"Creature Commandos" Season One Talkback (Spoilers)

[Frontier]

Probably public mischief offenses and trespassing on private property (the water supply station). If at any time in those three years, she fled from the police - intentionally fleeing the scene, too. Once Waller got wind of Nina in the news, had her transferred to NHID.

I guess there really isn't any kind of scale for lower-scale Metahuman crimes...you get convicted, for anything, you get sent to Belle Reve .

In the Dec. 5 interview on DC's Youtube, he did say he looked at a list of DC characters that could be on the team and then admitted the original comic book roster, Nosferata, and any gorilla/ape/monkey DC character were all considered.

Honestly a part of me wonders if they should have just kept Matthew Shrieve as the leader because I'm not sure if this was a good introduction for Flag Sr....though then it wouldn't have been a good use for him because they needed an excuse to put Bride in charge .

Feels like that was the point and will be picked up by another series and/or movie.

Probably in season 2 too .

Animation hasn't really nailed a good take on Waller aside from JLU, imo.

Also the most faithful to John Ostrander and Kim Yale's interpretation of the character, fittingly enough...

 

[Yojimbo]

I guess there really isn't any kind of scale for lower-scale Metahuman crimes...you get convicted, for anything, you get sent to Belle Reve .

Honestly a part of me wonders if they should have just kept Matthew Shrieve as the leader because I'm not sure if this was a good introduction for Flag Sr....though then it wouldn't have been a good use for him because they needed an excuse to put Bride in charge .

Probably in season 2 too .

Also the most faithful to John Ostrander and Kim Yale's interpretation of the character, fittingly enough...

Agreed, I think they're implying the law has not updated for metahumans and people like Amanda Waller are exploiting that gap and collecting them all into Belle Reve under the veil of keeping American safe.

Shrieve, I was thinking about that. Note G.I. Robot on this show is the second one. It's not stated, but 2 is on his helmet like in the comics. So implicitly, there was another one before him that got destroyed. So I'm stretching, but Shrieve might've been on that mission and already be dead in the present. The fact that the Army embedded GI into a company and all we saw so far were Nazis (and Bride and Eric) but in interviews Gunn said metahumans were in World War II, there's more story there to be told and they could be saving Shrieve for that.

It's established in interviews Gunn has a long term plan for Flag Sr. so yeah... hard so say. Kind of a bummer he had to be the one to get messed up royally but like the outdated laws, his whupping kind of speaks to how even one of the best of the best in the military can't hold a candle to a meta in one-on-one combat and the military is going to have to adapt, too. I think that's going to be a point in Superman if certain characters appearing are any indication. Yes, short term, it sucked he was used as a patsy on this season but long term, he'll probably do better in Superman and Peacemaker and beyond.

 

[Frontier]

It's established in interviews Gunn has a long term plan for Flag Sr. so yeah... hard so say. Kind of a bummer he had to be the one to get messed up royally but like the outdated laws, his whupping kind of speaks to how even one of the best of the best in the military can't hold a candle to a meta in one-on-one combat and the military is going to have to adapt, too. I think that's going to be a point in Superman if certain characters appearing are any indication. Yes, short term, it sucked he was used as a patsy on this season but long term, he'll probably do better in Superman and Peacemaker and beyond.

Honestly I think Peacemaker will be a make or break it moment for the character because he'll probably get more character work and meat to chew on than in Superman because he'll just be operating like a typical government guy just doing his job there.

I have to think Frank Grillo must feel like he's getting something out of this role considering his grievances with how the MCU wasted him as Crossbones.

 

[Yojimbo]

Honestly I think Peacemaker will be a make or break it moment for the character because he'll probably get more character work and meat to chew on than in Superman because he'll just be operating like a typical government guy just doing his job there.

I have to think Frank Grillo must feel like he's getting something out of this role considering his grievances with how the MCU wasted him as Crossbones.

Yeah. The bottom line take away is Flag appearing in CC was to a) establish he truly loved and admired his son and his death still affects him 3 years later and b) show he's willing to oppose Waller's choices and go off on his own to prove his point and lastly, these threads will continue into both Superman and Peacemaker.

 

[Frontier]

Yeah. The bottom line take away is Flag appearing in CC was to a) establish he truly loved and admired his son and his death still affects him 3 years later and b) show he's willing to oppose Waller's choices and go off on his own to prove his point and lastly, these threads will continue into both Superman and Peacemaker.

Also he's not immune to a pretty (and younger) woman .

 

[Yojimbo]

Just researched the source material as the titular Creature Commandos have never had an ongoing comic. It appears that this version of the team if not much like any of the comics lineups. Nina and Bride of Frankenstein were in the New 52 lineup.

Funny that G.I. Robot mentioned Bogman was in Easy Company when in the comics, he's a Creature Commando, basically Creature from the Black Lagoon.

edit: Besides CC, there's also Agents of S.H.A.D.E. that is a similar team. And Bogman was in a CC that was led by a different human named Captain Hunter in a 2000 mini-series. I missed that one, maybe I'll give it a read. Just 8 issues.

 

[wonderfly]

The News Team's Magmaster12 has a new review up on the front page of AnimeSuperhero.com:

"Review: Creature Commandos: Finding Empathy In A Disgusting World"​

"A couple of years ago, we got the announcement of James Gunn taking over a brand DC Cinematic Universe, which included one clear idea: all movies, TV shows, cartoons, and video games would take place in the same universe. This makes sense since James Gunn was openly critical about how Marvel made a Guardians of the Galaxy cartoon advertised as being a continuation of the movie, but which failed to be truly connected.

It’s understandable why Gunn would be annoyed by this because he is probably the master subversion, he never wants to take the obvious path regarding his storytelling. This is probably why he decided to make a Suicide Squad spin-off project based on an incredibly obscure comic book team, The Creature Commandos.

Being an animated spin-off of The Suicide Squad, it easily delivers what most people were hoping for. It features the return of characters like Amanda Waller, voiced by Voila Davis, who probably recorded her lines in the same room that we’ve never seen Amanda Waller leave since the last Suicide Squad movie. The other returning character we have is John Economos, who had a big role in Peacemaker and is now a sort of mythology expert for Waller. The final returning character sort of would be Rick Flag Sr, whose son died in the previous Suicide Squad movie. I’ll be damned if I didn’t point out how much this character looks like a buff version of James Gunn, who he sees in this cartoon’s intro."

Read the full review here.

 

[Yojimbo]

Ah, so aside from Nina following Ilana's backstroke being an homage to a scene in Creature From The Black Lagoon another classic that the show does a hat tip to is in Dr. Phosphorus' flashback. When Rupert Thorne uses his food as props to entertain his children, that's a nod to the roll dance Charlie Chapin did in a scene in "The Gold Rush".

 

[Wag]

Honestly I think Peacemaker will be a make or break it moment for the character because he'll probably get more character work and meat to chew on than in Superman because he'll just be operating like a typical government guy just doing his job there.

I have to think Frank Grillo must feel like he's getting something out of this role considering his grievances with how the MCU wasted him as Crossbones.

Clearly his grievances aren't that bad as he's back in the MCU as The Punisher in the D+ Born Again series.

 

[-batmat-]

Clearly his grievances aren't that bad as he's back in the MCU as The Punisher in the D+ Born Again series.

The Punisher is played by Jon Bernthal, not Frank Grillo

 

[Wag]

The Punisher is played by Jon Bernthal, not Frank Grillo

Oops, my bad. Not sure why I got those two mixed up.

 

[Yojimbo]

Did an instagram dive looking for concept art and the like.

Jon Suzuki
-December 6, 2024: Bride layout from ep. 1
-December 11, 2024: Bride layout from ep. 1
-December 13, 2024: Incidental from ep. 1
-December 21, 2024: Gorilla Grodd designs

Will Nichols
-December 11, 2024: Early Eric Frankenstein designs
-January 18, 2025: Character designs G.I. Robot, historical Eric Frankenstein, Weasel
-January 18, 2025: Character designs, Belle Reve, Can-Can, Paris (?) incidental characters

Mariel Rodriguez
-January 13, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 6
-January 14, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 6
-January 17, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 7, Star City
-January 20, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 7, Star City
-January 21, 2025: Backgrounds of Poko Castle

Oliver Tszeng
-December 5, 2024: Background from ep. 1, back of Sheba the Osprey
-December 9, 2024: Background from ep. 2, Frankenstein Manor and Paris
-December 13, 2024: Background from ep. 3, military collection
-December 24, 2024: Background from ep. 4, Belle Reve tarmac
-January 16, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 6, Sartorius home

Jenny Li
-December 5, 2024: Concepts of Belle Reve Non-Human Internment Division
-December 9, 2024: Concepts of Pokolistan
-December 10, 2024: Background layouts from ep. 1+2 of Poko Castle. (some layouts were by Bobbypills or Jonard Soriano)
-December 13, 2024: Backgrounds from ep. 3 (military store, Hub City court room, jail cell)
-January 9, 2025: Various backgrounds

Bill Dunn
-December 5, 2024: Interior of Sheba.
-December 6, 2024: Frankenstein Manor+Lab backgrounds from ep. 2
-December 12, 2024: Poko Castle backgrounds from ep. 2
-December 19, 2024: Press tour backgrounds from ep. 3
-December 26, 2024: More Frankenstein Manor+Lab backgrounds from ep. 2
-January 2, 2025: Gotham City from Circe vision in ep. 4
-January 9, 2025: Hospital backgrounds from ep. 6

 

[Frontier]

Did an instagram dive looking for concept art and the like.

Jon Suzuki
-December 6, 2024: Bride layout from ep. 1
-December 11, 2024: Bride layout from ep. 1
-December 13, 2024: Incidental from ep. 1
-December 21, 2024: Gorilla Grodd designs

Will Nichols
-December 11, 2024: Early Eric Frankenstein designs
-January 18, 2025: Character designs G.I. Robot, historical Eric Frankenstein, Weasel
-January 18, 2025: Character designs, Belle Reve, Can-Can, Paris (?) incidental characters

Mariel Rodriguez
-January 13, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 6
-January 14, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 6
-January 17, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 7, Star City
-January 20, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 7, Star City
-January 21, 2025: Backgrounds of Poko Castle

Oliver Tszeng
-December 5, 2024: Background from ep. 1, back of Sheba the Osprey
-December 9, 2024: Background from ep. 2, Frankenstein Manor and Paris
-December 13, 2024: Background from ep. 3, military collection
-December 24, 2024: Background from ep. 4, Belle Reve tarmac
-January 16, 2025: Backgrounds from ep. 6, Sartorius home

Jenny Li
-December 5, 2024: Concepts of Belle Reve Non-Human Internment Division
-December 9, 2024: Concepts of Pokolistan
-December 10, 2024: Background layouts from ep. 1+2 of Poko Castle. (some layouts were by Bobbypills or Jonard Soriano)
-December 13, 2024: Backgrounds from ep. 3 (military store, Hub City court room, jail cell)
-January 9, 2025: Various backgrounds

Bill Dunn
-December 5, 2024: Interior of Sheba.
-December 6, 2024: Frankenstein Manor+Lab backgrounds from ep. 2
-December 12, 2024: Poko Castle backgrounds from ep. 2
-December 19, 2024: Press tour backgrounds from ep. 3
-December 26, 2024: More Frankenstein Manor+Lab backgrounds from ep. 2
-January 2, 2025: Gotham City from Circe vision in ep. 4
-January 9, 2025: Hospital backgrounds from ep. 6

The designs and background art were pretty great in this show .

 

[Yojimbo]

Gunn elaborates on some other characters he considered for the team this season.

I definitely considered Wolfpack, and, especially, Man-Bat (one of my faves). But I knew I wanted to tell Weasel’s story so it felt like too many rabid and fuzzy characters. I considered Vincent Velcoro but wanted to choose a “creature” far outside the usual roster from another part of DC - so I went with Dr. Phosphorous instead. I also considered Solomon Grundy, another favorite, but was pretty set on Frankenstein.

 

[Frontier]

Gunn elaborates on some other characters he considered for the team this season.

Honestly he mentions Man-Bat and now I'm just imagining Francine Langstrom dead or shot by rabid police to add to Kirk's man-pain...

Honestly Solomon Grundy being a violent man-child would make way more sense than DC's Frankenstein .

 

[khuddle]

What I liked: the Bride's story. The Bride is created to be Frank's life-mate, but she falls in love with her creator instead. In a fit of jealousy, Frank goes on to kill the creator, which in turn drives the Bride insane. She resists his attempts to her woo her for 150 years. Bitter and cynical, she joins up with the Commandos, and meets the Fish-Girl, who shows the Bride nothing but warmth and empathy, despite the Bride's cold treatment of her. It is only in Episode 7 when the Fish-Girl dies that the Bride realizes she just lost the only friend she ever had. Great stuff.

What I disliked: Episode 7. Fish-Girl's story, and her premature death, is so overwhelmingly sad that I resolved never to watch this episode again. Look, James Gunn, I realize your the "it" guy in Hollywood at the moment and considered a talented writer, but for the love of God can you please refrain from writing such unbelievably sad stories. Most of us have to endure some pain, stress and sadness in our day to day to lives, its the LAST thing we want to see when we watch a TV show.

 

[Frontier]

What I liked: the Bride's story. The Bride is created to be Frank's life-mate, but she falls in love with her creator instead. In a fit of jealousy, Frank goes on to kill the creator, which in turn drives the Bride insane. She resists his attempts to her woo her for 150 years. Bitter and cynical, she joins up with the Commandos, and meets the Fish-Girl, who shows the Bride nothing but warmth and empathy, despite the Bride's cold treatment of her. It is only in Episode 7 when the Fish-Girl dies that the Bride realizes she just lost the only friend she ever had. Great writing.

What I disliked: Episode 7. Fish-Girl's story, and her premature death, is so overwhelmingly sad that I resolved never to watch this episode again. Look, James Gunn, I realize your the "it" guy in Hollywood at the moment and considered a talented writer, but for the love of God can you please refrain from writing such unbelievably sad stories. Most of us have to endure some pain, stress and sadness in our day to day to lives, its the LAST thing we want to see when we watch a TV show.

Honestly it still rubs me the wrong way that they changed Frankenstein and the Bride's dynamic so much that it negatively impacted eric's characterization and changed him dramatically from his comic characterization. All to service the Bride's storyline .

Even Nina basically got sacrificed for the Bride's character development, basically.

 

[Yojimbo]

Episodes 1-3 are free to watch.