In the neon haze of HBO Max’s latest binge-watch frenzy, the curtain finally dropped on Peacemaker Season 2—and boy, did it crash like a poorly timed dive bar punchline. What James Gunn hyped as his “wildest, craziest episodes ever” wrapped with a whimper, leaving DC diehards howling in betrayal. No soaring Man of Steel cameo to tie up the multiverse madness, no parade of Justice Gang heavy-hitters crashing the party. Instead, viewers got a brooding Lex Luthor scheming in a prison cell and, in a twist that felt more like a fever dream than fan service, a random rock band jamming out amid the chaos. “Super Bowl my ass!” one viral X post screamed, capturing the raw fury rippling through forums from Reddit to Twitter—sorry, X—where fans lit up like Belle Reve during a riot.

Picture this: It’s October 9, 2025, and the clock strikes midnight. The finale, cheekily titled “Full Nelson,” clocks in at a bloated 57 minutes, promising interdimensional fireworks after weeks of buildup. Peacemaker—John Cena’s helmeted hothead Chris Smith—has been portal-hopping through Nazi-riddled Earth-X, dodging Rick Flag Sr.’s (Frank Grillo) vengeful ARGUS squad and unraveling a web of quantum weirdness that Gunn swore would “shake the DCU to its core.” Teasers dangled hints of Superman’s shadow, with David Corenswet’s Clark Kent spotted on set photos fueling feverish speculation. Whispers of Braniac teases, Justice League nods, even a full-on Man of Tomorrow prelude—fans ate it up, refreshing their feeds like addicts chasing a hit.

But when the credits rolled, the high crashed harder than Peacemaker’s daddy issues. The episode’s big “reveal” leaned heavy on Easter eggs: doors to black-hole voids echoing Superman’s Metropolis meltdown, impish Candyland horrors nodding to comic lore, and a parade of LuthorCorp suits straight out of Gunn’s summer blockbuster. Rick Flag’s uneasy pact with Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor—filmed mid-Superman shoot, Gunn revealed—deepens into something “scary” for the DCU, paving Lex’s path to that uneasy Superman team-up in 2027’s sequel. Hoult’s Luthor, all icy venom and prison-yard profanity (“butt-fucking a twink” became an instant meme), trades tech secrets for a cushier cell at Van Kull, muttering about metahuman scum while plotting his redemption arc. It’s consequential, sure—Gunn hammered that on the official podcast, calling it a “massive moment” linking Peacemaker’s grit to the broader universe. But consequential doesn’t mean cinematic. Fans craving capes and glory? They got a bald billionaire brooding in bars.

Then, the kicker: that “random band.” Tucked into the finale’s feverish QUC (Quantum Unfolding Chamber) sequence, as the 11th Street Kids blast through parallel hells, a ragtag group of alternate-universe rockers—think Misfits meets multiverse misfits—belts out an original track amid the Nazi-punching frenzy. No star power, no tie-in to the lore; just amps cranked to 11 and lyrics about “dimensional doves” that landed like a wet firecracker. “Is this a joke? A band? In my DCU finale?” tweeted @DC_RantQueen, racking up 50K likes before dawn. The scene, meant to underscore Peacemaker’s chaotic charm, instead amplified the episode’s tonal whiplash—Gunn’s signature crude humor clashing with half-baked spectacle, leaving viewers questioning if the “craziest” label was code for “unfocused.”

The backlash erupted faster than a Speed Force sprint. On X, #PeacemakerLetdown trended worldwide, with users like @SuperSagaNews blasting, “All that hype for Lex and a garage band? Gunn, we deserved Superman!” Reddit’s r/DC_Cinematic lit up with 1.6K-upvoted threads dissecting the “juvenile” jabs—Lex’s crass rants drawing eye-rolls for feeling more Peacemaker than Luthor-esque menace. “Gunn’s humor works in doses, but this? It’s cringe overload,” one top comment griped, echoing gripes about the show’s shift from Season 1’s tight ensemble vibes to a sprawling multiverse mess. Even Gunn’s pre-finale teases—spoiling Superman cast returns on his director’s commentary, only to pivot to “it just didn’t work”—fueled the fire. Corenswet’s mock “upset” over missing out? Cute in interviews, but salt in the wound for fans who’d banked on that blue-red blur bridging the gap.

Not everyone’s torching the place. Defenders point to the finale’s deeper cuts: the Kids’ break from ARGUS, forging a “better” hero squad; Flag’s trauma-deepening vendetta against Chris; Sydney’s (Lashana Lynch) arc tying back to Creature Commandos. And those alien rat things? They scamper in, hinting at Gunn’s Chapter 1 sprawl. “It’s not about cameos; it’s narrative glue,” argues @MilkyWayGrump on X, praising how Lex’s deal spells doom for metas in Man of Tomorrow. Polygon called the Luthor drop “important for the entire DCU,” while Screen Rant tallied 20 Easter eggs as proof of Gunn’s comic fidelity. Fair points—Peacemaker’s never been about blockbuster bombast; it’s dive-bar brawls and broken bones. But in a post-Endgame era, where crossovers are currency, delivering a symphony with one sour note feels like false advertising.

Gunn, ever the provocateur, doubled down in Variety: “Lex is in for a specific reason. Superman? It didn’t fit.” Shot during Superman’s Pentagon scenes, the cameo “instantly felt different”—grittier, swearier, a tonal tightrope Gunn walks with glee. Yet as Peacemaker S2 logs its finale, the question lingers: Is this bold storytelling or bait-and-switch burnout? DC’s reboot era, post-Superman’s billion-dollar splash, promised interconnected thrills without Marvel’s fatigue. Here, it delivered introspection wrapped in interdimensional filler, leaving fans erupting not in cheers, but chants of “Super Bowl my A!”—a vulgar nod to dashed Super Bowl-sized dreams.

As the dust settles, one thing’s clear: Gunn’s DCU is no safe space for expectations. Peacemaker Season 2 ends not with a bang, but a band solo—raw, ridiculous, and ripe for ridicule. Will it setup Man of Tomorrow’s epic? Absolutely. But for now, the fandom’s roar drowns out the encore. Tune in next time, capes optional, helmets mandatory. After all, in Gunn’s wild world, the real peacemakers are the ones picking up the pieces.