While the CW broadcast network continues to build a universe of DC heroes that will soon include Batwoman, DC is looking to start its own thing on its upcoming streaming service, DC Universe. The first show on the slate is Titans, a live-action take on the Teen Titans characters we’ve seen in comics and animation for decades now. If you’re familiar with the Titans from television, though, you’re in for a shock when you see the MA-rated first trailer.
The trailer has more in common with Batman’s “Darkness” song from The LEGO Movie than with the fun-loving heroes of Teen Titans and Teen Titans Go! over on Cartoon Network.
Robin (Brenton Thwaites) drops onto a car in a three-point landing that should definitely kill him, and when the thugs he’s about to bust up ask him where his patriarch is, he growls “F*** Batman.”
Later, Raven says that “sometimes, when I feel the darkness… it feels good.” Oof. Is this an Evanescence concept video?
The trailer’s not all bad. We get a look at Beast Boy and Starfire, too, and it’s good to see one of these live-action shows acknowledge that Batman exists.
But overall, it feels off. The Teen Titans have been a source of light-hearted fun and earnest heroics for most of their fans, and doubling down on the grimdark that people deride the DCEU for is not just wrong for DC live action, it’s particularly off for the Titans.
I hope the show is better than this cringey, ultra-serious trailer suggests.
