Welcome to the Couch Club, our recurring column devoted to all things #DCTV! This week, Rosie Knight digs into the latest episodes of Doom Patrol and the friendships at its core.
 

After a nine-month break, the second half of the final season of Doom Patrol has arrived with a double episode premiere. “Orqwith Patrol” and “Fame Patrol” both pit our ragtag group of weirdos against the mighty Immortus and his biggest fan, Wally Sage. It's an action-packed return and one that focuses heavily on the vital friendships that form the core of the absurdist superhero show. As we anxiously await the end of our favorite team of outcasts, we're taking a look at the new episodes through the lens of some Doom Patrol pal pairings to remind us just what’s at stake.
 

Vic and Deric

Being trapped in Orqwith has given Vic and his childhood friend Deric some much needed one-on-one time, but it’s also offering up the chance for Deric to become the hero he always wanted to be.

Getting to know Deric and learn about Vic's past as a super-intelligent inventor and proud nerd has been one of the highlights of this season, and watching the pair team up here is a joy. While Deric has always looked up to Cyborg, it's really Deric's inventiveness and smart use of Wally's magic that saves the Doom Patrol and gets them out of Orqwith. Sadly, Deric heads home at the beginning of "Fame Patrol," but Vic gets some really big moments in "Fame Patrol" from a different friend, as Rita reminds him of the hero that he is and the massive impact he's going to have on the world. Speaking of Rita…
 

Rouge and Rita

After killing a version of Wally Sage earlier this season, Rita and her on-again-off-again bestie are now tipsy and building a nightmare portal to Orqwith to stop that universe's Wally from reviving Immortus. It's a lovely side quest that features much female bonding and the sharing of dark and hilarious secrets such as Rita's penchant for serial murder and Rouge's habit of defiling Rita's toothbrush when the pair were less friendly. In a charmingly wasted attempt to save the crew's lives, they make it to Orqwith through the nightmare portal, but are actually saved—along with their team members—by none other than Deric and another of his fantastic plans.

In the wake of their escape from Orqwith, Rita is faced with an old foe and Rouge is seemingly the only one aware of what's really going on with Immortus and his new vessel. But she may have been too late to warn her friends of the danger.
 

Casey and Dorothy

If you were worried that you might not see Dorothy again, she arrives with Casey—a newer member of the team on both TV and in the comics—at the end of “Orqwith Patrol.” Their arrival causes enough of a distraction to give Deric's plan time to work, but before they can truly save the day, Immortus arrives and screams so loud he demolishes Orqwith and leaves Wally and his crew dead. And THAT is why Wally and Immortus aren’t on this list.

Fortunately, our heroes survive, which leads to some bonding between Dorothy and Casey who are both fatherless. In a bit of the twist, it’s the youngster who takes Casey under her wing and soon they're working on a new project: saving the Doom Patrol.

This is a really sweet evolution of their relationship that sees Casey become Dorothy's sidekick and find a new purpose in helping the young girl. Time will tell, but this could be a very important new bond going forward, especially as the rest of the Doom Patrol fall apart. And on that subject…
 

Cliff and Jane

The beating heart of the Doom Patrol family is really going through it. After reconnecting and deciding to head into Orqwith to save Jane's longevity, the pair quickly fall prey to the Scissor Men and one of Cliff's notoriously bad decisions. In case you don't recall, Cliff is the last of the Patrol to still have his longevity, meaning he's the only thing between Immortus and the world. But after being shown a world where he is close with his daughter and grandson, Cliff gives up his immortality for the chance to see that future come true. Come on, man!

Of course, it's all just a trick and he's left without that possibility when Immortus returns and blows Orqwith sky-high. Jane feels understandably betrayed as the pair were only there to get her immortality back and Cliff blew it. Plus, now Immortus has returned and Jane's struggling to get back to the Underground and Kay.

These two have gone through a lot together, so it's likely that they'll make up eventually. But as the Patrol takes the stage at the Cloverton superhero parade, Jane and Cliff are still far from friends.
 

Larry and Keeg

The last time we saw Larry, he'd given up his longevity so that he could stay with Keeg in Orqwith. Their relationship pushed him to give up the life he had in the real world, but after the destruction of the pocket dimension and the lies that Immortus sold him, Larry is dying. Keeg is trying his best to help but as Larry reveals at the end of "Fame Patrol," he's basically a ticking time bomb. His radioactive body makes him a massive threat to the entire world as he quickly degrades.

Will Keeg and the Doom Patrol be able to help him? That's the big question as we head into the final four episodes of the series, because right now, Larry is as much of a threat as Immortus.
 

Isabel Feathers and Immortus

Can you really call a possessed actress and the omnipotent despotic time monster who is possessing her…”friends”? For the sake of this column, we're saying yes!

In one of the most unexpected twists this season, Immortus has returned in the body of Rita's ex-thespian-nemesis Isabel Feathers. The fame-hungry actress has been missing for ages—thanks to Rouge pushing her down a timehole—and her return puts her back in the spotlight and makes the Doom Patrol heroes once again. But Isabel isn't alone and she's using Immortus' reality-shaping powers to give herself the life she's always wanted. Whether she's rewinding time to give the perfect interview answer or screaming people into oblivion, Isabel is a force to be reckoned with.
 

Doom Patrol’s fourth and final season is now streaming on Max. New episodes drop on Thursdays.

Rosie Knight is an award-winning journalist and author who loves Swamp Thing, the DC Cosmic and writing about those and more here at DC.com. You can listen to her waxing lyrical about comics, movies and more each week as she co-hosts Crooked Media's pop-culture podcast, X-Ray Vision.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Rosie Knight and do not necessarily reflect those of DC Entertainment or Warner Bros., nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.