So
the second chapter to the Season Three finale has finally
aired, and the big question is whether or not it held its
own against the previous two season finales. The answer,
quite simply, is no. But don’t hold that against it.
We last
left Cyborg as he took the helm as leader of the brand spankin’
new division of the Teen team dubbed Titans East. Little
did Cyborg notice the team has already fallen prey to Brother
Blood’s evil ways, and the gesture of electing Cyborg
leader was merely a machination of Blood’s to gain
control of the newly erected East Coast Tower.
As expected,
Robin is not so quick to let Cyborg jump ship on the Titans
West even though he acknowledges the opportunity as being
somewhat beneficial for Cyborg. In fact, seeing Robin eagerly
attempt to persuade Cyborg based on his own previous experiences
with Slade was an interesting angle to play, even if it
did feel a little ill-conceived. Robin dishes out one of
the biggest insults while confronting Cyborg, which basically
equates with calling him a selfish baby for seeking out
a vendetta against Blood.
This
is all well and good to stoke the fires for the finale,
but one can’t help but feel that this all may be too
little, too late in the season to really catch on. At risk
of beating a dead horse here, it can’t help but be
noted that Blood’s ties to Cyborg were not as neatly
laid out as this episode would like you to believe, at least
in comparison to resident mastermind, Slade. Let’s
face it, looking back on a season consisting of a total
of thirteen episodes, eight could be dubbed “character
oriented.” Not bad, considering, yet only four of
these eight episodes actually dealt with developing the
Brother Blood / Cyborg story arc. Two of these four are
the two-part season finale!
Don’t
get me wrong, the concept here is not the problem. We just
needed a deeper look at Cyborg’s struggle with the
whole scenario. We needed an episode that accomplished for
Cyborg what "Haunted"
accomplished for Robin this season. Truthfully, all of the
pieces are in place for such a juicy development. Consider
that due to Cyborg’s infiltration of the H.I.V.E.
during the season opener "Deception,"
Brother Blood was given access to Cyborg’s technology.
He was virtually handed the blueprints for Cyborg’s
inner workings, and this is a device that could be used
to excellent dramatic effect.
Imagine
Cyborg fearing the potential of this scenario; imagine if
the virus Cy contracted when Beast Boy tried installing
his video game “Monkey Madness” back in "Crash"
had actually been a test program dispatched by Brother Blood
in attempts to exploit Cyborg’s weaknesses. It could
have been played for subtlety, and revealed gradually in
a later episode, yet the threat would have made Blood more
of a constant this season, while allowing him to remain
in the shadows a la Slade.
The
final showdown in "Titans East Part 2" would more
than deliver on the issues being raised here, so this episode
is not at fault for the fact that the rest of the seasons
episodes failed to rise to the challenge. Despite the lack
of support throughout the season, Titans East actually delivers
the type of finale that one would expect from the Titans,
it just fails to measure up because it lacks the support
that the other finales had throughout the duration of their
respective seasons.
So what worked? Blood’s level of threat
to the Titans, which has surprisingly never failed to please
in his brief appearances because each action packed appearance
is steeped in vulnerability. The character exudes danger
in a different way than Slade does. Slade’s strength
comes in darkness and manipulation, where as Blood is more
straight forward while possessing strength in large numbers.
Bringing back the threat of control, Blood has essentially
brainwashed all of the newly form team, and only Bumblebee
seems close to possibly breaking Blood’s hold over
her. When it comes down to it, this episode is packed full
of kinetic fight sequences and surprises.
One
of note is the showdown between Titans East and Titans West.
Seeing the heroes square off is not only gratifying, but
downright captivating. The face off between Raven and Speedy
was priceless, and it harkens back to those wonderful action
sequences in "Winner
Take All." We even get a surprise cameo by Professor
Chang, which seemingly alludes to a deeper Blood story arc
than what was taken in on surface value. Perhaps this season
could benefit from a retread, but based on memory the threads
never seem to pull together. Was Chang under Blood’s
control all along? If so, why? Best yet, how in the world
does Red X factor into all of this? Was he, in fact, Blood?
Who
really knows? Again, the whole thing boils down to poor
execution. Many may have been confused by the closing sequences
between Cyborg and Blood, but it all makes sense actually.
As Blood rips Cyborg, quite literally limb from limb, its
easy to question the manner in which Cyborg turns the tables
on the H.I.V.E. leader. Basically, because Blood had used
Cyborg’s technology to build himself into a cybernetic
being, this allowed Cyborg to hack into Blood’s system
and control Blood’s powers. In turn, he used this
to reconstruct his arm and overthrow Blood in the end.
As expected, Cyborg does not remain leader
of Titans East at the close of this episode. Ultimately,
this title goes to Bumblebee, and deservedly so considering
her ability to nearly resist Blood’s control and the
fact that she remains the most objective member of the East
Coast franchise. Curse you, Cartoon Network, for airing
these episodes out of sequence. This was a huge mistake
on your behalf. Let us keep what little semblance of continuity
we have, we implore! Lastly, Mas y Menos still remain humorous,
and watching the twins fight for Starfire’s affections
at the close of the episode was an excellent way to wash
the disappointment away with a laugh.
Next
Week: It would appear that Season Four
is in full swing, and the episode order is already being
tinkered with! Originally we were all set to witness Cyborg
the Barbarian¸ which one can only guess the premise
inherent there. Instead, the folks at Cartoon Network have
opted to run an audible, throwing us Quest (originally scheduled
to air fourth this season) instead. Let’s see what
more Robin has to learn when he strives to become a pupil
of “The True Master,” next Saturday! See ya
there!
