Doom Patrol Season 1: 8 Ups And 1 Down
DC's latest live-action series is a triumph.
Out of all the properties expected to really take off, nobody could've guessed that the one involving farting inter-dimensional donkeys and a cockroach determined to bring about the apocalypse would be the one. Yet, it's in Doom Patrol's refusal to compromise on any of its artistic merits that it's found success. If it had been placed on any other network, there's no telling just how much lesser a product it'd be. Thankfully, showrunner Jeremy Carver and all of the superb writers got to get away with so many F-bombs and wackiness, allowing the excellent final product to come out as it has.
It'd be easy to compare DP to Guardians of the Galaxy as it's another rag-tag group of lesser-known comic characters, but don't misunderstand and think this show is anything like what you've seen before.
Doom Patrol really is something of a revelation. It's a show that always elects to avoid well-tread superhero stories and whenever it must hit those genre conventions, the show will mock itself for it. Everyone involved should be praised for what they achieved here. But before the gushing continues, here's the show's only major negative...
9. Down: Action Is Severely Downplayed (And Consistently Shoved Off-Screen)
Taking a quick glance at the residents of Doom manor, you may notice that there aren't exactly any Bruce Wayne prodigies among them. This is where the show subtly sets up how Doom Patrol's focus differs greatly from fellow DC Universe show Titans: the action will not be the focus. There aren't too many impressively choreographed fights or especially flashy CGI-heavy encounters. Instead, heavy action sequences are used sparingly and often have a comedic edge to avoid going full 'superhero blockbuster' on any given fight scene.
And that occurs with the sequences that remain on-screen until their conclusion. After a second watch of the season, you begin to notice how often a fight scene is set up, then is cut off by the focus being moved to something else. If this was only an occasional occurrence, it'd be no issue. However, there are several promising encounters that the show sets up, but you often don't get to see it play out.
This show excels in many areas that Titans struggled, but Titans has the overall edge when it comes to the action.
Now then, back to singing this show's praises.