Meet the Suicide Squa—Wait No, the Creature Commandos
James Gunn recently revealed several plans for his and Safran’s new DC Universe (DCU). The co-CEOs are constructing a 10-year plan for the franchise and have started to unveil some projects that will be a part of the new DCU’s Chapter One. The title of the first chapter is Gods and Monsters, and it currently has 10 projects anticipated to be a part of it. While the majority of TV shows and films revealed to be in development were live-action projects, there was one animated project confirmed to be on the way, Creature Commandos.
Creature Commandos had the honor of being the first project Gunn revealed during his statement. Development of the series seems to be well underway, with Gunn sharing a peek at some very detailed key concept art. He also revealed that he is the writer behind Creature Commandos, which follows the superhero team of the same name from DC Comics. While not all viewers will be familiar with Creature Commandos, many quickly noticed Weasel in the concept art. Weasel (Sean Gunn) was introduced in The Suicide Squad and was shown to have escaped after the team mistook him for dead.
Gunn’s plans for interconnectivity throughout the DCU make Creature Commandos particularly interesting. He revealed that he wants all the DCU films, TV shows, animated projects, and videos to be connected. Not only that, but he wants to feature the same actors across live-action and animation. This is something not a lot of franchises have been able to pull off due to actors’ schedules. It will be interesting to watch the show and know that the voice actors could appear later in the DCU as their live-action counterparts. Whether the Creature Commandos will appear in further projects remains to be seen, but taking a look into their comic book history may hint at their DCU debut and future.
Who are DC’s Creature Commandos?
The Creature Commandos are a team of superhero monsters that were first introduced to DC Comics in 1980. The original team was created by J.M. DeMatteis and Pat Broderick, first appearing in Weird War Tales #93, which hints at their unconventional nature. Creature Commandos were created through experimentation during World War II. In response to the war, the U.S. started Project M, a government initiative determined to create super-soldiers. Creature Commandos were created to be superpowered soldiers, but with ghoulish and horrific appearances to give them the added power of sparking terror and fear in their enemies.
The team’s six original members were:
- Lt. Matthew Shrieve (human)
- Warren Griffith (werewolf)
- Sgt. Vincent Velcro (vampire)
- Pvt. Elliot “Lucky” Taylor (Frankenstein-like monster)
- Dr. Myrna Rhodes (Medusa-like gorgon)
- Shrieve, the only human on the team, generally served as the team’s leader
Meanwhile, the team had a pretty chaotic and, at times, gruesome history. The group struggled with morality, often being sent by the U.S. government on unethical missions that included questionable killings and sacrifices, such as killing dozens of youth super soldiers. The team also once discovered and had some adventures on a dinosaur-inhabited island.
Members of the team, especially Shrieve and Taylor, struggled with some of the less-than-moral missions the team took on. Ultimately, though, the Creature Commandos didn’t have a very extensive history. Like many teams, they got mixed up with some other DC heroes, including Superman, and lost and gained members over time. They also began serving under the secretive organization of S.H.A.D.E. after separating themselves from Project M. The team continued to rely on artificial enhancements and experimentation to deal with their aging, though.
The DCU’s Creature Commandos
So far, Gunn’s Creature Commandos is gearing up to be quite different from the comics version of the team. Instead of featuring the team’s founding members, the DCU’s team will consist of Rick Flag Sr., Nina Mazursky, Dr. Phosphorus, Eric Frankenstein, G.I. Robot, and Weasel. Also, instead of being created during WWII by Project M, Creature Commandos will be a black ops team formed by none other than Amanda Waller (Viola Davis). Although the series will take some creative liberties, it does seem as if it will ultimately still follow the spirit and basis of the original Creature Commandos by bringing together a group of morally ambiguous and rather monstrous-looking figures in a black ops team that’s just a disaster waiting to happen.
(featured image: DC Studios / Warner Bros.)
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