DC Comics needs a comedy relief after being way too serious in recent months and from recent animated releases (Justice League vs. Teen Titans just to name a specific one). It needs a playful, fun, wacky side that is willing to compromise DC content for good times. It has one with Teen Titans Go! Never seen it? It is essentially a parody of the serious version of the show, Teen Titans, and does its best to over emphasize characters through humor and the DC universe as a whole. Sometimes the Marvel universe makes it into said humor as well (that is pretty rich stuff). Anyway, the show has little to do with heroes saving the day and more to do with the downtime gaps between saving the day. It’s nothing short of ingenious and witty comedy that serves both adults and kids.
Having said all this, how is season three, part one? Season three, part one rolls like dice – smooth and purposefully. It takes some ‘far out there’ plots and weaves in the team’s humor perfectly. Using Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Raven and Starfire brilliantly, focusing in on their strengths/weaknesses to push the humor up a notch. Again, it was way too much fun to watch than I initially thought it might deserve. Sometimes it’s nice to be wrong.
Anyway, let me take you through a few episodes that were favorites on this release:
Leg Day: What happens when you build your upper body too much? Your lower body just can’t handle it. Raven, tired of putting up with upper body dominance, forms her own squad of superheroes named after valuable leg parts. This episode is solid because it’s just silly as heck. The new names of the Teen Titans in the new group are just absolutely hilarious. You won’t walk away disappointed with this one.
The Spice Game: I don’t see the big deal with Robin only serving potatoes to the Titans. Potatoes are yummy. Anyway, the Teen Titans are ‘fed’ up with Robin’s bland potatoes on his cooking night, so they band together to bring spice to the dinner table. What is the result of their efforts? A stupid song that is catchy as heck. Seriously, my wife sings it, if I remind her. I won’t remind her. It does show how a simple concept can turn into a catchy tune, though, and mucho humor. Here it is, if you want to indulge. Another Teen Titan catchy tune to add to their growing list.
The Fourth Wall: Control Freak appears on the scene to torture the Teen Titans into rebooting their image, so that he can win an award. What a storyline, right? The ridiculousness and brilliance of this episode is when the Titans finally agree to reboot themselves (without them actually knowing it), which shows a different side of the animation — a hilarious journey through animation concepts, and when they’re shown the serious Teen Titans show that was actually created before this show was incepted. I cannot explain to you enough how ingenious a concept this episode was and is. It’s truly one of the better episodes for the season.
Animals: It’s Just a Word: Titans turn into animals. There is some butt sniffing. It is funny…and gross.
Two Parter: Part One/Part Two: The Titan building begins to break down and Robin goes searching for something ‘special’ for the team to do. Cyborg punctures the Titan pool, so their special day has them heading to the Hall of Justice…to swim in the HoJ fountain. One thing leads to another, the group finds themselves in the Hall of Justice (via a key under the doormat) and soon has them posing as the Justice League to save the Justice League from Darkseid. There is so much fun in this set of episodes and such good writing. It is the top of the crop of entertainment in season three. Plus, Weird Al is in it. I know, right?
While I know there are quite a few episodes on this season three release that are good, the above stand out the most to me. While the humor is wacky, the storylines are just absolutely spot on where they should be for a good show. The Two Parter episodes are probably the best in this set, as they don’t pull punches when it comes to the Justice League and Darkseid. The Fourth Wall is a close second, though. Still one of my favorites of the release.
While the humor is good and situations are spot on where they should be in season three’s crop of episodes, the real kicker for this DVD release is that you can watch it with your kids and not get bored. There aren’t a lot of cartoons out there that can juggle an adult/kid entertainment attention span, so it’s very refreshing to have a show like Teen Titans Go! that satisfy both funny bones.
The only downside to this release is that it’s not the complete season three in one package. While you’re getting a lot of episodes with Teen Titans Go! – Season Three, Part One, you’re still not getting the full package. That is my only complaint. Having said that, the $19.97 makes me feel better about it considering most seasons of shows are around $50 when they are finally released. The full season of three will probably hit the $40 mark. I can see the trade-off of price and show splitting.
Overall, Teen Titans Go! – Season Three, Part One is a fun time that shows a lighter, brighter side to a grim DCU that most of us expect nowadays (or just as of recently). It’s another feather in the ever growing DC animated universe cap.