Creature Commandos Season 1 Review (DCU)

IS THIS WORTH WATCHING?

The start of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Universe is finally here! Now I was a bit hesitant to watch Creature Commandos and certainly very nervous for this release as I’m a HUGE DC fan and can be a little too critical for my own good because I just love DC so much. I want to see this world and these characters truly done Justice. Leading up to this release I’ve been hanging on to every interview James Gunn has done since the announcement of the DCU with excitement and a bit of confusion here and there. So I, like some of you, often wondered how this new DC Universe with familiar characters played by some of the same actors from the DCEU that came before was going to play out. I don’t know every corner of DC, certainly not every aspect of the Creature Commandos, so would I even care about these characters when all is said and done and would this be worth watching at all? I’m happy to report that it was most certainly worth watching and I think I finally understand the vision.

STORY

This is the start of Chapter 1 of the DCU - Gods and Monsters giving us a glimpse of some of these Gods and Monsters though one could argue whether some of the Creature Commandos themselves are in fact Monsters and that’s honestly the brilliance of this show. If you’ve seen either of the Suicide Squad films from the DCEU then this shouldn’t feel all too different in terms of the main plotline though of course there is a twist which I thought worked out but I would’ve liked some more episodes, even just 1 more episode, to kind of wrap things up nicely.

The voice acting here by everyone is fantastic and it’s especially great to hear the iconic voices we’ve come to know and love from the DCEU like Amanda Waller and Economos. Each episode seemed to give us some backstory for our Creature Commandos. Some stories completely changed my view on certain characters from what we had seen of them in the DCEU which I really enjoyed as well. I also loved how we got to see other characters in the DCU in the form of what they are or what they could be. They certainly did Justice to making this world feel connected to a larger DCU instead of just keeping the Creature Commandos in a little League of their own.

The humor worked for me sometimes and other times it just wasn’t very funny and maybe even a bit corny but it always served the characters and story so it makes sense. If I’m nitpicking some more I also didn’t really care to see Victor and The Bride that detailed in their love but you know, artistic choices and what not I suppose.

CHARACTERS

Our Creature Commandos, our villains, and everyone in between were all very interesting. My personal favorites are Dr. Phosphorus and G.I. Robot but they are all pretty interesting on their own. James Gunn and his crew have this way, whether in live action or animation, of making you feel some sort of empathy for the main characters and I definitely did for just about everyone. G.I. Robot just wants to fit in but at what cost? Nina wants to feel alive but only finds hatred wherever she goes. Even the story of how Dr. Phosphorus came to be had me feeling emotional and even empathize with him to an extent. That’s good writing and storytelling, especially when compressed to the confines and freedoms of TV and animation.

ANIMATION

I actually didn’t love the animation style at first but it grew on me over the course of the first episode. Once the first fight scene broke out I appreciated it more. There are definitely times where it shines and where it’s just OK. The highlight for me in both the style and direction has to be the scene pictured above showing the rise of Dr. Phosphorus. When Dr. Phosphorus was dancing with his crew then it switched to them shooting (as seen above) it was such a smooth transition and a highlight for me.

MUSIC

The music was good and fit the mood and setting for where the majority of the show takes place but I wouldn’t have minded some variety with some other artists and genre’s outside of the Gogol Bordello show. I mean don’t get me wrong, it worked just fine here but have you seen James Gunn’s playlists on Spotify? We’ve all listened to the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtracks. The man has variety and I need more of it in the DCU please!

RATING: 3/5

FINAL THOUGHTS

I’d say the DCU is off to a good start here and I’d love to see this momentum continue into Superman this summer (which it probably will). I look at Creature Commandos Season 1 as a unique work of art, an appetizer of sorts, showcasing us this new DCU while taking the things and characters that worked from the DCEU of old.

Every episode was good with the exception of Episode 6, Priyatel Skelet, because it was GREAT! I do think this season would’ve benefited from having 8-10 episodes instead of 7. I also think that while we’ve seen some of these characters in live action in the DCEU that seeing them in upcoming projects like Superman, Peacemaker Season 2 and beyond will be absolutely amazing. Some have even been confirmed but what if G.I. Robot interacted with Superman? Dr. Phosphorus fighting Batman? Whether characters meet or not it’s the speculation on what’s to come that makes this DCU exciting.

To me, and what really made everything click though, was thinking about the DCU like the comics. The DCU is essentially the result of a universe resetting event like Flashpoint where certain story threads and characters carried over after into The New 52 while other aspects were changed entirely. That’s at least how I see it but you let me know your thoughts in the comments and are you looking forward to Season 2 of Creature Commandos?

(Photo credits Warner Bros. Discovery.)