Titans (Complete Series 2 Review) – ‘When We Let Evil Win, It Becomes Our Reality’

Review: Titans Complete Series 2 by Akiva Goldsman, Geoff Johns, and Greg Berlanti (7/10)

Coming off of the disappointing season finale for the first series, I approached the second series with reserved optimism. Before Titans first hit our screens, I won’t mix words when I say I was anticipating a failure of monumental levels. To my surprise, Titans offered a pleasant adaptation of the source material with a particularly reverent portrayal of one of my favourite DC characters — the original Robin himself, Dick Grayson. Unfortunately, the showrunners made the ridiculous decision to cut the ending and restructure it as the opening for the following series.

Continuing directly where we left off last year, the new series concludes the arc of Trigon. It’s a shame that it’s been so long since the original series released because I was entirely indifferent and found myself drifting in and out of focus. This left me with a sour taste in my mouth and a desire to get on with Deathstroke’s grand introduction. Luckily, once the leftovers were thoroughly exhausted, series two kicked off strongly.

Centred on the consequences of the Titans' past escapades with the Terminator, there is a marked improvement across the board. The relationships between Grayson and his Titan friends, both old and new, are put the to the test in interesting and unexpected ways.

Arguably the Titan's core villain, the Terminator lives up to his name — Credit: DC Universe

Through this approach, we get to witness many flashback scenes to the prime days of the original Titans, consisting of Robin, Hawk, Dove, Wonder Girl, and Aqualad — the latter being a new face for the series portrayed by Drew Van Acker. These are relatively short lived but provide an intelligent way for the viewer to discover what has the Titans so on edge about Grayson’s decision to revive the previously disassembled team.

Another key standout in these moments is Jericho, played by Chella Man. However, I can't talk much about his role without major spoilers.

Starting the series so strongly, it will surprise you as much it did me that the quality becomes lacking in the latter side of the 13 episodes, coinciding with a lack in focus at resolving the Titans' struggles with Deathstroke.

With promotional material presenting everybody’s favourite son of Gotham as a recurring character, you’re probably desperate to know how this turned out. As many people are aware, Iain Glen was announced as the man to take on the iconic role of Batman — or in this case I suppose it’s just Bruce Wayne, as we never actually see him don the cowl. I’m afraid to say this was a complete miscast, with almost every element of the character established in season one thrown out the window in favour of a more traditional fatherly figure. Not to completely discredit Glen, the script is equally responsible, presenting Bruce in a manner more reminiscent of Alfred Pennyworth. But that’s no excuse for that horrendous American accent or the lack of anything resembling physical presence. Not to mention that his role is so marginal it could have been left out entirely. I’m afraid to say this a big blunder on the part of the show’s creators.

Iain Glen as Bruce Wayne — Credit: DC Universe

Luckily, defacto main character Dick Grayson (played by actor Brenton Thwaites) remains one of the strongest elements of the show. His demanded transition into Nightwing takes centre stage and is thankfully handled well, even if we’ve been waiting a little bit too long. This is further enhanced by the intense rivalry with antagonist Slade Wilson (portrayed by Esai Morales), who brings a gravitas to the role better than any other live-action adaptation seen so far. He truly owns the role and brings an intensity and imposition rivaled only by the source material itself. You genuinely believe this man could kill all of the Titans without breaking a sweat if he felt so inclined. It’s a shame, however, that DC have managed to squander this potential with an anti-climactic season finale (yet again!) and a pointless switch in villain to Lex Luthor’s sinister organisation Cadmus, who present a lingering presence across the length of the show.

Series two sees Dick go through a spiritual metamorphosis — Credit: DC Universe

Teased in an after-credit scene at the end of the first series, Cadmus factor into the plot through the hotly anticipated introduction of Joshua Orpin as the genetic clone of Superman and Lex Luthor. For those familiar with DC’s animated show Young Justice, Superboy is probably already one of your favourite characters. While Orpin delivers a serviceable performance as the Boy Of Steel, there is a constant nagging voice in the back of my head that says that Young Justice did it better. Despite this lingering caveat, I do hope to see his character explored in future seasons, hopefully leading to a meeting with the Big Blue Boy Scout himself.

Joshua Orpin as Superboy — Credit: DC Universe

Hawk and Dove (played by Alan Ritchson and Minka Kelly) again bring an emotionally driven approach to their characters but are relegated to relatively minor sub-plots. While not ruining their characters, it does show the problem with having such a large ensemble cast.

Other characters, such as Raven and Beast Boy (Teagan Croft and Ryan Potter), are pushed into the position of plot devices, leaving little in the way of true character development. Rachel is still a young girl struggling with her powers, and Garfield is continuously relegated into turning into a tiger. Why the budget is so limited that Gar’s physical transformations are so uninspiringly boring is a mystery to me. It can only be hoped that future seasons see a bigger allocation of resources in the CGI department to finally give the fans what we’ve been clamouring for ever since his introduction.

Curran Walter’s Jason Todd sees an interesting, but again minor, character arc. This sees him open up in ways we had yet to explore, with one particular rooftop scene standing out as a heart-breaking dive into his psyche. Given the acting ability demonstrated here, I can’t wait to see him transition into the Red Hood and potentially be awarded with a standalone show — Red Hood And The Outlaws, anyone?

This series continues to prove why Jason Todd is a worthy star — Credit: DC Universe

Looking to the future [MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD], it seems we are set to explore Anna Diop’s Starfire in more of a starring role. Given what we see in this series, I’m not that excited. Her impact on the plot was forgettable to the point that I’d rather see someone else take centre stage. I can’t be the only one who would pay big money to witness Wally West or Roy Harper’s debut in live action. But even then, this season’s handling of Superboy doesn’t inspire me with confidence. There is a legitimate concern that a greater cast would again overshadow the main plot, leaving us with another poor finale.

Not wanting to end this review on such a dire note, I will say that the first half was undeniably excellent and had me gripped to my TV every week. But hiring new writers might not be a bad idea if they want to avoid leaving us underwhelmed every time. As Young Justice Grayson would say: ‘Stay whelmed’, DC.