The secret sauce behind Creature Commandos’ Bride was Harley Quinn
that of James Gunn Creature commandsthe wildest version of the Suicide Squad to hit the screen yet isn’t Dean Lorey’s first trip to the DC Comics adaptation rodeo. The showrunner further cut his teeth as a producer Powerlessa writer about iZombieand most recently as showrunner Vliegerman: Yep!
But his greatest success to date has been as a showrunner Harley Quinnundeniably the jewel in the crown of modern animated DC Comics adaptations. If he learned anything from making four seasons (and counting). Harley QuinnLorey told Polygon, it is to have a point of view.
And for Creature commandsthat point of view is the Bride of Frankenstein.
“In Harley QuinnLorey said in a video chat ahead of the show’s December 5 release, “when we created it and when we wrote it, we did it from Harley’s point of view.” So the vision of Gotham that you see Harley is bright and colorful, and it’s probably different than what people are used to seeing Gotham depicted in. What we wanted to do Creature commands was really a credit to the point of view of the show, which is kind of an Eastern European flair. We are strangers in a strange land entering this world, and I tend to think of the Bride as our point-of-view character in the series.
DC Comics’ version of Frankenstein (yes, the monster is called “Frankenstein” in the comics) and the Bride sit squarely in the public domain loophole by drawing from Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheusinstead of Boris Karloff’s iconic turn as Monster, or the Hammer Horror films that followed. Shelley’s original Monster was much more articulated than the version depicted in 1931 Frankenstein – erudite even. And Creature commands‘ Bride is more than Frankenstein’s equal, voiced by Indira Varma, veteran of Doctor Who, The legend of Vox MachinaAnd Dragon Age: Inquisition.
“Great voice acting is beyond question,” Lorey said of Varma’s performance. “You hear it and you think: Oh, well, obviously it should be this. I felt the same way about the cast in general, and I love the way Indira portrayed the bride.”
Varma’s skill is shown in the second episode of Creature commands‘two-episode premiere, which delves into the bride’s tragic origins, as well as her budding odd-couple friendship with the Commando native gill womanNina Mazursky (voiced by The Afterparty‘s Zoë Chao).
“Nina is nothing but optimistic and full of heart and everything,” Lorey said. “The Bride is almost the opposite of that, and I love watching them play together.”
To Lorey, who is committed to the Bride’s perspective Creature commands It wasn’t just about giving the series an “early Hammer Horror-esque ‘castle on the top of the hill'” vibe, but also about the depth of emotion her story brought to the entire series. When asked about his favorite aspect of the character, Lorey said, “I think she brings trauma. She brings with her a history of trauma and a deep emotional reservoir. I mean, she is literal made. Her history is so complicated, and I just love it. I think it frames everything in the show.”
The first two episodes of Creature commands premiered on December 5 on the Max streaming service, with five more episodes premiering weekly through January 9, 2025.