Through its first six episodes, the animated series Creature Commandos – available with your Max subscription – has done an incredible job of laying out the brand new DC universe, without detracting from an exciting story taking place within the show. By kicking off the series with Cersei as a villain, head writer and producer James Gunn establishes the mysterious island of Themyscira, and the tease of Wonder Woman. In that jarring nightmare vision included in Creature Commandos Episode 4, Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) witnessed the violent end of the DCU, with loads of clever Easter eggs included. And this week, in an episode dedicated largely to the origins of Dr. Phosphorus (Alan Tudyk), we got our first real look at an alive, in-action Batman… which allowed Gunn the chance to talk a bit about his approach to the Caped Crusader in this new world.
Obviously, we saw a crucified Batman as part of Waller’s vision in Episode 4. But when Creature Commandos took us through Phosphorus’ tragic backstory in the current Episode 6, we got the above shot of the Dark Knight disrupting the criminal’s reign of terror. Like every DC fan out there (I’m sure), I went frame by frame on that very brief shot, trying to draw details about DCU Batman from the still. But as James Gunn revealed to Rotten Tomatoes TV, he went above and beyond to protect specific details regarding this look at Batman, for now. Gunn said:
When (the animators) first gave it to me, we saw a LOT more Batman. And I was saying, ‘I am not ready to commit to THAT. I am not ready to commit to THAT. I’m not ready to commit to THAT!’ So I just was like, ‘More silhouette, more silhouette.’
Allow me to place the tin-foil hat of speculation on my head and guess that one of the main things that Gunn didn’t want to commit to in the rendering is the color of Batman’s suit. Personally, after a steady stream of jet-black Batman costumes on heroes played by Robert Pattinson, Ben Affleck, and Michael Keaton, I’m dying for a Batman to don the grey spandex with the brighter blue cape and cowl. Tell me you wouldn’t lose your mind if Gunn revealed that his DCU Batman, expected to star in The Brave and the Bold, would sport this costume in live-action? It would be Bat-tastic!
OK, so, James Gunn wouldn’t fully reveal the costume that his Batman will eventually wear in the live-action DCU. However, he did confirm a number of specific details that at least cleared up the status of this Batman. Namely, that he already exists when the DCU starts, and has been active for a while. As Gunn went on to explain:
I think it’s a great way to show that Batman does exist. He already exists in this universe, just like when we come to the Superman movie, we see that Superman already exists. He’s already known by the people in Metropolis. And so, we don’t need to hear the origin story again. That’s just a way to introduce that Batman is a part of this universe, he’s an important part of this universe, and he has an impact on it, including defeating such pretty dangerous, scary people. Like Phosphorus, who’s pretty tough.
I’ve loved the way that Creature Commandos really hit the ground running, introducing a Suicide Squad-esque villain team, but dropping them into a world that already has history (as shown through the inclusion of Sgt. Rock and Easy Company), and ample territory still to explore. It’s also very cool to see how Gunn has remained flexible, willing to greenlight a feature based on Clayface, so long as the script is in the right shape and it contributes to the overall world he and Peter Safran continue to establish.
The new episode of Creature Commandos is available on Max right now, so make sure you are caught up before the finale starts streaming on Thursday, January 9.
