Peacemaker Episode 5 Ending Explained

After only three weeks on the air, the first season of HBO Max's "Peacemaker" is already more than half-way over! The first five episodes of the DC Extended Universe series have been filled with plenty of action, loads of surprises and, as with nearly all James Gunn-directed productions, a totally kick-ass soundtrack of music. After last week's episode ended with the shocking reveal that Clemson Murn (Chukwudi Iwuji) is actually a Butterfly, it hasn't taken long for the secret to spread to another member of the team. Leota Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) is now aware of Murn's true identity and Murn seems none too happy about it. Also, PETA may or may not have a significant problem with the character of John Economos (Steve Agee) after this episode is released.

Here's a quick explainer about where Season 1, Episode 5 ("Monkey Dory") leaves things at the end of the fifth hour of the series.

Detective Sophie Song (Annie Chang) might just be one of the most efficient members of law enforcement in the DC Extended Universe. Detective Song remains laser-focused on taking down Peacemaker (John Cena) for the death of Annie Sturphausen (Crystal Mudry) in Episode 1. While she is somewhat misled in her attempts to capture or kill the hero of the series, we have to admire her moxie and dedication to the rule of law.

Unfortunately, the introduction of Captain Locke (Christopher Heyerdahl) has slowed the gears of the criminal justice system substantially. So long as Locke continues to keep White Dragon locked behind bars for the murder of Sturphausen, no other investigation can move forward in a meaningful fashion. However, Song and Detective Larry Fitzgibbon (Lochlyn Munro) remain steadfast in their determination to find the real killer, even if it means letting a monster like White Dragon (Robert Patrick) out in the process. 

In her final scene in Episode 5, Song takes a reluctant Fitzgibbon to the home of her uncle, Judge William Judy (yes, Judge Judy), in the hopes of obtaining an arrest warrant for Peacemaker. Captain Locke will, no doubt, be unhappy with this development, but no matter what it may cost her, Song simply refuses to back down.

In a touching and uplifting moment towards the end of Episode 5, Peacemaker and the rest of the team receive a group message from Harcourt. Rather than invite them to another debriefing, Harcourt is simply reaching out to share a photograph of the team she took earlier in the day. Harcourt names the group message "11th Street Kids," a clear reference to the Hanoi Rocks song which plays on the radio when she takes the photo. All members of the group who receive the message greet it with a smile. Peacemaker responds with a "Nicely Done" emoji, while Economos replies, "So f***ing cool" and Vigilante responds with an Aquaman emoji, something he says stands for "happy, sad, and everything in between." It's clear that a genuine sense of camaraderie has arisen from this troubled group of misfits. So, what exactly leads to this era of good feelings? 

While some businesses hire professionals or do trust fall exercises when they need to boost a team's sense of cooperation and partnership, "Peacemaker" does things differently. In Episode 5, Economos (aka Dye-Beard, as Peacemaker calls him) simply needs to save everyone by attacking a gorilla with a chainsaw. Economos's victory triggers a massive celebration among the crew, especially Peacemaker who calls the gorilla killer "a stud." After taking down the gorilla and about 30 Butterflies at the Glan Tai bottling factory, we think this task force definitely earned a celebration. Once they're done celebrating, however, perhaps Economos can take a short trip over to Central City and rid "The Flash" of Gorilla Grodd once and for all? Just a thought.

Finally forced to pick between Peacemaker and her mother, Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), Leota seems to have chosen her mother, but she also doesn't appear to be very happy about it. After a very successful outing at the Glan Tai bottling factory, Peacemaker invites Leota back to his trailer for a drink. Leota is less than impressed with the Peace Train drink (gin, vermouth, vinegar, peppercorn, maple syrup and butter, if anyone wants to actually try it!), but she's even less enthused about betraying Peacemaker's confidence. 

We've all known this moment would come ever since Leota's chat with her mother in Episode 1, where the Director of A.R.G.U.S. orders Leota to plant a forged diary in Peacemaker's trailer. Waller's plan with the diary still is not entirely clear. We assume that she must mean to frame Peacemaker for something, but what exactly remains a mystery. The other mystery at the center of the diary is the placement of a Wayne Foundation logo. Did Batman or anyone else at the Wayne Foundation have anything to do with the forging of the document? Or is it just a throwaway Easter egg for eagle-eyed fans to notice and snicker at? 

Whatever Waller's plan is, it certainly seems aimed straight for Peacemaker. Since Leota, Vigilante, and Eagly are the only ones besides Peacemaker who have set foot in his trailer, it shouldn't take Peacemaker long to figure out who planted the diary. Given Peacemaker's prior issues with friendship and loyalty, we think this one is really going to sting.

Peacemaker's X-ray vision helmet, one of many helmets created by White Dragon, comes in quite handy throughout Episode 5. Activating the device's X-ray vision, Peacemaker is able to quickly identify and dispatch Butterflies throughout the Glan Tai bottling factory. However, this isn't the only location where the helmet's abilities serve an extremely important purpose. Unable to sleep because of her guilt over planting Peacemaker's forged diary, Leota returns to work and absentmindedly puts on the X-Ray vision helmet. Leota is amazed at the device, but she also doesn't have long to marvel at its abilities. Turning to look towards Murn, Leota quickly realizes that Murn is, in fact, a Butterfly! 

In addition to the fact that she appears to be in immediate peril in the final scene of the episode, Leota's discovery obviously raises a whole new set of questions. While audiences were previously under the impression that Leota and Waller were the only ones keeping secrets about the mission at hand, it's now obvious that this supposition isn't true. Beyond the obvious questions surrounding Murn's motives, we have to ask another question: Who else knows? Does Waller know? As we noted last week, Murn has a fairly odd conversation with Economos in Episode 4, so it might not be a huge shocker to discover that Leota isn't the first to realize Murn's origins. Of course, there is another possibility. What if Murn isn't the only member of the team that is secretly a Butterfly?

Every episode of "Peacemaker" ends with a post-credits segment that expands on a scene from the episode that just finished airing. Anyone who watches this episode all the way through could probably guess where this post-credits scene was going. Early in the episode, Peacemaker screams at Economos for framing his father for a death caused by Peacemaker himself. While no one should feel bad that White Dragon is sitting behind bars, it's clear that Peacemaker has ample reason to be unhappy with his other team members who didn't even bother to consult with him, prior to making such a rash decision.

In a scene after the credits, Peacemaker continues with his list of other people who Economos could have framed other than White Dragon. Peacemaker suggests a whole 33 other names, on top of the 30 names he already mentioned in the original scene. Peacemaker's outrageous new suggestions include names as varied as Mariska Hargitay and Super Mario to Jim Morrison and Mel Gibson. Given the fact that some of these people are dead and others are entirely fictional characters, some are obviously more applicable than others. However, Economos openly objects to one of Peacemaker's ideas. Economos says he would "NEVER" put Ariana Grande in prison because she simply "looks too innocent." Still angry, Peacemaker reluctantly concedes this point.

New episodes of "Peacemaker" drop on HBO Max every Thursday.