Revolution

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Revolution is the 33rd episode of the Teen Titans series and the seventh episode of Season 3.

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Revolution

Synopsis

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Robin as Mod's prisoner

It's the Fourth of July and everyone prepares for the traditional evening fireworks. But just two seconds before their start, Mad Mod suddenly pops up on the city's public TV screens and announces that the American Revolution has never happened; right after this, he activates his hypno-screens. The Titans are already wise to his tricks, but the rest of Jump City's population is not so fortunate and easily falls under Mod's sway, who reclaims the city in the name of England, proclaims himself king, and attempts right away to conform his brainwashed subjects to British culture.

The Titans confront Mad Mod in the subway, but he manages to separate Robin from his teammates and activate a device in his cane which drains Robin's youth into Mad Mod, restoring him to his young age and reducing Robin to a decrepit old man. Mad Mod makes his escape, and Starfire, Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy find themselves back in a black-and-white pop-artésque facsimile of London, England. They are soon attacked by Mad Mod's robot army, and outmatched, they are forced into hiding.

Once they have regrouped, however, the Titans start bickering about how to proceed: Starfire suggests finding Robin and restoring his youth, Cyborg votes for thrashing the robots in a full frontal assault, Raven wants to find and apprehend Mad Mod first, and Beast Boy ... well, his proposal to assemble and train a gerbil commando force is unanimously disregarded by the others. They try out the first three plans one by one, but whatever they do, Mad Mod anticipates their intentions and gets them caught in an ambush.

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Long live the revolution!

Evading the robots, the Titans end up in the city hall, dejected. But then it is Starfire, as an alien, who realizes one of the inner principles of democracy: Compromise. When Mad Mod parades through the city, the Titans combine the key elements of their respective plans, including Beast Boy's gerbil commando suggestion, depriving Mad Mod of his cane. Before he can retrieve it, Robin manages to get hold of it, reversing the aging effect and then, by breaking the cane, eliminating Mad Mod's control over the city, which reverts back to normal. The Titans gather proudly, only to be forced to chase after Mad Mod yet again when he tries to slip away.

Cultural references

• The facsimile city, Mad Mod's appearance as God in the skies, Beast Boy's cry of "Run away!", and the foot squashing the other Titans as they try to run are references to the TV series Monty Python's Flying Circus, and the movie Monty Python and th'e Holy Grail.
• Beast Boy's screaming "Run away!" may also be a reference to Teletubbies.
• The city's transportation after Mod's alteration consist of red AEC 'Routemasters, otherwise known as the iconic double-decker London buses, and black and white Austin Minis.

  

  Beast Boy making for Patton

• The shape Mad Mod adopts in his final confrontation with the Titans is the version of a Blue Meanie, while Cyborg's detached arm is reminiscent of the Glove, both from the animated Beatles film Yellow Submarine. A Yellow Submarine double also nearly torpedoes the Teen Titans as they try to attack Mad Mod via boat á la "Washington Crossing The Delaware". In fact, the whole city, while converted, looks like a tribute to the Liverpudlian scenery from the Yellow Submarine's "Eleanor Rigby" segment (animated or estranged black-white photographs; including the forest of street signs). Likewise, Mad Mod immortalizes the Beatles in place of the famous Presidents at Mount Rushmore.
• The android foot soldiers are obviously a parody of the famous British Coldstream Guards, with their distinctive headgear.
• While transformed to 'British', Beast Boy speaks with a British accent. After he is told to stop talking, he just says "You're just jealous because I sound like a rockstar!", referring to the countless British rockbands that sprang up in the last fifty years (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Queen, etc.). This could also be a reference to Beast Boy's voice actor, Greg Cipes, who is a musician. Furthermore, Beast Boy's behaviour changes to a typical gentlemanly (and stiffer upper lip-ish) attitude (i.e. he helps Raven up after she fell), making one wonder whether that transformation was such a bad thing (especially after he transformed back into his old obnoxious 'American' self).
• The planes in Mod's "Royal Army" are Supermarine Spitfires, UK-produced Allied fighter planes famous for their association with the Royal Air Force in World War II, and as an iconic symbol of British air supremacy of the time. However, the tanks in this army are falsely based off the French FT-17s from WW1. They were the first tanks with 360°-revolving turrets.
• In a short scene during the chase, the Teen Titans cross a zebra walk in slow motion. This is a reference to the famous Beatles cover depicting them crossing a zebra walk on Abbey Road.
• The three items Beast Boy mentions are traditional British dishes: "Bangers and mash" = sausages and mashed potatoes; "bubble and squeak" = potatoes and leftover vegetables fried together, sometimes with meat; "toad in the hole" = sausages baked into Yorkshire puddings.
• In his first suggestion of raising a gerbil army, Beast Boy imitates George C. Scott and his role as General George S. Patton in the movie Patton.
• When the four Titans are cornered in a doorway with a spotlight, they strike a pose that recreates the cover of the 1973 album Band on the Run by Paul McCartney and Wings.
• The scene in which the four Titans are running slow-motion across a street is reminiscent of the cover of the Beatles' incredibly popular album, Abbey Road.
• When the four Titans are chased through a building with them only being seen through the windows from the outside, the building is from the cover of the 1975 album Physical Graffitti by Led Zeppelin.
• The school uniform Mad Mod wears upon his rejuvenation is reminiscent of AC/DC guitarist Angus' Young's favorite outfit.
• Perhaps it was an unintentional example, but on one instance, the Android soldiers are seen engaging the Teen Titans by firing in a special double row formation. This method was in fact popularized by the British Army, and it was one of the most important advantages against the French Forces in the Battle of Waterloo.
• The tunnel for Mad Mod's private train turns out to be a stand-in for The Tube.
• The saying "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it" Mad Mod quotes is a quote from British philosopher and statesman Edmund Burke (1729-1797).
• The nickname "limey" refers to the historical fact that the British Navy was the first to ferry regular supplies of lime juice as part of their ships' provisions to combat scurvy. Originally used in reference to British sailors, the term has since spread to British people in general.
• The Teen Titans chasing Mad Mod away in the end is a distant homage to a typical Benny Hill chase.
• The title may well refer to the Beatles' song "Revolution."
• Some scenes like when Raven, Starfire, and Cyborg are on the telephone booth while Beastboy reading the newspaper is a reminiscent of some scenes in the Beatles' movie "A Hard Day's Night".
• The scene where the Titans are opening car doors and coming out in different cars is also a reminiscent of a scene in A Hard Day's Night.

Quotes

• Beast Boy: What we need to do is go underground, organize a resistance movement! Starting with a trained gerbil army!
• Beast Boy: Now I know how George Washington felt when Napoleon beat him at Pearl Harbor.
• Mad Mod: And here we are again! You know, there's an old British saying, my duckies. "Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it." And you lot are as doomed as doomed can be!
• Starfire: Please, this is a celebration of the month of July or of the number four?
  Robin: Neither. It's Independence Day. Sort of like America's birthday.
  Starfire: Oh! Should we then bake the America a cake?
  Beast Boy: No cake, and no tea! - See, it all started back in 1492 with this tea party, in Boston. King George - or maybe it was King Norm? - Anyway, the British were trying to make the colonists drink all this tea. But they were like, "Dude! No way! We're sick of nasty old tea and your crummy English muffins!" So they decided, "Revolution!"
  Raven: Where did you learn history? A cereal box?
  Beast Boy: What's your point?
• Beast Boy: You'he just jealous because I sound like a rock star.
• Mad Mod: [coughs] Hello, Gov'na.
  Robin: Just like old times, huh?
  Starfire: Robin! You are unwrinkled!
• [Mad Mod loses his pants, revealing Union Jack briefs]
  Raven: [with a sour face] Okay, really not something I needed to see.

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