DISCLAIMER: This recap of Doom Patrol Season 4 Episode 8, “Fame Patrol,” contains spoilers. Proceed at your peril.
Welcome back, Doomies. “Fame Patrol” finds our crew on the receiving end of unexpected, small-town fame. We get to spend more time with Immortus, who became that way because of Laura’s arrival in Cloverton (Remember when Isabel fell down that hole in the ground?). The outing also experiments with fun character dynamics while mining the depths of their fears as they stare down the barrel of mortality. This show is a pro at examining these real-world fears with its signature dark wit and weirdly wonderful heart.
I love having a character like Isabel as an immortal entity with a short fuse. It subverts that immortal being trope we usually see in media. So far, I’m digging Season 4, Part 2. I never want this series to end, though.
Ready to delve into “Fame Patrol”? Let’s get to it.
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We open with our heroes stumbling to their feet after Isabel Feathers (Charity Cervantes), aka Immortus, explodes the pocket dimension known as Orqwith. Said explosion kills Wally Sage, Torminox and Dr. Janus. RIP. Rita (April Bowlby), Laura (Michelle Gomez), Jane (Diane Guerrero), Vic (Joivan Wade), Deric (Elijah R. Reed), Cliff (Brendan Fraser/Riley Shanahan), Larry (Matt Bomer/Matthew Zuk), Dorothy (Abi Monterey) and Space Case (Madeline Zima) are all present and accounted for. Space Case, aka Casey, sits near the bodies of Wally Sage, who created her, and her father, Torminox. She looks crestfallen.
Next, our crew follows Immortus/Isabel into Cloverton. They try to figure out if Isabel really is Immortus. Everyone has Cliff on their sh*t list because his longevity sacrifice manifested Immortus. Rita seems hellbent on killing Immortus before she destroys the world. At one point, Deric calls an Uber to hightail it back home. He has a wife and a kid waiting for him. Wait — is Deric taking that Uber to Detroit from Ohio? That’s gonna cost an arm and a leg. Before he departs, he contemplates creating something different for Vic regarding cyber tech. Perhaps he can be a different kind of Cyborg.
As they walk closer to town, a truck driver pulls over, realizing that’s Isabel Feathers. She’s been missing for months. Later, our heroes watch a segment of World of Wut? The host (David Lengel) interviews Isabel. Suddenly, she inadvertently reveals her trip through time and space and how she realized it’s all a construct. She was everything, everywhere, all at once. Upon learning she forked up by admitting all this, she rewinds time to redo that moment with the host. We see the Doom Patrol repeat what they said minutes before. Laura asks if they felt a strange shift.
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Next, we notice the crew is aging significantly. Now that none of them have their longevity, they must decide their next move. Rita votes they stop Immortus/Isabel, her thespian rival. Cliff runs to the fridge to check for the frozen baby Were-butt. Unfortunately, it’s MIA. Cliff freaks out but doesn’t disclose his mistake to the others. Jane also experiences the effects of aging in the form of a pounding headache. Cliff, Jane and Larry seem keen on figuring out what to do with the little time they have left instead of fighting Immortus.
However, Rita has Vic and Laura on her side. They learn of a parade in town for Isabel. They’ll attend that and go from there. Meanwhile, Dorothy shows Casey her father’s spaceship that runs on apples. Dorothy decides to stay at Doom Manor and help her friends. Casey vows to be Dorothy’s sidekick now. Aw.
Then, Larry and Keeg discover a disassembled version of Rama (Sendhil Ramamurthy) made his way into their room. Cliff searches frantically for the frozen Were-butt. Dorothy finds Cliff and asks him to accompany her to the basement. She has something to show him. Cliff keeps his back turned as his body shakes from Parkinson’s. Unfortunately, Immortus’ arrival didn’t eradicate his illness as promised.
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Meanwhile, Jane struggles to find The Underground; however. Casey appears inside her mind, leading her back topside. Understandably, Casey doing this rattles Jane. Vic, Rita and Laura arrive at the location of the Cloverton parade. They see Isabel/Immortus signing copies of the Our Town playbill. The Cloverton mayor (Brooke Jaye Taylor) approaches our trio, recognizing them as the Doom Patrol — the heroes who saved Isabel. Isabel doesn’t like the attention they’re getting, though. She rewinds time again to ensure she’s the one who introduces the Doom Patrol.
Later, Larry and Keeg successfully reassemble Rama by utilizing the radiation in Larry’s body. It makes Rama resistant to the radiation on Larry’s skin. They hold hands (Larry doesn’t have bandages on them) and embrace. How sweet. To assist Cliff with his walking issues, Dorothy offers Niles’ chair for him to use. Cliff claims he’s just fine. He doesn’t need help. He storms off after chewing her out. But before that, he reveals he talked to Niles’ ghost and refused to assist him. Aw, poor Dorothy. That’s gotta be tough to hear.
Meanwhile, Jane returns to her room to find Casey cleaning and rearranging her room. Like Cliff, Jane has a conniption fit, unfairly directing her anger toward Casey. Jane tells Casey that she isn’t real. None of this is real. After Jane insults Casey, the latter departs. Cliff and Jane parallel each other a lot in this episode.
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Then, Rita accompanies Isabel/Immortus to film another segment of World of Wut? Vic and Laura watch off-camera. Isabel is irritated when the host gives Rita more attention than her. Once again, she rewinds time to ensure she gets the last word. Vic and Laura join them on the couch. The host asks Vic about what it’s like not to be Cyborg anymore. At Doom Manor, Cliff struggles to ascend the staircase in the basement. Dorothy rides up behind him in her late father’s chair.
She gets to the bottom of Cliff’s anger. Beneath that enraged façade, Cliff feels he doesn’t deserve anyone’s help or love. Dorothy gives him a pep talk, reminding him how much people will miss him when he’s gone. Cliff remembers there’s a parade in Cloverton in honor of Immortus/Isabel and the Doom Patrol. He decides to attend it.
At the same time, Jane finds Casey sitting on a bench in a corridor. Jane looks like she wants to apologize, but that’s not Jane’s way. She simply sits and listens to Casey, who realizes she feels empty — even after losing Torminox and Wally. Jane invites Casey to accompany her to the parade. Make them girlfriends, you cowards.
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Larry and Rama chat about the former’s inevitable death now that he’s longevity-less. Larry worries what will happen, considering he’s got a body full of radiation. Not only that, but Rama’s currently tangible form might be temporary. Rama has also been exposed to radiation. Cliff invites Larry to the parade. Initially, Larry opts to stay home and stare out his window, but Rama persuades him to go. Meanwhile, he’ll rest on Larry’s military-grade cot.
After her interview on World of Wut?, Rita seems more content and less hellbent on killing Immortus/Isabel. Vic notes the 180 from mere hours ago. Rita is a star from the Golden Age of Hollywood, you know. She loves the spotlight. Craves it, even. Laura catches up with Isabel, who touches up her foundation. She addresses Isabel as “Immortus,” which pisses her off. She threatens Laura, claiming she knows how she dies and can speed up the process. Then, Isabel/Immortus rewinds time, passing over the moment of abject anger for a redo.
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Later, our heroes are on their own float at the parade. It even has a farting donkey on it! Rita notices a skin-blob version of her floating above the proceedings. Admittedly, the town of Cloverton looks like a film set. I can’t explain it better than that. Maybe it’s a budget thing? Anyway, watching the Doom Patrol get the recognition they deserve is fun. Everyone unloads their fears and issues. Jane can’t access The Underground. Larry fears dying and exploding the world because of his radiation-filled body. Oh, and Cliff lost the frozen Were-butt. There’s that.
Meanwhile, the Cloverton mayor informs Isabel that she’s not receiving the key to the city — she’s meant to hand it to the Doom Patrol. Also, the mayor wants to designate a holiday in their honor. Again, Immortus becomes envious, loathing the lack of attention on her. She screams. Remember what transpired the last time she screamed? A pocket dimension was obliterated. Could she destroy Cloverton? Maybe…
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Do you think Isabel/Immortus wiped out Cloverton? Can our heroes solve their problems and retrieve their longevity? Will they reach out beyond their circle for help? Only time (and more episodes) will tell.
Doom Patrol drops new episodes every Thursday on Max.
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