REVIEW: The 11th Street Kids Aren’t Alright In ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Episode 5

REVIEW: The 11th Street Kids Aren’t Alright In ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Episode 5 Christopher Mills2 minutes ago4 min readThis review contains minor spoilers for ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Episode 5.Peacemaker © HBO MaxAfter last week’s episode, which was a slow journey as the story struggled to make any genuine movement, we return this week with the fifth episode of Peacemaker as James Gunn finally gets the ball rolling with an episode that leaves the 11th Street Kids broken apart as Chris finally takes on the decision to change his life around for the better. This episode is brutal when exploring the emotions of its characters but also unfortunately continues to lack as it puts its supporting characters on the backburner while solely focusing on Chris, Rick Flag Sr, Emilia Harcourt and the journey of Rick Flag Sr finally getting his revenge, which we get close to in this episode.Now, the show’s titled Peacemaker, and rightfully so; this season has focused in great detail on Chris, and the spotlight never comes off him, but with how well James Gunn wrote his supporting cast of characters the previous season, it’s sad to see that Adebayo gets boiled down to his chauffeur and a prostitution joke. Adrian hasn’t also been given much to work with this season, and while he’s always been the comedic relief in a show that already has a ton of it, he’s not said or done anything worthwhile in this second season. This season clearly isn’t about them, but the first few episodes of this season made the point that they’ve also been affected by the events of the previous season, and yet it seems like James Gunn has simply forgotten that in favour of giving us this Chris/A.R.G.U.S.-centric story.The episode opens up with Rick Flag Jr.’s funeral with his father, Harcourt and Economos in attendance. This scene further builds upon the relationship between the two, with Rick Flag Sr. knowing about her relationship with her son. Their relationship is solidified in this episode; he trusts her due to the simple previous relationship she held. Harcourt proves in this episode that she isn’t selfish; she warned Chris from attending the meet-up, saved him from being shot by the recently revealed cybernetically enhanced Sasha Bordeaux and persuaded Economos to get him legally booked to prevent Flag Sr from killing him. As much as she tries not to show it, she cares for and loves her friends despite the differences they may have.We have to give Chris his flowers, as when he’s taken to the interrogation room with cameras and mics turned off with no witnesses around, he doesn’t try to talk himself out of the intense and brutal beating he’s about to receive. He tries to apologise to Rick Flag Sr. about killing his son, breaking down and opening up his heart to him, but that will never be enough for a father who’s face-to-face with his son’s killer. Chris has been filled with guilt and shame over the death of Rick Flag Jr., and this is the first time where he might be able to get a sense of relief, taking a beatdown to near death from the father of the man who haunts him.John Cena as Chris/Peacemaker and Brandon Stanley as Kline in Peacemaker Season 2 © HBO MaxThe Eagly storyline continues into this episode with Red St Wild on the hunt to take him down after using his magical ritual (hopefully a likely connection to the Red) to track him down. While I’ve enjoyed seeing this all play out and the reveal of Eagly being this mythological prime eagle (hopefully also connected to the Red) was surprising and it’s a nice change of pace from the main storyline, I can’t help but be disappointed that I’m thoroughly enjoying a side story with an eagle instead of a side story that could’ve involved the likes of Adrian or Adebayo. This also all perfectly works because Chris depicts Eagly as this innocent bird that just happens to come across fingers instead of taking them from people violently.The ending of this episode is the single most important scene of the season. Chris has finally gotten confirmation that Harcourt does not reciprocate the same feelings for him due to her relations with Rick Flag Jr, and he respects that. That also doesn’t mean he has to live with that decision, knowing that there’s an alternate reality out there with everything he wants. It might be a selfish decision, as he leaves everyone behind despite leaving a note which leaves any mention of Adrian out (poor Adrian), but during this specific moment in time, he has the strong belief that everyone’s life would be better without him as part of the equation.Chris has jumped back into the alternate reality with Eagly right behind and Judomaster sneaking his way through before it closes off for good. The 11th Street Kids are now finally reunited and determined to bring Chris back safely. With A.R.G.U.S. on their tail, it’s likely we’re about to deal with a lot of dimension-hopping which might affect the future of the DCU. James Gunn has mentioned Episodes 6-8 being the best episodes of the season with 6 and 8 specifically being his favoutite pieces of work that he’s ever written and directed. Hopefully, he isn’t all talk, and we have something to look up to in terms of the show’s writing in term of its side characters.Rating: ★★★1/2 Peacemaker. © DC Studios x HBO MaxAbout Peacemaker Season 2Premiere Date: August 21, 2025Episode Count: 8Executive Producer/Showrunner: James GunnWriter: James GunnDirector: James Gunn, Greg Mottola, Peter Sollett, Althea JonesProduction: DC Studios, Troll Court Entertainment, The Safran CompanyDistribution: HBO MaxCast: John Cena, Danielle Brooks, Jennifer Holland, Freddie Stroma, Steve Agee, Robert Patrick, Frank Grillo, David Denman, Sol Rodriguez, Tim MeadowsSynopsis: In season 2, Peacemaker discovers an alternate world where life is everything he wishes it could be. But this discovery also forces him to face his traumatic past and take the future into his own hands.Tags:HBO MaxDCUPeacemakerJohn CenaREVIEWS   REVIEW: ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Episode 3 Brings Back Familiar Faces   REVIEW: ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 – Episode 2 Reveals Two Sides Of The Same Coin   REVIEW: The Thrilling ‘Peacemaker’ Season 2 Goes Above and Beyond, Balancing Humour And Heart