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NON-CANON INFO AHEAD
This article covers information that is Non-Canon to the 2003 Teen Titans Universe, but still contains those versions of the characters and is licensed by the copyright holders of the 2003 cartoon. |
Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans is a 2019 direct-to-video film. It serves as the second major film in both series, following Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo from the original series and Teen Titans Go! To the Movies from the 2013 cartoon. The film does not connect to the original show or the 2013 series, due to continuity errors.
It was first teased at San Diego Comic Con in 2017 in the form of a large mural featuring the 2003 Titans beating up the 2013 Titans sans Starfire, and was officially announced in late 2018 in the form of a promo where graphics of both show's logos and theme songs were spliced in a stylistic fashion. The film had a premiere screening at San Diego Comic Con 2019. The film was released on September 24, 2019 for Digital and on October 15, 2019 release for DVD/Blu-Ray. It was aired on Cartoon Network on February 17, 2020.
The film released to positive reviews via critics, however audiences and fans gave the film mixed-negative reviews. Praise came to the return of the original series and the action, but the characters, humor, animation and story were met with criticism.
The film has made only $307,957, making it the least selling DC Animated Movie to date.
Production
In 2018, Warner Bros. announced that a crossover featuring the Titans from both TTG and the original 2003 version was in the works. The project was confirmed to be worked on by a different production team according to a production member from Teen Titans GO! To The Movies, however eventually it was confirmed that Teen Titans GO! producers Michael Jelenic and Aaron Horvath will executive produce the film. During the time, Khary Payton announced that the voice recording for the crossover was done a long time ago. On June 26th, 2019, IGN released the Exclusive Official Trailer on YouTube.
Synopsis
The film, much like the previous Teen Titans Go! film, serves as something of a meta-commentary on the entertainment industry. Where To the Movies talked about Super Hero Film culture, this film discusses crossover culture.
The actual plot revolves around a new antagonist who rallies the 2003 and 2013 Titans and forces them to battle each other to prove which team is superior. Only for the competition to be hijacked by the 2003 and 2013 renditions of Trigon, who reveal that they were responsible for the entire thing. When both plunge the Teen Titans multiverse into chaos and kidnap both Ravens, the two teams are forced to put their differences aside to save their respective Raven and defeat the two Trigons before they cause cataclysmic damage not just to their own universes, but to the universes of every incarnation of the Teen Titans.
Plot
The film opens with the TTG Titans battling Gentleman Ghost as he attempts to rob a bank by possessing a man. The Gentleman Ghost retaliates by taking possession of TTG Robin and using his abilities and equipment to escape. The rest of the Titans eventually catches up and brawls up the possessed TTG Robin, physically injuring the Titan. The Gentleman Ghost then takes possession of TTG Starfire and attempted to fly away, only to be halted by TTG Raven's power. Seeing her potential the ghost hops over to TTG Raven, and finds a large, precious gem in her dark mind. However upon touching the gem, it began to crack and unleashed some of her inner demonic power, ejecting the ghost out of TTG Raven's mind. Meanwhile, as other Titans entertain themselves by compiling cards atop of her head and even doodling her face, they witnessed a dark creature engulfing her, then destroying the Gentleman Ghost, before restoring to her normal self upon recognizing her friends. While the Titans were awed by her powers, TTG Raven thinks otherwise and leaves the scene.
Back in her bedroom, TTG Raven struggles to fall asleep, but as she travels inside her mind and ventures into the unlocked vault where her fractured gem is stored, her demonic self strikes her, startling her awake. Just as she floats towards her mirror, her reflection abruptly changes into her father TTG Trigon, much to her dismay. He reveals that Raven's demonic half is slowly taking over her and offers to take it away, but she refuses to give it to him and flips the mirror backwards. TTG Trigon does not give up easily though as he proceeds on explaining the process of her gradually turning evil, and she starts to feel perturbed. She still stands firm on rejecting him even after he shows her a projection of her being a powerless human and would rather stop using her powers, and shatters her mirror before storming out of her room. After TTG Raven storms off, a malevolent voice speaks to TTG Trigon and together they agree to continue conjuring their plan on turning TTG Raven into a monster.
Meanwhile, TTG Robin puts on a virtual reality headset in the living room, playing a stimulating game of him beating up his evil clone. But his game is disturbed when TTG Cyborg grabs him up and toys with him, much to TTG Starfire and TTG Beast Boy's amusement. After discovering their mischief, he is quite irritated and decides to brag himself, though the others prefer Raven's "level-up". However, after TTG Cyborg repeats "toast mode" for the second time, a portal is opened out of nowhere and TTG Robin realizes that it is a multiverse crisis. Suddenly, the Titans are abducted by the Master of Games, a being who explores the multiverse with his Worlogog to find the best versions of particular heroes. He pits the 2013 Titans against the original 2003 animated Titans, who agree to fight after the Master of Games threatens to destroy their Earth, by kidnapping the 2013 Titans one by one. Cyborg and Beast Boy are the first to be captured, Starfire the third, Robin the fourth (owing to his lame improvised moves) and lastly Raven who can't escape from a person who also has similar powers like hers. Raven can only have a last look at the tower before she and her friends are being grabbed into the flying saucer.
After being forcefully taken into the saucer, the 2013 Titans find themselves in an unknown dimension with audiences. It turns out that the 2003 Titans are the masked people who caught them, and soon the two teams battle against each other after the 2003 team reveal their identities. At first, Robin thinks that he and his team should play soft until he decides to go rough when 2013 is offended and throws him a birdarang. Robin and Cyborg manage to take out all of the 2013 Titans with the exception of TTG Raven, who is tired of the whole situation until she finds out she is barred from exiting. Raven is suspicious with how TTG Raven is forbidden to leave, while TTG Raven is furious and frustrated which cracks her gem further, worrying her 2003 counterpart. Unfortunately, she is coerced into unleashing her demonic power against Raven, and she attacks ferociously in her demon form, knocking out the remaining guys from the 2003 team, and 2013 Robin mocks them without realizing the situation spiraling out of control. 2003 Raven notices that 2013 Raven is having her energy absorbed while attacking her, so she snaps her counterpart out of it when she realizes the Master of Games is siphoning her counterpart's demonic energy. The Master of Games, who traps the four other 2003 members while the 2013 Robin is frustrated with his remaining trio goofing around, reveals himself to be 2013 Trigon, who uses Raven's energy to resurrect Trigon. The two Trigons kidnap the Ravens and escape to the 2003 Earth to finish absorbing TTG Raven's powers so they can conquer the multiverse. In the beginning the other 2013 Titans find it funny with the 2003 one lacking a leg, until the two Trigons divulge their nefarious plan and take the Ravens away. Fortunately, the two teams manage to escape but the 2013 Titans seem to have the dense nerve to remember how to land.
Upon TTG Robin having an unsuccessful landing, the two group of boys begin arguing, so both Starfires reason with them, though the guys refuse to accommodate until the girls lead them to sing a rap (Robin doesn't enjoy it though). The two Titans teams agree to work together to stop the Trigons and rescue their Ravens, though the 2013 team's antics confuses the 2003 ones. 2003 Robin deduces that the Trigons are using a Worlogog from their Earth to travel between dimensions, so they need a Worlogog from the 2013 dimension, which convinces Starfire and the two boys to accompany with him.
Meanwhile in Trigon's dimension, TTG Raven is annoyed to see her father still babying her, and Raven is displeased with her father being alive again. TTG Raven is angrily hurt by her father's actions, yet TTG Trigon justifies himself by criticizing his daughter for being a heroine and hanging out with her friends, so he chooses to conquer the multiverse without her, and together the two Trigons plan to destroy Raven as well...though the original Trigon deems himself as the superior one, and coerces TTG Raven to give him through violent means in vain.
On the other hand, TTG Beast Boy and TTG Cyborg are perplexed with their 2003 counterparts working themselves out and tell them to relax (with Starfire misinterpreting kick in and kicks the couch out), and to prove their point, they, along with Starfire, drag the 2003 trio into singing a song about Worlogog, impressing the 2003 trio.
As for the Ravens, they trick their fathers into unintentionally release them as 2013 Trigon struggles to give his 2003 counterpart a soda, and both reach the 2003 Earth. Knowing that she and her counterpart has to walk for a long distance, Raven is upset but has no choice since she doesn't want to spend time with her dad.
Back in the TTG universe, Robin has his own moment on the roof of the Titans Tower, believing that everyone's fate is in his hands. TTG Robin's frequent interruptions irks him to the point of chasing the latter off the roof. TTG Robin returns to the Ops room and finds that the other members were bonding smoothly with one another though. As Robin came crashing down on his TTG counterpart, he announces that he knows of the existence of another Worlogog hidden in the TTG universe (by labeling it as a copy), and the TTG Titans deduce that Santa Claus has the Worlogog, surprising the 2003 team. The TTG Titans skillfully lurk into the Santa's house and take down his reindeer and the guarding elves, until TTG Robin trips a wire, a part of Santa's plan! As a result, the two teams have to battle Santa and Mrs. Claus, Santa's secret weapon! Looks like it is only up to Beast Boy and the Starfires to take her out when the other boys are no match against her... At the meantime in the 2003 Earth, the Ravens come out from the shadow after TTG Trigon scares off a man, but TTG Raven could not go on. Instead of wanting to carry on, Raven thinks that it would be better to leave her gem cracked, so her counterpart hopes to persuade her by telling her to accept who she is with the help of her friends, though TTG Raven is still stubborn enough to choose walking even when her feet are full of pox.
The other Titans continue to battle fiercely with the Santa couple and their minions in North Pole. The 2003 Titans make their way out and successfully defeat Mrs Claus. The Cyborgs then combine themselves to become a dimensional-travelling machine and the two teams escape by using the device to travel between dimensions with the Santa couple pursuing them (confusing other dimensions' Titans during the process) and eventually make it to the 2003 Earth just after 2003 Trigon absorbs 2013 Raven's powers, even sending the Santas to face their fear of children as they are sent to 2013 Jump City.
The Ravens soon make it to the port and are about to board the ferry, but 2003 Trigon crushes it as he appears before them. They attempt to retaliate both of their fathers, only for 2013 Raven accidentally unleashes her demon self when she is about to help her 2003 counterpart, which leads to her powers being drained by the 2003 Trigon. At least the other Titans arrive, so 2003 Raven explains that 2013 Raven is weakened, but 2013 Beast Boy has no patient and just wants to check if the latter is okay, which turns out she is as she wakes up...not in the way he expects though, since she is actually cheery and thinks that he's handsome.
Raven being happy isn't a desired outcome for the 2003 Trigon anyway, and he interrogates his 2013 equivalent. Fed up with his counterpart's insults, 2013 Trigon absorbs 2003 Trigon's powers and transforms into a new powerful being named Hexagon. Well, in the beginning, their bodies being merged appears to be hilarious...until he charges his power. To combat this new threat, 2003 Robin uses their Worlogog to summon Titans teams throughout the multiverse. However, Hexagon proves to be too powerful, and worse 2013 Raven is too cheerful to understand the danger. She eventually evens the odds by absorbing all of her counterparts and transforms into a dragon known as The Unkindness, protecting the Robins and then proceeding to retaliate against Hexagon. The Titans destroy Trigon's Worlogog and assist Raven in getting her powers back, which gets rid of the 2003 Trigon. 2013 Robin uses their Worlogog to send 2013 Trigon to a zombie dimension.
That isn't the closure though...since 2013 Raven is engulfed by her demon form! But Beast Boy's concern reminds her to regain consciousness and she ultimately makes a consent with her inner self, gaining the control over herself (she still doesn't really like her friends' hugs).
After 2013 Raven accepts her demonic half, all of the Titans are sent home to their respective dimensions, and the two teams bid farewell, but 2003 Robin doesn't want his counterpart to come back and visit, upsetting the rest of the 2003 team. Upon returning to their Earth, the 2013 Titans are glad that Raven has upgraded herself and they don't have to endure another multiversal threatening crossover for at least another year... but they are attacked shortly afterwards by Darkseid, who they refuse to battle out of exhaustion. Cyborg is the only person who is later perturbed about Darkseid's conquer, although his younger friends can't care less. And everything ends with one of Darkseid's soldiers splattering on one of the glass windows...
Continuity
Trigon´s memory of his own defeat in Season 4.
Despite some nods to past events and series, the film has a lot of continuity errors, making this film non-canon to both the original series, and Teen Titans GO!. A member of the Teen Titans GO! production crew has stated that the film was "just a side project". [1]
- Trigon recalls the events of "The End - Part 3", where Raven defeated him.
- Beast Boy remembers Terra´s sacrifice from "Aftershock - Part 2". Along with the plan to revive Trigon, this puts the timeline of the movie at somewhere between "The End - Part 3" and "Things Change".
- The plaque on Terra's stone figure does not contain the words "A Teen Titan. A True Friend" as seen in the animated series.
- Beast Boy would occasionally morph in the same manner as TTG Beast Boy (instantly transforms with a popping effect).
- List of abilities not seen in the animated series:
- Cyborg's ability to fly with jet-packed boots.
- Cyborg's sonic cannon in rapid fire mode.
- Robin's ability to glide unsupported (as shown while falling off the destroyed arena, unlike most episodes where he would have needed help from the other Titans).
Songs
Characters
Teen Titans
Teen Titans Go! (2013)
- TTG Robin
- TTG Cyborg
- TTG Starfire
- TTG Raven
- TTG Beast Boy
- TTG Trigon
- Santa Claus
- Mrs. Claus
- Gentleman Ghost
- Hexagon
- Master of Games
- Darkseid
- TTG Terra (cameo)
- Silkie (cameo)
New 52 Titans
Others
- Batman (cameo)
- Green Lantern (cameo)
Critical Reception
Teen Titans GO! vs. Teen Titans received positive reviews from critics; however, reviews from audiences and fans are mostly mixed or negative.
IGN gave the film an 8.5 out of 10 stating, "Another awesome animated effort from DC/Warner Bros., Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans is a super fun film perfectly primed to debut at San Diego Comic Con. Filled with classic characters and fan-satisfying fun, this chaotic cartoon crossover is sure to delight even the crankiest Teen Titans fans and the cheekiest Teen Titans Go! diehards. Basically, no matter where you're entering this arena from you'll have a titanic good time as you join these two teams on a multiverse-hopping journey through time, space, and... Santa!"
CBR.com gave the film a positive review stating, "Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans isn't the most revolutionary film ever, nor does it reach the truly ambitious scale that last year's Teen Titans Go! To The Movies or the thematically similar Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse managed to be. But as a love letter to the franchise that incorporates plenty of humor and heart, the new movie succeeds. The film proves that no matter what form they come in, the Teen Titans can have compelling and emotional stories, even amidst gags about superhumans fighting Santa's elves."
Audiences and fans alike have given mixed feelings of the film saying it doesn't accomplish anything other than destroying the beloved characters from the 2003 lineup. Other opinions have said that the film's plot doesn't make "sense" and is full of "pointless humor." Original Teen Titans fans have said the film does nothing but insult the team that they once loved by making them "stupid like the GO! versions." The animation of the 2003 characters was also a heavy criticism, as some fans/audiences said they look like something from a "Flash animation". Other complaints have been about the villains and that having Trigon as a villain serves as a "deja vu" for people.
As of December 2019, Teen Titans Vs Teen Titans GO! Made only $307,957. [2] in Combined DVD and Blu Ray sales, making this a box office failure. Because of this result, the crossover has made far less then any DC Animation movie to date.
Trivia
Pre-release
- This is the first new project related to the original 2003 Teen Titans series since 2007's Trouble in Tokyo, unless one counts the New Teen Titans shorts from 2011-12.
During one of the shots in the reveal trailer, a large assortment of alternate versions of the Titans can be seen, including:
- Filmation style versions of Raven, Cyborg, and Starfire from the Teen Titans Go! episode, Classic Titans.
- Cyborg, Raven and Beast Boy from the Mermaid Titans.
- Cyborg, Robin, and Raven from the Protein Titans.
- An unidentifiable version of Robin far in the background.
During a pre-release reference, a designer for Teen Titans GO! to the movies said Teen Titans Vs Teen Titans GO, would be led by a different production, the following details are below
- Amy Wolfram was supposed to write the film
- Alex Jones was appearently going to direct the film
- There was reports of Glen Murakami producing the film
However, all of this was false and the film's producement was led by Teen Titans GO! creaters, Michael Jelenic and Aaron Horvath.
Goofs
- As TTG Starfire has an armband on her left arm (as compared to Starfire on her right arm), there are several instances where either Starfire's armband switched sides. Examples include:
- Their first contact with each other. The armbands switched sides as they turn around, before switching back again.
- Their first encounter with TTG Santa Claus.
- Starfire: The scene while Starfire gives advice to TTG Starfire on feeding TTG Silkie, and as Silkie throws up.
- Starfire: Her reaction after TTG Starfire starbolted a reindeer out of Santa's workshop.
- Starfire: While she is admiring the New 52 version of Robin.
- Starfire: Listening to Robin's plan while traveling through the time portal.
- Starfire: Her reaction when the Titans first encounter Hexagon.
- TTG Starfire: The bank robbery scene at the beginning of the movie.
- TTG Starfire: As she tries to quiet all Titans down to hear Robin's plan to defeat Trigon.
- TTG Starfire: As the Titans were in the Tiny Titans' universe.
- TTG Starfire: While helping Raven tug her demon half away from Hexagon.
- The heights of the Teen Titans are different from the ones seen in the TV show; Robin is taller than Starfire, and Raven is shorter than Robin.
- The attendance in the arena is inconsistent throughout the fight between the original and TTG Titans, with the spectators disappearing at some instances.
- The Tiny Titans' version of Robin had his uniform (notably the 'R' logo) flipped sides as he is running away from the approaching Titans.
- As TTG Cyborg spins TTG Robin in VR goggles, the latter is seen without the goggles.
Cultural references
- List of Titans versions featured:
- The 2003 Titans
- The 2013 Titans
- Bizzaro Titans
- Titans in the style of The Night Begins to Shine miniseries
- Elderly Titans version of Robin
- The New 52 Titans (Justice League vs. Teen Titans and Teen Titans: The Judas Contract)
- The New Teen Titans Comic series
- Tiny Titans Comic series
- Steamboat Willie-esque grayscale versions
- The animation of TTG Raven consuming all other Raven versions resemble the classical Pac-Man game.
- The Tiny Titans' version of Beast Boy appears in a black/red uniform instead of white/red in the comics.
- TTG Robin's video game entrance is a reference to T-1000's entrance in Terminator 2: Judgement Day.
Gallery
Click here to view the gallery.
See also
Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans (Transcript)