A Whole New Whirled

"**A Whole New Whirled**" is the first episode of the HBO Max series based on the DC Comics character Peacemaker. It also serves as the series premiere and aired on January 13, 2022 as part of a three episode premiere along with Best Friends, For Never and Better Goff Dead respectively.

## Synopsis

*After making a miraculous recovery, Peacemaker returns home–only to discover that his freedom comes at a price.*

## Plot

In the hospital, months after Smith began his rehabilitation after being shot in the neck by Bloodsport, and is now looking at an x-ray of his near-fatal injury. The doctor subsequently discharges him, citing that he’s on the path to recovery. Chris then chats it up with Jamil, the janitor, about that one time they shared a blunt and whether anyone might pursue him. Specifically meaning anyone like the law. While Chris, now in his bloody Peacemaker suit is hastily leaving, one of the nurses texts Mr. Murn regarding the former Suicide Squad member's departure. Umbeknownst to him, Chris hops into a taxi and celebrates when nobody notices his exit.

The taxi driver pulls in front of a star-spangled bedecked trailer. However, Chris realizes that he doesn’t have any money since, he was in prison for four years. But the driver accepts Peacemaker’s flashy helmet as payment.

After smashing his window to gain acess, Chris then finds his cellphone has a plethora of voicemails from Adrian Chase, a.k.a. Vigilante.

Suddenly, Emilia Harcourt, John Economos and Leota target Peacemaker from all sides, weapons brandished. Clemson Murn approaches Chris from inside his trailer. Murn informs Chris that he reports directly to Amanda Waller.

It is explained to Peacemaker that need him to perform hits, like a contract killer. This time, it’s for “Project Butterfly”. Murn introduces Peacemaker to his team, and Chris is told that should he refuse, he’ll go back to prison. Not only that, but there’s still the chip in his brain that Murn and company can trigger at any moment.

Leota proceeds to give a speech about how excited she is to work with everyone. Murn then orders Peacemaker to meet the crew at a restaurant for more details regarding Project Butterfly and his first case. But once they leave, Chris realizes that he needs to get Eagly back.

Eventually, Chris drives to his father’s house to reunite with the old man and retrieve his pet eagle. When Chris finally reunites with Eagly, the bird appears to “embrace” his owner, as only an animal with wings can.

Meanwhile, Harcourt, Economos and Leota move into their shoddy, makeshift headquarters.

While Chris has dinner with Eagly and Auggie, and the father/son duo bond over an anecdote about Bloodsport’s fear of rats.

Then, Auggie gives Chris a new helmet since the latter gave his to a taxi driver. The older man boasts a bevy of shiny helmets, all with different capabilities, in his lair.

Later, Chris meets with his new task force team for dinner as agreed upon. Harcourt, Murn, Leota and Economos poke fun at Peacemaker for arriving in full costume with Eagly in the backseat of his car. Eventually, Murn hands Chris a file with info on his first target and urges him to peruse it at home.

Adrian bursts outside into the alley behind the restaurant and gleefully celebrates the return of Peacemaker. But upon being caught by his co-worker, Adrian attempts to lie to nervously tell his coworker that he’s excited about his pregnant not-girlfriend’s abortion.

Leota and Chris share a moment outside the restaurant, even though Eagly bites the former.

Next, Chris follows Harcourt into a local bar. Harcourt lays the smackdown on a few toxic masculine bros and rebuffs Chris’ offer of mindless sex. But afterwards, Chris finds another blonde eyeing him from across the bar.

Later that night, Leota video-chats with Amanda Waller, who as it turns out is her mother. Waller urges Leota to keep empathy out of this line of work after she notes a certain sadness in Peacemaker. Keeya urges Leota to exercise caution, as this is dangerous work the latter’s about to undertake. Leota reassures her wife that she’ll pick up the paycheck and they’ll move home after she finishes the job.

Meanwhile, Chris has a night of sexy fun with Annie. He plays one of her records featuring a hair metal band and proceeds to dance around in his tighty whities. However, Chris’s one-night-stand charges toward him with a knife poised to kill.Peacemaker and Annie battle it out in their undergarments. Annie tries to kill him and successfully stabs him a few times.

Chris eventually notices that Annie appears to be a metahuman. She manages to hold her own against him. After diving out of the window, Chris dons his helmet, which emits a powerful light, obliterating his sex pal. Not only that, but it destroys the parking lot around him.

## Cast and characters

### Starring

* John Cena as Christopher Smith/Peacemaker
* Danielle Brooks as Leota Adebayo
* Freddie Stroma as Adrian Chase/Vigilante
* Chukwudi Iwuji as Clemson Murn
* Jennifer Holland as Emilia Harcourt
* Steve Agee as John Economos
* Robert Patrick as August "Auggie" Smith/White Dragon

### Guest starring

* Elizabeth Ludlow as Keeya
* Rizwan Manji as Jamil

### Co-starring

* Dee Bradley Baker voices Eagly
* Crystal Mudry as Annie Sturphausen
* Lissa Neptuno as Dr. Alandy
* Mel Tuck as Auggie's Neighbor
* Elizabeth McCarthy as Head Nurse
* Brent Chapman as Fact Attack Host
* Tim Zhang as Cabbie
* Klarc Wilson as Dishwasher
* Ursina Luther as Waitress
* Faith Wright as Murn's Inside Nurse
* Jade Pawluk as Douchebag
* Kris Kuruneri as Bartender
* Scott Pocha as Even Bigger Friend

## Gallery

### Videos

Peacemaker - Official Trailer - HBO MaxPeacemaker - Official Teaser - HBO MaxPeacemaker - Exclusive Clip - HBO MaxPeacemaker - Official Red Band Trailer - HBO MaxPeacemaker - The Story So Far - HBO MaxPodly- The Peacemaker Podcast - Ep.1 with James Gunn - HBO MaxPeacemaker - BFFs Featurette - HBO MaxPeacemaker - Opening Credits - HBO MaxAdebayo Meets Peacemaker's Best Friend Eagly - Peacemaker - HBO MaxHistory of PeacemakerPeacemaker- James Gunn, John Cena & Jennifer Holland Talk Improv, Comics & More!‘Peacemaker’ Creator James Gunn, Star John Cena, and His Costars Reveal the Best Dancer‘Peacemaker’ Interviews - James Gunn, John Cena, Jennifer Holland + More!
## Trivia:

* It is the first DC Extended Universe (DCEU) television series and a spin-off from the 2021 film *The Suicide Squad*.
	+ Set after the events of the film, the series follows jingoistic killer Christopher Smith/Peacemaker as he joins "Project Butterfly", a black ops squad that targets parasitic butterfly-like creatures.
* Both Harcout and Economos are characters who have roots in DC Comics history. Economos was introduced in 1987's *Suicide Squad #1* as the warden of metahuman prison facility/Suicide Squad base Belle Reve. Harcourt debuted in the team's book in 2016 and was later revealed to be a terrorist spy.
	+ Batman gets a quick mention by August Smith's neighbor and the Wayne Foundation logo appears on the forged journal that Leota Adebayo is meant to plant in Peacemaker's trailer.
		- Interestingly enough, the logo looks less like the one seen in any of Ben Affleck's appearances as the Caped Crusader and more like the one from Christian Bale's stint as the Dark Knight.
	+ There's also more substantial discussion about Aquaman at the top of show, and it starts because Peacemaker definitely does not like this ocean-dwelling member of the Justice League. Thanks to @pepethefrog89 on Twitter, Chris argues that he went onto learn that the King of the Seven Seas has his way with fish at an aquarium.
	+ The Easter eggs in "Peacemaker" aren't limited to references to the cinematic universe that the show inhabits. There are a number of allusions to other things in pop culture as well. First, Peacemaker's house number is 1138. This number frequently appears in the films of George Lucas, including *Star Wars* and *American Graffiti*. It originated from his directorial debut, the dystopian sci-fi film *THX 1138,* which started out as the legendary filmmaker's student film from his days at USC.
* Then, when Smith first learns about Project Butterfly, he thinks that he's about to face off with a Mothra. Agent Murn assures him that they won't be fighting the massive kaiju, but Peacemaker requests a jetpack anyway. Not only would it help in a fight with a Mothra if it comes up, but his comic book counterpart often utilized a jetpack.
	+ In regards to Peacemaker's comic book history, there are also a number of different helmets in August Smith's closet that resemble the various helmets that Peacemaker has worn over the years. Each one has a different ability, but he ultimately goes with the one that has sonic boom capabilities, an attack he has been known to use in the comics.
	+ The picture on Peacemaker's dart board was none other than Eclipso, DC's incarnation of the God of Wrath and the Angel of Vengeance. It's not clear whether this is the same version of the menacing villain that was recently seen in "Stargirl" season two, but James Gunn himself confirmed that the picture is definitely Eclipso.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Easter Eggs You May Have Missed In Peacemaker Episode 1 - Slash Film