Summary
Creature Commandos is at its best yet in Episode 4, providing some backstory for Weasel while weaving in multiple other subplots.
Now this is more like it. I was worried about Creature Commandos, I must admit, especially after it got so bogged down in simplistic political messaging. But those concerns seem to have been a little unfounded. Episode 4, “Chasing Squirrels”, is the best yet, combining some necessary backstory for Weasel while also weaving in multiple other subplots stemming from Circe’s capture and the Bride’s slightly tempestuous relationship with Eric Frankenstein.
This is the most serialized the show has felt, for sure. Episode 4 sees Task Force M returning to Belle Reve after what they assume was a job well done. Rick Flag shares a sloppy goodbye with Princess Ilana and the gang heads back Stateside for a hero’s welcome – if that means being thrust straight back into prison, anyway.
Weasel’s story unfolds through flashbacks, mostly triggered by a lawyer who’s trying to prove his innocence. And this stuff feels like classic James Gunn to me. There is simply no way one should feel anything for this monstrous-looking creature who alternates between savaging people to death and lapping his own genitals, but after this episode, I was fully on board. I hope he’s exonerated.
It’s a simple enough story, too. He was playing with a bunch of kids in a playground, totally innocently, when some meddling old man reported him to the police. He followed Weasel and the kids into the school’s basement and tried to shoot Weasel, worsening a fire they’d started accidentally. Weasel tried to drag the kids to safety and failed, mostly because he was repeatedly being shot during the attempt. All the kids die, and Weasel’s blamed for it (probably because one of the cops inadvertently guns a child down. Maybe there’s a little sociopolitical commentary here after all.)
Because it’s a simplistic story designed to humanize the show’s most obviously inhuman character, these flashbacks don’t take up much time or space, so Creature Commandos Episode 4 is able to fold in a few other ideas. Eric Frankenstein, for instance, has pursued the team back to the U.S., and in the manner of all jealous lovers, he immediately assumes that Rick is in love with the Bride.
Eric is a very funny character. He’s halfway between a thuggish brute and a kind of lilting Shakespearean romantic. He tries to kill Flag, and then, when he learns of Flag’s love for Princess Ilana, he bonds with him over the tragedies of Titanic and When Harry Met Sally. I seriously hope this guy sticks around for the long term.
It’s worth mentioning that Flag is rogue at this point. He’s racing back to Pokolistan to try and save Ilana from Task Force M, which has been reassigned by Waller to assassinate Ilana. It turns out Circe is clairvoyant, and her visions of the future allow Waller to see Ilana teaming up with Gorilla Grodd and wreaking havoc on Earth’s mightiest heroes. That has to be avoided at all costs, but Flag is in love and is convinced that Circe is manipulating Waller.
And she might be? One of the fun ideas here is that it isn’t clear. Circe’s powers are confirmed by Economos – still as injured and inappropriate as when we left him in Peacemaker – and a report that claims she accurately predicted a tsunami in Themyscira. So she might be telling the truth. But she might be lying.
I’m sure we’ll find out either way. Luckily, though, I’m much more interested in the answer thanks to “Chasing Squirrels”.
