Doom Patrol Might Be Ending, But The Characters Don't Have To

After four glorious seasons, HBO Max's "Doom Patrol" is nearing its end. Ever since its debut on the ill-fated streaming service DC Universe, the ragtag team of superheroes has captured our hearts and broken them more than a few times. From the ensemble cast of characters to the bats*** crazy villains they come across, "Doom Patrol" earned its place among the very best in the genre. With its impending cancellation, we can't help but already mourn what will soon be lost. However, like everything else in the superhero world, nothing truly stays dead. Seeing a good thing come to an end is never easy, but maybe things could be alleviated in the upcoming DCU.

Soon after the cancellation of "Doom Patrol," some fans started to point fingers at the newly-anointed leaders of DC Studios, James Gunn and Peter Safran. Although they are now in charge of the future slate of DC projects across film, television, and gaming, the fate of HBO Max's "Doom Patrol" was decided long before their hiring. As Gunn notes in a tweet, he and Safran had no control over that decision. However, they still have the ability to choose which characters they want to use and who gets to play them. With this in mind, it's possible that "Doom Patrol" could live on in a different capacity. A future DCU could see the characters we cherish become a part of something even bigger. At least, that's what this fan would love to see.

When it was announced that "Doom Patrol" would be ending with the fourth season, several members of the crew bid their farewell to the series and their fans. Joivan Wade called his role as Victor Stone "an absolute dream," while showrunner Jeremy Carver praised his cast and crew for a "once-in-a-lifetime ride." It's the appropriate thing to do, of course. No matter what happens in the future, there will likely never be anything like "Doom Patrol." However, potentially getting to meet these characters once again does not negate what the upcoming finale has in store.

The most important part of any series ending is getting to see it come to its natural conclusion. Although "Doom Patrol" was canceled, I'm confident that we will be getting an ending fitting of the wacky series. The superhero show has taken us on an emotional, decades-spanning journey that continuously deepened our love for the characters that fill it. That being said, closing one chapter is the natural precursor to a new, exciting one. It's taken four seasons to see the Doom Patrol family come together as a superhero team, but the possibilities for future adventures are endless.

For much of the time we spent with the titular team on "Doom Patrol," the band of heavily flawed characters only reluctantly joined forces when the stars aligned. World-ending threats would have to be brought to the table for the makeshift family to fight for something other than themselves. Self-preservation has been a theme of the show since the beginning, especially when it comes to Nile Caulder's devastating quest for immortality. To that measure, "Doom Patrol" is not a typical superhero show in the manner we'd normally expect. It's a series about how super-powered characters deal with their trauma in the direst circumstances. However, maybe it's time for the superhero team to live up to its name and its potential.

Once the final chapter closes on "Doom Patrol," I'd love to see the characters finally become who they were meant to be, surrounded by a greater DC Universe. As a fully-functioning superhero team, they could appear across the DCU as a unified force for good. The heroes are often characterized by their unique struggles and relationships with each other, but that doesn't mean we can't see them thrive together. Simply put, the Doom Patrol would be a fantastic addition to the DCU to represent the weirder side of the canon. Moreover, it's hard to imagine assembling a better cast than the one behind "Doom Patrol." And hey, if we're lucky enough, maybe a film featuring the Doom Patrol could exist in the future.

As Gunn says in his tweet, it's up to him and Safran to pick and choose what carries over in the new (and hopefully improved) DCU. But if my words were to mean anything beyond the confines of this article, I hope it would be to convince the filmmaking duo that a "Doom Patrol" film should happen. We've already seen other popular shows continue their story in sequel films, such as "Downton Abbey," "Entourage," and the upcoming "Community" movie. It usually takes many years for those to come to fruition, but a "Doom Patrol" follow-up in the DCU theatrical slate would be a welcome surprise, no matter when it happens.

If not their own project, the titular team in "Doom Patrol" still deserves some time in the spotlight. Even if it's just a few of them, I can totally see members of the team showing up sporadically in other DCU projects. For instance, you can't tell me Brendan Fraser's foul-mouthed Robotman would not be a genius and seamless addition to the "Peacemaker" series on HBO Max. The "Doom Patrol" show does not need a direct continuation, but letting perfectly cast and written characters in the dust should not be the preferred option. Another "Doom Patrol" project is inevitable, however, it's simply too difficult to separate Fraser, Diane Guerrero, April Bowlby, and the rest of the team from their superhero counterparts.

No matter what, we'll have four seasons to revisit. The first half of the final season of "Doom Patrol is now streaming on HBO Max, while the second portion arrives later this year.