There’s a popular theory on the internet that’s been bumping around ever since Tim Meadows was introduced as ARGUS agent Langston Fleury in Peacemaker: is he secretly the DC Comics superhero Martian Manhunter? The problem with this theory is that, unlike even the most far-reaching of fan theories, this one seems to be based on one simple fact… Langston Fleury is weird, so clearly he must be an alien.
To take a little step back, if you’re not familiar, the character of Martian Manhunter was introduced as the last surviving member of his race of Green Martians, shape-changers who were driven away from their planet by the vile White Martians. J’onn J’onzz hid out on Earth as human detective John Jones, and solved mysteries both in his human form and using his extremely Superman-like powers, as well as telepathy in his Martian form.
Martian Manhunter has traditionally been a member of the Justice League, and in live-action, he has appeared on multiple television shows, as well as in the Zack Snyder cut of Justice League, where it was revealed that Harry Lennix’s character was Martian Manhunter the whole time. Which is maybe where we’re getting at least a bit of the Langston Fleury problem, as the DCEU established a late-in-the-game swerve revealing the character as par for the course. Or at least, it happened once.
On Peacemaker, fans were immediately thrown by Fleury’s introduction, particularly the “bird blindness” joke. Fleury is unable to tell birds from each other, which is not a real affliction, so multiple viewers online have speculated that Fleury is a Martian trying to figure out human things.
There are a couple of other pieces of “evidence” for this theory, which mainly boil down to mentions of Martians in the nascent DCU. In Superman, Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) says, “Tall, dark, and Martian aren’t my thing,” about Superman. And in Peacemaker Season 2, while challenging John Economos (Steve Agee) to quiz him about spider facts, Vigilante (Freddie Stroma) says that “Eyes, by definition, come in pairs.” When Economos points out that’s incorrect, Vigilante says, “Right, I forgot about Martians… One big eye.” There’s also a billboard for Chocos, Martian Manhunter’s favorite cookies, glimpsed in Superman.
So, given Fleury’s Bird Blindness, a billboard for cookies, and two jokes about Martians in the DCU, he must be Martian Manhunter, right?
Fun Fact: Sometimes Jokes Are Just Jokes
Look, I don’t want to come off too dismissive here, because I have been well and truly brain-poisoned by fan theories in the past, and posted plenty of them online myself. Fan theories are fun to throw out there, and can even often be correct (everyone is almost definitely correct about the “DC2 is a Nazi/Earth X dimension” thing we’re about to find out next episode of Peacemaker, for example). But the trick is to let the fan theories be fan theories, and not dictate your level of enjoyment of the show or movie.
They also have a tendency to take over the conversation online — see, this very article you’re reading right now — supplanting the more fruitful conversations of character arcs, emotional journeys, craft used in making action scenes, or the musical score… Whatever. There are hundreds if not thousands of people working on every TV show and movie, and boiling the majority of the conversation around a thing to “what if…” that focuses on the next thing means you’re losing focus on what the people involved are delivering right now.
And more than that, sometimes jokes are just jokes, particularly on a show like Peacemaker. Is Fleury bird blind because he grew up on Mars and can’t tell birds apart? Does he give everyone weird nicknames like “Tittys” because he can’t really tell humans apart, either? Is he giving Economos an uncomfortable massage and eating his food because that’s how they do it on the Red Planet?
…Or more likely, is James Gunn writing jokes that make him laugh on a comedy TV series (that also has a fair amount of drama)? Bird Blindness is in there because Gunn has a friend with Face Blindness (an actual thing). Vigilante says the thing about Martians because it’s weird and funny, and there’s a runner about him not knowing animal facts throughout this season. The Chocos billboard is there as a fun Easter egg because it’s more interesting than a T-Mobile billboard showing up. Lex Luthor saying “Tall, dark and Martian” is dismissive towards Superman, pretending he doesn’t know anything about him.
And almost everything else with Fleury is likely there because Meadows is a talented comedian and improviser who was throwing out wild things on set in every take. That’s certainly true of the improvised massage and food eating, and it’s true of many of the other things as well. The nicknames are there as a running joke, leading up to Judomaster (Nhut Le) threatening to rip off Fleury’s penis if he doesn’t stop calling him “Dunkin Munchkins” in the most recent episode, causing Fleury to call him by his actual superhero name. This is how comedy works, and it likely does not indicate anything other than a fun joke.
Could everything I’m writing here be wrong, and they are indeed laying the groundwork for the reveal of Martian Manhunter by season’s end? For sure. Anything is possible. But for now, these jokes are merely that: jokes that made the characters we’re watching on screen richer, funnier, and more interesting to watch. Even if they might be Martians.
Peacemaker Season 2 Premiere Dates And Episode Guide:
Peacemaker season 2 premiered on HBO Max on Thursday, August 21. The season will be eight episodes long, with one episode premiering per week.
Here’s the full list of episodes in Peacemaker Season 2, with premiere dates:
- Thursday, August 21, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 1
- Thursday, August 28, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 2
- Thursday, September 4, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 3
- Thursday, September 11, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 4
- Thursday, September 18, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 5
- Thursday, September 25, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 6
- Thursday, October 2, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 7
- Thursday, October 9, 2025: Peacemaker, Season 2, Episode 8 *Season Finale*
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