Now this episode felt like a season premiere! With a three month jump since the last episode, a lot has changed in the world of Titans. It’s almost as if this episode gave the series a face lift because it feels different. With the introduction of a couple new characters, this episode sets the tone for the rest of the season. So far, it looks like this team has a past that is coming back to haunt them and they’re going to need to work together to battle these demons.
Titans Training is now in session
After Bruce Wayne gave him back Titans Tower in San Francisco, Dick has been able to turn it into a training camp for “the kids”. He may not be as brutal as Bruce but he is nearly just as obsessive. Making them train around the clock while having them read incredibly difficult texts, such as The Art of War, Dick is not messing around. He wants his new recruits to be ready for whatever comes.
And it’s a good thing too because something is definitely coming. It’s obvious when he finds a new stray on the streets of San Francisco. This mysterious young woman named Rose is missing an eye and very well trained, which means she can kick ass. She’s also very familiar to a lot of comic book fans. The reveal of who she is related to might not have been a surprise to most viewers but it was still very well done. With Slade Wilson for a father, it’s no wonder this girl has serious trust issues.
The introduction of Rose Wilson didn’t go down exactly how I was expecting it to. However, it shows promise. I like that Dick sees a little bit of himself in her. At least enough to call his adoptive dad in the middle of the night to ask for advice.
Imagine Bruce Wayne being your moral compass though? Scary, right? Well, to be fair, this is an older Bruce Wayne who exists in a world where the Justice League are together so he’s probably already best friends with Clark and Diana. Plus he’s actually acting like a dad. I love that he is making Dick basically take care of his little brother Jason.
Anyway, so Dick decides to try to get Rose to stay but he tells her he won’t force her to. Still, considering that someone wants her dead, I’m willing to bet Rose is gonna stick close to Batman’s former sidekick. Especially after he just saved her life.
Retirement looks good on you
After what happened with Trigon, Dawn and Hank have moved to Wyoming to live a quiet life on a farm. I’m not going to lie. Part of me is a little disappointed that they didn’t end up in Smallville, Kansas working on the Kent Farm. Be honest, how many of you would’ve loved to see Hank as a working hand on that farm??? And since he’s out here working hard to stay clean, who better to help him do that than Martha Freaking Kent. Even if it’s completely off screen.
I also would’ve loved the jokes about how it’s weird that they’re on some random farm in the middle of no where America because they don’t actually know that Clark Kent is Superman and this is just Bruce pulling strings with Clark as a favor to Dick.
Regardless of all that, I love watching Hank be sober. I love even more that he’s spending his days mentoring a young man that’s also trying to stay sober by teaching him to ride horses. The farm scenes were so sweet and it really makes you want to root for this couple.
Their retirement is seemingly cut short though when Hank realizes that Dawn never stopped the whole vigilante thing. On the night that she takes down a meth lab by herself like the badass that she is, Hank confronts her. But before the two of them can work this out, that same young man Hank was mentoring bursts into their house (in the middle of the night so that’s weird) and burns up from the inside out. Which completely blew up their farmhouse. So now, I’m glad my little Kent Farm scenario never happened because that would’ve sucked.
Super Villain Team Up
Doctor Light made his debut in this episode.
He doesn’t break out of prison on his own though. The show heavily implies that Deathstroke played a role in the prison break, even though we never actually see him in the prison. At first, you wonder why Slade Wilson cares to help Doctor Light but then the villain goes from attacking Hank and Dawn in Wyoming to attacking Dick and Rose in San Francisco.
The connections become really clear after that.
Rose is Slade’s daughter and someone is after her. Then we see Doctor Light try to kill her. I don’t really know Rose’s relationship with her father but I imagine it’s volatile at best.
The idea of a potential “team up” between these two villains is very interesting. They both have a clear personal vendetta against the original Titans and that could be dangerous, especially for the newer members who don’t really know what’s going on.
A lot of secrets are going to be revealed in the coming episodes. Hopefully, it’s in the form of backstory. I happen to really enjoy when this show tells us a story via flashbacks. I think it’ll be good to see exactly why Doctor Light and Deathstroke hate this team so much.
The Dyanamic Duo
It turns out that the Kory has spent the last three months working with Donna out of a van in Chicago. The pair have been working to take down bad guys (and girls) on the intel of one very well known fan favorite: Roy Harper.
Listen, I literally yelled when Donna name dropped Roy because that means that Oliver Queen is out there somewhere and so is Roy and so could a lot of DC characters that I adore. It also meant that there’s a possibility Roy could eventually appear on the show.
These two are actually a very great team up. They work really well together despite having personalities on completely different ends of the spectrum.
Their current friendship really makes you appreciate where they first started. Remember, they kind of almost tried killing each other.
Their stakeouts seem to include snacks and heart to hearts and I love that. Women supporting women, there is nothing better on a superhero show. More of that please!
They eventually get the baddie they were looking for. I don’t really think taking her down was the purpose of these scenes though. Especially since Kory ends up being kidnapped by someone from her home planet, leaving Donna all alone on the streets of Chicago.
She won’t be alone for long because a phone call from Dawn about Doctor Light is sure to send her back to Titans Tower in San Francisco. She’s just coming with news that Dick, Rachel and Gar are not going to like. With Kory missing, the team we’ve been rooting for since the Pilot is missing one of their own and I’m sure their priority this season will be to get her back. However, Kory missing is sure to introduce some really great backstory from her past and characters from Tamaran that we haven’t met yet.
Highlights
- Rachel may be Dick’s star pupil but the young girl seems to be the one to navigate his conscious about how to lead the team. I like that she’s his moral compass the same way Dick seems to be one of Bruce’s.
- Rachel asking what their team name should be was totally a nod to the name changes the series went through in early development.
- The Easter Eggs: Aqualad and Roy Harper name drop plus the reference to Nightwing.
- Did anyone else feel a little sparkage between Rose and Dick? I know he tells Bruce that she’s an adult but exactly how old is she supposed to be?
- Kory’s weird obsession with Disco is such a great nod to the costume she wore throughout most of season 1.
- Shimmer could be a really great minor villain on the show so I hope we see her again.
- I don’t know if the show intends to make Slade their big bad of the series but I’d like to see him recruit a rogue gallery of super villains eventually.
- The mystery around Rose and Slade should get more interesting, especially after her brother Jericho gets introduced.
An all new episode of Titans will be available to stream every Friday this season on the DC Universe app.
