Following on from the likes of Polka-Dot Man and Starro the Conqueror appearing in The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker has embraced the weirder side of the DC universe even more.
Previous episodes have confirmed that some of the most widely-mocked characters in the mythos are part of DCEU canon, including Bat-Mite and Matter-Eater Lad. Episode five, “Monkey Dory”, went ahead and added another to the list in an easily-missed Easter Egg.
When Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) hangs out with John Cena’s Chris Smith at his place, she takes a look at a newspaper cutting he’s proudly pinned up on the wall. The headline reads “New Hero Peacemaker Apprehends Kite-Man,” thereby revealing that arguably the most ridiculed supervillain in Batman’s rogues gallery exists in the DCEU. Kite-Man, hell yeah!
Kudos to Redditor u/Spencerforhire83, over on the r/Peacemaker subreddit, for spotting this one:
Ever since his debut in 1960, Kite-Man — real name Chuck Brown — has often been treated as the butt of the joke due to his flimsy villain gimmick and dimwitted personality. After wallowing in obscurity for decades, Brown has finally got his shot in the limelight recently thanks to fellow HBO Max show Harley Quinn, with the character (voiced by Matt Oberg) becoming a surprise fan favorite.
While it’s a lot of fun that Kite-Man is now part of the DCEU, meaning that Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight has potentially done battle with him, it’s pretty weird that Poison Ivy’s onscreen fiancé has been made canon before Pamela Isley herself. Maybe if Margot Robbie keeps pestering the DC brass she’ll eventually show up somewhere.
On another note, the print article is also interesting for suggesting that Smith didn’t initially execute his enemies, as Kite-Man is noted to have been apprehended alive. This flies in the face of the claim he makes in episode four that he has no “coterie of villains” like Batman, because he kills them all on their first encounter.
Peacemaker continues Thursdays on HBO Max.
