SummaryDick Grayson aka Robin (Brenton Thwaites), Rachel Roth aka Raven (Teagan Croft) up with Gar Logan aka Beast Boy (Ryan Potter) and Koriand'r aka Starfire (Anna Diop) come together to defend Earth from destruction in this live-action series based on the Teen Titans characters.
SummaryDick Grayson aka Robin (Brenton Thwaites), Rachel Roth aka Raven (Teagan Croft) up with Gar Logan aka Beast Boy (Ryan Potter) and Koriand'r aka Starfire (Anna Diop) come together to defend Earth from destruction in this live-action series based on the Teen Titans characters.
Come for Robin saying "F---Batman," stay to see how many bodies the teens drop trying to stop the occult apocalypse prefigured by Raven. [12 Oct 2018, p.49]
Titans is a superhero hybrid -- a live-action series that essentially weds the CW's DC Comics-inspired fare with the gritty, premium-cable approach of Marvel's Netflix dramas. That's not a bad formula, and it yields an entertaining, heavily serialized show.
This is a great show, it cannnot be judged until it is seen. To all DC fans out there (and especially Teen Titans fans), I tell you with all my heart, watch this show ! You will not be dissapointed, just be patient and see all episodes. The so called problems are 3, from what I've seen, for the frustrated fans. They are unfounded and really absurd if you ask me. (1) The Starfire casting criticism is nothing more than pure racism, Diop is tremendous in her acting like all the cast, plus the fact that Starfire IS of color ALSO IN THE COMICS, just that she has more of an orange-brown skin color (like she had on Teen Titans), and I know that you all loved, like I have, that version, but that doesn't mean it's a disaster for the show that this version has one shade darker skin, as you critics fanatically keep saying. IT IS ,AFTER ALL, A DIFFERENT VERSION of the character, as all characters are, that's why the show is called in the first place TITANS AND NOT Teen Titans. Don't be rigid, narrow minded, and much less so racist, folks. (2) The costumes are lame phrase is totally absurd to support, the hero costumes are as they are, as they were made SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS SERIES. Here the critis again complained about Starfire's easy woman outfit, but damn, it's only the 1st season so far ant there is so much time for improvement. The outfit, and general appearance, she had was, again, SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS FIRST and as early as can be season that had it's own specific CONTEXT AND CIRCUMSTANCES. The suits were very good, really, and let's say they maybe you still think they were lame, BUT ARE the suits of Marvel's hero series better IN COMPARISON ?? Really don't think so, such an affirmation, that they are, IS WHAT CAN BE CALLED LAME. (3) The fact that Cyborg is not included in the Titans team is the last ignorant claim by the critics. The series is presenting in the 1st season precisely that the team is getting step by step formed as the heroes get together, WITH CYBORG BEING by Doom Patrol's side IN THAT CONTEXT AND CIRCUMSTANCE. AGAIN, it doesn't mean that in the cartoon series (and comics) he was from the start with the Titans, that now it had to be the same, with no new perspective, being another version of the hero, with a very different take on him. Not to mention that, on the contrary, it's more interesting to see his hero origin, character development and evolution in time. HE, MORE THAN PROBABLY, WILL JOIN the TItans in the future, sometime in the upcoming seasons, and quit the Doom Patrol. So that wraps it up. TITANS IS GREAT ! TITANS MADE TEEN TITANS GREAT AGAIN !!
The superhero Sturm und Drang and personal melodrama that Titans offers is attractively packaged and reasonably entertaining in the early episodes. ... If you’re partial to the more serious end of the comic-book spectrum, you may already be watching “Black Lightning” on CW, “Jessica Jones” and a few others on Netflix, “Legion” on FX, “The Runaways” on Hulu and “Gotham” on Fox. “Titans” may deserve to join the list, but it’s a big ask.
Another superhero show is overkill, but for what it is, Titans strong-arms its way into acceptance and occasionally more (the series’ depiction of a Beaver Cleaver-style family of killers, introduced in episode two, is especially clever).
Titans is a try-too-hard stab at occupying a middle ground between grumpy, but still family friendly, DC offerings like The CW's Arrow and the definitely-not-for-kids Marvel shows on Netflix. ... What it doesn't mean, at least through the three episodes sent to critics, is any sort of extra creative depth or narrative exploration.
Thwaites doesn’t have anything near the gravitas required to pull off this self-righteously vicious approach. If you’re going to say “Fuck Batman,” that’s your right. But you’d better back it up with more than what Titans has to offer, or you just seem like a frustrated poseur who wants to seem much tougher and cooler than you can ever hope to be.
Titans is poorly made, acted, and written enough to be considered a “bad” show, but not nearly crazy, ambitious, or just plain weird enough to be worth it for the discussion alone. It is a slog. It is, in fact, the sloggiest slog I’ve ever slogged.
A few decent spurts during the season is the reason the show has not failed completely for me, BUT I am VERY confused with who the target demo is considering the writing of the show.
TL;DR I will still be able to stomach the same actors if the series continues but please bring some better writing to the show. Or just watch Young Justice instead to get a good fix for young superheroes teaming up... Season 3 is almost finished and previous 2 seasons are spectacularly handled.
It's not for fans like me that is for sure, maybe designed at attracting the fans that were lost from the whiplash inducing 180 turn that the DCEU made trying to please masses, scratch that, even the DCEU didn't have such dreary writing. At least Snyder's eye for visuals make the poorly written DCEU watchable.
Regardless who the target demo is I feel the actors are doing their passionate best as much as they can. That is in the face of the dumb outdated in the 90s angst filled vibe, poor color grading, seizure inducing editing choices and general broody tonality.
The stilted, eye rolling dialogue adds to the cherry of 'Bad Writing' and is the main cause for this disaster. Who is writing the dialogue and do they not understand that it is the most important part for a superhero genre?
I scratch my head to understand when did colorfully illustrated characters, with nothing else but good dialogue writing in the comic book medium were translated into these stupid EMO outdated personalities, the characters are just cliches, and just about every cliche u can think of probably happens in the course of the episodes. It is fcking Heartbreaking.
IT is very baffling that with the countless animated shows already available for the subject matter why the writers and directors felt this 90's Ben Affleck Daredevil Vibe was required.
But at the state that this show is in I could not recommend fans of the Teen Titans or new comers to the franchise since it is a very stilted view of some genuinely good and heartfelt, serious yet heart warming subject material.