PeacemakerisDCand HBO Max’s latest offering that expands the DC Extended Universe. It stars John Cena as the titular Peacemaker. He is joined by Danielle Brookes as Leota Adebayo,Freddie Stroma as Vigilante, Robert Patrick as Auggie Smith, Jennifer Holland as Emilia Harcourt, Steve Agee as John Economos, and many more in the series' talented cast.
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Peacemaker and his allies are part of Project Butterfly in the show. Project Butterfly was organized by Amanda Waller to stop the “Butterflies.” While much of this series' plot seems to be completely original, it does havesome roots in DC Comics lore. However, there is more to Project Butterfly than meets the eye, and taking a closer look at it can give the audience an idea of what’s really going on inPeacemaker.
5It’s A Brutal Alien-Extermination Team
The mandate of Project Butterfly is to hunt down and exterminate an alien species colloquially known as “the Butterflies.” They are an insectoid species that resemble butterflies, and they possess and mutate human beings. They bend the host to their will and seem to have their sites set on gaining some kind of foothold within the government and power structures of Earth.
That’s where Peacemaker and Project Butterfly comes in. They intend to hunt down and exterminate the Butterflies before they can enact whatever plan they have in mind. Both the Butterflies and Project Butterfly don’t have a direct origin in DC Comics, though there are some potential comparison points with the mind-controllers like Queen Bee and the wormlike Mister Mind. However, even those comparisons require a stretch or two.
4It Was Created And Organized By Amanda Waller And A.R.G.U.S
Much like the Suicide Squad itself, Project Butterfly was organized by Amanda Waller and the organization known as A.R.G.U.S. As is often the case with Waller, she already had an eye on this growing threat and wants Peacemaker and his team to deal with these creatures as swiftly and lethally as possible.
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Of course, Waller herself isn’t directly leading this team. That’s where Clemson Murn (Cukwudi Iwuji) comes in. He is the actual leader of Project Butterfly and aims to keep the unruly likes of Peacemaker and Vigilante in line.
3Who Or What Is A.R.G.U.S.?
This isn’t the first time that A.R.G.U.S. hascropped up in the DC Extended Universe. It already made its DCEU debut withSuicide Squad (2016). It’s a clandestine government organization that deals with the metahuman and supernatural threats that frequentlycrop up in the DC Universe. It’s most easily compared toMarvel’s S.H.I.E.L.D. It isn’t fair to call it a complete copy, but A.R.G.U.S.didn’t show up until the New 52 in 2012. Its name stands for Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-Humans. In addition to Amanda Waller, the comics version of A.R.G.U.S. has had such members as Steve Trevor (who isn’t a World War I vet in modern comics), Booster Gold, Black Orchid, Doctor Psycho, Etta Candy, Doctor Light, and even Lex Luthor.
A.R.G.U.S. is far from the only organizationof its kind in DC Comics. Project Cadmus was a government organization that experiments with superhumans. Checkmate is another clandestine organization that works in the shadows, but it actually isn’t affiliated with any government. The D.E.O, or Department of Extranormal Affairs, is another United States organization that tries to meet the supernatural threats of the DCU and is led by the ghastly Director Bones.
Finally, there is S.H.A.D.E, or the Super-Human Advanced Defense Executive. This one also fights supernatural threats and is led by a man called Father Time. Like A.R.G.U.S, this is another fairly recent creation from 2006. This one has had members including (no joke) Uncle Sam and Frankenstein’s Monster, both of whichare DC Comics characters with storied histories.
2Project Butterfly Actually Resembles The Current DC Comics Suicide Squad
The modern iteration of the Suicide Squad, whose title kicked off just last year, actually has a mission quite similar to that of Project Butterfly. In fact, it also included Peacemaker until recently. Bloodsport has also joined up with this team. This new Suicide Squad, led by the talented Zac Thompson, Eduardo Panscica, and Dexter Soy, is aiming to create a world free of aliens.
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Amanda Waller has gotten quite xenophobic in the most literal sense possible. She wants to create a world without aliens like Superman and Martian Manhunter having their say in human affairs. She’s become so committed to the idea that she’s willing to findanother Earthto do it on.
1There Is A Marvel Comics Parallel For Project Butterfly Too
This isn’t to start another “who did it first” discussion, but there is a Marvel parallel for Project Butterfly. After the events ofSecret Invasionby Brian Michael Bendis and Leinil Francis Yu, the people of Earth became quite wary of alien infiltrators.Secret Invasionrevealed that the governments of Earth, as well as many of its super teams, had been infiltrated by the shape-shifting alien Skrulls. Afterward, a team calling itself the Skrull Kill Krew was reorganized by Norman Osborn (yes, the Green Goblin–it’s a long story) to go out and exterminate the remaining Skrulls still hiding on Earth.
It’s easy to see how the Skrull Kill Krew resembled Project Butterfly. Both are hunting down alien infiltrators that can pass as normal human beings in most cases. Both use brutal tactics to kill with extreme prejudice and have been organized by individuals with less-than-strict moral compasses.
