Meet the Doom Patrol- Elastigirl, Negative Man, Robot Man and Crazy Jane
I’ve long believed comic book superheroes are ideally suited to the television medium over the film one, simply because the once a week, to be continued, see you next time format of comic books in general was once adapted specifically for radio shows, which then became serials, then tv shows, etc. But the deluge of superhero shows that exist these days have their own problems. The Marvel properties that were once taken up by Netflix constantly ran into pacing issues with not enough story to fill out the 13 episode seasons, and the DC properties on the CW network were inevitably plagued by generic, dull, repetitive episodes meant to fill out the even longer 22 episode season spread out over nine months, and all of them began adopting the same formulaic “team setup” as the shows spun off.
Now that WB has its own streaming service for its DC content though, they appear willing to try more risks with the material being greenlit, and if it leads to more shows like the wonderfully bizarre, stirringly creative, utterly delightful Doom Patrol, I’ll be thrilled to sample more of what they turn out. Created and run by Jeremy Carver, Doom Patrol takes one of the older, more obscure DC titles and turns it into a unique, character driven, irreverent and often hilarious show that seems to have arrived fully formed right out of the gate. Technically a spin-off of the dreadful Titans (not everything on DCU/HBO Max is gold yet), it is superior to that series on every level, starting with the casting.
Timothy Dalton stars as Professor Niles Caulder, a wise old English scientist with secrets, who collects a band of curious freaks of nature over decades (they all appear to be immortal) and helps them figure out their very special powers (yes, this comic directly inspired the creation of the X-Men series, which did come later). This group includes Rita Far, a 1950’s screen star who fell into a chemically poisoned lake and came out cursed with a body that stretches and melts every which way, Larry Trainor/Negative Man, a 1960’s air force pilot who survived a crash that left his entire body burned with radiation (he’s covered in bandages) and cursed by a negative spirit that literally lives inside of him as its host, and Cliff Steele/Robot Man, a brain that Caulder revived in a robot body from a man who suffered a car crash that killed his family. Oh, and Crazy Jane, a girl with multiple personality disorder- 64 to be exact, each with their own superpower.
Doom Patrol needs help from 1940’s superhero Flex Metallo
This crazy band of misfits is exceedingly well cast- April Bowlby plays Rita as the highfalutin, high maintenance actress she is, Diane Guerrero does a good job with Jane’s constantly changing personalities, and the two men are actually played by four people, since you can’t actually see Negative Man or Robot Man in the flesh- Matt Bomer voices the former, Brendan Fraser the latter (though you do see them in flashbacks) while Matthew Zuk and Riley Shanahan take on the physical duties of the covered creations (who are both striking and memorable in their designs alone). The best part of Doom Patrol is the full realized development of this ensemble, who all start out as damaged, not especially decent people before the accidents that changed them forever, and though banded together for decades through their beloved “chief” (Dalton), only now come to face their pasts and struggle to form the title group they must become to you know, save the world or whatever.
All of this is done with self-referential metahumor through the narration of Alan Tudyk as Mr. Nobody, the series omnipresent, godlike villain who breaks the fourth wall and takes digs at the show’s premise and superhero cliches, reminding us we’re in a show within a show and not to take it all too seriously. This would be annoying, self-congratulatory pablum if not for the fact that the show really is bizarre and breaks cliches with every episode, almost all existing in its own memorable one off hour. And these are not your typical heroes fighting villains plot lines. There’s an episode where some of the gang lets lost in the inside of donkey’s butt (seriously), one that introduces the character of Danny, a sentient, gender fluid street, and an outstanding hour inside Jane’s brain with her literal underground of personalities living their own separate lives inside her head. These nutty plots do come directly from the comics, especially the 1980’s run by Grant Morrison, so you can thank Carver for having an obvious fealty to and affection for the source material, which, frankly, more writers should for the shows they’re assigned to. It’s a treasure trove of rich content to draw from. And best of all, no episode goes without expanding and exploring each character’s backstory, present and relationships with each other, no matter how much they bicker or squirm or struggle with their inability to control their own powers, which are more like curses, as no DP member has any “gift” you’d want to have yourself. You come to really know these people, inside and out (literally in some cases).
The show establishes a season long arc and villain without ever sacrificing the importance of the memorable standalone- this is the first show to finally recognize the power of that structure to its genre since Buffy the Vampire Slayer (high praise coming from me). The only quibble I have with it is the inclusion of Cyborg, a separate Justice League member and non-DP character who feels shoehorned in to the ensemble (and unfortunately, is played by a fairly one note actor in Joivian Wade- only noticeable because the core four shine so brightly without him). I have to wonder if producers felt the Doom Patrol by itself was a little too obscure and wanted even a slightly better known character in there alongside the rest. If anything, his far less interesting story is a bit of a distraction, and doesn’t match with the group of losers he’s ensconced with.
But no matter. I LOVE Larry, Rita, Cliff and Jane, and I’d hang with them anywhere (and I better to be able to, since the season finale left an awful lot of open questions to be answered and addressed next season). Please get here fast.
Grade: A-
The Doom Patrol’s therapy session leads to exposed secrets
