Warner Home Video presents

Teen Titans: The Complete Second Season (2004)

"Sorry, Beast Boy, but this is more of a solo thing."- Robin (Scott Menville)

Stars: Scott Menville, Greg Cipes, Khary Payton, Hynden Walch, Tara Strong, Ron Perlman
Other Stars: Malcolm McDowell, Wil Wheaton, Clancy Brown, Dave Coulier, Tom Kenny
Director: various

MPAA Rating: Not Rated for (nothing objectionable)
Run Time: 04h:46m:00s
Release Date: 2006-09-12
Genre: animation

Style Grade	Substance Grade	Image Transfer Grade	Audio Transfer Grade	Extras Grade
A-	A-	A-	B+	D+

 

DVD Review

The classic adage that superheroes come in all shapes and sizes rings true with the Teen Titans animated TV series. Premiering in 2003, the show features younger versions of many DC Comics stalwarts, embarking in their first batch of heroic conflicts. With five seasons in the books, and after a series of "greatest hits" collections, Warner Home Video bows Teen Titans: The Complete Second Season on a pair of DVDs.

The Teen Titans are comprised of Robin, who (after being known as Batman's sidekick) is the leader, Beast Boy, who can morph into different animals, the muscular Cyborg, alien girl Starfire, and magical Goth girl, Raven. They continue to battle their arch rival, Slade (he's known by the less-kid-friendly name Deathstroke in the comic books), who is after the Titans for an undisclosed reason, (which I wouldn't want to spoil) at least at the beginning of season two.

After becoming well-acquainted with these characters during the first season, we move on to expand upon their individual special abilities. The Titans' personal struggles are also analyzed more, with the episode, How Long is Forever sending Starfire into the future, where she must cope with how the group goes on without her. The introduction of a character named Terra plays a huge part in season two as well, creating a story arc that spans many episodes. This character uses telekinesis to control the earth, but once the Titans ask her to join them, her powers turn deadly. Transformation delves even further into the human aspects of the Titans, as once again, Starfire has to deal with some new physical anomalies.

We finally learn what Slade's true intentions are for the Teen Titans at the end of season two, and the writers pull this off in style. The two part finale, Aftershock, features the reappearance of an old character, but not on, shall we say, friendly terms. Add Slade's evil plans to the mix, and the first part of this finale is truly exciting and some of the best animated action TV you'll ever see. The second part deals with the aftermath, and this is where the truly creative writing techniques come in. To speak anymore would truly ruin some nice surprises, but these two episodes, alone, make this DVD set worth picking up.

Aside from the wonderful closing to the second season, the most entertaining episode is Fractured. Harkening back to the Bizzaro World episodes of the old Justice League series, we meet Nosyargkcid, who is born when Robin breaks his arm. Once on the scene, Robin can't shake Nosyargkcid, who is enamored as can be with him. Robin's new "friend" tries to fix his arm, but the consequences are dire. Fractured gets points not only for being so bizarre, but for being very funny as well.

The voice talent is remarkable for nearly every character, highlighted by the great Ron Perlman as Slade. There's also a great guest spot by Malcolm McDowell in the episode, Detention, where he channels his classic performance from A Clockwork Orange. The voices of the Titans continue to impress, with Scott Menville anchoring things as Robin, and Hynden Walch's work as Starfire taking that character to the next level in season two. Sadly, the fifth and final episode of Teen Titans aired in the first part of 2006, but now that Warner is releasing full-season DVDs, fans will always be able to enjoy the show in its entirety.

Rating for Style: A-
Rating for Substance: A-

 

Image Transfer

	One
Aspect Ratio	1.33:1 - Full Frame
Original Aspect Ratio	yes
Anamorphic	no

Image Transfer Review: Each show is presented in its original full frame format, with these transfers being as clean and impressive as expected. The hand-drawn animation is well-defined and sharp, while bright, vivid colors are a constant presence. There aren't any blemishes either, but given the relative newness of the material, such problems would have been a huge disappointment.

Image Transfer Grade: A-
 

Audio Transfer

	Language	Remote Access
DS 2.0	English, French, Spanish	yes

Audio Transfer Review: The Dolby Digital 2.0 audio is also impressive, utilizing the surrounds a bit more than expected. A bit of bass presence helps as well, especially during the exciting action sequences. Dialogue clarity is never a problem, either, as the wonderful voice work is seamlessly integrated into the overall mix.

Audio Transfer Grade: B+ 

Disc Extras

Static menu with music
Scene Access with 13 cues
Subtitles/Captions in English
10 Other Trailer(s) featuring Superman Returns, Hot Wheels Acceleracers: The Ultimate Race, September DC Comics Kids, Tom and Jerry: Shiver Me Whiskers, Superman: Brainiac Attacks Original Movie, Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo MFV, Thugaboo Sneaker Madness, Justice League Heroes Video Game, Scooby-Doo Pirates Ahoy!, Xiaolin Showdown Vol. 1
1 Featurette(s)
Packaging: Keep Case
Picture Disc
2 Discs
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: dual

Extras Review: The only extras are a collection of Warner Home Video previews and Catching Up With...Teen Titans, which is a five minute collection of highlights from the second season of the show.

Extras Grade: D+
 

Final Comments

They dabbled with stand-alone DVDs for a while, but Warner Home Video is finally appeasing fans with seasonal Teen Titans collections. Teen Titans: The Complete Second Season finds the show at its creative peak, offering all 13 episodes from 2004. The audio and video quality is top notch throughout this 2-disc set, but the amount of extras is disappointing.

Chuck Aliaga 2007-01-18