Thanks to the universe-smooshing (official term) events of CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS (1985-1986), Peacemaker is now part of the regular DC Universe! If you’ve come here after watching the TV series, looking for laughs, you’re gonna have to wait for our third and final entry, PEACEMAKER READING ORDER, 2019-Present, which eventually feature stories with more of a John Cena/James Gunn inspired version of the character.
The Peacemaker of the version of the DCU that many feel to be the ‘true’ continuity is way more messed up. Having discovered his father has connections with the Nazis, Chris Smith becomes even more unhinged than he already was. After the Vigilante brings him down, he’ll still have to navigate his way through a tour of duty with Checkmate, a clash with the Suicide Squad, and ultimately a mission to Parador to take out Eclipso that may be more than he can handle. But Peacemaker’s shot at redemption comes in a surprising form in his role as Blue Beetle‘s mentor!
A huge thank you to DCU Guide for their assistance in assembling this reading order!
See more DC Universe Character & Team Reading Orders.
Must Reads: Story arcs marked with a ✔ are must-read stories from this time period, along with any key related stories and often-forgotten tales that are worth a read.
Anthology Issues: When an issue contains multiple stories, the relevant story is denoted with square brackets. For example, [2/5] refers to the second story of the five stories in that issue, so you don’t need to read the other four.
Chronology: Every appearance of Peacemaker from this period is included in chronological order, laying out their timeline rather than just the order the issues were released.
Spoilers: The issue/story overviews may include spoilers, so be warned!
The pre-Crisis stories featuring the Peacemaker of Earth-Four can be found here:
- PEACEMAKER, 1966-1986 – Introducing the Peacemaker
Want to keep it simple? Here’s the core reading order without story descriptions, page-by-page breakdowns – just the stories:
- History of the DC Universe (1986) #2
- DC Universe Legacies #5 [1/2]
- Vigilante #36-38
- Vigilante #41-43
- Peacemaker (1988) #1-4
- Invasion! #2
- Blasters Special #1
- Suicide Squad (1987) #27
- Checkmate (1988) #16
- Sucide Squad (1987) #28
- Checkmate (1988) #17
- Sucide Squad (1987) #29
- Checkmate (1988) #18
- Suicide Squad (1987) #30
- Firestorm #87
- Checkmate (1988) #19-26
- Checkmate (1988) #28
- Justice League Europe #17
- Checkmate (1988) #32-33
- War of the Gods #4
- Showcase ’93 #6 [3/3]
- Showcase ’93 #7 [2/3]
- Showcase ’93 #8 [2/3]
- Showcase ’93 #9 [2/3]
- Showcase ’93 #10 [2/3]
- Showcase ’93 #11 [2/3]
- Eclipso #11-14
- Justice League International #65
- Justice League America #90
- Day of Judgment #3
- LAW: Living Assault Weapons #1-6
- Manhunter (2004) #15 [1/4]
- Infinite Crisis #7
- Bue Beetle (2006) #3-9, 12-13
- Blue Beetle (2006) #19-20, 22, 24-25
- Blue Beetle (2006) #28-29, 32-34, 36
- Final Crisis Aftermath: Escape #2
- Booster Gold #28 [2/2]
- Booster Gold #29 [2/2]
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Event / Crossover |
| History of the DC Universe #2 (1987) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker (Chris Smith) is referenced in Harbinger’s History of the Universe. | ||
| DC Universe Legacies #5 [1/2] (2010) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker is among the costumed heroes making a name for themselves in Chicago. | ||
| ✔ | Vigilante #36-38 (1986-1987) Peacemaker and the new Vigilante (Dave Winston) converge to stop a plane hijacking in New York; Peacemaker despatches Winston; Peacemaker clashes with the original Vigilante, Adrian Chase. 1st appearance: Peacemaker/Christopher Smith, Agency | |
| ✔ | Vigilante #41-43 (1987) The Agency deem Peacemaker to be unstable and employ the Vigilante to bring him in. 1st appearance: Scott Jameson, Phil Kramer | |
| ✔ | Peacemaker #1-4 (1988) A unit within the Agency called Project Peacemaker keeps a close eye on Christopher Smith while he carries out missions for the Agency itself; Peacemaker goes up against Doctor Tzin-Tzin, Killerwatt, Razorback and Warhead; Peacemaker discovers the truth about his father, which does little to help his sanity. 1st appearance: Project Peacemaker (Bridgette D’Abo, Frank Keller, Ross Llewellyn, Dominique St Claire, Gunther Steiner), Wolfgang Schmidt | |
| Invasion #2 (1988) Blasters Special #1 (1989) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker is among the heroes defending Earth from the invading Alien Alliance. 1st appearance: Lyrissa Mallor, Strata | ||
| ✔ | Suicide Squad #27 (1989) Checkmate #16 (1989) Sucide Squad #28 (1989) Checkmate #17 (1989) Sucide Squad #29 (1989) Checkmate #18 (1989) Sucide Squad #30 (1989) The various agencies employing metahuman agents – Checkmate, Force of July, Project Atom and Task Force X – are manipulated by the Janus Directive into going to war against one another; with Project Peacemaker now under Task Force X, Amanda Waller sends Peacemaker to do her dirty work; Peacemaker throws down with Major Force; Project Peacemaker moves under the control of Checkmate. New identity: Kobra Cult as the Janus Directive | THE JANUS DIRECTIVE |
| Firestorm #87 (1989) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker is present when Firestorm refuses to cooperate with Checkmate. | ||
| ✔ | Checkmate #19-26 (1989-1990) Peacemaker starts carrying out missions for Checkmate; Bishop continues to be a threat to Checkmate, until Peacemaker’s actions lead to his unmasking. 1st appearance: Jerry Blake | |
| ✔ | Checkmate #28 (1990) Peacemaker cameo; Bridgette D’Abo chooses to keep secrets from Peacemaker. |
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Event / Crossover |
| Justice League Europe #17 (1990) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker pnders what to do about the Extremists‘ assault on the United Nations. | ||
| ✔ | Checkmate #32-33 (1990-1991) Victor Cypher‘s attempted takeover of Austanberg is opposed by Checkmate and Peacemaker. | |
| War of the Gods #4 (1991) Peacemaker is among the army of metahumans opposing Circe and her horde of dead heroes, the Legion of Hades. | WAR OF THE GODS | |
| ✔ | Showcase ’93 #6 [3/3] (1993) Showcase ’93 #7 [2/3] (1993) Showcase ’93 #8 [2/3] (1993) Showcase ’93 #9 [2/3] (1993) Showcase ’93 #10 [2/3] (1993) Showcase ’93 #11 [2/3] (1993) Peacemaker returns to Poland and teams up with Deathstroke and Katana against Kobra and their hired assassins, Deadshot and Doctor Light. | |
| ✔ | Eclipso #11-13 (1993) Peacemaker becomes a member of Amanda Waller’s Shadow Fighters to oppose Eclipso when he takes over Parador; Peacemaker meets a terrible fate alongside Commander Steel, Creeper, Doctor Midnight, Major Victory, Manhunter and Wildcat. | |
| Eclipso #14 (1993) Peacemaker ‘s corpse is seen in Parador. | ||
| Justice League International #65 (1994) Justice League America #90 (1994) A new, villainous ‘Peacemaker’ emerges as a member of the League Busters, though his career is short-lived. 1st appearance: League Busters (Chromax, Mirror Master, Peacemaker, Spellbinder) | ||
| Day of Judgment #3 (1999) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker is among the spirits shown in the afterlife. | DAY OF JUDGMENT | |
| LAW: Living Assault Weapons #1-6 (1999-2000) Mitchell Black takes up the Peacemaker mantle and allies with Blue Beetle (Ted Kord), Captain Atom, Judomaster, Nightshade, the Question and Sarge Steel to stand against the villain Avatar when he summons the demons of Ravanan. 1st appearance: Living Assault Weapons, Peacemaker/Mitchell Black |
| Must Reads | Title, Synopsis & First Appearances | Event / Crossover |
| ✔ | Manhunter #15 [1/4] (2005) Flashback; Manhunter (Kate Spencer) finds out how some of the the Shadow Fighters survived their battle with Eclipso. | |
| Infinite Crisis #7 (2006) Peacemaker (Mitchell Black) is killed by Prometheus. | INFINITE CRISIS | |
| ✔ | Blue Beetle #3-9 (2006-2007) Peacemaker (Chris Smith) returns and becomes an unlikely mentor to the new Blue Beetle (Jaime Reyes); Peacemaker reveals the true origin of Jaime’s Blue Beetle Scarab. 1st appearance: Alina, Bottom Feeder, La Dama/Tio Amparo, Diviner, Danielle Garrett, Hector, Nadia, Piñata | |
| ✔ | Blue Beetle #12-13 (2007) Peacemaker assists Blue Beetle against the alien Reach. 1st appearance: Reach (Dawur, Negotiator) | |
| ✔ | Blue Beetle #19 (2007) Peacemaker trains Blue Beetle how to fight, giving him the edge over Giganta. | |
| ✔ | Blue Beetle #20 (2007) Peacemaker is recruited into the Sinestro Corps, but his Yellow Lantern Ring activates the Scarab implanted in him by the Reach; Peacemaker attacks Blue Beetle in his new guise, Infiltrator! New identity: Peacemaker/Chris Smith as Infiltrator | SINESTRO CORPS WAR |
| ✔ | Blue Beetle #22 (2008) Peacemaker recovers from the injuries caused by the Reach’s Scarab. | |
| ✔ | Blue Beetle #24-25 (2008) Peacemaker sides with the Posse and rejoins the fight against the Reach. | |
| Blue Beetle #28-29 (2008) Peacemaker continues to mentor Blue Beetle as he faces even stranger foes. 1st appearance: Anubis the Dogpound, Mariposa Nichol | ||
| Blue Beetle #36 (2009) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker concludes Blue Beetle’s training. | ||
| Final Crisis Aftermath: Escape #2 (2009) Peacemaker cameo; Peacemaker is revealed to be a prisoner of Amanda Waller. | ||
| ✔ | Booster Gold #28 [2/2] (2010) Booster Gold #29 [2/2] (2010) Peacemaker returns to Blue Beetle’s side when Jaime’s transformed into a Reach Infiltrator. New identity: Blue Beetle/Jaime Reyes as Infiltrator |
The next Peacemaker saga continues on Prime Earth with this (upcoming) reading order:
- PEACEMAKER, 2019-Present – Giving Peace a Bad Name
| Collected Edition Title | Collects… |
| DC Finest – Peacemaker: Kill For Peace | Checkmate #15-26, 28, 32-33 [part] Eclipso #11-13 [part] Fightin’ Five #40-41 Peacemaker (1967) #1-5 Peacemaker (1988) #1-4 Showcase ’93 #6-11 Suicide Squad #27-30 [part] Vigilante #36-38, 42-43 [part] |
| Suicide Squad vol.4: The Janus Directive | Captain Atom #30 Checkmate #15-18 Firestorm #86 Manhunter #14 Suicide Squad #26-30 |
| Blue Beetle: Jaime Reyes – Book One | Blue Beetle #1-12 |
| Blue Beetle: Jaime Reyes – Book Two | Blue Beetle #13-25 |
| Blue Beetle: Jaime Reyes – Book Three | Blue Beetle #26-36 Booster Gold #21-29 [part] |
| Collected Edition Title | Includes… |
| Blue Beetle: Shellshocked | Blue Beetle #3-6 |
| Blue Beetle: Road Trip | Blue Beetle #9, 12 |
| Blue Beetle: Reach for the Stars | Blue Beetle #13, 19 |
| Blue Beetle: End Game | Blue Beetle #20, 22, 24-25 |
| Deathstroke by Marv Wolfman Omnibus vol.1 | Showcase ’93 #6-11 |
| Manhunter vol.3: Origins | Manhunter #15 |
| Suicide Squad by John Ostrander Omnibus vol.2 | Checkmate #16-18 Suicide Squad #27-30 |
Reading Order Copyright © 2025 Omniverse Comics Guide
Leave a Reply