Warner Bros. Puts James Gunn’s ‘Creature Commandos’ on YouTube For Free

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As a DCU fan, I was excited to see the announcement on their Instagram – to mark the first year of the new DC Universe, all seven episodes of Creature Commandos will be available to watch for free on YouTube, but there’s a catch! Instead of being uploaded as individual episodes, it originally streamed live on December 22nd, running from 1 PM to 7 PM. If you missed it, don’t worry, they’re rebroadcasting it on Tuesday, December 23rd, from 3 PM to 9 PM. So set a reminder if you want to check it out!

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The animated series kicked off James Gunn’s fresh start for DC, arriving six months before the Superman movie. But according to Cosmic Book News, it didn’t register on Nielsen’s ratings. Much like the characters in the show, Creature Commandos likely only appealed to the most dedicated DC enthusiasts.

Even though the show didn’t perform well, it’s getting a second season. Warner Bros. is probably hoping to generate buzz around a show that didn’t initially catch on, and they’re using a strategy similar to what the Oscars are doing in 2029: making it available for free on YouTube, the world’s most popular video platform.

Leaning on YouTube instead of HBO Max is something Warner Bros. has tried before.

Warner Bros.’ YouTube Experiment

Last February, Warner Bros. uploaded over 30 older movies – mostly from the 1980s to the 2000s that weren’t available on HBO Max – to their official YouTube channel. The playlist has since been removed, but it likely aimed to reach a wider audience and earn money through ads.

So, it looks like Warner Bros. has decided to scrap whatever they were testing out. But honestly, releasing Creature Commandos on YouTube, even for a short while, is actually a really smart move. It’s turning it into something of an event, especially for people like me who don’t have an HBO Max subscription. It’s a great way to get us excited and check it out!

Several DC animated movies that aren’t part of the main DC Universe—like Superman: Doomsday (2007), Batman: Year One (2011), and DC: Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2020)—can be watched with ads on YouTube’s Movies & TV section. While exact view counts aren’t shown, Superman: Doomsday has over 27,000 likes, indicating people are watching them.

I’m always excited when they adapt well-known comic book stories, especially with iconic characters. But with Creature Commandos, it’s a bit different. It definitely has James Gunn’s signature style, which is cool, but I’m curious to see if that will translate to the kind of viewership they get on YouTube. It remains to be seen if it’ll connect with that audience in the same way other adaptations have.

The Creature Commandos Audience

Like James Gunn’s previous work, Creature Commandos features a team of unusual heroes – a group of societal outcasts that includes classic monsters like Frankenstein’s Monster (played by David Harbour) and his Bride (Indira Varma), along with G.I. Robot (Sean Gunn) and Doctor Phosphorus (Alan Tudyk). Be aware that this show is intended for mature audiences and is rated TV-MA.

Blaine Andrews, head of Criticless, pointed out that a show geared towards adults focusing on a lesser-known team was a surprising way to start the DCU. However, he also said it fits with the style of the creator behind Guardians of the Galaxy. Currently, the show has a ‘Decent’ score of 50% on the platform, based on 32 votes.

Now that Creature Commandos is widely available on YouTube, audience scores could shift. However, following the disappointing box office results of Superman and the negative reaction to the initial Supergirl trailer, Warner Bros. seems to be focusing on maximizing revenue from the DCU and increasing public awareness of its complex, interconnected world.

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2025-12-23 21:56