The Creature Commandos are the name of several military special forces groups appearing in

American comic books An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

published by

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

. Co-created by writer

J. M. DeMatteis John Marc DeMatteis (; born December 15, 1953) is an American writer of comic books, television and novels. Biography Early career J. M. DeMatteis's earliest aspirations were to be a rock musician and comic book artist. He began playing in ban ...

and artist

Pat Broderick Pat Broderick (born November 26, 1953) is an American comics artist, known for his work on the '' Micronauts'' and '' Alpha Flight'' for Marvel Comics, and ''Legion of Super-Heroes'', '' Captain Atom'' and '' Green Lantern'' for DC Comics. Brode ...

, the team

first appeared In comic books and other stories with a long history, first appearance refers to the first issue to feature a fictional character. These issues are often highly valued by collectors due to their rarity and iconic status. Reader interest in fir ...

in ''

Weird War Tales ''Weird War Tales'' is a war comic book title with supernatural overtones published by DC Comics. It was published from September - October 1971 to June 1983. Publication history The original title ran for 12 years and 124 issues. It was an an ...

'' #93 (November 1980). The Creature Commandos are a special forces group consisting of individuals either resembling or are in some way a

monster A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes Anxiety, terror ...

or robotic entity. Led by, in most instances, a seasoned human

general officer A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

, the team tackles missions that are often fantastical or too dangerous for ordinary soldiers. The team has been adapted into a

Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...

animated series of the same name (2024-present) and appeared in the third season of ''

Arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...

'' (2012-2020), with the former being the first installment in the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the shared universe in which most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. In context, the term "DC Universe" usually refers to the main DC Continuity (fiction), continuity. It contains v ...

(DCU) series of films and television shows.

Concept and creation

Asked how the Creature Commandos came about, writer

recalled: DeMatteis did not stay on the feature very long, and his replacement was

Robert Kanigher Robert Kanigher (; June 18, 1915 – May 7, 2002)Social Security Death Index, social security #116-07-5117. was an American comic book writer and editor whose career spanned five decades. He was involved with the Wonder Woman franchise for over ...

, who wrote the series until ''Weird War Tales'' was canceled in 1983.

Fictional team history

Project M

Project M is a secret government organization that began during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and specializes in experimental biotechnology and necromancy. Known creations of the Project beside the Creature Commandos include

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 18 and 28. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is judged on competition segments with scoring percentages: ''Priva ...

and

G.I. Robot The G.I. Robot is the name of a series of six fictional robots that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics. The first four G.I. Robot characters were all created by writer Robert Kanigher, though each was designed by a different artist. Ea ...

. The Project's main scientist is Professor Mazursky. He was aided by Robert Crane. As told in ''Young All-Stars'' #12, they operated from a secret underground complex on the mythical Ferris Island in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. In 1942, Project M created the Creature Commandos. They were: Lt. Matthew Shrieve (a normal human), Warren Griffith (a werewolf), Sgt. Vincent Velcro (a vampire), Pvt. Elliot "Lucky" Taylor (a Frankensteinian monster) and Dr. Myrna Rhodes (a gorgon). Project M yielded other interesting specimens. Most notably, they were behind the creation of the heroine Miss America. Prof. Mazursky kidnapped her after his original subject perished. At first, his experiments appeared to have left her incapacitated. He later returned her unconscious form to the surface world. After that, she began a career as a masked heroine, but was critically injured while fighting alongside the Freedom Fighters. Project M recovered her and nursed her back to health. While there, Project M was visited by the

Young All-Stars The Young All-Stars are a team of fictional DC Comics superheroes. They were created by Roy Thomas, Dann Thomas, and Michael Bair, and introduced in ''Young All-Stars'' #1, dated June 1987. The team members Tsunami, Neptune Perkins, and Dan th ...

, who had discovered that Project M had been infiltrated. A criminal named

Deathbolt Deathbolt (Jake Simmons) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by the Ultra-Humanite to fight the All-Star Squadron. Deathbolt appeared in the Arrowverse series ''Arrow'' and ''The Flash'', por ...

was there seeking a new physical host for the disembodied brain of the

Ultra-Humanite Ultra-Humanite (Gerard Shugel) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared as a recurring adversary of Superman, and was among the first villains faced by him. He was designed to be the polar oppos ...

. The Ultra-Humanite took over the body of a dinosaur recovered from Dinosaur Island. During the same visit, the Young All-Stars witnessed the unfinished body of the machine that would later be known as the

.Cosmic Teams Creature Commandos

World War II

The team's first mission was in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, where they destroyed

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

-manufactured android duplicates of the Allied leaders. In their next mission to France to free scientist Dr. Renee Frederique, the Commandos ultimately found her in a death camp, and they had no choice but to kill her. Her knowledge of a chemical nerve gas was too risky to be left in Nazi hands. Because of his part in the killing, Taylor attempted suicide. Although the doctors attempted to repair him, he remained mute for the rest of the series. On another morally dubious mission, the team caused the deaths of dozens of super soldier children. In 1943, the Commandos were deployed to Dinosaur Island in the

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. They were supposed to solve the disappearance of several Allied spotter planes, but discovered a hidden Axis naval base and were able to trick the

dinosaur Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic Geological period, period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the #Evolutio ...

s in turning on the Japanese navy. Shrieve took pictures for his commanders as proof of the island's existence, but Velcro destroyed them; he believed that the war would bring destruction to the dinosaurs. When they returned to Dinosaur Island, they met J.A.K.E. 1, the G.I. Robot. He met the Commandos when their plane was attacked by a dinosaur and crashed into the beach. Together, the soldiers discovered an underwater civilization, a supposed lost colony of

Atlantis Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...

situated in the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

. The lost colony had created a group of robots to carry on the work of Atlantean conquest, and these androids took control of the G.I. Robot's mind. J.A.K.E. 1 ultimately overrode their commands and sacrificed itself to destroy the colony. At the end of the war, the Creature Commandos and J.A.K.E. 2 (and both its robot dog C.A.P. and C.A.P.'s robot cat) were forced to man a rocket aimed at

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. But the rocket went radically off-course and headed out of the atmosphere into deep space. Much later, they (with J.A.K.E. 2, as of ''

Action Comics ''Action Comics'' is an American comic book/Comic anthology, magazine series that introduced Superman, one of the first major superhero characters. The publisher was originally known as Detective Comics Inc., which later merged into National ...

'' #872) appeared as captives in Brainiac's ship.

Modern era

The original team, with J.A.K.E. 2, is freed from the confines of Brainiac's ship, which is now under control by Kandorians. Frankenstein, whose sense of time is not the same as his comrades, convinces his group to trust

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

and they join in with a fight against the threat that freed them, an attack by the villains Reactron and Metallo. The American military conspiracy that has attacked the Kandorians sweep up the Commandos, though they are not quite sure of the value of the group. Somehow, the original team later returned to Earth and to Project M, where they continued to serve as a special operations force. To keep pace with their aging physiology, Mazursky, the doctor who had originally mutated them, continued to perform a series of body modifications. This process extended their lives, but at the cost of their humanity. At an unspecified date in the near future, the various original team members adopted code names. Project M continued to grow in size, and the original team came to form the core field team codenamed M-Team Alpha. M-Team Alpha was sporadically infused with new operatives as attrition took its toll. Presumably, Lt. Shrieve died or retired along the way. In his place came Capt. Lucius Hunter, formerly of Hunter's Hellcats. Hunter was said to be 74 years old, and a recipient of extensive body modifications and rejuvenation therapies. Other new members are: Aten, a mummy-like communications specialist; the Bogman, a humanoid

amphibian Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...

grunt resembling the

Gill-man The Gill-man, commonly called The Creature from The Black Lagoon, or simply The Creature, is the movie monster of the 1954 black-and-white film ''Creature from the Black Lagoon'' and its two sequels '' Revenge of the Creature'' (1955) and '' Th ...

; and recently-revived cyborg Gunner Mackey, who — along with his partner "Sarge" — died during World War II. Both Lucius Hunter and Gunner Mackey were featured characters in '' Our Fighting Forces''. While deep undercover, Medusa discovered that Earth's dimension was in danger of invasion by a military alliance from the alternate Earth of Terra Arcana. This other-dimensional conglomerate of warlords included Lord Saturna,

Hyathis Hyathis (also spelled Hyanthis) is anextraterrestrial monarch published by DC Comics. She first appeared in ''Justice League of America'' #3 (February 1961) and was created by Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky. Fictional character biography Hyathis i ...

of Alstair (killed by Tazzala), Tazzala of Korrl (the Queen Bee III), Sayvar the reptilian Lord of Llarr, Kraad of Kranaal, Simon Magus of Blackstaff, Xotar the Weapons Master, Kromm of Mosteel (killed by Lord Saturna), and the Troll King (killed by Velcro). In order to conquer Earth, the one remaining free dimension, Lord Saturna's alliance enlisted the assistance of a powerful consortium on Future Earth. This group from Earth gave weapons and teleportation technology to the alliance in return for alien real estate. Tazzala and Magus soon betrayed Lord Saturna, cutting their own deal with Murray. In M-Team Alpha's raid on Terra Arcana, Velcro and Gunner were captured by

Claw the Unconquered Claw is a sword and sorcery superhero in comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in ''Claw the Unconquered'' #1 (June 1975), in which he was created by writer David Michelinie and designed by artist Ernie Chan. Similar in many ways ...

. Claw was convinced to ally with them, and his people joined the battle against Lord Saturna. In the end, Tazzala killed Lord Saturna and was herself killed. Terra Arcana's future was then left in the hands of its people. The modern Creature Commandos later appeared in ''

The OMAC Project ''The OMAC Project'' is a six-issue American comic book limited series written by Greg Rucka with art by Jesus Saiz and published by DC Comics in 2005. Overview The book is one of four miniseries leading up to DC Comics' ''Infinite Crisis'' ev ...

'' #1-6 (June–November 2005). During the ''

Infinite Crisis "Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, ...

: Villains United Special'' #1, a metahuman prison named "Enclave M" was shown in

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

. Its connection to Project M is unclear at this time. In ''

Booster Gold Booster Gold (Michael Jon "Booster" Carter) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Dan Jurgens, the character first appeared in ''Booster Gold (comic book), Booster Gold'' #1 (February 1986) and has be ...

'' (vol. 2),

Maxwell Lord Maxwell Lord IV is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''Justice League'' #1 (May 1987) and was created by Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire (artist), Kevin Magui ...

mentions Project M as still active, at least in the times of his cyberization, and claims he was able to use their resources to give himself a new human body, free from the manipulations of

Kilgore Kilgore may refer to: Places * Kilgore, Texas, the largest US city named Kilgore * Kilgore, Idaho * Kilgore, Nebraska * Kilgore, Ohio * Kilgore College Fictional characters * Kilgore Trout, a recurring character in the novels of Kurt Vonnegut ...

. In the '' Justice League: Generation Lost'' storyline, Maxwell Lord took control of the Creature Commandos to attack the old JLI embassy. During the battle, Lord reveals himself while posing as one of the Creature Commandos, in which he captures the

Blue Beetle Blue Beetle is the name of three superheroes appearing in a number of American comic books published by a variety of companies since 1939. The most recent of the companies to own rights to Blue Beetle is DC Comics, which bought the rights to the ...

and escapes. Shortly thereafter, the Creature Commandos broke free from Lord's influence, realizing that they do not know why they are so far from their Project M base.

''The New 52''

In ''

The New 52 The New 52 was the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire Line (comics), line of ongoing monthly superhero American comic books, comic books. Following the conclusion of the "Flashpoint (comics), Flashpoint" Fictional crossover, cros ...

'' reboot of DC's continuity, a new version of the Creature Commandos was introduced and featured in the pages of '' Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.''. This incarnation of the team works as field agents for the secretive organization

S.H.A.D.E. The following is a list of fictional government agency, government agencies, comic book organizations that have been published by DC Comics and their imprints. A Agency The Agency is a fictional organization appearing in American comic books pu ...

and are led by

Frankenstein ''Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' is an 1818 Gothic novel written by English author Mary Shelley. ''Frankenstein'' tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a young scientist who creates a Sapience, sapient Frankenstein's monster, crea ...

. The rest of the team consists of Khalis (who appears to be an Egyptian

mummy A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and Organ (biology), organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to Chemical substance, chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the ...

), Warren Griffith (a werewolf), and Vincent Velcoro (given vampiric powers through a modified version of the

Man-Bat Man-Bat (Dr. Robert Kirkland "Kirk" Langstrom) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Introduced in ''Detective Comics'' #400 (June 1970) as an enemy of the superhero Batman, the character belongs to t ...

formula). Griffith and Velcoro were both originally humans who volunteered to be mutated by Dr. Nina Mazursky, who later mutated herself into an amphibious creature resembling a hybrid between the

and a

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are ...

(but favoring the Gill-man in actual appearance) in order to fight alongside the team. Frankenstein's estranged wife the

Bride A bride is a woman who is about to be married or who is a newlywed. When marrying, if the bride's future spouse is a man, he is usually referred to as the ''bridegroom'' or just ''groom''. In Western culture, a bride may be attended by a maid, ...

was also a member of the team until leaving after learning the fate of her son, with Shrieve returning later on to re-team.

Membership

Original team

* Warren Griffith – Warren was a simple, stuttering, timid farm boy who suffered from clinical lycanthropy. Project M gave him the ability to change into a true

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (from Ancient Greek ), is an individual who can shapeshifting, shapeshift into a wolf, or especially in modern film, a Shapeshifting, therianthropic Hybrid beasts in folklore, hybrid wol ...

, but the metamorphoses were erratic and uncontrollable due to a flaw in the serum that created him. * J.A.K.E. – The first G.I. Robot. Destroyed itself and a lost Atlantean colony. * J.A.K.E. 2 – The second G.I. Robot, lost in space with the Creature Commandos. * Dr. Myrra Rhodes (previously Myrna) – Also known as Dr. Medusa. After inhaling strange fumes, she grew living snakes for hair and superficially resembles

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; ), also called Gorgo () or the Gorgon, was one of the three Gorgons. Medusa is generally described as a woman with living snakes in place of hair; her appearance was so hideous that anyone who looked upon her wa ...

, one of the

Gorgon The Gorgons ( ; ), in Greek mythology, are three monstrous sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, said to be the daughters of Phorcys and Ceto. They lived near their sisters the Graeae, and were able to turn anyone who looked at them to sto ...

s. * Lt. Matthew Shrieve – Matthew was their team leader. He was a fully human hard-as-nails soldier. * Pvt. Elliot "Lucky" Taylor – Lucky barely survived stepping on a mine. He was stitched back together against his will, so he resembles the

Frankenstein Monster Frankenstein's monster, commonly referred to as Frankenstein, is a fictional character that first appeared in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus'' as its main antagonist. Shelley's title compares the monster's ...

and has damaged vocal cords. * Sgt. Vincent Velcro (or, in the modern series, Velcoro) – Velcro volunteered for the project in order to commute a 30-year sentence in the brig for crippling an officer. Like a

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

, he can now change into a

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

and requires human blood to survive.

Modern team

* Aten – The

-like communications specialist. * The Bogman – A humanoid amphibian grunt resembling the

. * Gunner MacKay – A cyborg, who died during World War II. * Captain Lucius Hunter – The 74-year-old former member of Hunter's Hellcats. * Dr. Medusa (Dr. Myrra Rhodes) – An individual whose body has mutated even further into a

-like form since her first appearances. * Patchwork (Elliot "Lucky" Taylor) – An individual who is pretty much the same as before. * Vincent Velcoro – Like Myrra, he has mutated even further due to his treatments and now has red skin and a white

ponytail A ponytail is a hairstyle in which some, most, or all of the hair on the head is pulled away from the face, gathered and secured at the back of the head with a hair tie, clip, or other similar accessory and allowed to hang freely from that po ...

. * Wolfpack (Warren Griffith) – He is even more savage and out-of-control in this incarnation.

The Agents of S.H.A.D.E.

* Father Time – Leader of S.H.A.D.E. * Dr.

Ray Palmer Raymond or Ray Palmer may refer to: * Raymond A. Palmer, science-fiction writer and editor * Raymond F. Palmer, medical professor * Raymond Palmer, 3rd Baron Palmer (1916–1990), British peer and businessman * Ray Palmer (pastor), American pastor ...

– U.N. Scientist Liaison, formerly the Atom, creator of S.H.A.D.E. City and the majority of S.H.A.D.E.'s technology. *

– The Frankenstein Monster. He has taken the name solely for simplicity. Frankenstein acts as the team leader. *

Bride of Frankenstein ''Bride of Frankenstein'' is a 1935 American Gothic science fiction horror film, and the first sequel to Universal Pictures' 1931 film ''Frankenstein''. As with the first film, ''Bride of Frankenstein'' was directed by James Whale starring ...

– Frankenstein's female creation, was intended to be Frankenstein's mate, but refused. She was the first official S.H.A.D.E. agent, but is currently retired in ''Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E.'' #8 after it was revealed that Father Time reanimated and imprisoned her and Frankenstein's son in "the Zoo". * Dr. Nina Mazursky – A

hybrid (but resembling, and still depicted as, the Gill-man), the team scientist, and the creator of S.H.A.D.E.'s Creature Commandos. * Vincent Velcoro – A

who serves as the team pilot. * Warren Griffith – A

who serves as the soldier. * Khalis – A

who serves as the team medic. His origin and abilities are classified/unknown. * Matthew Shrieve – A former

POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...

with ties to the Commandos and Robotman during

Continuity

* The ''Creature Commandos'' miniseries is not billed as an ''

Elseworlds Elseworlds is the publication imprint (trade name), imprint for American comic books produced by DC Comics for stories that take place outside the DC Universe Canon (fictional), canon. Elseworlds publications are set in alternate realities that ...

'' tale, but the author Tim Truman describes it as taking place "a second in the future". Various modifications were made to the team members' names and appearances. Truman renamed original team members Velcro and Myrna as "Velcoro" and "Myrra". * Truman said that he based Patchwork's character on the DC Universe character the Patchwork Man from ''

Swamp Thing Swamp Thing is a superhero and antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson, the Swamp Thing has had several different incarnations throughout his publication. The ch ...

'' #3. * The villains in this series are old

Justice League of America The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in '' The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived t ...

villains dating back from 1960 to 1963. Xotar's first appearance was '' Brave and the Bold'' #29. Simon Magus, Saturna, and the Troll King are from ''JLA'' #2.

, Kromm and Sayvar are from ''Justice League of America'' #3. Tazzala has presumably some relation to Zazzala, who appeared in ''Justice League of America'' #23. Kraad is from ''Justice League of America'' #25. * The usage of

in this series is rendered true to his Pre-''Crisis'' origins. * Project M is shown as still active in current continuity, at least once connected with

Checkmate Checkmate (often shortened to mate) is any game position in chess and other chess-like games in which a player's king is in check (threatened with ) and there is no possible escape. Checkmating the opponent wins the game. In chess, the king is ...

, and responsible for reversing the cyborg transformation of

. With Orr as his chief and prominent member, Project M is directly responsible for creating Equus, enhancing the

Wildebeest Wildebeest ( , ,), also called gnu ( or ), are antelopes of the genus ''Connochaetes'' and native to Eastern and Southern Africa. They belong to the family Bovidae, which includes true antelopes, cattle, goats, sheep, and other even-toed ...

and exploiting

Cyborg A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.Flashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown'', consisting of Frankenstein, Lt. Matthew Shrieve, Nina Mazursky, Sgt. Vincent Velcoro, and Warren Griffith. This version of the group was inspired by a Romanian village of peaceful monsters that Professor Myron Mazursky had encountered. Following the end of WWII, Project M was shut down by Robert Crane while the Creature Commandos were captured and placed in stasis. In the intervening years, Matthew recruited Solomon Grundy,

, and

Doctor Phosphorus Doctor Phosphorus (Alexander James Sartorius) is a supervillain who has appeared in various comic book series published by DC Comics. Primarily an enemy of Batman, the villain exists in DC's main shared universe, known as the DC Universe. Doctor ...

to form a new iteration of the Creature Commandos, only for them to betray and kill him on General Sam Lane's orders. In the present, the original Commandos escape, only to be hunted by Miranda, Matthew's granddaughter who blames monsters for ruining her life. Nonetheless, they head to Gotham City to find Myron, only to learn he had moved to Romania before they are ambushed by Miranda,

, and a platoon of soldiers. However, the Commandos are saved by the

. Taking Miranda captive, the Bride reveals the truth behind Matthew's death while the original Commandos travel to Romania, where they find the village of monsters before it is attacked by a giant G.I. Robot. While Frankenstein and the Bride fight it, the others find Myron. He explains that when Project M was shut down, he returned to the village to find eternal life. Frankenstein and the Bride eventually defeat the G.I. Robot, though Velcoro dies during the sunrise. Afterward, Griffith works to become human again and enters a relationship with Nina while Frankenstein, the Bride, and Miranda leave to participate in the Atlantean/Amazon war.

Collected editions

The original team's adventures have been collected in the following trade paperback:

In other media

Television

* The Creature Commandos appear in the '' Batman: The Brave and the Bold'' short "The Creature Commandos in The War That Time Forgot!", with Lt. Matthew Shrieve voiced by

Marc Worden David Marc Worden is a Canadian actor. Early life and education David Marc Worden attended Churchill Heights Public School in Scarborough, Ontario from grades 4 through 8. He was a student in the gifted program. He made his first known stage app ...

, Warren Griffith, Sgt. Vincent Velcro, and Pvt. Elliot "Lucky" Taylor all voiced by

Dee Bradley Baker Dee Bradley Baker (born August 31, 1962) is an American voice actor. Much of his work has consisted of vocalizations of animals and monsters. Baker's roles include animated series such as '' Adventure Time'', ''American Dad!'', '' Avatar: The Las ...

, and Dr. Myrra Rhodes voiced by

Cathy Cavadini Catherine Cavadini is an American voice actress. She is most well known as the original voice of Blossom on Cartoon Network's short series '' What a Cartoon!'' and the animated television series '' The Powerpuff Girls'', and as Tanya Mousekewi ...

. * The Creature Commandos appear in a self-titled segment of ''

DC Nation Shorts ''DC Nation Shorts'' is an animated series of shorts featuring characters from DC Comics from a variety of different titles that aired on Cartoon Network on Saturdays at 10/9c. Production In March 2012, the shorts premiered as part of the '' DC ...

'', with Lt. Matthew Shrieve voiced by Chris Cox, Pvt. Warren Griffith voiced by

Dana Snyder Dana Snyder (born ) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his voice roles of Master Shake in ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'', Granny Cuyler in '' Squidbillies'', Baby Ball on '' Ballmastrz: 9009'', and other roles in various Adult Swim ...

, Sgt. Vincent Velcoro and Pvt. Elliot "Lucky" Taylor voiced by

Kevin Shinick Kevin Thomas Shinick ( ; born March 19, 1969) is an American writer, producer, director and actor, as well as a comic book creator. Shinick received an Emmy award for his work on the stop-motion animated series ''Robot Chicken'', and an Emmy nom ...

, and Dr. Myrra Rhodes voiced by

Rachel Ramras Rachel Leah Ramras is an American actress, comedian and television writer. In 2017, she, Hugh Davidson and Larry Dorf created and starred in their own TV series, '' Nobodies''. Ramras has written for ''Mike Tyson Mysteries'' on Adult Swim, for w ...

. * Matthew Shrieve appears in flashbacks depicted in the third season of ''

'', portrayed by

Marc Singer Marc Singer (born January 29, 1948) is a Canadian-American actor best known for his roles in the '' Beastmaster'' film series, as Mike Donovan in the original 1980s TV series '' V'', and as Matt Cantrell in ''Dallas''. Early life Singer was born ...

. This version is a U.S. Army general and member of

A.R.G.U.S. A.R.G.U.S. (Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-Humans) is a fictional government organization appearing in DC Comics. A.R.G.U.S. first appeared in ''Justice League'' vol. 2 #7 and was created by Geoff Johns and Gene Ha. Headed by Amanda Walle ...

While overseeing

Oliver Queen Green Arrow is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Mort Weisinger and designed by George Papp, he first appeared in ''More Fun Comics'' No. 73 on September 19, 1941 (cover dated November 1941), th ...

and

Tatsu Tatsu is a flying roller coaster designed by Bolliger & Mabillard at the Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park located in Valencia, California, United States. Manufactured by Bolliger & Mabillard, it opened as the tallest, fastest, and longe ...

and Maseo Yamashiro's work in Hong Kong, he betrayed A.R.G.U.S. to steal the "Alpha-Omega" virus and cripple China, during which he infected and killed the Yamashiros' son Akio with it. Shrieve is ultimately foiled by Queen and the Yamashiros before Queen brutally tortures him and Maseo executes him. * The Creature Commandos appear in a

self-titled An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...

animated series, initially led by Gen. Rick Flag Sr. (

Frank Grillo Frank Anthony Grillo (born June 8, 1965) is an American actor. He is known for playing Brock Rumlow / Crossbones in the superhero franchise Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Sergeant Leo Barnes in ''The Purge'' franchise, and Rick Flag Sr. in ...

) before being replaced by the

(

Indira Varma Indira Anne Varma (born 27 September 1973) is a British actress and narrator. Her film debut and first major role was in '' Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love''. She is known for her television roles, such as playing Niobe in the BBC and HBO series ''R ...

), and consisting of Nina Mazursky (

Zoë Chao Zoë Carroll Chao (born September 19, 1985) is an American television and stage actress and screenwriter, principally known for her roles as Isobel in ''Strangers'' and Zoë in '' The Afterparty''. Early life Chao was born in Providence, Rhode ...

(

Sean Gunn Sean Gunn (born May 22, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Kirk Gleason on The WB series ''Gilmore Girls'' (2000–2007), and Kraglin Obfonteri in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In this role, he has been in the films '' ...

(

Alan Tudyk Alan Wray Tudyk ( ; born March 16, 1971) is an American actor. His film work includes roles in '' 28 Days'' (2000), '' A Knight's Tale'' (2001), '' Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story'' (2004), voice and motion capture for Sonny in '' I, Robot'' (2 ...

), and

Weasel Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets, and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slend ...

(also Gunn). Following Nina's death, Nosferata, Khalis, and

King Shark King Shark is a supervillain and later antihero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The character, also known as Nanaue, was created by writer Karl Kesel and artist Tom Grummett. King Shark's first key appearance was in ''Superboy (c ...

(

Diedrich Bader Karl Diedrich Bader (born December 24, 1966) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his comedic and voice acting roles. He has appeared as a series regular in television sitcoms ''The Drew Carey Show'', '' American Housewife'', ...

) take her place. This version of the team, also known as "Task Force M", consists of monstrous inmates from Belle Reve Penitentiary's Non-Human Internment Division assembled by

Amanda Waller Amanda Belle Waller (née Blake), also known as "the Wall", is a fictional character featured in some American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in '' Legends'' #1 in 1986 and was created by John Ostrander, Len We ...

(

Viola Davis Viola Davis ( ; born August 11, 1965) is an American actress and film producer. List of awards and nominations received by Viola Davis, Her accolades include both the Triple Crown of Acting and EGOT. ''Time (magazine), Time'' named her one of ...

Film

The Creature Commandos appear in '' DC Showcase: Sgt. Rock'',Keränen, Frida
"DC Showcase Animated Shorts to Highlight Sgt Rock, Adam Strange & More: Warner Bros. Animation has announced five new DC Showcase shorts starring characters both obscure and widely recognized"
CBR.com (MAY 07, 2019). with Lt. Matthew Shrieve voiced by Keith Ferguson while the rest of the unit have no dialogue.

References

External links

*
Creature Commandos
at Comic Vine *

at the

Big Comic Book DataBase The Big Cartoon DataBase (or BCDB for short) was an online database of information about animated cartoons, animated feature films, animated television shows, and cartoon shorts. The BCDB project began in 1997 as a list of Disney animated fea ...

Creature Commandos
at the DCU Guide

at

Don Markstein's Toonopedia Don Markstein's Toonopedia (subtitled A Vast Repository of Toonological Knowledge) is an online encyclopedia of print cartoons, comic strips and animation, initiated February 13, 2001. Donald D. Markstein, the sole writer and editor of Toonopedi ...

Supermanartists.org DC History 7

Interviews

Fanzing Interview with Tim Truman
{{DC Comics War Titles, state=collapsed 2000 comics debuts DC Comics military personnel DC Comics monsters DC Comics superhero teams DC Comics fantasy characters DC Comics titles Fictional soldiers DC Comics set during World War II