DC Universe Titans: A surprising start to the gritty live action show.

When news of a live action “Titans” show was released, fans were thrilled to see how it would bring to life the comic book characters that has captivated readers for over 50 years. Alas, with anything DC related in the last few years, controversy came up when casting choices were revealed and a trailer for the show debuting at San Diego Comic Con. Fans were mixed on the casting of Starfire, the low budget effects and the dark, gritty take on the Teen Titans/Titans characters, which had been an issue with the DCEU films and not having a lighter tone. DC promised that the show would provide more than just a darker tone and actually get to the hearts of the characters.

However, after having watched the first episode, which came out October 12th,  it’s safe to say the show has a lot more to offer than what was shown in trailers. The tone of the show is indeed dark, even so more than the Netflix Marvel shows, which boast some of the most violent and brutal scenes in the TV medium. But it offers glimpses of different tones for the show as it offers a few surprising laughs with a mystery wrapped around it.

Fans would be delighted to see that the show is beginning to set up a storyline centered around Raven and her tortured life dealing with powers unexplained to her.

Robin’s now infamous “Fuck Batman” line from the trailers is given context and proves to show that Dick Grayson isn’t saying it to insult Batman, but to insult the fact he wasn’t taken seriously on his own unless Batman was hiding in the shadows. This Robin left Gotham City to avoid becoming more like Batman and now he finds himself fighting criminals with the same level of brutality that Batman fights with. Raven is a what seems to be a cliche outcast in her school, but reveals that she is dealing her own (actual) inner demon, searching for a safe haven and answers as to what she really is. Starfire is the most mysterious of the group the episode dived into, as she herself doesn’t seem to know what’s going on as she’s suffering from memory lost after getting involved in a car accident. This Starfire, being an alien from another world, doesn’t have any hangups about killing people, even accidentally. Beast Boy had a final scene that goes to show he’ll be the clown of the group and hopefully provide the majority of laughs.

The show is better that what lost might expect from the app’s first crack at creating original content for the brand on it’s own terms. It’s yet to be seen how the show will fare in an age of Netflix dominating the original content creation.

Titans Season 1 Episode 1: “Titans” is a 8/10.

For more on the DC Universe App, check out further reviews on our blog.