[6.1/10] Oh boy! A Teen Titans comedy episode! Ugh. After the heights of the “Apprentice” duology, it’s nice for this show to remind me why I spent much of this first season rolling my eyes at it. Who decided that the way to cap off the show’s first batch of episodes is to have a vaguely greaser-inspired, car-loving dose of wacky hijinks is beyond me.
Seeing Cyborg gush over his new ride and have to wrangle it back from Gizmo, Overload, and a couple of random leather-jacketed pastiche punks did next to nothing for me. There’s no real stakes to the adventure, and the whole schtick is so cheesy and cartoony that I derived very little enjoyment from it.
The only part of this I really appreciated is the conversation between Cyborg and Raven about why the car means so much to Cyborg. I particularly like the moment of understanding when Raven explains that to move objects with her powers, she intermingles a piece of her soul with them, and that’s what Cyborg’s done with this automobile he's spent so much time lovingly crafting. It’s a lovely sentiment to understand and appreciate other people’s hobbies and interests, even if we don’t personally get them. I just wish the rest of the episode had more of that sincerity and less of the cornball throwbacks to Rebel Without a Cause and its imitators.
Overall, the show’s first season lands with a thud, which is appropriate. The show’s attempts at comedy have remained a considerable weakness from beginning to end (give or take Starfire’s amusing comments). So the first season ending with a wet plop of a comedy episode is fitting. But in a handful of moments, like the Apprentice Arc and other moments when the show takes itself a little more seriously, I can see its potential and a hint of why so many fans around my age love this show. I hope to see more of that in the seasons to come.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2021-07-01T17:38:16Z
[6.1/10] Oh boy! A Teen Titans comedy episode! Ugh. After the heights of the “Apprentice” duology, it’s nice for this show to remind me why I spent much of this first season rolling my eyes at it. Who decided that the way to cap off the show’s first batch of episodes is to have a vaguely greaser-inspired, car-loving dose of wacky hijinks is beyond me.
Seeing Cyborg gush over his new ride and have to wrangle it back from Gizmo, Overload, and a couple of random leather-jacketed pastiche punks did next to nothing for me. There’s no real stakes to the adventure, and the whole schtick is so cheesy and cartoony that I derived very little enjoyment from it.
The only part of this I really appreciated is the conversation between Cyborg and Raven about why the car means so much to Cyborg. I particularly like the moment of understanding when Raven explains that to move objects with her powers, she intermingles a piece of her soul with them, and that’s what Cyborg’s done with this automobile he's spent so much time lovingly crafting. It’s a lovely sentiment to understand and appreciate other people’s hobbies and interests, even if we don’t personally get them. I just wish the rest of the episode had more of that sincerity and less of the cornball throwbacks to Rebel Without a Cause and its imitators.
Overall, the show’s first season lands with a thud, which is appropriate. The show’s attempts at comedy have remained a considerable weakness from beginning to end (give or take Starfire’s amusing comments). So the first season ending with a wet plop of a comedy episode is fitting. But in a handful of moments, like the Apprentice Arc and other moments when the show takes itself a little more seriously, I can see its potential and a hint of why so many fans around my age love this show. I hope to see more of that in the seasons to come.