Notes on - Doom Patrol: Portal Patrol

 

Portal Patrol notes

Whst’s with the WWII airplane?  Should I get that reference?

Dinosaur!

Can you die in the time stream?

WTF???  Half a horse?

Deploy the pod?

Vic’s made a flattened dodecahedron?

Cliff:  So… Technically we’re inside you?

Cliff has totally given up

What do the alters want Jane to say??

Oh, Vic doesn’t know Rita’s dying

Keeg can go get info,  That’s a nice use of him

And Keeg can hack into GRID to broadcast plot info

OK, so basic setup, there are three portals where there’s longevity and no Immortus.  Side quests for plot coupons!

Larry:  You should know that everyone deserves second or third chances.

Cliff:  Boo.

Why do they need Vic’s kmnuckles?

OK, so they can pull them back.  That works.

Nice seeding of the possibility that one of the portals might be in the future.

Cliff:  What, my mitt’s not good enough but you’ll grab on to a used maxipad wrapped in a trenchcoat?

Cliff, she’s choosing Larry because she’s still angry with you

Jumping to the portals is a nice visual

And Vic stays behind to monitor the pos and send an SOS.  No real reason for the SOS if you think about it.

And by the law of plot irony, Rouge lands in the Ant Farm, 1949.  The site of her worst human failing

Project Immortus: Niles Caulder.  That’s convenient

And Jane and Larry end up in Doom Manor 1996.  Cliff is conveniently catatonic so not an issue.

Chief is the longevity in all three portals

Hey, Keeg can go talk to his other dad!

Willoughby:  Tell me, barkeep.  Have you ever had your heart shat upon by a horse?

And Larry’s in Paraguay, 1948

Niles has only just gotten the immortal skin tag in this portal.  He just came from Von Fuchs

Interesting that Niles is holding the longevity in all three options.  Like, if Cliff got it here would it disappear in the others?

Right, Niles had drawn Robotman way before building him

Of course Cliff wouldn’t bother doing anything but be straight up honest with Niles

Good call for cliff to reveal that he knows about Dorothy.  It’s a little cruel that he makes sure Niles knows how much better Dorothy is without him.

Why would Niles attack a robot with a knife?

Willoughby:  What in the name of good king Christ is that?

Cliff:  Drunk Merlin is here?  Fuck this.

Is it the spell, or is it the Parkinsons?

What is Keeg and the negative spirit’s relationship?

I get Larry bein g angry and betrayed here

It makes sense that Negative spirit goes to get present Larry

Old Negative spirit brought spare bandages.  That’s kind of sweet

Jane is looking for Niles in the old VHS vault

What do the alters want Jane to say??

Still not clear why Vic is trying to send an SOS

Grid:  You are doing a great job.

Vic:  Grid, turn off positive reinforcements.

It’s nice that Jane has accepted that they’ve already done all the fighting they can

What does it mean that the personas are gone?

Jane’s accepted that the others in this house are her family

Willoughby:  Where the Hell are you from, anyway?

Cliff: Oh, I just got here from fucking your mom.

Future knowledge is a toxin

Cliff’s straight talk is working

This robot is ancient.  CLUE!

It makes sense that Mr. Invincible would be able to lock into Vic’s signal since he built him.

Yay, Deric!!

Deric’s hair is just different enough to be a clue

Ooo, Niles is creating the water thing that will attack Rita!

Rouge:  Ah.  Well.  I kinda hope that hurt.

1949 Rouge is palpably different than the present day Rouge.  Michelle Gomez is just SO good.

Modern Rouge is really going out of her way to be cruel to her 1949 self.  She really hates herself.

And now old Rouge has captured new Rouge!

It tracks that Larry would want the negative spirit to take care of Keeg.  But it also makes sense that the Larry of 1996 couldn’t handle it

Convenient that Keeg can psychically bring the NS up to speed.

1996 Niles has learned to erase future knowledge.

The sight gag of Niles pouring a double after learning that he’s dead in the future is a good gag

Oh, so good that she brought back around the room for her at Josh Clay’s house.

And good for him for not denying it.

***  I am your incredibly imperfect friend.

Jane’s now looking for peace instead of survival

The robotics kids are building a foil pod.  Adorable.

Deric gets that this Vic is from earlier in his life

Great reveal that Vic has reached the future.

Niles in 1948 is genuinely sorry.  That’s touching.

How did Von Fuchs get the part of Immortus?

Cliff:  Newsflash.  The Nazis are here.

Yeah, Cliff would be vulnerable to electricity just by his very nature

Cliff is stuck with leg mid raise due to Parkinsons

Rouge in 49 is not prepared to see who Rouge in 2023 really is

Her parents led the mob that chased her out of town when they found out she was a shifter.  That’s horrifying.

Niles:  If I’m the man that builds you, then I’m a goddamn genius.

Cliff:  No.  You’re a monster.

It’s poetic that Cliff declared Niles a monster immediately before breaking Niles’ spine and putting him in the chair.

Oh right.  Rouge doesn’t even need to be there.  She’s doing it entirely for others

And she hates this version of herself for doing all the shit she has to atone for.

1949 Rouge:  I am a good person, you fucking bitch.

2023 Rouge:  No.  You’re not.

The Detroit kids are calculating the time portal.  That’s awesome

And here’s Vic from that timeline.  Awesome.

Rouge really hates herself.  Using the stamp is poetic

So Cliff broke Niles’ back and Niles put Cliff’s brain in the suit.

And Cliff could totally take the longevity right here.

What does the NS mean about Larry becoming new life in the sun?  What’s that about?

He’s warning Larry about passing his own fear on to Keeg

Jane is growing beyond the function that she was created by Kay for.

Jane:  I’m so tired of being me.

There are all the alters!

I’ve missed them.

Jane:  It happened to all of us.  It happened to me.

This is a huge step toward integrating

And suddenly there’s only one piece left to put in place.  What does Niles see?

Is this a new underground?

Shadow of Driver 8!

The underground is collapsing, but they don’t meed it anymore.  Now they’re all together.

So Kay has been off building something?

So does Niles drink the memory stuff or not?  We don’t see it.

They blew all three shots at getting the longevity

And now Jane is all of the alters combined called the Kaleidoscope.

So all of this time in the timestream was AGAIN for nothing at all beyond character growth.