Peacemaker Episode 4: What’s That Weird Alien?

This post contains spoilers for Peacemaker season 2 episode 4.

By this point, no one is surprised to find a weird alien in a DC Comics project. Nor, really, are we surprised to find one in a project from James Gunn, the guy who brought to the screen broccoli people and Starro the Conqueror.

But still, when we see the cold open to the fourth episode of Peacemaker‘s second season, which shows how an idiot like Auggie Smith could acquire a quantum folding chamber, we’ve gotta ask: what’s that weird alien?

Even the biggest DC nerds might have trouble identifying the alien seen in Peacemaker. It’s a bug-eyed, vaguely bird-like creature with grayish skin. It’s not wearing anything besides a blue sash, the steel case it carries doesn’t have any identifying logos, and the noises it makes aren’t even subtitled.

There’s a very real possibility that, like Mr. Handsome in Superman, this is a James Gunn original creation. But until we know for sure, let’s take a moment to round up the usual inter-dimensional suspects and guess at where this guy comes from.

The Reach

One of the more compelling possibilities is that this is a member of the Reach, the alien would-be conquerers who developed the scarab that eventually finds its way to Jaime Reyes a.k.a. the Blue Beetle. Gunn has spoken highly of (the very enjoyable!) 2023 movie Blue Beetle, but he’s also been cagey about its status in the new DC Universe. Gunn has also been adamant that anything from the previous universe not explicitly mentioned in Peacemaker season 2 or Superman isn’t part of the new universe, so this would be a fun way to acknowledge that parts of that movie are still canon.

That said, the members of the Reach seen in DC Comics and the series Young Justice tend to wear ceremonial clothing, and have clearer speech abilities. Moreover, the members of the Reach have more distinctly human facial features than the creature in Peacemaker, so it would be quite the creative redesign for the two aliens to be the same.

Dhorian

Although they generally have pinker skin, the vaguely bird/bug-like features of the Peacemaker alien could make him a Dhorian. For the most part, there’s only one major figure from Dhor in the DC Universe, the reoccurring Justice League villain Kanjar Ro. Ro is an intergalactic petty crook, a slimy guy who usually does minor crimes, but occasionally gets wrapped up slaving or something equally heinous.

It’s hard to believe that Gunn doesn’t have love in his heart for a sniveling little weirdo like Kanjar Ro. And the blue sash worn by the Peacemaker alien does recall Ro’s usual garb. But the pathetic creature begging for his life doesn’t really match the haughtiness of a guy who regularly challenges the Justice League.

Astonian

To readers of Green Lantern comics, a kind, greyish alien with an extended head and blue clothes brings one character to mind: Saint Walker of the Blue Lantern Corps. Introduced in 2008’s Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns #1, Saint Walker is the most notable member of an intergalactic force that brings hope to the universe. In the same way that the Green Lanterns have harnessed willpower, the Blue Lanterns harness positive emotions in a mission to spread serenity across the galaxy.

While the Peacemaker alien’s head isn’t quite as extended as those on the Astonians seen in DC Comics, it would make sense for Gunn to bring the race in here. We know that the HBO series Lanterns is coming soon to the DCU, which will have its intergalactic elements. Plus, it would make sense that someone of Saint Walker’s stature would have access to cross-dimensional technlogy. That said, it’s hard to imagine that Gunn jibes with the hippy-dippy nature of the Astonian, but maybe that’s exactly why he had one get shot in the head by a redneck.

Glazzonion

If Saint Walker is too hippie for Gunn, then the Green Lantern Ahtier would be even worse, even though she dies in her first appearance, in 1987’s Tales of the Green Lantern Corps #3. I mean, she’s a Glazzonion—just read out loud the name of the species. Then again, a story about a pregnant hero sending her ring off to find a successor with her final breath is the type of tragic nastiness that Gunn does well.

Further, Ahtier does really look like the Peacemaker alien, in terms of coloring, humanoid form, and head shape. Ahtier’s eyes are a bit smaller than the one seen on the show, but outside of that, it’s a dead ringer! Plus, the Peacemaker alien dies in its first appearance too!

Eraserhead Baby

I mean, David Lynch went to his grave without ever revealing the origin of the horrid infant in his debut feature Eraserhead. Maybe it was an alien? And maybe he told James Gunn about it one night. Stranger things have happened.

New episodes of Peacemaker season 2 stream on HBO Max each Thursday at 9 p.m. ET.