While much of the buzz around DC Studios has fans looking forward (or up in this case) to Superman‘s return to the silver screen this July, weekly watchers of James Gunn’s adult animated series Creature Commandos just got their first look at Batman.
In the sixth episode of Creature Commandos, titled “Priyatel Skelet,” we learn the origins of Creature Commandos member Dr. Phosporous. The episode starts with a skyline shot of Gotham, orchestral fanfare akin to Batman: The Animated Series, and a referential shot of a stone gargoyle overlooking the city, setting the stage for the Dark Knight’s presence throughout the episode through iconography and leitmotifs. In the same spirit as previous episodes, which rubberband from past to present, fleshing out the backstory of characters like the Bride, GI Robot, Weasel, and Frankenstein beyond their first impressions as C-tier villains, “Priyatel Skelet” gives insight into how Alexander James Sartorius went from being a scientist coerced into working with the mob to becoming the walking nuclear skeleton he is today.
At the midpoint of the episode, it is revealed that what initially started as a nuclear fusion treatment to cure cancer swiftly transformed into a method of torture that the mob inflicted upon Sartorius following the murder of his wife. After surviving his The Fly-esque atomization, Dr. Phopherous enacts his revenge against the mob and becomes a head honcho in Gotham. That is until Batman’s silhouette, backlit by a lightning stroke in their nightclub’s sunroof, cuts their Russian folk dancing party short.
Unfortunately, the sliver of blue lightning on Batman’s imposing frame doesn’t give away meaty details like what his suit design will look like. Speaking with Rotten Tomatoes, Gunn revealed that we only got a glimpse of Batman in the latest episode of Creature Commandos because he wasn’t quite ready to commit to the hero’s suit design.
“When they first showed the episode to me, there was a lot more Batman,” Gunn told Rotten Tomatoes. “And I said, “I’m not ready to commit to that… more silhouette!”
Seeing as how Gunn previously disclosed that Superman actor David Corenswet had to convince him to give Kal-El trunks with his silver screen look after shooting the shit with Zack Snyder about failed screen tests not making the look work, it would stand to reason that a Batman with trunks could be yet another sticking point Gunn isn’t quite ready to commit to at the moment. One thing we do know about Batman in the revamped version of the DCU is that we won’t be seeing his origin story again.
“[Batman] 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 of Metropolis,” Gunn said. “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 pretty dangerous, scary people like Phosphorous, who’s pretty tough.”
The seventh and final episode of Creature Commandos‘ first season airs on January 9 on HBO and HBO Max. The show has also been renewed for a second season.
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