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Superman is not the beginning of the story for DC Studios. The teaser trailer for writer/director James Gunn’s movie declares that this summer, “It Begins.” However, the latest effort to establish a shared cinematic universe for DC’s lineup of heroes, akin to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is the start of DCU-live action movies but not the overall canon. That canon began in 2024’s MAX original series Creature Commandos.

While Creature Commandos is the first installment in the new cinematic DCU (thanks to the perfect timing of Gunn writing the show while getting the CEO of DC Studios job), we shouldn’t overlook Creature Commandos just because of its fortunate timing. We should view the arc of the show as an indicator of the storytelling to come. While Superman won’t be killing people on behalf of Amanda Waller and the U.S. government, all signs suggest that the Man of Steel will grapple with the same question faced by key Creature Commandos team members, the Bride and Nina Mazursky. 

How can you be a good person in a hostile world?

How the hostile world of Creature Commandos is seen in the Superman movie trailer

In a Q&A session with the media before releasing the first teaser trailer, Gunn alluded to this question by explaining lead actor David Corenswet’s reasoning for Superman to wear the iconic trunks and dress like a professional wrestler. 

“He dresses in a way that makes people unafraid of him, that shows that hope, that shows that positivity,” Gunn explained to iO9. “And that really clicked for me. And I think trying to pretend that Superman’s costume doesn’t have some frivolity to it at its base, trying to make it look serious, is silly because he is a superhero. He’s the first one, brightly colored and that’s who he is.”

Yet, a key scene in the teaser signals that Superman’s efforts to get the world to accept him aren’t entirely working. In the trailer, Superman walks through a crowd angrily throwing cans at his head. Later in the trailer, there’s a news report about the fictional nation of Boravia in crisis, and only a young child is calling out to Superman for help. While we don’t know how these scenes will fit into the movie, we can connect them to the world Creature Commandos presents. A world in crisis that isn’t partial to outsiders. 

As we get the backstory of each monster over the course of Creature Commandos season 1, we find out the tragic origins that led them to confinement in Belle Reve prison. Each of them landed there due to a violent series of events. In the case of Nina, she dealt with an angry mob similar to the one shown in the Superman trailer. They all wanted to catch a glimpse of the monster of Star City, and no one bothered to show her compassion because of her appearance. The police in the scene didn’t even bother to question Nina’s father, the scientist who accidentally made her this way, as he begged them to get Nina in the water so she could breathe. Instead, they shot him because he wouldn’t comply, threw Nina into a tank, and she landed in Waller’s hands. 

As we’ve seen so far, there’s an inherent distrust of metahumans or aliens from another planet, and those with authority in the DCU aren’t afraid to use violence. Take, for instance, the origin of Doctor Phosphorus, once a respected scientist from Gotham City known as Alexander James Sartorius. His family dies at the hands of the mob after a deal he made goes wrong, and in classic comic book fashion, he’s radically altered by nuclear energy. With his newfound powers, Phosphorus sets out on a revenge mission. It’s hard not to empathize with his mission of revenge, considering the graphic nature of his family’s death. However, there’s no justifying the way he goes about it. Phosphorus kills children and turns into a classic Batman villain. He makes his choices and lets the world break him. 

Phosphorus is thus the contrast for Nina, who refuses to let the world fundamentally break her. Nina challenges the Bride’s cynical worldview to the point that the Bride considers Nina a friend, whereas Phosphorus continues to be sardonic and gleeful in his killing sprees. 

Superman will have a similar choice: Will he let the people who hate him so much ruin his outlook on humanity, or will he find a way to overcome them and keep helping people? 

Based on what Gunn has said, we can confidently guess that Superman will seek to remain good despite the world’s hostility and Lex Luthor’s machinations. But choosing that path doesn’t mean it has to be a straightforward narrative.

The difference between Superman and the monsters is when they find their family

Good is certainly relative for the monsters forced to do Amanda Waller’s bidding, but that’s because they have to make do with the hand they’re dealt. This is especially true for the Bride, who shares the origin of the Bride of Frankenstein from the Universal classic, but with a dark twist. 

As the Bride’s creator teaches the monster to be less monstrous, he keeps his first creation, Eric Frankenstein, away from them. Eventually, the Bride and Victor enter a dubious relationship, which leads to Eric killing Victor and obsessively pursuing the Bride for centuries. 

We can compare the Bride to Superman in some key ways. Both are not human, and they both have power that will always make them a threat to humans. However, the Bride lacks what’s fundamental to Superman’s optimistic worldview — a family. 

While Superman is an alien given the birth name Kal-El, he’s really Clark Kent, born and raised in Smallville, Kansas. Clark’s human parents, Jonathan and Martha Kent, teach him to care for others. This family dynamic traditionally bolsters Superman’s innate goodness. The Bride has none of that to fall back on and must survive in a world out to control or kill her from the start. 

The hostile world that Gunn makes canon in Creature Commandos doesn’t appear to impact Clark until the events of the Superman movie. As seen in the trailer, Clark will return to Smallville and lean on his father’s advice, as it’s the people around Superman who ground him. This becomes the case for the Bride as they watch Nina refuse to be broken by their imprisonment, which is why Nina’s death is so incredibly tragic. 

Nina’s death was avoidable, as we later find out the Commando’s leader Rick Flagg was duped by the warmongering princess of Pokolistan Ilana Rostovic, but it was a moment of catharsis between Nina and the Bride as monsters that can rely on each other in a world of monstrous humans. So, it’s heartbreaking to watch Nina die and it's bittersweet when the Bride kills Rostovic. Yes, the world is saved, but the Bride makes it clear the princess’ death is to avenge Nina. Still, the Bride did something good by saving the world because Nina pushed the Bride to accept her as a friend worth avenging. Traits of any good person, or monster.

As Creature Commandos has shown us, the world of the DCU is outrageous and hostile. This new universe will test Clark’s willingness to be good, but that’s always been the appeal of Superman. No matter how dark the world gets, he doesn’t compromise and finds a way to bring the best out of all of us. With Gunn at the helm of Superman, the hostility will carry over, but with Superman as the main character, his answer to how we can be good in this world will be kinder and just maybe inspire hope.

James Gunn's Superman is flying into theaters soon enough, and Popverse has all you need to prepare. Refreshing your cinematic memory with our Superman movie watch order, learn what we know about the upcoming Superman movie, Superman's S-Shield through the ages, and read about what DC is doing ahead of their flagship hero's triumphant return.