Doom Patrol
Welp. I got a little bit behind, so similar to my "Fuck Batman" "Titans" recaps, we'll do two episodes this go round and most likely next week. Then, we should be back to our regularly scheduled one per week "Doom Patrol" recaps. Unless, I fall behind again, which, let's be real, is a distinct possibility.
Episode 5: "Paw Patrol"
Mr. Nobody: "This can't be the end. No. I haven't been in the last two episodes." & "Are you telling me I'm going to have to comb through a bunch of flashbacks?"
Marilyn: "Lady, the only god I worship is Springsteen. And I've spit in his face twice. Viva le Recreator!"
The Decreator is here and he's zapping people out of existence willy nilly and won't stop until everyone is gone. So, I guess that means show's over. Thanks for reading. Oh no. Our fourth wall breaking antagonist, Mr. Nobody, isn't going to allow that to happen. With the help of the captive Niles Caulder, Nobody decides to fight a cult with a cult and for that he needs the help of Crazy Jane. What better way to fight a cult then with a new cult, cultivated by Jane's personality, Doctor Harrison. Can this new cult and their deity, the Recreator, counteract the Decreator and save the world?
The Doom Patrol's encounter with the Cult of the Unwritten and the Decreator felt like a little detour from the main path they had been beating with Mr. Nobody. And there'd be nothing wrong with that. A few standalone episodes sprinkled throughout this first season to deepen characters, tell unique stories would be fine and maybe "Doom Patrol" will do that. But Mr. Nobody is woven pretty perfectly into this story in the second part of this arc. He's not going to allow the Decreator to destroy this world and the Doom Patrol before he has had time to have his fun. Alan Tudyk is such an asset to the show, that you don't realize how much you miss him until he's not around. His narration and snarky asides are some of the show's greatest strengths and it's nice to have them back for this episode.
The show's other big asset is Diane Guerroro and it's always a treat to learn more about Jane and the various personalities that reside within her. We get more of an idea of Jane's past in this episode. Jane's powers seem to retard her aging since she's seemingly the same age in the '60's as she is now. Or is there a time travel element? Maybe I've missed that. Feel free to educate me in the comments. We meet a new personality at the sanitarium, Doctor Harrison. Doctor Harrison possesses the power of persuasion. It's great to see Guerroro sort of lose herself in each character she crafts. The facial mannerisms, the tics, the vocal affectations. They are all so great.
"Doom Patrol" continues to really lean into it's quirky personality and this episode is all the better for it. The plan to create a counter cult to combat the Decreator is amazing and of course, it all goes awry since Jane's not a real psychiatrist and she's recruiting people in a loony bin. The reveal that Nurnheim is in a snow globe is fantastic. Brendan Fraser's voice work in this is so good. This may be some of the best work of his career. Sorry not sorry.
The Chief's brief appearances and interactions with the team are just right. Its a nice reminder of the stakes that are involved and that there is still danger. And of course, Mr. Nobody leaves a nice parting gift for the team.
"Doom Patrol" continues to fire on all cylinders and I'm excited to see where it's going to go next.
Grade: A-
Episode 6: "Doom Patrol Patrol"
Crazy Jane: "What is this shit? A fucked up Rushmore?"
After receiving a tip from Mister Nobody, Jane, Rita and Larry take a trip to investigate the Chief's former team, the Doom Patrol. They find the previous DP: Mento, Arani and Rhea, running a school for the gifted along with Joshua Clay. They learn that the team went up against and bested Mr. Nobody back in the day, but something's not quite right. Meanwhile, after his arm exploded, Cliff called in Cyborg's dad, Silas, to come and patch him up. But was that the right thing to do?
This was the first episode where I was a little underwhelmed, which is pretty impressive in and of itself. A lot of new series take a while to find their footing and get into a groove. The fact that "Doom Patrol" hit that stride and didn't break it until now is a really a testament to how great it is. This isn't to say that this episode of "Doom Patrol" is terrible. It's not at all. It just felt like it was an episode where the wheels were spinning for the majority of the episodes run time.
It's nice to meet this original version of the Doom Patrol and get a little more insight into who the Chief was before we've gotten to get to know him. The only thing is that this episode doesn't really teach us anything we didn't already know. We know the Chief is kind of a user and sees these outcasts as a means to an end, as scientific oddities. It's not that he doesn't have affection for them, but it doesn't feel like his love for them runs as deep as their love for him.
The episode also doesn't really have any swerves or surprises, which is a change from most other "Doom Patrol" episodes. From the beginning, we know that the OG DP didn't actually stop Mr. Nobody. We know that this is all just a facade. It's still somewhat affecting when we find that out for sure, but it's too bad that it's all so telegraphed.
The episodes B story featuring Victor and Silas Stone feels pretty pedestrian. Your basic father/son back and forth. There's not a lot of new stuff that we learn. The one good thing that comes from what feels like wasted time is closure. Hopefully for a the foreseeable future Silas will leave Vic alone. Unless it turns out he's a super villain.
Like I said, this isn't a bad episode. The sequence where the OG DP go up against Mr. Nobody is great. The scenes of people transformed into pinatas and bash them is really, really unsettling and it's a great example of how you don't need intense violence to make a point. I'm looking at you "Titans."
One thing I haven't mentioned in these reviews is how amazing the arc of Rita Farr has been since the show began. Rita started out as vapid, self-pitying and self-serving. She's slowly been changing. She's still snarky and abrasive, but she has a heart. She's growing. She's finally realizing that her life isn't over. She's becoming her own woman. The flashback to Rita's unsettling final encounter with her trash agent reminds us that while Rita is living in modern times, she's very much a product of the time period that formed her. Her final encounter with Mento not only gives Rita closure that she's needed for a while, but it also enables her to take another step on her journey towards being a hero.
So, yeah. This is an average episode of "Doom Patrol," but an average episode of "Doom Patrol" is much better than a lot of episodes of other shows.
Grade: B
So, I can't express how much I love this show. I'm hoping others are digging it too. Who's your favorite character? Is Silas a bad guy? Do you want to see more flashback adventures to the OG Doom Patrol? Let me know in the comments.
 |
| Lovely Rita |
It's nice to meet this original version of the Doom Patrol and get a little more insight into who the Chief was before we've gotten to get to know him. The only thing is that this episode doesn't really teach us anything we didn't already know. We know the Chief is kind of a user and sees these outcasts as a means to an end, as scientific oddities. It's not that he doesn't have affection for them, but it doesn't feel like his love for them runs as deep as their love for him.
The episode also doesn't really have any swerves or surprises, which is a change from most other "Doom Patrol" episodes. From the beginning, we know that the OG DP didn't actually stop Mr. Nobody. We know that this is all just a facade. It's still somewhat affecting when we find that out for sure, but it's too bad that it's all so telegraphed.
The episodes B story featuring Victor and Silas Stone feels pretty pedestrian. Your basic father/son back and forth. There's not a lot of new stuff that we learn. The one good thing that comes from what feels like wasted time is closure. Hopefully for a the foreseeable future Silas will leave Vic alone. Unless it turns out he's a super villain.
Like I said, this isn't a bad episode. The sequence where the OG DP go up against Mr. Nobody is great. The scenes of people transformed into pinatas and bash them is really, really unsettling and it's a great example of how you don't need intense violence to make a point. I'm looking at you "Titans."
One thing I haven't mentioned in these reviews is how amazing the arc of Rita Farr has been since the show began. Rita started out as vapid, self-pitying and self-serving. She's slowly been changing. She's still snarky and abrasive, but she has a heart. She's growing. She's finally realizing that her life isn't over. She's becoming her own woman. The flashback to Rita's unsettling final encounter with her trash agent reminds us that while Rita is living in modern times, she's very much a product of the time period that formed her. Her final encounter with Mento not only gives Rita closure that she's needed for a while, but it also enables her to take another step on her journey towards being a hero.
So, yeah. This is an average episode of "Doom Patrol," but an average episode of "Doom Patrol" is much better than a lot of episodes of other shows.
Grade: B
So, I can't express how much I love this show. I'm hoping others are digging it too. Who's your favorite character? Is Silas a bad guy? Do you want to see more flashback adventures to the OG Doom Patrol? Let me know in the comments.
No comments:
Post a Comment