Creature Commandos Premiere Recap: Grade The Launch Of The New DCU!
Max's Creature Commandos premiere threw us headfirst into James Gunn's rebooted DC Universe, further clarifying which elements of the previous continuity are carrying over, which aren't, and what to expect moving forward. (Gunn, co-CEO of DC Studios, wrote all of the animated series' seven-episode first season.)
"The Collywobbles" kicks off with ruthless efficiency. A breathless exchange between Rick Flag Sr. (voiced by MCU vet Frank Grillo) and Amanda Waller (The Suicide Squad's Viola Davis) at Belle Reve prison doubles as an exposition dump: Essentially, Waller needs Flag to lead a team to Pokolistan to protect a beleaguered princess from the rogue Amazonian sorceress Circe (The Witcher's Anya Chalotra). At least, that's the reason she wants Flag to broadcast. She actually wants Pokolistan's petroleum supply, and keeping the country's leaders safe seems a surefire way to get it.
Waller introduces Flag to the titular team, Suicide Squad-style. First up is the Bride (Game of Thrones vet Indira Varma), a walking corpse of unknown origin. Across the room, Dr. Phosphorus (Harley Quinn's Alan Tudyk) plays Jenga with decommissioned WWII asset G.I. Robot (The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special's Sean Gunn), while the Weasel (also Gunn, reprising his The Suicide Squad role) loudly licks his own crotch and repulses everyone present.
Finally, we're acquainted with the amphibious Nina Mazursky (The Afterparty's Zoë Chao). Waller presents Mazursky as Flagg's best shot at wrangling these degenerates, claiming she's the smartest member of the group and an absolute powerhouse underwater.
The long and short of it? Because of Adebayo's press conference at the close of Peacemaker Season 1, Waller and Flag can no longer use human prisoners to carry out their special missions, so they've tapped equally expendable non-humans to do their Dark Bidding and further some sinister plot we aren't privy to just yet. (Leave it to Waller to find a loophole.)
So, as Circe tears across the globe, bringing with her a terrorist cell calling itself the "Sons of Themyscira" and raising all kinds of hell on her way to claim what she believes is her rightful place as the queen of Themyscira, the Creature Commandos depart Belle Reve.
Princess Ilana Rostovic (The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special's Maria Bakalova) greets Flag & Co. at her palace, prompting a series of formalities that reinforce a critical detail: The Bride and Pokolistan share a history to which we aren't yet privy. "The Collywobbles" has already hinted this multiple times, and we'll have some clarity there before too long.
The princess appears attracted to Flag, who opens up about his past, his wife, and the son he lost (played by Joel Kinnaman) in The Suicide Squad. Ilana attempts to seduce him, but Flag, with some difficulty, rejects her and orders G.I. to guard her room.
Later that night, Nina notices the Bride sneaking out of the palace and follows her. Flag probably would've noticed if he wasn't fixing to deal with a much more immediate problem.
Now, given these monsters have been mostly well-behaved, you may've forgotten that getting the Creature Commandos to play nice is a tall order. So far, the biggest offense we've seen was their attempt to jump Waller earlier in the episode, which got them zapped for their efforts. (For context, the electric shock Waller uses to incapacitate them effectively replaces the bombs she usually puts in her soldiers' skulls to keep them compliant.)
Fast forward to the premiere's final minutes, where Dr. Phosphorus sneakily tries to disable the zapper on Flag's phone. Flag catches him in the act, and a fierce battle ensues. Violence is sparse in "The Collywobbles," but if this sequence is anything to go by (and trust us, it is), then we're in for one heck of a treat. Flag eventually bests Phosphorus and assures him he doesn't want to torture him.
The episode closes on Nina and the Bride arriving at a massive castle, unaware of the local woman watching them from a nearby guardhouse. Elsewhere, on a party yacht, the hulking Frankenstein (Black Widow's David Harbour) gets a call from said woman, informing him of the Bride's arrival. Tears filling his eyes, Frankenstein says, "My bride. After all these years, I've found you!"
The first two episodes of Creature Commandos are now streaming on Max.
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