Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (REVIEW)
written by Justin Prince (@prince_justin)
The next installment of DC’s Animated universe continues with Teen Titans: The Judas Contract. Set after the event of Justice League vs. Teen Titans, the Titans grow by two when Dick Grayson/Nightwing returns to help lead with his alien girlfriend Starfire and a young meta named Terra with the ability to control the very earth join the ranks with Damian Wayne/Robin, Raven, Beast Boy, and Blue Beetle.
Nightwing returns after months of investigating Brother Blood and his group of zealots, while on the outside Brother Blood seems to be just another religious zealot… underneath it all he operates H.I.V.E. for more nefarious means. With the Titans piquing Brother Blood’s interests, the super-villain zealot calls on the services of Slade “Deathstroke” Wilson to capture the Titans for whatever plot Blood has in store for the young heroes.
Initially, this story opens with a scene from five years in the past; Dick Grayson is still Robin and the Titans roster is comprised of Kid Flash, Speedy, Bumblebee, and Beast Boy. Starfire is being attacked by aliens from her home planet and the Titans save the former Tamaran princess… adding her to the team. Fast forward five years and some new faces, the Titans with newly returned Nightwing attack one of Brother Blood’s bases but not before getting some preemptive intel from Deathstroke before the Titans strike.
The original Judas Contract arc was one of the darkest comic arcs in its time, while the film adaptation does stay very faithful to the original… it never does feel like it heads in the same direction. Perhaps it was in the art direction or the acting… but regardless, through the whole film I never felt there was a heavy sense of danger. Even the big “Judas” twist fell flat despite it being the driving force behind the whole plot.
When it does come down to it, the DC Animated universe has been on a hot streak lately despite a few slip ups. Teen Titans: The Judas Contract did turn out to be an entertaining picture despite it not carrying as much weight as I hoped. Not bad… far from perfect… but still fun.
