Season Discussion: Creature Commandos Season 1

If we are going to properly engage with Creature Commandos, we have to do it on two levels. First, like any show, it has to work as a standalone property that the viewer will be interested in enough to show up for every week. Second, it has to work as a prologue to the new DCU (now under the command of James Gunn). The final result is a little mixed but mostly good, even if both levels that the show needed to operate on could have been better.

Let's deal with the broader universal implications of the show. The idea that this is a world of DC heroes and villains that is already in progress immediately sets the DCU apart from the MCU. Even if Batman himself is not a main character of the show, his presence is felt because he did capture at least one member of the team and Clayface is a major player. Circe is a known entity and Themyscira is not a secret. Waller had already assembled Task Force X, they faced off against Starro, and were disbanded when the public found out. By the time Superman comes out in July, this is going to be a pretty deep DC Universe.

On the other hand, this could also be a hindrance to the growth of this universe, especially since it is trying to get out from behind the negativity of the DCEU that's dominated the last decade. This show clearly is a sequel to both Peacemaker and The Suicide Squad. Omitting the fact that Peacemaker has cameos from the entire Justice League (even if Aquaman and The Flash are the only two who appear on camera) because we know they're going to explain that away, Harley Quinn and Rick Flag were both major players in The Suicide Squad and are returning from the 2016 film Suicide Squad. Clearly, Gunn's movie is a sequel to the first and Harley Quinn was captured by Ben Affleck's Batman. I get wanting to retain what people like but this could confuse people, especially if Waller and ARGUS are involved with the Justice Society like they were in Black Adam and the post-credit from Shazam! Fury of the Gods.

As for the show being taken on its own merits, there are a few shortcomings that are a little hard to recover from. The show would have benefited from one or two more episodes to flesh out the entire plot because it doesn't work if you think about it for too long. Why were Circe and Clayface working with the Princess of Pokolistan (and presumably Gorilla Grodd)? Was the princess actually trying to take over the world? Does it matter? Do any of the characters have an actual arc in the show? Is the fact that the characters are largely static on purpose or is it because the show is just too enamored with it's own plot?

Arguably the biggest sin of the show is its treatment of Nina. Nina is on the show to die, and that's it. It doesn't even give her a good reason to be involved in the mission because it's not like her backstory shows her to be a good fit for this team and it's not like the mission requires someone who can swim well until it is time for her to die to motivate The Bride to kill the princess. It's just cheap emotional points which would probably be more forgivable if not for the fact that episode three has a very similar progression of backstory exposition/death. The difference is G.I. Robot went out in a blaze of glory actually doing something to save the team.

Misgivings about the show itself aside, this does work enough as a scene-setting prequel that it is worth watching in advance of Superman in July.

★★★

Creature Commandos Season 1
Showrunner: Dean Lorey
Starring: Indira Varma, Sean Gunn, Alan Tudyk, Frank Grillo
Streaming Service: Max