'Teen Titans Go!' Actually Has an Interesting Concept: Let’s Re-Imagine Its Story

Since its debut in April 2013, Teen Titans Go! has garnered the ire of numerous critics for its modern portrayal of the beloved 2003 Teen Titans cartoon. Despite how Teen Titans followed the usual format of most superhero shows, it stood out amongst its competition for its memorable heroes, menacing villains, and ability to lean into a few darker storylines (if you’ve seen the “Haunted” episode, you know what I mean).

Teen Titans Go (TTG)! however, trades in the high stakes for a much more lighthearted and comedic tone to connect with its young audience. While the new team sometimes saves the day, TTG! focuses more heavily on showcasing the daily lives of teenage superheroes and the wacky antics that follow without adult supervision.

Fans of Teen Titans Go! enjoy the show’s deviation from the typical “save the day” structure of many superhero shows through its wacky scenarios, sitcom style, and songs. Critics, however, despise it for its extreme alteration of the original Titans team, questionable humor, and how little it tries to (seriously) honor its source material. While I do agree with some sentiments of TTG! critics, I don’t believe that the show is as much of a dumpster fire as it’s painted out to be.

I think if show creators Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic had leaned more into the show’s concept (superhero teenagers living together and trying their best to be heroes) and expanded the story of Teen Titans Go! beyond its jokes, it could’ve been exactly what the two had envisioned with less internet backlash: a lighter adaption of the superhero team we love and way more laughs!

Image Credit: Gage Skidmore from Wikimedia Commons

And that, everyone, is why I’m here! As a creative writer and someone who’s seen both the 2003 Teen Titans show and its 2013 reboot, I’ve thought of a new direction for Teen Titans Go! that would combine the creator's vision with what fans would’ve wanted for the Titans.

My Pitch

For my version of Teen Titans Go!, I had to figure out how to balance both the Titans' dedication to their jobs as heroes with the inevitable chaos and humor that comes with living alone for (probably) the first time. Additionally, I wanted to be sure that unlike Go!, my reimagining didn’t sacrifice each of the Titan's core traits for the sake of comedy and adding conflict. It took a bit of brainstorming, but I was ultimately able to develop this (admittedly longer than standard) logline:

Ready to start a new era in his superhero career, Robin moves to Jump City and soon befriends four super-powered teens. With each of their abilities and unique expertise, the Titans are more than capable of making their mark as Jump City’s greatest heroes. Of course, powers aren’t everything, and Robin will soon learn this when managing the inevitable chaos on and off the battlefield.

Quick Disclaimer: This isn’t a Robin-centered series! He’s the only Titan mentioned in the logline because he kicks off the inciting incident in this story and helps drive the narrative forward (at least in the earlier seasons, anyway). Like the original 2003 series, each Titan will have their own character arc and opportunities to help make the team stronger. But before we can get into that, there's something we need to establish first:

Personalities: Teen Titans Roots, with New Twists!

Image Credit: Fan Expo Canada from Wikimedia Commons

As mentioned before, TTG! critics have been very vocal about their disdain for the personality changes the Titans have undergone, which ultimately bombed the success of the show. Because of this, I’m going to be forming each of the characters based on how they were written in the original cartoon, with a few minor changes for character development.

Robin: Master detective, leader of the Titans, and the ward of Bruce Wayne!

What Works: He's a multi-talented, intelligent, and driven leader who cares deeply about his friends and justice. This makes him an awesome character and very engaging to watch.

What I Would Add: As shown in both Teen Titans and TTG!, Robin can become so wrapped up in his goals to the point of obsession. Since this version of Robin is younger and away from Batman's brooding for the first time, I figure he'd be a lot more impulsive and stubborn. It would be interesting to experiment with these factors and see how Robin would handle conflicts in his earlier days (and maybe cause some).

Image Credit: Sajjad Ahmadi from Unsplash

Starfire: The optimistic, friendly alien princess who's stronger than she looks!

What Works: Her open-mindedness, kind heart, lovely personality, and how caring she is! Simply put, she's the sweetest character in the entire show.

What Could Change: Starfire's naivete (to an extent) and how her experiences are portrayed. In both Titans shows, Starfire’s unfamiliarity with Earth’s customs is constantly played for laughs rather than adding to the narrative or her character. Aside from how frustrating this can be from a storytelling perspective, this also made me realize that Starfire was being mocked by the writers for not completely understanding how things work in a place that’s foreign to her (I’ll cover this in a future article, but in short: it’s a bit distasteful).

How to Improve: Rather than exaggerate Starfire’s lack of knowledge about Earth, I’ve decided it’d be more fitting to utilize some of Starfire’s negative traits that were presented in “Go!”, an origin story episode in the 5th season of Teen Titans. In this episode, Starfire is very distrustful of the Titans and often lashes out at Robin for trying to help her (in her defense, she was going through a lot at the time). Given her circumstances and the time of this story, it would make more sense for Starfire to be a bit more closed off and possibly over-protective of her newfound friends. Then, as Starfire grows to see the good in other people, she becomes more trusting of those around her and goes out of her way to help as many people as possible, leading her to become the optimistic icon we know in Teen Titans!

Image Credit: Prince Akachi from Unsplash

Cyborg: Half teen, half machine, and 100% all-star!

What Works: Aside from his past as an athlete, Cyborg is tech-savvy, laid-back, and always gives 110% to everything he does. Similarly to Robin, both boys are extremely determined and tend to push themselves beyond their limits for the greater good (which probably explains why they got along so well in the original Titans cartoon). However, what separates the two is Cyborg's ongoing struggle to balance his humanity with his cybernetic exterior.

What Could Change: Throughout Teen Titans, many Cyborg-focused episodes were focused on him needing to work past and/or accept the limitations of his cyborg form. However, like Starfire’s unfamiliarity with the Earthen lifestyle, Cyborg’s “flaw” doesn’t feel like a weakness at all. While Cyborg had limits to what he could do, it's very hard to believe they genuinely impacted him when the writers gave him a free out anytime he was facing the reality of his disability.

How to Improve: Allowing Cyborg to struggle and use his creativity and knowledge to work around his limits rather than using plot armor to surpass them! This would not only give us more insight into Cyborg’s personality, but it’d also make for better disabled representation by showing its young audiences that having physical limits doesn’t stop them from being able to make a difference. After all, a little creativity can go a long way!

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Beast Boy: Party animal, shapeshifter, and the good-natured comedic relief we all know and love!

What Works: To be honest, aside from excessive toilet humor and annoying food songs (looking at you, Waffles!), I think Beast Boy is the one Titan that remained fairly consistent in both Teen Titans and TTG! While he still has some maturing to do, Beast Boy's laid-back and goofball personality is good at easing tensions within the Titans and helping others feel welcome. He may not be the smartest Titan, but aside from Starfire, he's one of the sweetest members of the team.

What I Would Add: Aside from Robin, Beast Boy is the only other Titan who comes from a superhero background. Sadly, in the 2003 cartoon, this wasn't brought up until the final season (and from what I remember, it was much more focused on the high stakes and the Doom Patrol). Considering this, I think he'd be a helpful resource to Robin when it comes to running a superhero team. While it may seem a little out of character, this would also provide Robin and Beast Boy opportunities to bond and to help each other improve! Because yes, while the Boy Wonder is an awesome leader, there are Titans who are better than him when it comes to communal activities simply because they’re more laid-back. Beast Boy would be much better at making each of the Titans feel comfortable and eventually, more like a family. In exchange, Robin helps Beast Boy mature and become a better hero— a perfect way to explore their personalities and dynamic.

Image Credit: Kumpan Electric from Unsplash

Raven: The very powerful half-demon, witch, and relatable introvert who tends to be the (unwilling) voice of reason amidst the chaos her fellow teammates cause.

What Works: Raven is arguably the most well-written and developed character aside from Robin. She had a lot of genuine internal struggles that I feel a lot of people could relate to. Additionally, while she is the outcast on the team, I think she's honestly a breath of fresh air compared to the more outspoken and extroverted Titans. Aside from the introvert representation, there's a lot more to explore with Raven that wouldn't have otherwise been possible if she was just like the rest of the team.

What I Would Add: It’s established throughout the original series that Raven has to remain calm because her powers are influenced by her emotions. When Raven first joined the Titans in the “Go!” episode, all we knew was that she was new to Earth and didn’t quite fit in with her new friends. However, I'd imagine that suddenly being a superhero after coming from another world (where she's also no longer protected from her evil father's plans) would be a lot to take in. I think it'd be very interesting to see how she handles this at the start of her superhero career, which is no doubt very stressful given all the new responsibilities and uncertain work schedule.

Image Credit: Vitaly Gariev from Unsplash

The First Season Overview (and Incorporating Humor)

Now that our cast has been established, I can give you a bit of a glimpse into what their adventures could look like! While I will be using a lot of the tried and true, villain-of-the-week format, I'll also try providing the Titans opportunities to bond, act their age, and explore their lives outside of saving the day!

Titans, Go! (Pilot Episode)

Starting anew has never been more exhausting! Not only does Robin have to move into a gigantic T-shaped tower, but he also has to stop a mysterious force wreaking havoc across Jump City. On the bright side, there may be four super-powered teens who could lend him some aid…

Fixer-Upper

With Titans Tower officially in order, Robin is eager to get out on the field with his new team. But before that can happen, he's going to have to work out the roommate chaos inside the tower.

The Original Was Better

During a slow day in Jump City, Robin treats the Titans to a movie day. Unfortunately, the fun is quickly stopped when the film is taken over by the nefarious Control Freak… who the Titans have yet to know about.

Team Building Day

At Beast Boy’s suggestion, Robin arranges a day of fun training exercises to build trust amongst the team. Unfortunately, the Titans don’t seem all too receptive.

Road Trip

There’s a really big case in the next city over, forcing Robin and the Titans to pack their bags and… get in the T-car for the next 3 days? We’ll see how this goes.

Stakeout

What’s a superhero show without a stakeout? When Robin gets a big lead on a case, the Titans eagerly prepare for their first stakeout. Unfortunately, things quickly go awry when everyone presents their wildly different ideas for the night.

Death Trap

The Titans find themselves caught in their first Death Trap! Alas, their powers and tech won’t be of any use, they’re gonna need to put their heads together to work things out.

How Can I Help?

Noticing that the Titans are in a slump, Robin does what any good leader would do and gets feedback from the Titans… which he takes a bit too much to heart.

These are just a few ideas off the top of my head, but I think you get what I’m going for. Let me know any other cool S1 episode ideas you have in the comments (bonus points if you can bring in any villains)!

Future Potential

Image Credit: Matt Biddulph from Wikimedia Commons

I have so, so many ideas for how this series could continue! Ultimately, I know where I want this to end, which is with the Titans becoming the awesome heroes and team we see in Teen Titans. However, because I’m mixing character-driven and linear storylines, I feel a few things need to happen!

The Titans teaming up with other superheroes

While we do meet Titans East in Teen Titans, there are quite a few other members of the original Teen Titans (best known from the comics) who don’t make their way into the series. This could be a good way to introduce familiar and forgotten heroes to a younger audience!

Enter Batman

To my knowledge, I don't think Batman has interacted with the Teen Titans, so of course, I have to explore this. Considering this is Batman we're talking about, the Titans could either take a trip to Gotham City or Batman could surprise Robin by appearing in Jump City. Either way, I see really good potential for a two-part special episode (along with some possible recurring appearances)

Starfire Character Arc + Backstory

It’s been mentioned quite a bit in the Teen Titans fandom that Starfire got cheated out of a character arc in the original show, and I hope to rectify that here. Additionally, because I don’t know much about Starfire beyond what I’ve learned from Teen Titans (and the occasional YouTube video essay), it would be nice to reintroduce her story to newer audiences!

A real big bad

In any superhero show, there's always one villain that surpasses the rest of the average villains. A villain so powerful, intimidating, and twisted, that they dedicate their lives to destroying their enemy(s) through any means. In the original Teen Titans cartoon, that title belonged to Slade, well-known for his brutality, manipulative tactics, and abusing his apprentices. While he's unable to make a reappearance here due to the timing of this series, I think many other villains could be worthy of this role (or maybe an original villain could be created for this)! We would see this villain push the Titans to their very limits and possibly even risk breaking them apart (c'mon, there's gotta be some melodrama).

Image Credit: Alex Sheldon from Unsplash

That's all the main points for my re-imagination of Teen Titans Go!, a fun series where we'd see the rise of our favorite heroes with a touch of shenanigans and chaos! Every season, viewers would see the Titans becoming much more efficient and comfortable with being superheroes as they build bonds with each other, take down bad guys, and explore Jump City. Overall, there would be lots of adventures, action, life lessons, and an awesome found family story.

If you have any additional ideas or suggestions, let me know in the comments!