fill•er
n. One that fills, as in:
1) Something added to augment weight or size or fill space.

In essence, this episode is nothing more than filler. Despite the fact that it actually aired after Season One’s finale episodes, “The Apprentice 1 and 2,"“Car Trouble” remains nothing more than a mindless diversion to expand the total number of episodes for the season from an even twelve to a rather unlucky thirteen.

In my review for “Masks” I commented, “I would like to see similar developments employed for both Cyborg and Beast Boy, both being characters whose depths have not even been scratched into let alone mined.” Something told me not to expect much from this episode going in.

The trouble with “Car Trouble” is that it is the one episode where the Teen Titans formula never fully gels the way it has in previous episodes. All of the prerequisite ingredients are there for mixing up an excellent episode, but the recipe just doesn’t come out right.

I attribute the tedium of the episode to the blatant mischaracterization of Cyborg. Sure, Cyborg’s street cool and overall funk attitude plays well in other episodes. He often comes off as “too cool” for his own good. Here it just falls flat from the beginning because it is way too difficult to see Victor Stone as a complete “gear head.”

In the comics, Vic Stone was torn between two vastly different points on the spectrum of life. He had a natural attraction to athletics and wished to pursue his physical abilities to their utmost extent. His father wished that he would follow in his own footsteps and seek out a career in science.

Here we seemingly replace Vic’s interest in athletics with a love of hot-rodding in an homage that extends over the entire duration of the episode. Yep, as if Cyborg’s obsession with the T-Car weren’t enough, the episode continually refers back to George Lucas’ ode to drag racing, American Graffiti.

However, even the reference never fully gels. While the team faces down a brand new villain named Overload, street punks, dressed up in ‘50’s era attire, steal Cyborg’s T-Car to joy ride in street races at a track called “Crash Alley.”

These punks may dress like the “T-Birds” but they talk in modern day lingo and slang, which renders the homage completely useless and jarringly absurd. Of course none of this really matters as the episode tries to do for Cyborg and Raven what “Forces of Nature” did for Starfire and Beast Boy.

In that episode, Starfire grows weary of Beast Boy’s practical jokes, and Beast Boy must remedy the strife his pranks have caused between them. Here, Raven’s lack of interest in the T-Car bothers Cyborg.

When the T-Car is stolen, Raven doesn’t relate to Cyborg’s feelings of loss, dismissing the whole thing as pointless because it is “just a car.”

Of course, Raven must mend the broken bridge between them by proving to Cyborg that she understands his feelings. The intent is to show audiences that it is important to realize when one is being insensitive, but the message isn’t clear enough to ring true or sincere.
Gizmo shows back up late in the episode after he steals the T-Car from the original thieves after losing a race to them. The rest of the episode consists of Cyborg tracking down his stolen car with the help of Raven.

It was nice to see Gizmo show back up in a cameo, but what is he doing at a drag race? Seems like irony, or immaculate timing. Perhaps a little too perfect, if you ask me.

Even Overload, a villain created specifically for the animated series, was a disappointment as far as villains are concerned. The team dispatches him in a manner of minutes, which leaves much to be desired in terms of conflict.

In fact, the only thing of worthwhile note comes in Cyborg’s response to tracking down his stolen T-Car: “They could be halfway to Metropolis by now.”

As cool as that is, the rest of the episode is pretty sub-par.

Next Week: This is the one episode every Titan Fanboy has been waiting it for. Terra shows up and fans of the comic know what that means! Be here for an animated introduction to a potential powder keg and new Titan, Terra!

Mario Anima