To fans of the Teen Titans animated series, the name Terra is initially linked with phrases like “troubled youth,” “love interest” or “potential team member.” To fans of The New Teen Titans comic books, the name Terra goes hand in hand with “trouble.”

When Terra shows up on the Titan’s doorstep, she is nothing more than a wayward soul with a mysterious past and the potential to become a new addition to the team.

Little is known about Terra’s background, but what is known is intriguing to the team. She possesses the power to control earth, manipulate it as she sees fit. Whether it’s creating landslides or levitating boulders to soar overhead on, Terra is one powerful young woman, as long as she is in control

Fans of the Titan comics have been itching for a character like Terra to show up. I hesitate delving too far into her comic book incarnation because it could cause spoilage. However, let’s just say that Terra’s story arc in the comics is one that shakes the team to its very core.

And yes, as bad as it was, that pun was intended.

You see, Terra’s arc is fairly complex, and judging from the shape of this introductory episode one could surmise that the creators of the animated series could be potentially heading in this direction.

What the animated Titans don’t know is that Terra’s troubles are fairly hazardous. She hasn’t fully learned to control her powers yet, which means she could accidentally cause harm to those around her.

She doesn’t plan to share these woes with the rest of the team because she fears losing her newfound friends. The trouble is, Beast Boy has learned her secret and she isn’t sure that he cane be trusted.

The truth is, Beast Boy would bend over backwards for Terra. In what could be a cartoon first, we are given an honest to goodness love interest type situation. Well, if you can look past the Hawkgirl / Green Lantern shenanigans taking place over in the Justice League.

That’s right, tackling teenage drama is tough, but the team behind the Titans has done an excellent job delving into those most delicate of subjects, teenage love.

The truth is, this could go either way. Beast Boy and Terra’s ogling of one another could be played for the ridiculous in a teenage comedy type fashion, which would honestly be a shame.

Instead the attraction is played for laughs when appropriate. Beast Boy’s shyness is both cute and comedic as he can barely get himself to stand next to Terra let alone talk to her.

The thing is, when they get to finally sit down and chat, the subject matter is both cute and serious. We can see how smitten Beast Boy is with Terra, and we can also see how sincere he is as well.

We learn that she has moved around quite a bit, and mostly because of her lack of mastery over her earth controlling powers getting her into trouble.

When they discuss her lack of control, Terra fears that she has lost her chance to make it with the Titans both professionally and personally. Beast Boy is nothing but reassuring and supportive of Terra, and promises to keep her secret safe from the rest of the team.

What interests me here is the depth and maturity we see from Beast Boy. Thus far, Beast Boy has been portrayed as merely a prankster who cares about his friends, but lives for the thrill of being juvenile.

The team decides to put Terra to the test and let her have a go in their training obstacle course. This was a subtle yet effective way to demonstrate Terra’s potential. She stumbles through the course and makes it through with top marks, having beaten Cyborg’s personal best.

Seeing Cyborg whiz through the course with finesse and ease only shows the depth to Terra’s potential. Her bumbled trip through the course still beats his best time, and we know she isn’t at the top of her game.

What truly great episode of Teen Titans would be complete without some interference from Slade? Well, when he finally pops up in this episode, the Titans invite Terra along to join in on the mission.

Slade’s evil doing turns out to be nothing more than a clever ruse to lure Terra into his grasp. He succeeds, and manages to corner her into a one on one situation with Slade himself.

We learn that he has been watching her from afar, tracking her every move in hopes that he may sway her into becoming his new apprentice. Sound familiar, Robin?

His pressuring causes Terra to unleash her full power to the point where she can no longer control herself. Spinning out of control, she nearly buries the Titans by bringing down the house, until Beast Boy is able to help coax her back into control.

Here’s the rub. Holding true to his promise, Beast Boy hides Terra’s secret from the rest of the team. However, after Slade disappears and the team returns to the Tower, Robin offers Terra a spot on the team permanently.

He also tells her that she will need to work on her control, which of course leads her to believe that Beast Boy betrayed her, so she storms off.

One can only wonder whether she is running off to find Slade, or if she is merely in need of burning off some steam. Either way, it is without a doubt that we will be seeing more of her in the future.

The fact that Beast Boy’s heart is on the line along with the team’s well being is compelling, and hopefully we will see this play out upon Terra’s reemergence.

Next Week: Starfire takes a cue from Marty McFly and ends up traveling to a future where the Titans are no longer friends! This is, like, totally horrific isn’t it? Tune in to find out why the team is no longer on speaking terms in the season two opener: How Long is Forever?

Mario Anima