Time for another double feature, with Titans! Now, I’ve been hanging on with this show, but it just feels like the story is going all over the place! Too many subplots, an underwhelming villain, and an overall feeling of wasted potential. But I will stick it out, due to the season coming to an end. So, off we go!
So, Scarecrow’s master plan is to flood the water of all Gotham City with his new version of fear toxin. The cops are overrun, with citizens taking the drug, and because Scarecrow’s plan involves blaming the Titans for the recent status of the city, the people want the heroes out of town. Nightwing is now public enemy number one, leaving the team reeling. Meanwhile, Crane is propping Red Hood to be Gotham City’s savior in the catastrophe. While the Titans are struggling with Crane’s plan, Donna Troy is newly resurrected and proves herself to an Amazon Elder that she is ready to fight again. After a brief duel, Donna proves herself and goes to Gotham to help her teammates. After being blamed for the feat toxin spreading across the city, Nightwing and the Titans go to the G.C.P.D, to turn themselves in, to show that they are on the people’s side. But this turns out to be a trap because, under orders from Crane, some cops open fire on the Titans! Blackfire is injured, Barbera Gordon is arrested for shooting one of her own officers, and the rest of the team is split up! Public opinion of the superhero team is in the trash, the city is tearing itself apart, and to make matters worse, Starfire’s powers are now gone from healing her sister! But hope isn’t lost! Raven finds Beast Boy and Donna Troy enters Gotham to help with the crisis, while Crane takes over Wayne Manor!
Now, for the latest episode! We watch Crane get comfortable with his new digs while moving on with his plan. Red Hood has challenges Nightwing to one last duel. Superboy wants to help, but Nightwing orders him to stay put at a secret bunker in case the rest of the team shows up. Starfire is powerless, walking in the city and running into a baby that was in her dreams! While saving the mother and her child, Starfire gets shot, and this reveals more memories of her homeworld! Apparently, Starfire was never supposed to have powers, but her sister Blackfire was! Their world’s king ordered Blackfire’s powers to be transferred to Starfire, leaving her sister unable to properly take the throne! At “Crane Manor”, Scarecrow wrestles with his own inner demons, trying to kill without the “Scarecrow Mask” and Jason further provokes Dick to seek him out. Dick agrees, even incapacitating Superboy with non-lethal Kryptonite. While Donna and Tim Drake uncover a plot that will leave corrupt cops invading the city’s citizens who are hiding from the infected, Raven and Beast Boy discover a Lazarus Pit (a liquid that can bring someone back to life). Red Hood and Nightwing have their battle, with Nightwing easily winning. But when citizens who support Red Hood arrive, one of them shoots Nightwing in the neck, leaving him bleeding out on the street!
Ok, Nightwing getting shot was a shocker, but then I realized that other members have come back from the dead all the time, in this show! Plus, with the Lazarus Pit, they can just bring him back. By far, Red Hood has been wasted in this show. Not even feeling like his own person, Jason just feels like a lackey of Scarecrow, and that’s not Jason’s personality at all. He’s his own man, and the writing of his character isn’t very close to the comics. Perhaps my favorite character on the show is Blackfire, and I feel like the writers will just make her revert to being a villain, only to move the story forward! I can’t believe I’m saying this, but this show is giving me season 3 “Arrow” vibes (and we all know that season was trash!). 5 out of 10 for both episodes. Hopefully, the show can redeem itself. Till next time, fellow blerds!
Welcome back to this week’s review of Titans! On this episode, it’s mostly a flashback of Jason’s downfall to becoming the Red Hood and how he and Scarecrow began working together! As always, Spoilers ahead!!!
We start with Jason and Crane barely escaping Nightwing and the GCPS’s snipers, after the trap at the old Wayne barn in the last episode. From there, we’re treated with the rest of the episode being a flashback, going back to days before his death by the Joker and becoming the Red Hood. Bruce is worried about Jason, after what happened in San Francisco and benches him until he can shake off what’s bothering him. Jason has been reliving the events of Deathstroke torturing him and almost killing him, so the fear hasn’t left him yet. Bruce tries to help him, but Jason puts on a brave face and insists he’s fine. Bruce knows better, so he gives Jason the address to an old friend, Dr. Leslie Thompkins, a psychologist (and a longtime friend of Bruce’s, in various media.) Jason also reconnects with an old Gotham friend, who has a missing friend thanks to one of the Joker’s goons. Jason tracks the goon down and confronts him, but surprisingly beaten by the goon! After shunning off his friend in shame, Jason eventually goes to see Dr. Thompkins.
Upon their first session, Jason does the tired “tough guy” routine, deflecting every time Leslie tries to get Jason to open up. While leading by example, Leslie tells of how she encountered the Scarecrow for the first time, being poisoned with his fear gas. This causes Jason to become interested. He askes what it was like, and she replies that it's as close to coming to hell while still being alive.
This convinces Jason to come back again. While at the Batcave, Jason examines all of Bruce’s trophies. A lot of easter eggs in this scene, including Joker’s playing cards, Catwoman’s whip, and goggles, and of course, Scarecrow’s fear toxin and mask. Bruce catches up with Jason and they share a father-son moment. Jason goes back to therapy, and it seems like it's going well. Later, Bruce picks up Jason and takes him to Crime Alley (where Bruce’s parents were murdered) and tells Jason that his time as Robin is over. Bruce wants to have Jason as his son, but not as Robin. Jason is furious and wants to prove that he’s still good enough to be Robin.
Later, Jason heads to Arkham Asylum and talks to Scarecrow. Eventually, Crane deduces that Jason is Robin, and is asked to make a formula for an anti-fear toxin. Crane is interested in this and comes up with an offer; if Jason can free Crane, then he will help with the anti-fear toxin. Crane gives Jason a sample formula, and from there, Jason begins to create his first batch. We now catch up with the first episode of Season Three, with Jason taking the anti-fear toxin and chases down Joker. After the Joker kills Robin, we see his body being dumped in a Lazarus Pit deep in Arkham! When Jason is resurrected, they join forces and create the persona, the “Red Hood”. Jason’s first act is to find the goon that beat on him earlier. He rescues the boy the goon kidnapped and brought him to his friend’s home. And now, we’re all caught up! What did you think of this week’s episode? Personally, while I enjoyed Jason’s backstory, Crane is getting a little annoying, as a character. Another miscast if you ask me. But tell me what you thought. Post your thoughts below, and till next time, fellow blerds!
Updated: Aug 26, 2021
Hello, everyone! Here’s my review of this week’s Titans! Some revelations and reunions are witnessed in this episode, so let’s dig in.
After the last episode, with Jason Todd aka Red Hood killing Hank (by tricking Dove into activating the bomb’s trigger, in a handgun), the team grieves in their own way. Connor blames himself for not being fast enough to save Hank and lashes out at Beast Boy. Dove aka Dawn leaves, still reeling from the loss of Hank’s death. Dick tries to talk her out of it, but she can’t stay. As she leaves Barbara gives her condolence to Dick and asks him to come to the precinct for new information. Back at Wayne Manor, Kori aka Starfire tries to console Garfield, who is struggling with being the heart of the team, but she still haves her episodes, where she almost burns Garfield’s arm off! After trying to meditate in a sensory deprivation chamber, to isolate her memories, Starfire wakes up in a field in the middle of nowhere with Garfield in the trunk of a car! As it turns out, she’s not having nightmares, but merged memories from her sister Blackfire, who is trapped in a secret U.S. prison, to which the memories led Starfire to! Gar and Kori decide to enter the prison, which Starfire unconsciously led them to.
Back in Gotham City, Barbara informs Dick that Jonathan Crane aka Scarecrow that he’s being transferred to Blackgate Prison (where the lesser super-villains go) due to an attempted stabbing that was linked to Red Hood. But Dick has other plans; He incapacitates the Arkham guards and kidnaps Crane, taking him to a cabin off the grid that only the Bat-Family knows about. Meanwhile, Barbara is forced to hunt them down, failing to talk Dick into surrendering Crane to the police. Back at the prison, Starfire meets a scientist who is the sole person overseeing Blackfire. She’s in a power-dampening cell, where she and Starfire have a less than friendly chat about how Blackfire killed their parents and Starfire’s old love. But Blackfire hints that “things aren’t what they seem”. Then, we see that Blackfire was always the “problem child” who was rebellious, and how she resents Starfire for not defending her when they were young. When Blackfire mentions Feddei (Starfire’s love interest who was killed in Season 2), that was the final straw, as the two fight! Kori gains the upper hand, but refuses to kill her own sister, choosing to leave her there for the rest of her life instead. Blackfire gives one last speech, about how everything she did and became was because of Starfire not being a good sister.
Is it Worth It To Leave Without Becoming a Member?
In the old Wayne Cabin, Dick’s plan is to wait for Red Hood to show, using Crane as bait, and it’s here that we learn that Crane knows of Dick’s secret identities (and by extension, Bruce’s) due to Jason. Like, damn, so much for secret identities! Dick retells a story of how he and Bruce came up to the cabin once, and Dick was forced to survive alone, showing that he could do what needed to be done. At the prison, the resident doctor, Dr. Kind informs the Titans that she will remain there for the rest of her natural life, but Starfire has a change of heart, stating that she could live for hundreds of years! She breaks Blackfire out, with a timid warning from Dr. Kind stating that the U.S. Government won’t hunt down Blackfire, and that it’s her responsibility to watch over Blackfire. At the Cabin, Red Hood tracks the tew men down and Nightwing catches Hood off-guard! The two former Robins engage in another fight, neither of them gaining an advantage. Dick is furious that Jason told Crane everything. Jason blames Dick for what happened, but Dick doesn’t fall for the “blame game”. Just then, Gotham PD copters appear, with a sniper wanting permission to engage. Barbera reluctantly gives the order, and the sniper hits Nightwing! Red Hood vanishes amidst the commotion, taking Crane with him!
Overall, while this episode was enjoyable, I can’t help but notice that this show has some casting issues. I already talked about the miscasting of Bruce Wayne, but what’s more, is that the actor who plays Scarecrow (Vincent Kartheiser) just seems off. Maybe we need to see more of him, so we can see Crane doing his whole “fear” bit. I love how we’re getting more Blackfire, though! I can’t wait to see how this subplot unfolds. That’s it for this episode, till next time fellow blerds!
