The new Doom Patrol show has arrived and it already has a lot of people excited. While the comic book team certainly has its fans, it is a relatively obscure property and might not be well-known among the mainstream crowd. There’s still a lot to learn about the show, especially with the characters who make up the titular team.
The team of misfit would-be heroes consists of Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Girl, Crazy Jane and Cyborg, all led by Dr. Niles Caulder, aka The Chief. If some of those names don’t sound familiar to you, learn a little bit more about the unusual crew. Here are some little-known facts about the Doom Patrol members.
10. Crazy Jane And Cyborg Are Not Original Members
Doom Patrol has a lengthy history in the comic books, going back to 1963. As with any comic book team that has been around that long, there have been a few changes to the roster. As a result, the members featured in the show don’t quite match the original line-up. Specifically, with Crazy Jane and Cyborg.
Crazy Jane is one of the newer members of Doom Patrol, having joined the team in 1989. Cyborg, on the other hand, was never a member of this particular team. It could be that the show wanted to use a familiar face.
9. Cyborg’s Origin Change
Though he is not an original Doom Patrol member, Cyborg sure is involved in a lot of teams. Including this new crew, he’s also a member of Teen Titans and Justice League. As a result, his origins are going to differ a little between each adaption.
In Justice League, we saw his superhero birth linked to the Mother Boxes. This will not be the case in Doom Patrol where his origins will be closer to those of the original comic books. This might cause confusion for fans, but they should feel like two separate versions of the character.
8. Robotman’s Original Name
Through all the different iterations of the Doom Patrol team, one aspect that has remained consistent is Robotman. He is the only member who has been in every version of the team to date. In many cases, he is the face of the team. We wonder if he would have been so prominent if the character kept his original name.
When first created, Robotman was actually called Automaton. Luckily, the creators admitted to themselves that it was a silly name pretty quickly and they changed it to the much better and straight-forward, Robotman. Close call.
7. Negative Man’s Familiar Disguise
Negative Man is one of the founding members of the team as well. His real name is Larry Trainor, a pilot who can project a negative version of himself with superpowers. Unfortunately, the powers also mean that he is radioactive and can harm anyone near him. As protection, he wears special lead-lined bandages from head-to-toe.
The look of Negative Man’s disguise is inspired by the classic Universal Classic Monsters’ character, Invisible Man. The look is likely meant as an homage as well as a parallel with how society views these heroes as monsters. It’s also just a cool look.
6. Elasti-Girl The Olympian
The third and final member of the original team is Elasti-Girl. In the comics, Elasti-Girl is really Rita Farr, an actress who is exposed to gases which transform her. The show seems to be keeping that aspect of the origin, but it remains to be seen if they’ll include the fact that Rita is also an Olympian.
Yes, Rita won a gold medal in swimming before turning to acting. It might seem like an odd and unimportant thing to include in the show, but it might be a fun Easter egg for fans.
5. Crazy Jane’s Tragic Past
Superheroes are known for having dark pasts. It’s hard to think of any hero whose parents or loved ones weren’t killed. These tragedies often help them become heroes. However, Crazy Jane’s past is probably among the darkest of any hero.
As a child, Jane was abused by her own father which leads to her developing multiple personalities that then become her powers. It seems like the show may have changed this aspect of the character, likely because it is very dark. But it could be something that is revealed later on in the series.
4. Negative Man’s Sexuality
Part of Negative Man’s backstory in this show is that before his accident, and with a wife at home, he was having a homosexual affair. This aspect of the character is an invention of the show and was never a part of the character’s story in the comics.
This change could provide a lot of rich story potential for the character. Being that Negative Man comes from the 1960s, he would have had to hide this part of his life. This adds to the theme of alienation with these heroes. It’s also great to see a homosexual superhero on screen.
3. Not The Original Elasta-Girl?
Though an original member of the team, the Elasta-Girl we are seeing in the show is not the same one from those earlier comic books. The original Elasta-Girl’s powers caused her body to grow or shrink. The show depicts her as more of an amorphous blob.
This is not quite an invention of the show as there was a storyline in the comics where Rita died and was resurrected with all her old memories but no bones or organs. This could be a twist that will be revealed, but it’s more likely they just chose the power that was easier to pull off.
2. Crazy Jane & Robotman Romance
It probably comes as a surprise to no one that some romances have developed out of the team, including a central romance between Crazy Jane and Robotman. These two damaged individuals provided comfort for each other before developing feelings for each other over time.
It is a rather unusual romance, since the only human thing about him is his brain, but it is an unusual group of people. It wouldn’t be surprising if they chose to develop this romance on the show as well.
1. The Chief’s Dark Side
Though not technically a member of the team, The Chief is very much the leader of the Doom Patrol. He is the one who recruited every member and helped give them a purpose. However, The Chief might have more going on than it seems.
Though he started out nice enough in the comics, over the years, Caulder was developed into a villain. It is even revealed in one story that he is responsible for the accidents that created the heroes. Timothy Dalton does make a great villain so it will be interesting to see if the show goes down this route as well.
