Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Creature Commandos Season 1 finale.Creature Commandos introduced several fascinating characters in its first season, from the Bride (Indira Varma) to the misunderstood Weasel (Sean Gunn). Though every member of the unconventional team is considered a dangerous criminal, Creature Commandos slowly revealed their backstories, making us willing to forget any crimes they actually committed. Yet the series finally tackled the most suspicious inclusion of Task Force M: Nina Mazursky (Zoe Chao). While the series showed that several team members didn’t deserve to be there, Nina always stood out to me. She is shy, awkward, kind, and not prone to rule-breaking. Everything besides her appearance is so human that I never understood why Nina was part of this team. To join Task Force M, these non-human creatures had to be arrested, and there is nothing in Nina’s personality to explain why she would be there. But Season 1, Episode 7, “A Very Funny Monster,” answers those questions in the show’s greatest tragedy yet. But worse is when the series kills off the character just when we finally understand her.
Nina Didn’t Deserve to Die in ‘Creature Commandos’
Now that we know all the characters and their history, it’s fair to say everyone on Task Force M is misunderstood to varying degrees. But, while each has a level of tragedy in their story, the Season 1 finale killed off the show’s most tragic characters, and it was totally uncalled for, especially as Waller (Viola Davis) was trying to call off the mission. Nina is unassuming and intelligent and doesn’t share the violent streak her teammates show. So, Creature Commandos’ choice to kill her off hit me hard. Convinced by her allies to use her aquatic advantage to kill Princess Ilana (Maria Bakalova), Nina sneaks up on her, only to get stabbed several times. While Nina is far from the first death on the show and not even the lead to go, her death is the show’s worst offense because, unlike G.I. Robot (Gunn), she cannot be easily revived.
Not only did Creature Commandos take out a lovable character, but Nina was killed just as things were looking up for her. Throughout the show, she seems to be looking for friendships, but as she gets to know G.I. Robot, he gets blown apart. This event added an emotional twist for Nina, as she was alone again until she and the Bride bonded. Yet, the Bride will not admit they are friends…at least not until after Nina’s death, which only adds to the tragedy of her death.
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‘Creature Commandos’ Gave Nina a Backstory That Makes Her Death Sadder
Killing Nina was a blow to the team, but it is worse for the audience, as we saw the rest of her story in the same episode. Like many characters, Nina’s life is tragic, yet her backstory doesn’t give her any relief. Most of the characters have some good part of their life that they are holding on to. Weasel remembers the kindness he experienced from the children, Doctor Phosphorus (Alan Tudyk) has the memories of his family, and even the Bride thinks fondly of her creator, Victor Frankenstein (Peter Serafinowicz), as problematic as he was. Nina’s story is a downer from beginning to end despite her being the most innocent of all the characters. Born with abnormal lungs, she struggles to breathe. Even as a baby, Nina’s mother (Joy Osmanski), abandons her. Though she always has the love of her father (Gregg Henry), Nina is isolated because of her differences.
When her father uses an experimental treatment to help Nina, she transforms into the aquatic creature she is in Creature Commandos. Though it corrects her breathing issues, Nina spends the rest of her life ostracized because of her appearance. She runs away from the society that rejected her, but Nina is labeled as a monster simply because she looks different. The series doesn’t even include an incident (misunderstanding or not) that turned people against Nina. Simply because she is discovered, Nina is captured and held prisoner as she watches her father die trying to reach her. From the first episode, it was hard for me to understan why Nina was locked up with the other members of Task Force M, and the finale just proved to me that she never should have been there. Nina deserved so much better than Creature Commandos gave her, and I can never forgive the choice to kill her off just when she found people who could accept and befriend her.
Creature Commandos is available to stream on Max in the U.S.
In “Creature Commandos,” Amanda Waller assembles a covert team of monstrous operatives, including a werewolf, vampire, and gorgon, to undertake high-risk missions deemed too perilous for human agents.
- Release Date
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December 5, 2024
- Cast
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Indira Varma
, Sean Gunn
, Alan Tudyk
, Zoe Chao
, David Harbour
, Frank Grillo
, Peter Serafinowicz
, Jake Tapper
, Tony Cavalero
, Viola Davis
, Maria Bakalova
, Anya Chalotra
, Flula Borg
, Michael Rooker
, Robbie Daymond
, Keith Ferguson
, Piotr Michael
, Derek Phillips
, Maury Sterling
, Paul Ben-Victor
, Joe Zieja
, Steve Agee
, Stephanie Beatriz
, Linda Cardellini
, Keston John - Seasons
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1
