the second strike team arriving at the island, Economos started to count the bills he had and handed the bet money to Crawley and Harcourt.
==== Losing communication ====
: "Hey, all that stuff about his kid... you wouldn't really do that, right?"
: "You don't know half of what I would do, John."
: —John Economos and Amanda Waller[src]
John scoffed when it was revealed that Bloodsport was afraid of rats and quickly revealed that he found the location of Colonel Rick Flag. Later, John and the others lost communication with team two and he was still concerned that Waller was threatening Bloodsport's daughter. Waller would then threaten DuBois not to receive surprises during the connection failure, since they could still activate the Nano-bombs and murder his daughter. Economos would then take the opportunity to ask Waller if the threats were serious, for which Waller replied that she was very capable.
==== Battle of Valle Del Mar ====
: "Oh my God! What the fuck did you do!?"
: "All those people, John... Little kids..."
: —John Economos and Flo Crawley[src]
John and the team watched Starro break free at Corto Maltese surprising him thinking it was a kaiju, however Waller didn't want to do anything about it due her sole objective was to destroy the records linking the United States to Project Starfish, Bloodsport would decide to disobey Waller by going to fight against Starro, so that then the rest of the members would follow in his footsteps, so Waller would explode their nano-bombs, however on an impulse from Flo Crawley, she would knock out Waller, initially Economos was surprised by Crawley's actions, Crawley would stress to him the importance of saving the people of Corto Maltese.
Instantly after Economos and the entire team betrayed Waller, they helped team two to deal with the threat. Economos would then analyze the streets in his system and tell the squad that the best alternative to fight Starro was Calle Aguero. The squad then managed to assassinate Starro, a few hours later when Amanda Waller woke up from the blow, Economos and the rest of his teammates felt uncomfortable disobeying Waller.
=== Project Butterfly ===
==== Visiting Peacemaker ====
: "You realize this is revenge, right? Waller knows we double crossed her and she's getting back at us by saddling us with this Douchebag.""Yep."
: ―John Economos and Emilia Harcourt[src]
Later after the battle against Starro, John and Emilia Harcourt went to the Mount Rouge Health Center on Waller's vengeful orders to recruit Peacemaker on a mission to save the world, although John was upset about working with him. Upon arrival the hospital, they were treated by Dr. Alandy who took them to see Smith's stretcher, and they reviewed his condition while being in a coma. Soon after, Economos dyed his beard to try to win over girls and look younger.
==== Recruiting Christopher Smith ====
: "Enjoy my food, Dye-Beard.""It's not dyed.""Oh, yeah, sure.""Hard edge of two-tone gray and Magic Marker brown, that's natural."
: ―Peacemaker and John Economos[src]
When Christopher Smith was released from Mount Rouge Health Center, a nurse quickly notified Clemson Murn, who contacted Economos, Emilia Harcourt and newly recruited Leota Adebayo to inform them of what had happened. The team then proceeded to the trailer Smith was living in, when Harcourt ambushed him pointing a gun at him, Economos and Adebayo did the same to prevent him from escaping.
As Murn entered the trailer to introduce himself to Smith, Economos followed him into the room grabbing some raisins from his freezer, until Smith interrupted him by mentioning that the raisins had been years out of date while making fun of his dyed-on beard, forcing Economos to spit them out. Economos then overheard Murn explaining the mission to Smith, and the team proceeded to leave after the talk, agreeing to meet at Fennel Fields that evening, but before leaving, Economos told Smith that his beard was not dyed.
The group later headed to the abandoned Henenlotter Video store to set up as their facility for the mission, but hearing the noise from the pipes, Economos complained about the hideout, questioning if they were going to listen to the pipes all day. While talking with Leota Adebayo, Economos, and Harcourt explained how Amanda Waller got revenge on them by sending them on the mission after helping Task Force X during the Battle of Valle del Mar. As they settled in, an upset Economos continued to criticize to the store as the worst den they have ever had.
==== Dinner at Fennel Fields ====
: "Maybe I'm stupid, but why would you even wanna wear that on a mission? A bright red shirt and white pants aren't exactly conducive to lurking in the shadows.""People see this uniform, it strikes fear in their hearts."
: ―John Economos and Peacemaker[src]
Upon returning to his residence, Economos found many pigeons defecating inside for having left the window open. At night, the team met at Fennel Fields to wait for Smih while Economos recounted his experience with pigeons. When Christopher Smith arrived in his suit, the team saw it and Economos taunted him that the suit was not useful for the mission due to its color, letting Smith know as he sat down. Upon learning that Smith's pet eagle is named Eagly, Economos and Harcourt scoffed at it as an unoriginal name.
When Smith called a waitress a sweetcheecks, Economos got into an argument with him considering it derogatory, only to see a waiter greet Smith as an idol. While they ate, Economos complained about Smith for wearing his helmet when he ate, which did not allow him to chew properly, advising him to take it off so he wouldn't get dirty, but Smith refused and called him "Dye-Beard" again, something that annoyed Smith. Economos while stating that his beard was a natural color, so that Murn finally interrupted them so he could finish eating and proceed to leave.
==== Incriminating Auggie Smith ====
: "We're trying to get this man on our side, and you thought the right way to do that was to frame his father?""I don't want to be insubordinate, but I kinda did some magical shit here today, and now I feel like you're angry at me."
: ―Clemson Murn and John Economos[src]
After Smith was involved on an incident at the Wild Estates Apartment Complex, he was ordered by Murn to framed someone else for the crime as they didn't want the Evergreen Police Department on their back, in a moment of panic, Economos framed Peacemaker's father August Smith by swapping their fingerprints. When Economos told Murn who he framed, he scolded him, causing an argument, with Economos asking Murn not to insult him, in that, Smith, Adebayo, and Harcourt arrived, so Murn asked him not to tell Smith anything, when Adebayo emotionally asked him if he was ever shot, he said no.
==== Discussion with the team ====
: "You saying I'm fake news?""No, I'm saying you're a fսckin' asshоlе. I'd rather be with Harley Quinn than you, I'd rather be with the Weasel than you.""The only thing fake news around here is the beard.""I'd rather be with fսckin' Bat-Mite than you."
: ―Peacemaker and John Economos[src]
Economos was in charge of stitching up Peacemaker's wounds after his confrontation with Annie Sturphausen, however he was taunted by Smith. As Smith complained about not knowing what the butterflies were, Economos refused to talk to him about it, causing Smith to get upset and re-nickname him "Dye-Beard", angering Economos who exclaimed that he would rather work with Weasel, Harley Quinn, or Bat-Mite instead of him, but since Smith didn't know Bat-Mite, Economos told him who he was.
Economos and the team then began to suspect that someone was informing the Butterflies about the operation due to Sturphausen's attack on Peacemaker, when Smith continued to pester Economos, he asked him to stop nicknaming him, becoming even angrier when Smith began to harass him making up stories about him, which the team believed and he had to deny. The team then discovered that Smith accidentally let Sturphausen see Royland Goff's file, and when Smith thought his crotch was alien, Economos angrily told him no and that he was just a jerk.
==== Attack on Royland Goff ====
: "So, uh... they say you've done, like, some real hardcore shit.""I'm trying to do what I can to make up for my past."
: ―John Economos and Clemson Murn[src]
The next day, Economos and the team were preparing for the mission to kill Royland Goff while equipping the weaponry, talking about the size of the butterflies, when Economos went to look for the spaceship found by Peacemaker, John pointed the middle finger at Smith after he called him "Dye-Beard" again. When Economos returned, he recognized Vigilante when he saw him in the distance, and the team then left for the mission.
Economos was in charge of driving during the trip, while Murn and Adebayo explained the mission to Peacemaker, Leota Adebayo accidentally showed a photo of her wife's vagina from WhatsApp, causing Economos, Harcourt and Smith to laugh as Adebayo desperate to get it out, and Economos then explained that she had to configure the application to avoid it. Finally when the team arrived, Economos was ordered by Murn to help him plant security cameras to spy on Royland Goff and his family.
Economos helped Clemson Murn by giving him the screws to plant the cameras, where he took the opportunity to ask him if the statements made to him about his past as a mercenary were true, to which Murn replied that he was trying to remedy the actions of the past that he regretted. When Economos questioned Murn about his emotions, Clemson Murn was annoyed, explaining that he didn't feel anything, which surprised Economos, and then returned to the team when they finished with the cameras.
Economos along with Murn and Adebayo waited until the evening for the Goffs' arrival while Emilia Harcourt and Peacemaker remained in position to fire when they arrived. While they waited, Economos suggested dubbing the Goffs the "Berenstein Bears", causing Leota Adebayo to correct him as being the Berenstain Bears, until the conversation was interrupted by Murn. Later, Adebayo sent a picture of the Berenstain Bears to Economos so he could see the correct spelling, even though Economos believed it was fake.
While they waited on the truck, Economos and the team realized that Vigilante had followed them, with Economos acknowledging him again. Finally, when the Goffs arrived, the team heard Vigilante shoot to kill the Goff family until only Royland Goff was left, however they heard how Judomaster attacked them. Seeing how Murn and Adebayo prepared to help their companions, Economos asked Murn what he should do, with Murn telling John that he had to watch the front gate and not let anyone leave as it could compromise their operation.
==== Capturing Judomaster ====
: "Economos, motherfucker. Yeah. Kiai!"
: ―John Economos to Judomaster[src]
While the rest of the team tried to rescue Peacemaker and Vigilante after they were captured by Goff, Economos watched Judomaster try to leave the scenery, which made him really desperate. John then used the truck to crash into Judomaster's car in order to knock him out, unfortunately, Judomaster was still alive and crawling from the wreckage which forced Economos to hit him with a crowbar multiple times until he was finally knocked out.
As Judomaster had been left weakened on the ground, Economos began to celebrate his victory by posing in front of him and threatening Judomaster for messing with him, then Economos began to dance in front of him with great happiness for having defeated him. Later, when the team managed to meet again, they tied up Judomaster and put him in the van to escape, where Economos drove again. During the trip, Economos spoke to Vigilante after he lost a pinkie to Royland Goff, where Economos tried to comfort him by telling him that he couldn't walk wrong if he lost his pinky.
==== Attacked by Judomaster ====
: "Oh, my God! We are so incredibly fսckеd! Like, next level fսckеd, okay? I checked the restraints, they were tight. I don't know how the fսck he got loose."
: ―John Economos to Leota Adebayo[src]
John and the group returned to their headquarters at Henenlotter Video for him to keep Judomaster tied up and prevent him from escaping, so they could extract information from him later. Economos talked to Leota Adebayo about Judomaster and explained that they couldn't take him to a hospital because he would tell everything because they only had secret operations.
Some time later, Economos checked on Judomaster again, but realized that he escaped, while he called Adebayo to inform her of the escape, John was attacked by Judomaster. Wounded, Economos was found by Adebayo and Peacemaker, whom he told that Judomaster had gone out the window. Following Judomaster's second defeat, Economos took the villain to chain him up again and keep him alive.
==== Arrest of Adrian Chase ====
: "I'm gonna believe she mentally manipulated the pet eagle into killing his father?""You're gullible! I call in sick all the time, and I'm lying!"
: ―Emilia Harcourt and John Economos[src]
When Murn found out that Vigilante entered the Evergreen Corrections Center to try to kill Auggie Smith, he scolded Economos, Harcourt and Adebayo, comparing them to The Three Stooges, a reference that Economos understood as fools who always succeeded, being scolded by Murn for not taking the situation seriously. While Murn was upset about how Adebayo sent Vigilante, referring to him as Peacemaker's best friend, Economos tried to correct him by saying that Smith's best friend was Eagly.
The correction caused them to argue, since no one would believe that Adebayo would manipulate Eagly to kill Auggie Smith, until Murn stopped them in anger, asking Economos to release Vigilante from prison. While investigating, the team discovered that Smith was the trained assassin known as the White Dragon and seeing that he could kill Vigilante, Economos took it upon himself to hack into the Evergreen Police Department's files to free Vigilante, discovering that he was Adrian Chase, the waiter from Fennel Fields.
==== Discovering the truth ====
: "Does Economos know?""He knows. But he sticks his fingers in his ears every time it comes up. He doesn't want Waller knowing he's keeping something from her."
: ―Leota Adebayo and Emilia Harcourt[src]
At some point, Economos found out about Murn's real identity as a butterfly named Ik Nobe Llok who wanted to help stop his own race, along with the revelation that there was a giant cow that created the amber fluid for the Butterflies, but choose to ignore it as he didn't wanted to get into trouble with Amanda Waller for keeping the secret, and decided to cover his ears whenever the secret was discussed.
==== Glan Tai Bottling Plant massacre ====
: "Dude, I didn't mean to put your father in prison.""Then why'd you put him there, you fat fսck?""Because I couldn't think of anybody else."
: ―John Economos and Peacemaker[src]
Economos spent an entire evening creating a presentation on the Butterflies that was used the next day by Murn. During the presentation, the team learned about the location of the amber liquid the Butterflies ate, the Glan Tai Bottling Company, which they had to investigate to find out about the food. Economos was made fun of by Smith for the presentation, and John tried to apologize to Smith for having his father sent to the correctional facility, leading to Economos and Smith arguing.
Smith mentioning multiple celebrities and fictional characters that Economos may have sent instead of Auggie Smith, and Economos confusedly agreed, but saying he would never put Ariana Grande in prison for looking too innocent, something Smith concurred with. However, the discussion was interrupted by Murn, who ordered the team to travel to Glan Tai and find out how to destroy the food. As he was leaving, Economos saw Smith holding up a sign insulting him, so Economos pointed out his misspelling, and corrected Adrian Chase with the Fargo's schedule before leaving.
During the trip to Glan Tai, Economos took the opportunity to rest while Harcourt drove, becoming annoyed when Smith called him "Dye-Beard" again while Leota Adebayo tried to convince Smith to be friendlier, so Economos angrily accepted Smith's apology. When Smith was trying to choose a song, Economos suggested playing one by Hanoi Rocks, surprising Smith to discover that they had the same common musical taste. Economos revealed to Smith his tattoo of the title song 11th Street Kids, mentioning how he became a fan of the band as a child, and Peacemaker proceeded to play the song.
When the team arrived at Glan Tai, they were preparing to check the factory as Economos positioned himself to monitor the cameras to make sure nothing came out, hearing as Vigilante complained about not being alowed to bring a chainsaw to the operation. With the team inside, Economos contacted Harcourt to which she revealed that the plant was full of Butterflies upon discovering the production of amber fluid, for his colleagues to later confront the infected workers, but seeing an explosion at the site, he lost communication with his teammates, beginning to worry.
In desperation, Economos finally got up the courage and decided to enter the plant, taking Vigilante's chainsaw to defend himself, when Economos entered the room where his teammates were facing a gorilla named Charlie, who was infected by the butterflies, Economos then saw that Charlie was about to kill Smith, for which Economos killed the gorilla, saving Peacemaker while giving him his hand to get up, earning his respect, and the two finally became friends.
==== Making new friends ====
: "Technically, I think it was a super-gorilla, since we pulled a butterfly out of its brain.""No, definitely a super-gorilla."
: ―John Economos and Peacemaker[src]
On the return trip, Economos and the team began to have fun for the first time, where Economos and Smith sang 11th Street Kids while Adebayo and Chase celebrated, while the team had a good time, they talked about how Economos used the chainsaw and Emilia Harcourt took the opportunity to take a team photo finally being friends.
After reaching the base, the team continued to celebrate, telling Murn about the success of the mission, where they mentioned how Economos killed a gorilla, so Murn let them take a break. As they left the Henenlotter Video, Economos was congratulated again by Smith being happy for him. Economos later went home to rest, where he learned that Harcourt put him in a new group called the 11th Street Kids and Economos was happy to see the picture of him having fun with his new friends.
==== Locating the Coverdale Ranch ====
: "Butterflies burrow. You saw it below the Goff residence.""And at Glan Tai, where I kicked that gorilla's ass and saved all your lives.""You are really stretching out your 15 minutes."
: ―Clemson Murn, John Economos and Emilia Harcourt[src]
During the morning, Economos went to buy a drink and then went to work at Henenlotter Video, but upon entering Harcourt told him that Leota Adebayo discovered Clemson Murn's secret, Economos covered his ears, evading Adebayo's questions, going to his work room. Later, when the team learned that Peacemaker was being chased by the Evergreen Police Department, they tried to contact him to help him escape.
While watching the Glan Tai Bottling Company's security videos, Economos overheard the conversation between Smith and Murn, so upon finding evidence Economos interrupted them to show them how the trucks of amber fluid were being transported, while continuing to brag about his victory against Charlie, annoying Harcourt. Realizing that the trucks were arriving at Coverdale Ranch, where the Cow was located, the team refused to tell Smith about the Cow, teasing him for keeping quiet, but they left when Murn asked them to prepare to confront the Cow the next day.
==== Incrimination of Peacemaker ====
: "Do I look like the type of guy to stay up all night collaging Jupiters and aliens and shit to put on the front of my fսcking diary?""On first impressions, I'd have said, "No". But after getting to know you a little bit, I gotta admit, it's definitely something I can see you doing."
: ―Peacemaker and John Economos[src]
That night, Economos saw on the news the Evergreen Police Department framing Smith for all the events during the mission, using his diary about alien conspiracies, ordering all the officers to capture them. The next day, Economos asked Smith if he had a diary, which he again denied, and Economos believed him, when asked by Smith if he seemed like the type of person who would stay up late doing a conspiracy journal, Economos replied that he would have said no at first, but upon getting to know him better he confessed that it would be something he would do, something Smith agreed with.
Economos overheard Adrian Chase talk about drawing a picture of the three of them having sex with girls in front of dolphins, something Economos turned down because he didn't want a dolphin to see him do that. Economos then heard Smith's idea to go kill the Cow, before being found, receiving Chase's help and asked Economos for help, but he refused out of fear until he saw that Eagly was also going, so Economos agreed, driving the truck toward the ranch.
==== Manhunt of Peacemaker ====
: "Aren't you guys being a little nonchalant about all this?""Economos, are you insinuating there is a wrong time and a right time to rock?"
: ―John Economos and Peacemaker[src]
During the trip, Economos drove the van to Coverdale Ranch while he was overhearing Smith and Chase having fun with the song In My Dreams from Wig Wam, complaining about their friends' lack of professionalism for rocking in a moment of high tension and Smith claiming that there wasn't a wrong time to rock, frustrating Economos until they were shocked by something, discovering that it was of August as the White Dragon and the Aryan Empire to try to kill Smith.
Economos tried to protect Smith, but Vigilante sacrificed himself for his friends, so Economos, Peacemaker, and Eagly escaped before the Aryans found them. Fleeing through the woods, Economos and Smith managed to get far enough away, with Economos asking how Auggie had found them, and Smith was angered to figuring out that the Aryan Empire found them by his helmet, removing his helmet and letting Economos know how they were found
Economos and Smith devised a plan for the Aryans to follow a false lead, tying his helmet up with a raccoon to buy time to escape. When carrying out the trap, Economos admitted to Smith about how his old thought was when he saw how a man took a raccoon, to later see Eagly arrive, and together they took advantage of escaping when the Aryan Empire fell into the trap, heading towards a car, where they found that Chase had survived by sleeping in one of the Aryans' cars, with Economos and Smith asking him to open the door to escape.
When Vigilante woke up, Economos got in the car and was poked on the butt by Eagly, asking Smith to control his eagle, however, Economos continued to be pestered by Eagly. As they tried to escape, Economos explained to Chase that they were found by Smith's helmets, discovering that Chase accidentally brought all the helmets. As Eagly got out of the vehicle, Economos was told by Smith to return the eagle to the vehicle, feeling unsafe to do so, with Smith explaining him that Eagly liked potatoes, getting frustrated for having to search for a bag.
When Economos found one, he tried to get Eagly's attention, but he saw from afar how Smith was chased by the Aryans, forcing Economos to secretly flee, going to Vigilante to tell him about the Aryans, though he noticed that Chase was urinating with his pants down, so the team then planned to attack Auggie in his weak spot while he was killing the Aryans. Seeing Vigilante and Peacemaker being held by the Aryans, Economos arrived with an FN P90, killing all the Aryans and saving his friends, allowing Peacemaker to get revenge of his father.
Economos and Chase watched Smith be insulted by Auggie until Smith finally decided to kill him and then began to cry, as Chase was thinking he was doing exercises to muscle his face, Economos angrily corrected him to telling him that Smith was crying, so Chase tried to comfort his friend in a weird way, which missed Economos, who asked him to stop doing that, convincing Chase, leaving Smith to grieve over his lost.
==== Preparing for the battle ====
: "There's no wrong time to rock."
: ―John Economos to Emilia Harcourt[src]
After Eagly was beaten by Auggie in battle, Economos, Smith, and Chase took the bird to the Paws A Moment Veterinary Clinic, where Dr. Hurwitz kindly took care of Eagly, until Chase wanted to kill the medics, causing Economos to urgently call Emilia Harcourt to attend to the place. When Harcourt and Adebayo arrived, Economos told them the situation about how Chase wanted to kill the doctors, revealing to the nurses that Chase was a waiter, escalating the situation, but Harcourt convinced Chase not to kill them, stating that they would just tie up, Economos was later surprised to learn that Chase was nice to duct tape, but not to murder.
When Smith returned with the team after Eagly's survival, Economos asked how they would finish the mission without Ik Nobe Llok after learning that he died, so that Adebayo already hinted at having a leader, leaving Economos wondering that he would be the new leader, but Adebayo denied it, pointing Harcourt as leader, something that everyone accepted. Economos and the others then overheard Harcourt talking about how the Butterflies were planning to teleport the Cow to another base, so they would have to stop them at Coverdale Ranch, before it was too late.
Chase compared a hypothetical victory as to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, so Economos told him that the protagonists died at the end, leading the two to debate whether they had actually survived, considering Chase optimistic for believing that they survived. Prepared for the battle, Economos acepted to complete the mission, denying Hurwitz and his nurses to accompany them because they could die. Ready to stop the threat, Economos and the 11th Street Kids headed to a veterinary van being driven again by him, and began their journey to Coverdale Ranch while listening to music, telling Smith's advice to Harcourt, claiming that there was never a bad time to rock.
==== Infiltration at Coverdale Ranch ====
: "John, you can do this. Just act like they act.""Fuck, fine."
: ―Leota Adebayo and John Economos[src]
Arriving at Coverdale Ranch, Economos discovered that Leota Adebayo was the daughter of Amanda Waller, asking Peacemaker if he could believe that discovery, affirming it being upset with Adebayo for framing him because of the fake diary. As they walked through the woods, Economos asked Adebayo about her last name if she was Waller's daughter, discovering that it was due to the last name of her wife, Keeya Adebayo. The team set up in an area to spy on the butterflies, where Economos overheard Smith talking to Adebayo about his helmet capabilities.
Economos talked to Smith about the anti-gravity helmet, planning to use it to lift the Cow out of Coverdale Ranch, but Adebayo accidentally activated it, making it float and thwarting the plan. When Smith was arguing with Adebayo, Economos overheard Vigilante asking Smith to call out when he spoke sarcastically, using Economos' overweight as an example, being warned by Chase of his concern for him, which Economos wryly appreciated. The team changed their plan and decided to wear the sonic boom helmet, while Economos argued with Smith about the rumor of Green Arrow going to conventions, as well as Aquaman having sex with fish.
The 11th Street Kids finally decided to use Eagly to take the helmet to Coverdale Ranch and activate it from a distance, after Smith finished giving the eagle instructions, Economos and his teammates watched as Eagly flew carrying the helmet towards the barn, exciting everyone to finally complete the mission, but Eagly ended up throwing the helmet in the woods, frustrating everyone, while they received the order from Emilia Harcourt to go retrieve the helmet.
Economos and Chase searched for the helmet together, where Vigilante took the opportunity to talk about how he saw forest animals like squirrels and ants, which Economos didn't care about, but Chase considered ants more important than fish in the life cycle, leading them to discuss how many ants and fish existed. Chase explained that he was aware that there were more ants, even though they were not in the same place at the same time, confusing Economos, who did not understand anything about the conversation.
As night fell, Economos was ordered by Emilia Harcourt to infiltrate the barn and install the sonic boom helmet so Leota Adebayo can blast the Cow with a radio after Peacemaker managed to kill Johnson by using his clothes to pretend to be one of the butterflies. Economos initially rejected the idea, asking why the pants were wet, discovering that Smith washed them because there was a diarrhea stain after someone died, but was convinced by Adebayo to go undercover, asking the team not to see him changing clothes.
When dressing, Economos walked through Coverdale Ranch pretending to be a butterfly, while communicating with the team, before entering the barn, Economos was interrupted by Larry Fitzgibbon, who asked where he was going, to which he replied that he would be carrying a bag to the barn, convincing Fitzgibbon to come by. Vomiting, Economos went downstairs, and was terrified to see that the Cow was a giant larva, remembering Starro and comparing it to the size of the Empire State Building.
Leaving his helmet on a ladder, Economos started to run away while informing their friends about Cow, but he found again Fitzgibbon asking why his guest had dyed her beard. Being overheard by his friends, from a butterfly role, Economos confessed that he did it because his host thought it helped him look younger, mentioning that he never had a girlfriend, and he believed that no one would notice until Smith pointed it out by making fun of him, which made him feel bad, so Fitzgibbon found humans pathetic.
As he left, Economos spoke annoyed with the team admitting that he dyed his beard, before he was discovered by Steve, revealing that he was not a butterfly and Economos will start to escape, getting cornered by Eek Stack Ik Ik and the Butterflies trying to get him. kill him, but Adebayo managed to activate the sonic boom helmet in time, distracting the butterflies' attention and allowing Economos to escape, the different charges of explosions managed to destroy the barn, allowing Economos to return to the team.
==== Battle at Coverdale Ranch ====
: "If something happens to us, you're the only hope.""The fսck am I?"
: ―Emilia Harcourt and John Economos[src]
As his teammates prepared to fight, Economos got annoyed with Harcourt for considering Leota Adebayo as the last hope if everything went wrong, feeling that he was not being taken into account, later seeing Peacemaker, Vigilante and Harcourt go to Coverdale Ranch attacking the butterflies. When the team fell defeated, Adebayo decided to go help, but Economos tried to warn her that she could get hurt, but since she was determined she went anyway, Economos tried to stop her, but ended up with a broken leg after trying to jump the wooden fence.
With the last of his strength, Economos crawled to the ranch and gave Adebayo the human torpedo helmet to help Smith. After Smith and Adebayo killed the Cow, Economos met up with the team while Smith carried Harcourt with a load after being badly wounded in battle. Economos received help from Adebayo to get up and together they began to leave the ranch, bumping into the arrival of the Justice League, who were reprimanded by Smith for showing up late, until the 11th Street Kids finally left the place to celebrate their victory.
=== Back to normal ===
==== Returning to Belle Reve ====
Having a broken leg, Economos and Emilia Harcourt were taken by their teammates to Mount Rouge Health Center after the battle. As he was carried away on his gurney by doctors, Economos gestured in celebration to Christopher Smith, Leota Adebayo, and Adrian Chase, before being led away for treatment. With less severe injuries, John Economos got out faster than Harcourt, receiving a cast and crutches so he could walk.
As the team split up after completing the mission, Economos returned to his job at Belle Reve Correctional Center. Arriving at his office, Economos sat down to start his new job as he arranged his computer and a photo with his friends took by Harcourt during the operation after they escaped from the massacre at Glan Tai Bottling Plant, smiling as he recalled his adventures with the 11th Street Kids, to then continue working.
== Personality ==
: "He thought it would made him more younger, more handsome. He never had a girlfriend, so he thought dying his beard would help, but he was also lazy and busy with his job, and wouldn't dye his roots regularly. And when he did, he used the cheapest brand because he was incredibly underpaid. Mostly though, he never thought anybody would notice, until recently, when one guy started to tell all the time."
: ―John Economos[src]
John Economos is a very insecure person with the decisions that some of his superiors make, mainly Amanda Waller since Economos was very afraid when she threatened Bloodsport with murdering his daughter. Disobeying Waller to help Task Force X confront Starro shows that Economos prefers the safety of the citizens of Corto Maltese over American reputations, in contrast to Waller's extremism. After disobeying Waller, John would feel very uncomfortable for questioning her. Similarly, Economos did not feel comfortable working with Christopher Smith for new missions. His insecurities also extend to his appearance: as he grew older, Economos began to dye his beard to look younger, so that he could attract a love interest. For a time, he felt comfortable with his new appearance until his beard was called out by Smith. He also loathed his job due to his below-average salary.
At the start of Project Butterfly Economos strongly disliked Peacemaker for his constant bullying and did not get along with the rest of his team members besides Harcourt. Peacemaker and Economos would constantly bicker over Economos sending Auggie Smith to prison. Over time, and after Economos saved the day multiple times, he becomes more assertive and open to the rest of the team. Following the mission at the Glenn Tai Bottling Company, and after bonding over their shared taste in music, Economos and Smith learned to put their differences aside and became friends. Though Economos was frequently disturbed by comments made by Vigilante, and clearly uncomfortable with some of the things that he did, he showed himself to be loyal to him and the two eventually became friends too.
Despite his insecurites, John has been slowly overcoming them. While at the begining of the Project Butterfly he was absolutely terrified at facing aliens and being exposed to dangerous experiences constantly putting at risk his life, after succesfully stopping Judomaster, Economos starts to become more confident of himself being capable of acting with courage. When Peacemaker is having dificulty facing a gorilla, he shows up and kills it using a chainsaw and later he would do it again saving Peacemaker's life killing all White Dragon's followers, both without any hesitation.
== Abilities ==
: "John Economos, who you may also know, is tech and tactics."
: ―Clemson Murn to Peacemaker[src]
* Expert computer scientist: Economos is a genius in technology and computing, having advanced knowledge to hack and manipulate any network or security system, Economos was enlisted in A.R.G.U.S. to help track members of Task Force X through computers. During the Mission in Corto Maltese, Economos was able to locate Rick Flag. After being sent to the Project Butterfly, Economos was put to work for Clemson Murn as the computer technician, also monitoring the security cameras. Economos charged government records of Peacemaker's fingerprints and car registration to frame Auggie Smith, and later he easily identified Vigilante via facial recognition software, that allowed him to perform a hack that removed Chase's criminal acts in order to get him out of prison. John used his computer skills to locate the Coverdale Ranch by circumventing the security cameras of the Glan Tai Bottling Company plant. Returning to Belle Reve, John continued his computer jobs at A.R.G.U.S..
: "Why not John?""He's gotta keep Judomaster alive."
: ―Clemson Murn[src]
* Expert medic: Economos is a skilled medic, being able to easily stitch wounds and heal Judomaster after his shooting by Leota Adebayo.
* Skilled Marksman: Economos was easily able to mow down multiple members of the Aryan Empire with a submachine gun, without hitting Vigilante once.
* Expert spy: Economos was able to impersonate the butterfly infected Officer and sneakily placed the Peacemaker Sonic Boom helmet in the Coverdale Ranch.
== Equipment ==
* Pistol: Economos carried a pistol when he, Harcourt, Leota and Murn ambushed Peacemaker at his trailer to recruit him for the mission against the Butterflies.
* Crowbar: Economos used a crowbar to knock out Judomaster unconscious after being heavily injured from crash.
* Chainsaw: Economos later took a chainsaw in the van to execute the gorilla for good.
* FN P90: Economos used the P90 submachine gun to shoot and kill all the Aryan Empire's members to save Peacemaker and Vigilante.
== Relationships ==
=== Allies ===
* A.R.G.U.S.
** Amanda Waller - superior
** Rick Flag †
* Flo Crawley - former colleague
* 11th Street Kids - former teammates
** Emilia Harcourt - leader and friend
** Clemson Murn † - former leader
*** Ik Nobe Llok † - former leader
** Leota Adebayo - friend
** Christopher Smith/Peacemaker - former rival turned into friend
** Adrian Chase/Vigilante - friend
* Robert DuBois/Bloodsport - former manipulatee turned ally
* Cleo Cazo/Ratcatcher 2 - former manipulatee turned ally
* Nanaue/King Shark - former manipulatee turned ally
* Abner Krill/Polka-Dot Man † former manipulatee turned ally
* Harleen Quinzel/Harley Quinn - former manipulatee turned ally
* Alandy
* Eagly
* Hurwitz	
=== Enemies ===
* Task Force X - manipulatees and subordinates
** Digger Harkness/Captain Boomerang †
** Gunter Braun/Javelin †
** Richard Hertz/Blackguard †
** Mongal †
** Cory Pitzner/T.D.K.
** Brian Durlin/Savant †
* Weasel - former manipulatee
* Starro † - target
* Corto Maltese Armed Forces
** Silvio Luna †
** Mateo Suarez †
* Aryan Empire
** Auggie Smith/White Dragon †
* Judomaster
* Butterflies
** Royland Goff †
** Charlie † - victim
** Eek Stack Ik Ik - attempted killer
** Larry Fitzgibbon †
** Steve †
* Cow † - target
== Appearances ==
ExpandList of appearances
== Trivia ==
* In DC Comics, Warden John Economos was the warden of Belle Reve. He often disagreed with Amanda Waller on which inmates should be sent into the field as Task Force X members, and even disliked the idea of the Squad in general.
* Economos likes the band Hanoi Rocks and has a tattoo referencing their song "11th Street Kids".
* John suffers from asthma and carries an inhaler around to help him breath.
== References ==
The DC Universe Wiki has a collection of images and media related to John Economos.
# ↑ In real life, Hanoi Rocks performed a concert in Finland featuring their song "11th Street Kids" in 1981. In Monkey Dory, John Economos mentioned being present at the concert at the age of 14, which alludes to his being born in 1967.
# ↑ Jump up to:2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Peacemaker: 1.05: Monkey Dory
# ↑ Jump up to:3.0 3.1 3.2 Gunn, James (writer & director) (January 13, 2022). "Better Goff Dead". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 3. Max.
# ↑ Jump up to:4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Gunn, James (writer and director) (August 6, 2021). The Suicide Squad.
# ↑ The Suicide Squad post-credits scene
# ↑ Jump up to:6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Gunn, James (writer & director) (February 17, 2022). "It's Cow or Never". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 8. Max.
# ↑ Jump up to:7.0 7.1 Gunn, James (writer & director) (January 13, 2022). "A Whole New Whirled". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 1. Max.
# ↑ Jump up to:8.0 8.1 Gunn, James (writer & director) (January 13, 2022). "Best Friends, For Never". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 2. Max.
# ↑ Jump up to:9.0 9.1 9.2 Gunn, James (writer) & Hill, Jody (director) (January 20, 2022). "The Choad Less Traveled". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 4. Max.
# ↑ Jump up to:10.0 10.1 Gunn, James (writer & director) (February 3, 2022). "Murn After Reading". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 6. Max.
# ↑ Jump up to:11.0 11.1 11.2 Gunn, James (writer) & Anderson, Brad (director) (February 10, 2022). "Stop Dragon My Heart Around". Peacemaker. Season 1. Episode 7. Max.
== External links ==
* John Economos on DC Database