Some
people dread birthdays because they serve as a constant
reminder of their ever growing age. Others just despise
all of the attention that comes with birthday parties, although
any excuse for gifts should be a good one.
Raven, however,
dreads her birthday for an entirely different reason altogether,
and you would too if your coming of age was also destined
to mark the end for all mankind.
After much ado,
Raven’s special day has finally arrived, and the dread
has fully taken hold. She’s decided to make her friends’
last day on earth as special as she can by cooking them
pancakes for breakfast, a gesture the rest of the team finds
odd coming from the usually sullen Raven.
Of course,
her culinary skills are sorely lacking, but the rest of
the team appreciates the sentiment regardless. Yet when
the titan alarm sounds, Raven cringes in fear that the worst
may very well be unfurling as planned. It turns out to be
Plasmus, who is generally wreaking havoc around town. Plasmus
puts up a fight for the team, but Raven has other things
on her mind, which leads to her use of her “Raven
self” to make short work of the villain before offering
to buy the team pizza.
This episode
is full of kind moments before the storm. The impending
struggle to come is never really out of sight completely,
but the episode keeps things light in contrast for a bit.
Beast Boy’s declaration of his lucky day when finding
a penny is pure comic genius. His dance had me cracking
up despite the knowledge of things to come.
And
when the darkness falls, it falls fast and hard. The sun
becomes eclipsed by the moon, and Raven immediately falls
into a lurch, bearing the red symbols that can only spell
trouble in some mystical language. She urges the team to
run and save themselves, but Robin has another plan.
Unbeknownst to
Raven, the rest of the team has been working on a backup
plan to counter the end of the world and the coming of Trigon.
Their theory is that if Trigon cannot get to Raven, then
she won’t be able to become the portal that provides
him with the means to cross over to earth. They’ve
been hard at work in preparation for this day by constructing
a safe room for Raven equipped with the latest technology
to keep anything living from entering the room, and designed
with walls bearing the symbols of protection taken from
some of Raven’s spell books.
It is a huge
gesture, even if it is a futile one. The one aspect that
has been built up by this series since its inception is
the bond between the team members. Their friendship is what
matters most, and this element comes to full bloom with
this latest Trigon arc. It’s one thing to say that
you would go to the ends of the earth for your friends,
and it is an entirely different thing to face the end of
the earth for them.
We learn a bit
more about Slade’s deal with Trigon here, although
it isn’t quite clear whether or not he is being promised
the return of Terra or something else entirely. The development
is intriguing nonetheless. Trigon wants Raven, and Slade
is his tool to achieve this goal. When Slade attacks the
Tower with an army of flame warriors set on retrieving Trigon’s
sire, the trouble is only beginning, but the teens face
the opposition like champs.
It’s
a brutal battle that is stacked in Slade’s favor as
every blow landed seems to barely faze the resurrected villain.
It was insanely cool to see Cyborg pull out all of the stops
and link into the Tower to produce uber cannons from his
arms and wipe out everyone approaching the Tower. This sequence
was amazing, yet as expected, the effort was for naught.
Ultimately,
the real battle is being waged within Raven’s mind.
The struggle between evil father and do-gooder daughter
is the sort of conflict this series should strive upon.
When they want to, the creators at work behind the scenes
can really churn out a story that is not only gripping,
but cooks to a full boil at just the right speed.
Do not
mistake it, in this one episode the team behind the Titans
has outdone any and all finales to date, and part of the
reason for this is the simple fact that this episode recalls
the issues raised by previous finales. Without "The
Apprentice" the one on one fight between Robin
and Slade would not have been so bittersweet. Without "Aftershock,"
the reasons and availability for Slade to be placed in the
role of a pawn would be inexplicable. Sure, it strays from
comic continuity, but it is successful in creating its own
continuity for the series that works as a parallel to the
show’s comic roots.
Even
"Titans East"
factors in when seeing that Cyborg’s struggle to protect
his friends doesn’t compare to the Trigon’s
hordes. He is capable of leading, and as Robin continually
falls to Slade, Cy tries to step up and put an end to the
onslaught only to see that his best just isn’t good
enough.
Trigon’s
method of winning over Raven was perfect. He guilts her
into giving in to her destiny, knowing that her love of
her companions outweighs her desire to stand up to her demonic
father. His play is correct, as she concedes according to
plan.
One moment worth
pointing out is Raven’s point about Slade’s
role in the whole plan. Trigon is clearly using Slade to
get to Raven, but Slade can’t seem to see the double-cross
that’s brewing. This development will make for an
interesting turn of events to come.
The episode ends
on a down note, as Raven insists that her friends let her
continue on, and she proceeds to open the portal allowing
Trigon access to Earth while the teens pound furiously on
Raven’s roadblock. Robin’s dedication to saving
Raven is admirable, but how much farther can he possibly
go? It will also be interesting to see if Beast Boy and
Cyborg recognize Trigon from their journey into Raven’s
mind way back in Nevermore.
Next
Up: Stay tuned folks, the epic continues in Part
II of what could very well be the definitive Titans story
arc. The producers have promised a more cohesive story arc
next season, so this could be evidence of things to come.
