Titan Fans GO! And Watch This Movie!
Based on the recent anime-inspired Teen Titans series, this movie was a suitable grand finale for the Titans as I felt that the final season didn’t really focus on the five core Titans as much as it was a guest star Titan-poolza where they tried to stick in every single character that made even a minor appearance in the television series. While it was a decent end to the series, I felt they had overdone it and left the original five Titans as though they were guest starring in their own series plus they failed to stick in the sinister Slade (Deathstroke the Terminator).
The movie shows the Titans moving out of their comfort zone of Jump City to investigate a mysterious villain known as Brushogun who was behind an attack on their Tower HQ, leading them to Japan. It’s a good move as the Titans find themselves lost in this new and unfamiliar setting and that they might very well be totally superfluous as Tokyo has it’s own group of stalwart protectors and guardians and that Brushogun is a mere myth. Beast Boy and Cyborg decides they should take a well deserved vacation, Raven wanders off, and Robin and Starfire are struggling to evolve as a couple.
The story picks up as the Titans begin to realize that Brushogun is no mere myth after Robin is framed for murder and arrested, reuniting the Titans who were drifting apart. There is a good plot twist at the end where it is discovered that Brushogun is not exactly the mysterious villain behind the scenes but has been reduced to a victim seeking help.
Aside from a well moving plot with excellent sub-plots including some nice romance between the eternal couple of Robin and Starfire but some nice comedic interludes with Beast Boy and Cyborg; the various voice actors are at the top of their game, particularly the new characters of Brushogun as portrayed by Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa and Commander Daizo as played by Keone Young.
The animation style of the movie is based upon the same unique, anime style from the series that I found as lively and humorous before along with it’s stellar quality in the action sequences. I also have to admit that I also enjoyed the appearance of so many anime-based characters from Kikaider, Godzilla, and Astro Boy who masqueraded as Brushogun’s minions.
Overall, the movie was a wonderful final show as it contained everything that made the Teen Titans television series such a solid hit for me and fans. If you loved the series, then you’ll love this the Titans’ last hurrah. Titan Fans, GO! And watch this movie!
RATING: 4 STARS!!!!