James Gunn pulls off the ultimate comic book retcon with a simple “Previously On” segment
SPOILER ALERT!
“Peacemaker” Season 2 premiered on HBO Max yesterday, and eagle-eyed fans immediately noticed something different in the opening recap. The Justice League cameo that ended Season 1 has been completely rewritten – and it works!
The Great Justice League Switcheroo
Remember when Jason Momoa’s Aquaman and Ezra Miller’s Flash showed up at the end of “Peacemaker” Season 1, cracking jokes while Chris Smith walked past them saying “You’re late”? Well, forget all that. In the Season 2 premiere’s “Previously On” segment, those DCEU heroes have been seamlessly replaced by Superman, Supergirl and the Justice Gang from James Gunn’s new DC Universe.
The revised scene now features silhouettes of David Corenswet’s Superman, Nathan Fillion’s Green Lantern, Edi Gathegi’s Mr. Terrific, Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl, and Milly Alcock’s Supergirl arriving too late to help. Even the dialogue has been tweaked – Adebayo now asks for the “Justice Gang” instead of the “Justice League.”
Why This Matters
This clever retcon solves a major continuity problem. With “Peacemaker” now firmly part of Gunn and Peter Safran’s restructured DCU, references to the old DCEU Justice League no longer fit. Rather than ignore the issue or explain it away with complex multiverse shenanigans, Gunn simply applied the classic comic book approach: “It happened, just not the way you remember it.”
The Most DC Comics Thing Ever
As fans have pointed out, this is exactly how DC Comics handled similar continuity issues after the 1985 “Crisis on Infinite Earths” event. When Wonder Woman’s history was rebooted, DC simply went back and replaced her with Black Canary in reprints of early Justice League stories. Same events, different characters.
Gunn previously confirmed that “almost all of Peacemaker is canon, with the exception of the Justice League,” and Season 2 makes good on that promise with minimal fuss and maximum style.
Looking Forward
With this smooth transition complete, “Peacemaker” Season 2 can focus on new adventures within the established DCU framework. The premiere wastes no time jumping into the action, with Chris discovering a door to another world in his father’s lab before cutting to six months later as he prepares for an interview with the Justice Gang.
It’s a masterclass in how to handle franchise reboots – acknowledge what came before, make the necessary changes, and move forward without dwelling on the mechanics. Sometimes the simplest solution is the best one.
New episodes of “Peacemaker” will release weekly on Thursdays at 9:00pm ET on HBO Max.
