Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #5 – Becky Cloonan, Michael Conrad, Writers; Becky Cloonan, Artist; Tamra Bonvillain, Colorist
Ray – 8/10
Ray: With only two issues until the end of this run, I wasn’t expecting a one-shot by a completely different creative team in Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #5. But I can’t say I’m sorry to see it, because this Becky Cloonan-fronted issue is probably the most entertaining issue of the run.
Focusing on an eccentric boy obsessed with Doom Patrol comics, it starts with him trying to get in one more comic before he has to go to school where bullies target him regularly. Further dialogue indicates he’s as scared of his father as he is of the bullies, and he finds comfort in comics starring fellow outsiders. Then a series of events lead to him winding up inside the comic, where he gets pulled into a quest to help an obscure member of the team named Dorothy Spinner. This little girl with ape-like features (although Cloonan draws her more human-like than normally) has been dead for a while in the comics, but she gets one more starring role here on the heels of her appearance in the TV series.
The character’s name isn’t a coincidence, as the strange little girl leads our point of view character on a quest very reminiscent of the trek down the Yellow Brick Road. The issue has a lot of clever fourth-wall breaking visuals, and intersplices the main story with a Robotman story that eventually intersects to bring the two closer together.
Robotman was probably the most important character in Dorothy’s story originally, so this is a comic that will work much better if you’re familiar with the history of the franchise. It’s one of my weaker spots for DC knowledge, but the human touch of the main character enhances Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #5 a lot.
But a dark twist towards the end casts a strange and harsh pall over the entire issue – before it comes back home with a nice tribute to comic book readers everywhere. I’m not sure how this run is coming together as a whole, but this issue does a good job of celebrating the franchise’s fans.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
