WIRE Buzz: Doom Patrol casts its Dorothy; The Complex goes Bandersnatch 2.0; flying taxis

One of Doom Patrol's key characters — and one that was briefly introduced at the end of the DC Universe adaptation’s first season — has been cast for season two of its live-action superhero series. Dorothy, the telekinetically-enabled daughter of The Chief (Timothy Dalton), came to prominence during Grant Morrison’s run on the DC comic, which the TV series has been leaning on for its narrative (though still enjoying plenty of oddball deviations). Eventually she would come to join the team.

According to TVLine, the pivotal role will be played by Abigail Shapiro and likely be paramount to the plot of the second season. “Niles loves her very much and has gone through great sacrifice to protect her, and the world, from her special abilities,” Dorothy’s official description reads. “Now that she is no longer hidden, Niles will go to even greater lengths to protect her.” 

She will join a household that already counts Jane (Diane Guerrero), Cliff Steele (Brendan Fraser), Larry Trainor (Matt Bomer), and Rita Farr (April Bowlby) among its members...with Cyborg (Jovian Wade) dealing with everyone’s nonsense.

While no premiere date has yet been announced for the streaming show's return, Doom Patrol will debut Season 2 both on its original home of DC Universe and the upcoming WarnerMedia streamer HBO Max.

Next, if fans thought that Bandersnatch (Black Mirror’s choose-your-own-adventure movie for Netflix) was a twisty, mind-blowing experience, Wales Interactive has the next step in interactive live-action entertainment. Somewhere between a traditional story-telling RPG, interactive movie, and FMV game, the company’s upcoming project The Complex looks to further blur the line between contemporary forms of entertainment.

According to the game’s Steam page, the game is written by Lynn Renee Maxcy (The Handmaid’s Tale), directed by Paul Raschid, and features a cast including Michelle Mylett (Letterkenny), Kate Dickie (Game of Thrones), and Al Weaver (Grantchester). This crew will see players through a story involving trapped London scientists in the aftermath of a bio-weapon attack all the way to one of the game’s eight endings.

Which one players get will depend on the choices they make as well as the relationships they develop and personality they display. These latter two components give things a more Mass Effect or Telltale angle, tracking emotional factors rather than simple narrative decision-making.

The Complex hits PC, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch on March 31.

Finally, flying cars may not be the future, but unmanned Uber-esque aircraft might be the future of taxi travel. That’s what Wisk hopes to accomplish with its autonomous planes, and the company is starting up its service in a time where aircraft safety is already at the forefront of the global community’s attention.

Engadget reports that the joint venture between Boeing and Kitty Hawk is planning to start trials of its electric craft Cora in New Zealand with passengers in tow. This comes from the man behind Google’s self-driving car (Sebastian Thrun) and looks to revolutionize the rideshare industry with its autopiloted crafts.

While others have attempted a flying car plan, they’ve lacked the backing and manufacturing infrastructure of Boeing, making Wisk’s Cora the most advanced vehicle of its kind — and the one closest to becoming a public reality. Some of that may be helped by the company also utilizing remote pilots in combination with their app-summoned robo-planes.

No timeline has yet been set for the Canterbury-set trials, but if any Kiwis named Jetson want to take a ride, they’ll have the appropriate means soon enough.