Fans looking for moreCreature Commandosare in luck, because there are plenty of great stories featuring DC’s squad of spooky soldiers.James Gunn’s latest storyhas been a hilarious and action-packed romp, and it has no doubt got viewers hungry for more.
Creature Commandosis setin Gunn and Peter Safran’s revitalized DCUand follows Amanda Waller’snewest team, Task Force M, a motley crew of monsters led by Rick Flag, Sr. While Gunn has taken liberties with his particular incarnation of the team, there are more than enough stories that will satisfy any fan looking for more creepy, monster action.
5Weird War Tales #93Was Where it All Began
Created by J.M. DeMatteis and Pat Broderick
One can’t discuss Creature Commandos without going back to the beginning and for Task Force M (or rather, Project M as they are known in the comics), that would be the classicWeird War Tales #93. The overall series was an anthology that, as its title implied, told war stories with otherworldly elements. But J.M. DeMatteis and Pat Broderick took things to the next level when they teamed up for a story simply titled “The Creature Commandos”. This incarnation of the team is small, featuring only a handful of monsters,but the Creature Commandos make one hell of a debut.
Their debut story sees the team’s leader, Lieutenant Matthew Shrieve briefing several high-ranking members of the United States government and military about Project M and its members. The politicians and military men are disturbed at what they see, but the officially sanction the project. The Creature Commandos are deployed to a Nazi-occupied stronghold where they massacre nearly the entire lot of soldiers. They even stop a Nazi plot to replace several world leaders with robotic duplicates under Nazi control. The mission is a successand the Creature Commandos live on to take down the threats only they can stop.
Weird War Tales #93was just the first story featuring the Creature Commandos, and they later returned for nearly 20 more stories, including one in the series’ final issue. Though initially focusing on team members Patchwork, Velcoro, and Wolfpack (the Frankenstein, vampire, and werewolf of the team), subsequent stories would later bring in additional members like Medusa and G.I. Robot. While the team left the spotlight after Weird War Tales’ cancelation, their stories left quite an impact on the DC Universe.The Creature Commandos first stories were unconventional and exactly the right kind of weirdthat would inspire later creators.
4Seven Soldiers: FrankensteinRevitalized the Monster and His Bride
Created by Grant Morrison and Doug Mahnke
Yes, the Creature Commandos have their own take on the Frankenstein’s Monster with its founding member Lucky, aka Patchwork. However, Gunn opted for a more direct approach for his series and decided to use the DC Universe’s take on the horror icon. So where did this new spin on the hulking, undead miracle come from? That would be Grant Morrison’s ambitious projectSeven Soldiers,particularly the tie-in miniseriesSeven Soldiers: Frankenstein. This 4-issue story follows Frankenstein as he deals with several supernatural occurrences (all of which are tied into a grander problem he and his fellow ‘soldiers’ are dealing with).
Throughout the miniseries, Frankenstein travels everywhere from a small town infected by a powerful demon to the hills of Mars where he takes on an insidious trickster figure. Little does Frankenstein know that these events are all connected to a sinister force known as the Sheeda, who have come to claim the Earth as theirs. Of course, Frankenstein isn’t alone in his adventure. Throughout the series, he meets up with the Bride, a four-armed, undead solider of the secretive organization S.H.A.D.E.who monitors Frankenstein’s Monster on his epic, pulpy adventures across the DC Universe.
This book is a very fun read, especially for those who have a fondness for Morrison’s out-there writing style. Not to mention Mahnke really brings his A-game with the horrific scenes and characters in this story. That being said, while one could certainly readSeven Soldiers: Frankensteinon its own, it’s far more rewarding to read it as part of Morrison’s largerSeven Soldiersmetaseries. But for the Creature Commandos fans who are just looking for good, old-fashioned actionwith a large splash of creepiness in the mix, this book is certainly going to scratch that kind of itch.
3Flashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the UnknownPaved the Way for the Modern Commandos
Created by Jeff Lemire and Ibraim Roberson
Any DC Comics fan who was around forFlashpointremembers just how much Barry Allen screwed up the DC Universe when he decided to go back in time and save his mother. By altering the past, the Flash created a diverging timeline where nothing was as it seemed. Bruce Wayne was dead and his father was Batman, Superman was found and contained by the government, and the Atlanteans and Amazons were at war.Even Frankenstein and the Creature Commandos weren’t safe as their history and lineup were massively affectedby the Flash’s alteration to the timeline.
Jeff Lemire and Ibraim Roberson’sFlashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknownswitched things up so that Frankenstein was a founding member of the Creature Commandos. Unfortunately, the team was put on ice following the creation of G.I. Robot and they stayed in stasis for nearly seven decades. The Creature Commandos wake up in a terrifying world on the brink of war and desperately search for a way to revert their monstrous states and become humans once more. However, they’re being pursued by numerous threats,including the granddaughter of the Creature Commandos' old leader, Matthew Shrieve.
While this story is set in an alternate continuity,this series is one of the closest to having the lineup presented in theCreature Commandosseries. Frankenstein, G.I. Robot, Nina Mazursky, and even Doctor Phosphorus all make appearances. That being said, it’s a much more bleak take on the team and not as funny. Still, one can clearly see the influence this book had. Not only did it serve as a good lead-in for the New 52 take on the Creature Commandos, but it also started to rework the concept to include more characters than just the team’s standard members.
2Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E.Was an Amazing New Take on the Team
Created by Jeff Lemire and Alberto Ponticelli
Flashpointended with a major shift to the DC Universe and completely reset its continuity. While controversial for many fans and readers, the New 52 era provided an opportunity for creators to explore new corners of the revitalized DC Universe. Jeff Lemire went straight for the darkest corners, examining them in series likeAnimal Man and Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E.. Lemire teamed up with Alberto Ponticelli for this new series, which sawFrankentstein working side-by-side with the Creature Commandos for the first time in the Prime DC continuity.
Frankenstein’s Bride has gone missing after attempting to clean up a small town infested with monsters. To finish the job and rescue his wife, Frankenstein is paired with a new incarnation of the Creature Commandos (known in this continuity as Division M). The team finds themselves thrust into a war that spans the cosmos and puts them up against entire hordes of monsters. And that’s not even getting into the chaos that unfolds when S.H.A.D.E.’s leader, Father Time,agrees to loan Frankenstein and his team out to hunt down an OMAC that’s escaped Checkmate custody.
This series was much more fun than Lemire’s take on the team during theFlashpointevent. He even added to the team’s mythos, introducing new members of the team such as Khalis, a mummy (a classic monster that had always been missing from the Commandos).Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E.is arguably one of the closest series that comes close to matching the tone and ‘feel’ of the Creature Commandos show, though it is original enough to stand on its own. Fans in love with the show are certain to get a kick out of this gem from the New 52.
1Creature Commandosis Perfectly Blending Horror and Action
Created by David Dastmalchian and Jesús Hervás
It’s never surprising when a comic book publisher puts a book on the stands to ride the wave of hype a movie or television adaptation might generate. So when the television show was still a few months away,DC started putting out the first self-titledCreature Commandoscomic book in over 20 years. And DC Comics didn’t just put anyone on this series, but two veritable horror pros. David Dastmalchian, star ofLate Night with the Deviland writer ofCount Crowley, teamed up with Jesús Hervás (Penny Dreadful,Clive Barker’s Hellraiser) for the Creature Commandos new era.
This new series is under the DC Horror imprint and not strictly a part of the Prime DC continuity. The series reintroduces readers to the traditional line-up, while modernizing them a bit. The team is assembled as part of Project M, serving under the command of Matthew Shrieve and Dr. Barbara West. Little do they know that General Eiling, the military commander overseeing Project M,is secretly in communication with the powerful threat known as Brainiac.
This series is still very new, but it’s making real waves among readers. Though it’s a far cry from looking like the Creature Commandos assembled in Gunn’s animated series, it’s a damn good read and Dastmalchian and Hervás really bring their best to this miniseries. Not only is it a good way of gettingfans accustomed to the more traditional lineup of Creature Commandos, this new series is just a fun read for anyone who is looking for a bit more horror in their superhero books.
Creature Commandos
Cast
Creature Commandos follows the exploits of a secret team of incarcerated monsters recruited for perilous missions unsuitable for humans. Released in December 2024, the film explores themes of redemption and collaboration as the monstrous squad is tasked with handling threats that present dire challenges beyond human capability.
