It seems like yesterday that my friends and I were cheering like we had just won the World Cup in the wake of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s announcement of DC Studios’ slate of upcoming projects. And now Creature Commandos has begun streaming on Max. Time flies! Even better, Creature Commandos has already exceeded my expectations for the new DC Universe. Since Chapter One of Gunn and Safran’s grand plan is titled “Gods and Monsters,” Creature Commandos is here to give us a bit of both.

I think part of what made me a DC fan for life was the monsters. That is, you can have a medieval rhyming demon like Etrigan fighting alongside Wonder Woman, while Superman rehabilitates Bizarro and Man-Bat hangs out with Swamp Thing. The DC Universe is flush with monsters, but not all of them are evil, nor are they out destroying cities and creating chaos. They may look different than your standard humanoid superhero, but their physical differences aren’t pigeonholing the types of allies they have and the relationships they form.

By starting off with a group of monsters, the DCU is making it clear that empathy is a priority for this era of storytelling. And I wouldn’t want it any other way. I think for most of the general public, their image of DC is Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, maybe Harley Quinn. So, it’s time for that to change, because the greater tapestry of DC is enriched by all of the weirdos running around. What characters like G.I. Robot, Frankenstein, Nina Mazursky and so many more have taught us is that everyone has a story. Gunn has done a great job at giving each character such a distinct personality that you soon forget the hand that life has dealt them. This is exactly the message that I would want to see set before Superman hits theaters next summer. If reading DC comics has taught us anything, it’s that empathy is an important thing to have for everyone, not just those of us who look “normal” like Superman.

And boy, are there a lot of weirdos in Creature Commandos. There’s even one of my favorites, Doctor Phosphorous! I don’t know how to convey what it’s like to see a character you love so much finally get the chance to be a main character on TV. Reading comic books can be such a private experience, that seeing a character make the leap to the screen is so special. It just feels unreal, and I feel grateful to experience this.

Watching Creature Commandos for the first time, it was clear to me how much love was put into bringing each of the characters to life. For instance, in the first episode, Doctor Phosphorous does a line dance in the courtyard of Pokolistan’s palace with a bunch of the princess’s guards (and with no audible music playing in the background). It was so charming to see this character whose appearance makes him misunderstood by everyone around him just vibing with some guys in silly armor he just met. What kind of dance are they doing? Why are they doing it? I don’t know the answer to either question, I’m just so happy for him.

In seeing little moments like Doctor Phosphorous dancing or frying a steak well done with his own hand, there’s a sense of imagination to the DCU that I find invigorating. That is, characters like Doctor Phosphorous are taken to places beyond where you would typically expect to see them. It may seem like something small and insignificant, but it means a lot for monster characters who are often treated with an expectation that they’re going to act a certain way—that they’re always lashing out and causing problems for “normal” people. Seeing monsters get to do “normal” people things like line dancing or playing Jenga makes it clear to me that the DCU is here to change our perspective on who we expect to see stories from. I don’t know, maybe we will find out that Doctor Phosphorous is famous online for doing TikTok dances.

At the Golden Globes one year, Guillermo del Toro said that “monsters are the patron saints of our blissful imperfection,” and that moment has stayed with me since. I think all of us can find a patron saint in one of the Creature Commandos. They may not be perfect, but just like us, they’re just trying their best. It may not be good enough for Amanda Waller, but it’s certainly good enough for me.
 

Creature Commandos is now streaming on Max. Look for new episodes every Thursday.

Jules Chin Greene writes about comics, TV, games and film for DC.com, and his work can also be found at Nerdist, Popverse and Multiverse of Color. You can follow him on Bluesky at @JulesChinGreene and on Instagram at @infinitevibes.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Jules Chin Greene and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.