Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Peacemaker season 2
Although it’s only recently begun, James Gunn’s new DCU already has its own version of Phil Coulson. Played by Clark Gregg, Phil Coulson was a beloved SHIELD Agent featured in multiple early MCU projects. Now, it certainly looks as though the DCU is following suit with a character of their very own, especially in Peacemaker season 2.
The majority of James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker season 1 are DCU canon, despite originally being part of the previous DCEU continuity. However, the first official DCU projects are Creature Commandos, Superman, and now Peacemaker season 2. Keeping that in mind, one character has been featured in all three projects, effectively making them the DCU’s Phil Coulson.
Phil Coulson Was A Key Player In The MCU’s First Phase
Making his debut in 2008’s Iron Man, Clark Gregg’s Phil Coulson was there for the dawn of the MCU, having introduced SHIELD even before the debut of Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury, who confirmed the existence of a cinematic universe and other heroes in the MCU’s very first post-credits scene.
Following that initial appearance, Phil made subsequent appearances in 2010’s Iron Man 2, monitoring Tony Stark’s activities, while also being one of the first humans to encounter the Asgardian God of Thunder in 2011’s Thor.
Agent Phil Coulson would then receive an even bigger role in 2012’s Avengers, as his death at the hands of Loki would serve as a key catalyst, resulting in the first-ever assembly of the Avengers during the Battle of New York.
As a result, Coulson was a key recurring character in the MCU’s first phase of films. Likewise, he was also secretly resurrected by Fury using a process reserved for reviving fallen Avengers, allowing Phil Coulson to lead the beloved multi-season Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. series on ABC (2013-2020).
Keeping all that in mind, it certainly looks as though the DCU is doing something similar with one of their own recurring government agents.
Now, The DCU Has Frank Grillo’s Rick Flag Sr.
Having made his debut in the DCU’s very first official project, it’s not hard to see how Frank Grillo’s Rick Flag Sr. has thus far had a very similar trajectory to the MCU’s Agent Phil Coulson.
In 2024’s Creature Commandos, Rick Flag Sr. was put in charge of Amanda Waller’s brand-new Task Force M, a covert team of monsters deployed to Pokolistan to deal with the invading Amazonian sorceress Circe, only to uncover a much bigger international crisis in the works.
Flag was then featured in James Gunn’s Superman meeting with members of the US Department of Defense, meeting with Lex Luthor to hear his proposals advocating for Superman’s arrest.
Likewise, Flag himself turned Superman over to Luthor’s PlanetWatch, and was featured at the end of the first DCU movie, listening to the Secretary of Defense’s concerns about metahumans and their interference in geopolitical affairs.
Now, Rick Flag Sr. is shown in Peacemaker season 2 as the brand-new director of ARGUS, as Amanda Waller was forced to step down and face several Congressional hearings after her darker operations like Task Force X were exposed by Leota Adebayo (Waller’s daughter) at the end of Peacemaker season 1.
Although he is concerned about Peacemaker and his ongoing use of a pocket universe, Rick Flag Sr. also has a personal vendetta against Chris Smith. After all, Peacemaker killed Flag’s son in Corto Maltese (seen in The Suicide Squad).
As such, it certainly doesn’t seem like Rick Flag Sr. is going anywhere anytime soon. Likewise, Flag’s recurring role in the DCU’s first chapter very much mirrors Coulson’s journey beyond just having multiple appearances, especially now that he’s the director of ARGUS (Coulson eventually became the director of SHIELD in the ABC series).
After Peacemaker Season 2, What Does The DCU’s Future Hold For Rick Flag Sr?
After Peacemaker season 2, the next DCU projects with official release dates are Lanterns, Supergirl, and Clayface in 2026. However, Creature Commandos season 2 and Waller are both in active development, both of which will more than likely feature the DCU’s new director of ARGUS.
Lanterns is said to be an Earth-based investigation of a murder, so perhaps we could see some ARGUS involvement in the upcoming series. While Flag did fight Clayface in Creature Commandos, the upcoming DCU villain movie is expected to be an origin story for the classic Batman villain.
Meanwhile, Supergirl is expected to be set primarily in space, an adaptation of the cosmic Woman of Tomorrow comic series. As such, an appearance by Flag is fairly doubtful. In any event, it’ll be exciting to see how Rick Flag’s story continues in Peacemaker season 2, and wherever he might show up next in the DCU’s future (Phil Coulson-style).
New episodes of Peacemaker season 2 release Thursdays on HBO Max.
Peacemaker
7/10
- Release Date
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January 13, 2022
- Network
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HBO Max, Max
