Viewing Review: Doom Patrol Episode 10

This post contains spoilers of episode 10, ‘Hair Patrol’. If you haven’t started DOOM PATROL yet you can begin with a review here. Turn your eyes away otherwise.

‘Hair Patrol’ plugs in some gaps of last episode, and it also provides some background on The Chief, Niles Caulder. However, the star of the episode is a new character recruited by the Bureau of Normalcy, Ernest Franklin aka the Beard Hunter. This is another Grant Morrison creation, and he has a really weird power. Whenever he eats (yes…eats!) the beard or facial hair of anyone, he gains knowledge of the person’s abilities and whereabouts. And, the Bureau tapped him to find Niles Caulder. In order to do that, Beard Hunter has to infiltrate Doom Manor and find remnants of The Chief’s facial hair. He finds it in a bathroom sink and swallows it. He falls unconscious with the meal (ew), and he is captured and tied by Rita and Vic.

While tied, Ernest tells Rita and Vic about his powers. Of course, it sounds ridiculous and the two leave Ernest behind tied up. However, Beard Hunter manages to escape, and also gets to feast on a piece of Vic’s facial hair. Rita and Vic find him, and in the ensuing confrontation Ernest hints on knowing Cyborg’s secret. Grid, seeing Ernest as a threat, initiates Vic’s arm cannon to destroy Beard Hunter. It is at this point that Vic shuts his cannon down, and Ernest escapes Doom Manor. But, Rita was able to slip a tracking device(one that Vic showed her) on Ernest enabling them to track Beard Hunter as he tracks The Chief. Also, Vic confides in Rita that he is indeed malfunctioning since his reboot, but he is keeping this to himself lest he ends up like the prophetic painting made by Crazy Jane, and might eventually lead to the death of the Doom Patrol.

Then, we have flashbacks to Niles Caulder’s past in 1913 which are actually viewed by Mr. Nobody. Here we find out that Niles was part of the Bureau of Oddities, the precursor of the Bureau of Normalcy, along with his friend Alasteir. The difference between the two bureaus is the mandate. The Bureau of Oddities was created to observe and capture while the Bureau of Normalcy only destroys. So, Niles was part of the history of the Bureau of Normalcy. This is part of his past that the Doom Patrol don’t know about. Additionally, Niles has a secret neanderthal woman and love interest named Slava who appears to be able to summon a wolf-dear creature known as Oyewah. Niles lives with Slave for roughly two years as he is presumed dead by Alasteir of whom Niles believed to be dead as well.

After some time passes, Niles runs into Alasteir in the Yukon forest in Canada where they lost each other. Niles finds out that Alasteir intends to kill Slava, and knows of her existence. This is because the Bureau of Oddities had now changed to the Bureau of Normalcy and thus has changed mandates. Alasteir never gets a chance to kill Slave because Niles kills him instead by letting him drown in a cracked portion of an icy lake. Niles then returns to civilization and keeps the secret of Slava with him.

Intrigued with this secret, Mr. Nobody asks Niles to tell him where Slava is so that everything that’s happening to him right now will stop. Niles rejects the offer, and this leaves the two of them at an impasse.

To close the episode, Beard Hunter tracks down Niles Caulder…or is it him. He encounters a Niles Caulder without eyes sitting in a wheelchair with the voice of Mr. Nobody. He flees the house, but runs into Oyewah. this leaves him screaming, and the episode ends.

‘Hair Patrol’ is a bit anti-climactic. Though it does tie up some missing story elements from last episode, it leaves more questions without providing any real resolution. If anything, the best part of this episode of DOOM PATROL is the origin of Niles Caulder. Also, the fact that Beard Hunter is able to track Niles might give the Doom Patrol a plausible chance of finding The Chief. That is, if Mr. Nobody doesn’t find the tracking device on Ernest Franklin. Otherwise, ‘Hair Patrol’ is more of a set-up episode to the next episode.

In ‘Hair Patrol’, DOOM PATROL gives another piece of the team’s past while giving a glimpse of the future. It’s an episode that provides some answers, but gives you more questions. This leaves you to wonder if DOOM PATROL will ever run out of tricks to capture audiences. Right now, the oddities of the show highlight its unpredictability. This serves DOOM PATROL well as it continues to provide surprises from its box of peculiarities.