Season 4 Episode 4 – When the safety of Danny and everyone housed within is compromised, Dorothy is forced to step up with some unexpected help.
Please note, our reviews are based on likes and dislikes. These contain significant spoilers. If you haven’t already watched the episode, we recommend that you click off the article and come back once you have watched the episode. Enjoy!
What I Liked
1. We see a comic book style opening of Dorothy’s new favorite fictional character Space Case, a superhero who fights the evil alien warlord Torminox. This style pops up throughout the episode and gives a very fun atmosphere whenever it does.
2. Dorothy reveals to the residents of Danny the Street that she stole back the necklace that gave her father his immortality, which she then used to summon the spirit of her father. This story clearly has some holes in it that makes it clear she isn’t telling the truth. We soon find out later in the episode that the Deadboy Detectives stole it for her and that she never actually saw Niles.
3. Maura Lee Corrupt gets a lot more to do in this episode. She works very well off of Dorothy. Despite the age difference, you definitely feel that the two are good friends.
4. Dorothy has become much more closed off and angry, preferring to be left alone and pushing away those who reach out to her. It’s sad to see one of the nicest characters in the show become a much more cynical person.
5. The Dannyzens are infected by cyborg insects called Vecna sent by the evil alien Torminox, who has somehow come to life. The Vecna are surprisingly very creepy and have a very outlandish vibe, signaling that something is definitely wrong.
6. While they are trapped in a trailer and surrounded by the infected Dannyzens, Maura Lee and Dorothy are saved by Space Case (aka Casey Brinke). After fighting off the Vecna, Casey shows herself to be very odd and over the top. It is honestly hilarious to see this character act even more weird than the characters, which is already saying a lot knowing some of the oddballs in this show.
7. Being from a comic book, Casey is unfamiliar with the concept of hunger and has to be taught the meaning by a dumbfounded Dorothy and Maura Lee. It is a very humorous scene in an otherwise very serious episode.
8. Torminox is revealed to be Casey’s father. In a flashback shown in the style of a comic book, he was infected during a lab experiment and turned into an evil alien. He killed Casey’s mother and set them on the path of being arch-enemies. She has apparently fought and killed him exactly 143 times.
9. When she is about to face her father, Casey his caught off guard by his gentler and desperate attitude. This makes her unable to fight in that moment and forces the three of them to flee from Torminox, who reveals that he has come for the necklace that belonged to Niles.
10. Casey finds out that she is from a comic book and is understandably shocked and saddened. This is the kind of reaction you would expect, but Madeline Zima just sells the scene beautifully.
11. Casey tries to appeal to her father and make him give up peacefully but it sadly doesn’t work. However, there definitely seems to be a heavy amount of remorse from him. Unlike what is shown in their comic, it feels like Torminox doesn’t want to be her enemy but has no choice.
12. Deciding that they need to find their true place in the world if they want to change it like they say, Maura Lee convinces the Dannyzens to move on from their community and find their own purpose. They all take her idea very well and sing one last song before they leave for good. While we don’t see much of Danny and their residents, you can definitely tell that this community is practically like a family that all supports one another.
13. Dorothy decides to leave with Casey to go to Cloverton. She shares one last goodbye with Danny before leaving with her new friend. It is a very emotional and powerful scene.
14. The ending shows a writer being given the necklace with Rita’s emotions by Dr. Janus and Niles’ necklace by Torminox. The writer promises that Immortus will rise and give them what they desire. The more I see the buildup for General Immortus, the more excited I am to see him when he finally does appear.
What I Disliked
1. I will say this felt like a rather poor time to do a stand-alone episode about Dorothy. The last episode left on a huge cliffhanger so I can’t really call this a welcome surprise when I want to know what happened to Rita more.
2. What happened to the Dead Boy Detectives? Dorothy seemed to really find her place with them, but she seems to have just left. We don’t even get an explanation as to why.
3. Dorothy says that she got the necklace back from a character who we have not seen, but Niles gave the necklace to Kipling. Was this supposed to be a secret or did Kipling sell the necklace? If it’s the latter, that definitely doesn’t feel like something he’d do.
4. The Candlemaker appears to protect Dorothy from Torminox but is promptly defeated and turned into a cube. It pains me to see how much potential this character had and the show just wasted all of it. I can’t believe I ever found this character to be scary. The main villain of season 2 and arguably the reason that the show even happened has honestly turned out to be such a disappointment.
Favorite Moment
When Torminox has Casey by the throat and threatens to kill his own daughter, Dorothy calls him out on being a horrible father and reveals her problems with Niles as her own father. She states that she hasn’t used her imaginary friends or talked to the Doom Patrol in months because they are all reminders of what he did to her but also how she lost him. She also says that she never actually saw Niles and that there are so many things that she wants to say to him. It is an understandable but still nonetheless heartbreaking reveal. Abi Monterey really sells the emotion in this scene. She even drops an F bomb for what I’m pretty sure is the first time. She eventually trades the necklace for Danny and the Candlemaker, but it is clear that some of her words got through to him.
Standout Character
While Casey is a very fun and extremely interesting new character, I would have to give the MVP award to Dorothy for this episode. Abi Monterey is absolutely fantastic in this role and has definitely changed since the first season. She has gone from a very meek and naive child to a mature but much more cynical adult. I’m excited to see what role she plays in this season.
Verdict
While I still greatly enjoyed this episode and found a lot to love about it, this was unfortunately a step down from the first three episodes. I don’t mind having to catch up with Dorothy as I do like the character, but this felt more like an episode that was made to save money as opposed to one that was actually necessary to the story of the season.
Rating 9.2/10
Ratings
Story - 8
Action - 10
Characters - 10
Entertainment - 10
Quality - 8
9.2
Great
While I still greatly enjoyed this episode and found a lot to love about it, this was unfortunately a step down from the first three episodes. I don’t mind having to catch up with Dorothy as I do like the character, but this felt more like an episode that was made to save money as opposed to one that was actually necessary to the story of the season.
