Doom Patrol: Book Three

Doom Patrol: Book Three by Grant Morrison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Doom Patrol: Book Three collects Doom Patrol #51-63 and Doom Force Special #1, written by Grant Morrison with art by Richard Case, Sean Phillips, Ken Steacy, Stan Woch, and Phillip Bond, among others.

I have arrived at the end of Grant Morrison's acclaimed Doom Patrol run. What a strange trip it's been. In this volume, the gang go up against The Brotherhood of Dada and their magic bus, the Candlemaker, and their biggest enemies, themselves.

A lot of big things happen in this volume, including an "Everything you know is wrong" revelation about the group's origin. Multiple fans are hit by multiple kilotons of shit. There weren't as many ideas for the sake of crazy ideas in this volume. Things were more focused, heading toward the conclusion like an out of control car.

Robotman, the angry, befuddled dad of the group, continues to be my favorite character by leaps and bounds. As usual, he's trying to keep things together while flying by the seat of his pants. I'd read a hundred issues of Robotman Team-Up if such a thing existed.

My complaint that the Doom Patrol are supporting characters in their own book from last volume is still valid, although not quite so much in this volume. Willoughby Kipling, the poor man's John Constantine, played a sizeable role in the conclusion, though Cliff and the gang did their part.

The way Morrison wrapped things up gives me little interest in reading the Rachel Pollock material that comes after. How do you drag the Doom Patrol back into action after what Morrison put them though?

Doom Patrol: Book Three is a great conclusion to Grant Morrison's run and my favorite in the series. Four out of five stars.

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