Written by April Fitzsimmons
Directed by Wayne Yip
John: "You really haven't fucked anyone since JFK? My God, Larry."
Larry: "Now that I think of it, there is a relationship I want to tell you about."
A couple of weeks ago, I said Danny Street was the best episode of the season but after this one, it certainly has some competition. An episode that largely gave us Larry/John dream sequence where the former confronted his closetness nature and reunited with an older version of the latter was going to be up my street.
Sure the outcome of John dying peacefully at the end was predictable but damn it, if that scene didn't make me well up. Some fabulous acting from both Tom Fitzpatrick as the older John who had moved on but still loved Larry as well as another great performance from Kyle Clements as the younger John who wanted Larry to be more honest with himself.
As for Matt Bomer - he's been excellent throughout this series and this episode was a clear highlight with him again. Yes, it's more than time for Larry to move on with his issues and accept himself and while it's been a slow journey for him, it's been one of the more compelling arcs of this whole season. Following John's death, I am hoping for a more at peace with himself version of Larry.
As for the dream sequences, the motel one was a lovely way to open the episode as Larry wanted to be alone with John and the latter wanted Larry to be himself. If this is the last time we'll see John, it's a shame as I've enjoyed the character but it felt like a fitting way to close this chapter on Larry's life for now.
Of course it wasn't just Larry getting some closure. Cliff's love rival died and it resulted in both him and Rita attending his funeral while Cliff's daughter Clara waxed lyrical about the man who adopted her and taught her some vital life lessons. Again, Cliff's own family issues seemed to get a little bit of a resolution courtesy of Cliff getting a watch out of an alligator named Frances. The same alligator that also killed Cliff's love rival.
I liked the pairing of Cliff and Rita in this episode as the latter was also on her mission of self discovery and finding the Chief. I think she was brilliant in trying to give Cliff a little perspective about Clara, even if it took a while for her words to get through to Cliff.
As for Victor and Jane - their pairing worked well too. It was nice to see Jane in control for the majority of the episode, while Victor shut down Grid before getting taken to the Ant Farm. Yup, it looks like we're not rid of Darren Jones just yet.
- Was this the first time the current team (or Jane specifically) referred to themselves as the Doom Patrol?
- Rita's real name is Gertrude, which she used when chatting to that guy at the bar during the funeral.
- While he didn't appear in the episode, Flex Mentallo was mentioned, so I'm sure we'll be meeting him within the next four episodes. Animal-Vegatable-Mineral Man is also still making a nuisance off himself off screen.
- Chronology: From where Jane Patrol and Hair Patrol left off.
The more I think of it, the more I'm convinced this show actually thrives more without the Chief and Nobody. Frances Patrol advanced nothing on either of their whereabouts and it was the most compelling with all five of our main players getting great material without either. For me though, Larry's was the best but given this review, you probably would've already guessed that.
Rating: 9 out of 10
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