If you are reading this, chances are you are already a fan of Titans OR you were pulled into the show as I was, with the anticipation of Joseph Morgan (The Vampire Diaries, The Originals) joining the cast as “Brother Blood” and Franka Potente (Run Lola Run) as “Mother Mayhem” for the upcoming fourth season. Titans is based on a DC comic book series featuring Batman’s famous sidekick Robin, or now better known as Nightwing, as the leader of his own specialized young superhero team.
Before the news of Joseph Morgan’s casting as Brother Blood, I had very little knowledge of the Titan universe. I was aware of the cartoon series Team Titans Go! as it is my eldest’s son’s favorite television show. I knew the names of the team members and their basic relationships with one another and had gotten the theme song stuck in my head too many times to count, but that was about the sum of my knowledge of DC Titans in general.
When I asked my son if he knew who the character Brother Blood was he gave me an evil grin, bursted out in a loud maniacal super villain laugh and then proceeded to cue up an episode to show me the animated version of my query. After seeing this, I wondered what the show DC Titans would be like and how they would translate this Brother Blood into the darker more mature version of the somewhat silly cartoon character to which I had just been introduced.
So what did I do in the name of watching one of my favorite actors join a cast of a pre-existing DC show? That’s right, I binge watched all three seasons to be ready for the fourth. I’ll be the first to admit that the DC universe is not exactly my thing. Growing up, I was deeply engrossed in the Marvel comic book universe, mainly X-Men and X-Factor. I was so involved in that particular universe that I spent many hours of my youth writing and drawing my own stories with a friend for several years using these characters. Beyond that, any and all superhero/villain characters were not really on my radar until the premier of Batman the Animated Series. This led me to learning the inner universe of many DC characters and eventually watching Teen Titans years before my children were born.
As I watched Season One, I was skeptical if this show would capture my interest in the way the Batman cartoon series did, as they were two very different genres. At first, the movement of the plot was a little slow and difficult for me to follow. However, I found the introduction to each important key member of what eventually becomes the Titans to be done in a way that keeps you hooked. As you are shown each character, you are given a snippet of who they are but not the complete story. The remainder of the season ties all these characters together in a beautiful and meaningful way, and makes the case for why they should be a team. I was interested now in each individual character’s story and who they would become in Season Two.
Now that I was completely invested in the story of our Titan heroes, the continual flashbacks to the previous years, and the initial formation of the team, featuring Robin (Brenton Thwaites), Hawk (Alan Ritchson), Dove (Mika Kelly), Wonder Girl (Conor Leslie), and Aqualad (Drew Van Acker), were delicious tidbits to bolster the story happening in the current day. We are introduced to Deathstroke (Esai Morales) along with his daughter Rose (Chelsea Zhang) and his son Jericho (Chella Man) for a story full of twists and turns and unexpected outcomes. While battling this villain, we explore the current relationships of the former team members, along with the new Raven (Teagan Croft), Koriand’r (Anna Diop), Beast Boy (Ryan Potter), and “New” Robin ( Curran Walters).
Beyond the Deathstroke plot this season also brings us another unlikely hero, Superboy (Joshua Orpin) a genetic clone of both Superman and Lex Luthor and his sweet doggo sidekick Krypto in a sinister side plot of its own. I loved the way this season showed us the past of the Titans and how they began. The friendships featured compared to the current day reluctant reunion of the future highlighted the personal journey of Dick Grayson in his own perceived guilt and the measures he took to right a wrong, bringing us to his official introduction as Nightwing.
Season Three is where I feel the show really stepped up on the plot.This season used the careful storytelling and established relationships of the previous two seasons to lift up the incredibly unlikely and mysterious villain of Redhood. Because there are so many twists and shocking moments in this season, I won’t say much, other than the entire journey of the plot heavenly
involving the villain Scarecrow (Vincent Karheiser) was both disturbing in a horrifying way but ultimately satisfying. By the last episode of this season entitled “Purple Rain”, I was more than ready to continue the journey with this team.
I’d say this show is an enjoyable watch and definitely more suited to those already huge fans of the DC Universe. That being said, I don’t think it’s necessary to already be a huge fan to enjoy the show, and there is enough action, suspense, mystery, and romance to please even the casual superhero viewer. I look forward to catching Season 4 as it airs and seeing my faves in action.
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Tess is an Alaskan artist and writer who sometimes talks to birds. She also enjoys tv shows (the vampire ones mostly), movies, cross-stitch, and traveling. When she is not rooting for the villain or dressing up to weird her neighbors out when checking the mail, she can be found attempting to be a decent mom to a small horde of goblins.
