‘Teen Titans Go! To the Movies’ reminds us DC can have fun too

Posted on August 10, 2018

By MARK VIOLA

The “Teen Titans” animated series, which aired on Cartoon Network from 2003 to 2006, will always have a special place in my heart. Not only did it feature strong storytelling and interesting characters, it was also responsible for rekindling my brief childhood infatuation with comic books, a hobby that has cost me hundreds of dollars and still takes up a significant percentage of my closet space.

In 2013, Cartoon Network debuted “Teen Titans Go!” which featured the same characters and voice actors, only in zanier, goofier incarnations, with Robin (Scott Menville), Beast Boy (Greg Cipes), Cyborg (Khary Payton), Raven (Tara Strong) and Starfire (Hynden Walch) spending more time singing songs and eating burgers than actually fighting crime during the 15-minute-long episodes.

The show divided fans, but while it definitely relies on slapstick humor and little-to-no plot, it can be surprising with just how smart and subversive the writing is at times, often breaking the fourth wall and injecting plenty of meta humor on comics and the entertainment industry.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from the series’ feature film debut, “Teen Titans Go! To the Movies,” but I was not prepared for just how funny it would be. In fact, this may go down as one of my favorite films of the summer.

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