Summary
When the announcement came down that writer/director James Gunn would be stepping into a behind-the-scenes role, running the newly revamped DC Studios alongside producer Peter Safran, comic book movie fans held their breath. The filmmaker, who had graduated from low-budget indie splatter pictures to work magic with the MCU’sGuardians of the Galaxyseries, seemed like an ideal fit to lead DC’s film division into a new and better era.
He’d already proven he could bring his unique blend of over-the-top humor and genuine heart to the DC stable with2021’sThe Suicide Squad,which managed the seemingly impossible task of rehabilitating the notorious 2016 flop, so his creative stamp on a slew of new projects was seen as a very promising notion. Now, over two years since the announcement went public, we’re finally beginning to see the fruits of those labors.Creature Commandos,the new animated series entirely scripted by Gunn, is the first release in theDCU’sfirst “chapter,” Gods and Monsters. And if the first two episodes are any indication, it’s a very encouraging first step in Gunn and Safran’s plan to rehabilitate DC’s struggling film output.
DC’s Cinematic Woes
It’s no secret that DC’s film projects have lagged behind its rival Marvel’s, both creatively and monetarily. While Marvel’s approach took its characters seriously while leaving plenty of room for humor, DC’s movies from around the same time were often seen as dour and overly grim by comparison. This is particularly the case with the so-called “Snyderverse” era, when director Zack Snyder was given the reins to remake the franchise in his own image. Snyder treated DC’s superhero stable as gods come down to Earth, and his movies played like modern myths that were less interested inthe nobler sides of the characters.
When Snyder quit the production ofJustice Leaguein the wake of his daughter’s tragic death, DC tried to capture some of that Marvel magic, bringing in Joss Whedon to finish the shoot and bring more humor into the final product. Subsequent releases like 2017’sWonder Woman,2018’sAquaman,and 2019’sShazam!adopted a much more lighthearted tone, and their reception also improved from Snyder’s tenure. Snyder’s films certainly have their ardent defenders, and his approach received a bit of a reappraisal with the release ofJustice League’s"Snyder Cut"in 2021, but DC was never quite able to right its ship during this period.
DC Studios' New Horizons
All this, along with parent company WarnerMedia’s merger Discovery in 2022, led to a significant shake-up in DC Studios' leadership, culminating in the hiring of Gunn and Safran later that year. While Safran mostly oversees the production side of things, Gunn is now DC’s main creative overlord, and he’s already shown how his approach could make DC Studios a sort of anti-Marvel. Gunn has stated that he’s not interested in cranking out content, but rather allowing the projects the time they need to develop, starting with a strong script.
Creature Commandosis aGunn project top-to-bottom, featuring many of the creator’s hallmarks from both his time at Marvel and his previous experience with ultraviolent, self-aware films like 2010’sSuperor 2006’sSlither.It features his signature abundant, tongue-in-cheek humor, along with his penchant for over-the-top violence. This aspect of Gunn’s style had to be tamped down during his tenure at Marvel, but DC has so far proven much more receptive to it, as seen inThe Suicide Squad’sblend of giddy violence and knowingly juvenile humor. Longtime fans of Gunn’s output can rejoice that the chance to play in DC’s giant sandbox has only given him more opportunity to go bigger, weirder, and grosser.
But beyond the humor and gore, it seems that Gunn did take an important lesson from his time with the Guardians; namely, to take his characters seriously. Marvel helped define the superhero blockbuster in part bynot talking down to its audience, by giving its heroes opportunities to grow and develop, and it looks likeCreature Commandosis already doing a good job in this arena. While it’s still early in the season, audiences have already seen the backstory of The Bride bring dimension to the character, and it’s likely that other similar stories are on the way. Evencharacters like G.I. Robothave a core of melancholy—the loneliness of his single-minded, Nazi-slaughtering directive—that cuts through their goofy exterior.
This mix of fleshed-out characters and maximalist violence has already served Gunn’s projects well, and shows thathis approach for the DCUholds the promise of some wonderfully entertaining and resonant projects. While his sensibilities wouldn’t work for every character—nobody really wants a gruesome Superman movie, for example—his creator-friendly leadership and strong grasp of the needs of the material means that he’ll hopefully provide a strong guiding hand for whichever creative team is at the helm. For the first time in a while, DC fans have reason to be excited for their favorite heroes' return to the multiplex.
