History WesternAnimation / TeenTitans

Reruns used to air every weekday on Creator/{{Boomerang}} at 11 pm through midnight, and weekends from 3-4 pm, and on Creator/CartoonNetwork at 6-6:30 AM EST. All five seasons of the show are likewise available on DVD, Blu-ray, iTunes and Netflix (not instant). The show has also returned in the form of chibi-fied shorts for Cartoon Network's new WesternAnimation/DCNation block, called, appropriately enough, ''New Teen Titans''. Thanks to the success of these shorts, a new SuperDeformed, DenserAndWackier series titled ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' premiered as a part of the DC Nation block in 2013, with all of the original cast back as their respective characters. While popular with the target audience, response to it among older, long-time fans of the characters has been...[[BrokenBase mixed]].

** Interestingly, despite "Raven" being her codename in the original comics, here Raven is her ''real'' name, and "Rachel Roth" is never used.

** Interestingly, despite being her codename in the original comics, here Raven ''is'' her codename.

%%* BrokenPedestal: The Titans towards Val-Yor after discovering what a racist {{Jerkass}} he turned out to be.

%%* EvilBrit: Mad Mod.

* FandomSpecificPlot: There are many fanfics where Terra being a local school girl in one episode is explained. Usually it is that Terra had amnesia after being frozen in lava and started going to school in the city. There is always a Raven/Beast Boy/Terra love triangle. Another extremely common plot is to put them in a High School AU. Which is odd since the show was almost explicit that Terra was choosing to forget.

This series has a [[Characters/AnimatedTeenTitans character sheet]] and a [[Recap/TeenTitans recap]]. Now has a [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/crowner.php/BestEpisode/TeenTitans Best Episode Crowner]]. All episodes can be watched for free (with ads) on [[https://cartoonnetwork.com/video/teen-titans/episodes/index.html Cartoon Network's website]], provided you sign in with a cable provider. The TV episodes are available on the DCUniverse streaming service with a subscription.

** Madame Rouge. In the comics, after a short tenure as a recurring villain, she winds up KilledOffForReal and a source of guilt for Beast Boy. Here, her powers (stretching, HumanShifting) are greatly upgraded, making her an unholy fusion of [[ComicBook/FantasticFour Reed Richards]] and [[Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay the T-1000]]. Nothing hurts her, except heat, and she just has to take a second to shapeshift into an undamaged form. The episode with Hot Spot alone being hunted by her makes her almost ''NightmareFuel,'' an implacable threat that can come from anywhere, look like anyone, and can't be held back for long ''even when your power is her KryptoniteFactor'', and when she returns to battle Kid Flash, she's every bit as badass. He runs circles around the HIVE Five and looks so good doing it... then ''she'' shows up and it's a whole 'nother story, able to shift fast enough to actually stretch out to grab Kid Flash when he's looking like a yellowy blur and then proceed to lay down a beatdown.

* AmusingAlien: Starfire's odd Tamaranean customs and fish-out-of-waterness is the show's main source of funny. Examples include drinking mustard as if it were soda and misinterpreting Earth slang (responding to "You diggin' the scene?" with "I... did not know we were supposed to bring shovels!")

-->'''Starfire: ''' On my planet, we have a name for people who do such terrible things, you are a... a.. (head expands) CLORBAG Varblenilk!!!

** Get between [[{{ClingyJealousGirl}} Starfire]] and [[{{Determinator}} Robin]] at your own risk.

* {{Brainwashed}}: Happens to all the Titans (main, East, and a few reserves) at least once. Beast Boy seems to get it a lot after the team's first run-in with Mad Mod. In "Revolution," also featuring Mad Mod, the entire population of Jump City.

* ButtMonkey: Beast Boy. Poor guy even suffers in the DownerEnding. No wonder he's embarrassed that his first name is the same as that of [[ComicStrip/{{Garfield}} a certain well-known cat]].

* ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve: Inverted. Recently-deceased villain Slade has returned to beat the living crap out of Robin... or so Robin thinks. Turns out, [[spoiler:he'd been exposed to a drug that makes him see Slade, and his body to [[YourMindMakesItReal react as if struck]]. He is able to disbelieve in his opponent just in time to save himself from the killing blow]].
** A strange and perhaps confused example in the episode Bunny Raven, where Raven, a magic-user, asserts that Mumbo's magic will disperse if she disbelieves it. Mumbo counters that magic doesn't work that way, and seems to be right.

* EverybodyLaughsEnding: The series, itself not known for abusing this trope, does a spoof in [[TrappedInTVLand S04E01]].

* TheFaceless: Slade. [[spoiler:Even when his mask gets knocked off in "The End" and his undead face is just a ''skull'']]. Though at that point in the show, [[spoiler:he had been reanimated by Trigon, but not resurrected]]. Apparently, [[spoiler: this means he can't regrow his skin]].

* FamilyUnfriendlyViolence: Every now and then, the show features some pretty brutal [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown No Holds Barred Beatdowns]] played completely seriously. There's never any blood, but it can get ''surprisingly'' disturbing with how far it goes; Robin "vs" Slade in the episode ''Haunted'' comes to mind. Speaking of Slade, [[spoiler: his first death was rather horrific, as he's melted alive in magma (off-screen of course, but still)]].

* TheFriendsWhoNeverHang: Has episodes that pair in some way each of the Titans with another member, with the exception of Beast Boy and Robin.
** Before Season 4, Robin and Raven also never had any episodes focusing on them, making their supposed close friendship that drove the emotional core of the season feel like an InformedAttribute.

* InNameOnly: Aside from the fact that the series had adapted many of the plot lines that originated from the comics (although with only ''some'' fidelity towards the events that have occurred in the comics), ''Teen Titans'' has virtually nothing in common with the original 1980s comic book series mainly through the many differences between the heroes and villains in the comics and their cartoon incarnations and the fact that the origins, the physical appearances, and (occasionally) the powers of the characters in the animated series are profoundly different than that of the original comic book series that the series was adapted from which, despite its title, depicted the Titans as being in their 20s (at one point the comic series even dropped the Teen from the title as it had become apparent they weren't anymore).
** However, this series was an example of [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools Tropes Are Not Bad]] through the fact that it served the role as the introduction to the Teen Titans for many younger watchers (or those who just don't read comics).

** We meet Raven's dad, and see her mom in one episode. Her mom seems to be okay with her teenage daughter leaving home and doing her own things on Earth. Does she even know she [[spoiler:defeated her father and is still alive?]]

** In Aftershock
-->'''Beast Boy:''' It's your life Terra, your choice, it's never too late to change.

-->'''Terra:''' [[spoiler:Things change, Beast Boy. The girl you want me to be is just a memory.... you're the Teen Titan. That's who you are. That's not me. I'm not a hero. I'm not out to save the world. I'm just a girl with a geometry test next period and I haven't studied.]]

* {{Keet}}: Beast Boy, of course. [[http://i53.tinypic.com/oa500x.jpg To the next level.]]

-->'''Cyborg:''' [[LampshadeHanging (Approvingly) Well, it's about time!]]

* {{Mooks}}: Various villains and villainous factions have these, H.I.V.E. soldiers and Trigon's Fire Demons are prime examples.
** MechaMooks: Slade's minions, the robot commandos. Also, Mad Mod's Robot Army.
* MesACrowd: Billy Numerous.

* MoodWhiplash: The show basically had three kinds of episodes: dark and serious ones with occasional comedy, largely serious plotlines but with plenty of wacky hijinks on the side, and completely insane goofy ones. Apart from the multiparters, which were pretty much all the first type, all bets were off as to what the next episode would be like, and it wasn't at all uncommon for something serious to be followed up imrmediately by something bizarre (or vice-versa).
** "Fracturedr" goes from [[WorldGoneMad Larry's Cartoony Crayon World]] to Rrancid's Gothtastic Reality.
*** Raven (rin regard to the latter): "Cool! I-I mean, oops."
** "The Surm of His Parts" goes back and forth between two storylines. The main one features Cyborg being held prisoner by Fixit, who wants to remove his human parts and turn him into a full robot, and almost having his memories erased in a scene that could rival "Birthmark" for MindRape factor. The subplot features the rest of the Titans in their efforts to catch Mumbo Jumbo, who they think is responsible for Cyborg's disappearance, in a chase scene over-the-top with silliness and visual gags.
** "Birtrrhmark" starts out with the Titans battling [[HarmlessVillain Dr. Lirrght]]. They joke about his incompetence, and go out for doughnuts, all except for Raven. [[spoiler:And then, in a remote location, ''[[KnightOfCerebus Slade]]'' bursts out of the ground after two seasons of being dead.]] [[FromBadToWorse It gets worse.]]

* MysticalWhiteHair: Malchior [[spoiler:actually Rorek]] is a pretty boy with piercing blue eyes and long white hair constantly fluttering in the wind of battle.

** Demonstrated ''terrifyingly'' effectively in the Season 4 finale, when [[spoiler: Slade and Robin fight off an army of Trigon's lava monsters, using the ''exact same moves''.]] As Robin points out though, there is one major fundamental difference between them:
-->'''Robin:''' "He doesn't have any [[TrueCompanions friends]]."

--> '''Slade:''' No, Robin. I won't stop. Not now, not ever. I am the thing that keeps you up at night. The evil that haunts every dark corner of your mind. I will not rest, and neither will you... I'm ''very'' real. Could you have gotten all of those bruises from someone who wasn't there?

--> '''Slade:''' You ''have no other choice''!
--> '''Raven:''' No!
--> '''Slade:''' ''Yes. Look at it. Drink it in''.

* ReverseMole: [[spoiler: Robin, when he is [[FaceHeelTurn recruited as Slade's apprentice]] [[SadisticChoice in exchange for his friends' lives.]]]]

** [[http://i56.tinypic.com/zo6kc7.jpg Awww, look at the cute widdle...]]
*** [[http://i54.tinypic.com/av37l1.jpg Oh god; ABORT, ABORT!!]]
*** I don't know, [[RedEyesTakeWarning the red eyes tipped me off]].

-->'''Starfire:''' Awww! You look so cute!
-->'''Bunny!Raven:''' ''(DeathGlare)''

* StylishProtectionGear: The team has protection outfits that still look good. In the episode "Snowblind", and others where it's cold, Raven wears a fur-trimmed cape and tights. See [[http://i48.tinypic.com/33cuckn.jpg here]], [[http://i48.tinypic.com/2l8zs7o.jpg here]], [[http://i46.tinypic.com/33wruvl.jpg here]], and [[http://i45.tinypic.com/5jv2gm.jpg here]]. As said pictures demonstrate, Robin and Beast Boy also swap out for a more winterized version of their usual outfits, albeit more subtly. As for Cyborg, "stylish" depends on what you think of him looking like an angry Michelin Man. Notably, Starfire averts this with the justification that her kind is far more tolerant to extreme cold.

** In "Homecoming, Part 1", when Beast Boy is pretending to advertise a "tuborkel" [[ItMakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext (combined tuba and snorkel, for when you want to play your tuba in the bathtub)]], the first notes he plays are the opening bars of the theme melody.

** Also, whether the [[spoiler:schoolgirl was really Terra]] in the series finale, and if so, [[spoiler: how she lost her memory...or if she really did lose it at all.]] This is explored somewhat more in an issue of ''Teen Titans Go!''

-->'''Starfire:''' ...and that is the secret to traveling faster than light!

-->'''Raven:''' I was born in a place called Azarath...

Reruns used to air every weekday on Creator/{{Boomerang}} at 11 pm through midnight, and weekends from 3-4 pm, and on Creator/CartoonNetwork at 6-6:30 AM EST. All five seasons of the show are likewise available on DVD, iTunes and Netflix (not instant). The show has also returned in the form of chibi-fied shorts for Cartoon Network's new WesternAnimation/DCNation block, called, appropriately enough, ''New Teen Titans''. Thanks to the success of these shorts, a new SuperDeformed, DenserAndWackier series titled ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' premiered as a part of the DC Nation block in 2013, with all of the original cast back as their respective characters. While popular with the target audience, response to it among older, long-time fans of the characters has been...[[BrokenBase mixed]].

Creator/TaraStrong [[https://www.twitter.com/tarastrong/status/1002721895030984709 tweeted]] that there is a chance this show could receive another season if ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGoToTheMovies'' was successful. However the film’s moderate performance at the box office left this promise in doubt, with the DirectToVideo movie ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGoVsTeenTitans'' so far being the only project involving the original series.

This series has a [[Characters/AnimatedTeenTitans character sheet]] and a [[Recap/TeenTitans recap]]. Now has a [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/crowner.php/BestEpisode/TeenTitans Best Episode Crowner]]. All episodes can be watched for free (with ads) on [[https://cartoonnetwork.com/video/teen-titans/episodes/index.html Cartoon Network's website]], provided you sign in with a cable provider.

** There's also one episode that's all about Beast Boy's Berserk Button taking physical form (it's a long story) and hunting down a jerk that put Raven in a coma. Surprisingly, the romantic overtones were completely unintentional.

* BlackDudeDiesFirst: Averted. When [[spoiler:Raven accidentally]] brings a horror movie to life in the Tower, Beast Boy gets GenreSavvy and, along with stopping the inevitable LetsSplitUpGang, says that as the PluckyComicRelief, he's the one who's going to go first. And he did. In fact, Cyborg was the ''last'' to get taken.

* CrazyCulturalComparison: Starfire has a few strange Tamaranian customs, such as The Pudding of Sadness and The Poem of Gratitude. Also, Zorka berries which cause mutations in certain organisms, like say Silkies.

** Starfire too, in fact she's probably the Titan with the foulest mouth. She's just polite enough to limit herself to Tamaranian swears.

** Starfire's parents are probably dead, since her older sister was the one ruling once she returned to Tamaran. It's never mentioned if they actually are though, or how long it's been. In fact, they're never mentioned. Starfire was raised by a Tamaranian nanny so she might not have known her parents well.

* LethalChef: Raven's pancakes -- burned like charcoal on the outside, still runny on the inside. Starfire may be a perfectly competent cook by Tamaranian standards but... well, it's called pudding of sadness and is produced by someone who treats ''mustard'' as a beverage...

* PardonMyKlingon: Starfire occasionally spouts odd Tamaranian curse words and insults.

* ValuesDissonance: In-universe example. In "Betrothed", Robin is appalled by the idea of Starfire having an arranged marriage, but Raven responds by asking if the Titans have any right to question Tamaranian culture. The issue's rendered moot anyway, since it turns out Starfire was lied to and she didn't have to marry anyone at all. Besides, Robin was complaining for [[GreenEyedMonster other reasons.]]

* WinHerAPrize: Beast Boy won a prize for Raven in one episode. She was less then thrilled and discarded the prize at the first opportunity ''five seconds later''. [[JustFriends It wasn't romantic in nature]]...no really, it wasn't!

Reruns used to air every weekday on Creator/{{Boomerang}} at 11 pm through midnight, and weekends from 3-4 pm, and on Creator/CartoonNetwork at 6-6:30 AM EST. All five seasons of the show are likewise available on DVD, iTunes and Netflix (not instant). The show has also returned in the form of chibi-fied shorts for Cartoon Network's new WesternAnimation/DCNation block, called, appropriately enough, ''New Teen Titans''. Thanks to the success of these shorts, a new SuperDeformed, DenserAndWackier series titled ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' premiered as a part of the DC Nation block in 2013, with all of the original cast back as their respective characters. While popular with the target audience, response to it among older, long-time fans of the characters has been... [[BrokenBase mixed]].

Reruns used to air every weekday on Creator/{{Boomerang}} at 11 pm through midnight, and weekends from 3-4 pm, and on Creator/CartoonNetwork at 6-6:30 AM EST. All five seasons of the show are likewise available on DVD, iTunes and Netflix (not instant). The show has also returned in the form of chibi-fied shorts for Cartoon Network's new WesternAnimation/DCNation block, called, appropriately enough, ''New Teen Titans''. Thanks to the success of these shorts, a new SuperDeformed, DenserAndWackier series titled ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'' premiered as a part of the DC Nation block in 2013, with all of the original cast back as their respective characters. While popular with the target audience, response to it among older, long-time fans of the characters has been...[[BrokenBase mixed]].

* SharedUniverse: Downplayed with the DCAU. While the show was originally written with its own continuity, the restrictions loosened slightly near the end -- while it's not ''officially'' in continuity, there are little {{Mythology Gag}}s like Kid Flash's appearance in Season 5 with DCAU Wally West's voice actor. ''Justice League Unlimited'' answers by having the ''Teen Titans''-original Kid Flash costume in the Flash museum, and even went so far as to have a brief GuestStar appearance by Speedy with the same voice actor and costume from ''Teen Titans''.

* SheIsNotMyGirlfriend: Said by Robin and then gleefully deconstructed in "Stranded", as it leads to Starfire being so upset that she is unable to use her powers. He chalks it up to her not understanding what a girlfriend is. She demonstrates that she understands perfectly.
** They had ridden a Ferris Wheel together as she ate cotton candy (season 1), and she called him "my boy" in the boyfriend sense while angry in "Date With Destiny" (2x06), which was promptly followed by a slowdance after the two were declared King and Queen of Prom. Robin also has several SaveThePrincess moments in "Betrothed" (3x03), including scaling the side of a massive castle to get to Star. "Stranded" is in Season 4. No wonder Starfire considered them to be in a sort of relationship.
** Subverted in "Date with Destiny", when Robin yells at Cyborg that Kitten is not his girlfriend. Subverted in that Robin ''did not'' like Kitten in any way, shape, or form.

** In "For Real", Control Freak fanboys over the main cast, and the taglines he gives them—"Teen Wonder", "Mistress of Magic", "Shapeshifter Supreme", "Half-Man Half-Robot", and "Alien Powerhouse"—are all directly lifted from the introductory captions of the original Wolfman/Pérez [[ComicBook/TeenTitans New Teen Titans]] comics.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: Terra could have probably been persuaded from Slade's influence earlier if it wasn't for the fact that Beast Boy pushes her off the edge when he declines her friendship at the very end of "Betrayal"]]. Way to go, hero.

** In "For Real", Control Freak fanboys over the main cast, and the taglines he gives them—"Teen Wonder", "Mistress of Magic", "Shapeshifter Supreme", "Half-Man Half-Robot", and "Alien Powerhouse"—are all directly lifted from the introductory captions of the original Wolfman/Pérez [[ComicBook/TeenTitans New Teen Titans]] comics.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: Terra could have probably been persuaded from Slade's influence earlier if it wasn't for the fact that Beast Boy pushes her off the edge when he declines her friendship at the very end of "Betrayal"]]. Way to go, hero.

* EldritchLocation: The inside of Mumbo's hat.

* ElegantGothicLolita: Argent in Season 5.

* EvilBrit: Mad Mod.
* EvilCannotComprehendGood:
** As confirmed by WordOfGod, this is a trait Slade has. His inability to comprehend Robin's loyalty towards his team and the lengths he would go to keep his friends safe and his not considering any residual loyalties [[spoiler:Terra]] had towards the Titans led to his defeat twice.
** Trigon also has this problem.

* AdaptationDistillation: The roster only consists of the Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy for this reason -- to avoid having too much to work with. In the comics, even during the Wolfman-Perez era the show took inspiration from, there were always different members that go in and out, and never has the roster consisted of just those five. Here, it's simplified by making them the stars, while many of the other members were made into recurring/minor characters. The final season, which saw the Titans expand to [[HeroesUnlimited include many other young heroes]], is actually a pretty good representation of how many other characters have been members in the comics.

* WasItReallyWorthIt: In the Robin vs. Speedy fight during the episode "Winner Take All", Robin wins, but snaps Speedy's bow while doing so, in what had been a friendly match. After Robin celebrates his victory, Speedy asks this before being teleported away. An odd example, as both Robin and Speedy had both explicitly expressed that they'd do anything to win, and Speedy's bow didn't seem particularly irreplaceable (in fact, it inexplicably is repaired by the end of the episode).

** Happens most commonly with Robin. All are [[BadassNormal Badass Normals]] Slade]]) who conceal their eyes/face and use martial arts/gadgets to compensate their lack of powers. To list there is [[LegacyCharacter Red]] [[AntiHero X]], and [[ArcherArchetype Speedy]].

* EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses:
-->'''Starfire:''' Oh, yes, I am second in line for the throne... perhaps I forgot to mention?

* Mooks: Various villains and villainous factions have these, H.I.V.E. soldiers and Trigon's Fire Demons are prime examples.

** Happens most commonly with Robin. All are [[BadassNormal Badass Normals]] who conceal their eyes/face and use martial arts/gadgets to compensate their lack of powers. To list there is [[AlwaysSomeoneBetter Slade]], [[LegacyCharacter Red]] [[AntiHero X]], and [[ArcherArchetype Speedy]].

* LeftTheBackgroundMusicOn: In the episode where Mad Mod tries to put all the Titans in detention, an EarWorm-y song is played during their attempted escape. Right before the "exit" is discovered, Robin turns a switch on a bust of Mad Mod, ending the song. For reference, the song is [=K2G=], by Music/PuffyAmiYumi.

* WaveMotionGun: In "The End: Part 1". As a last resort, Cyborg hooks himself up to the Tower's electricity supply and proceeds to [[TelescopingRobot arm a truckload of hidden equipment]]. This culminates in [[GunsAkimbo double blasts]] from two massive sonic cannons, spiriting several hundred fire demons back to Hell. Probably bumped up the episode's [[HolyShitQuotient HSQ]] considerably.

** However, this series was an example of [[TropesAreTools Tropes Are Not Bad]] through the fact that it served the role as the introduction to the Teen Titans for many younger watchers (or those who just don't read comics).

* MechaMooks: Slade's minions.

** The third season's main story arc dealt with Cybrog coming to terms with himself and Brother Blood's schemes as the season's ArcVillain.