Things change, Beast Boy. The girl you want me to be is just a memory.
- ―Terra telling Beast Boy to let go of the past and move forward.[src]
Terra was a former member of the Teen Titans, whose role as a hero or villain is complicated. Until the episodes Aftershock - Part 1 and Part 2, she was confused and insecure, only wishing to be a heroine and a friend of the Teen Titans. However, she was led astray by Slade, who tempted her by promising her that he could teach her to control her powers, in return for her unwavering loyalty and devoted apprenticeship.
Character History
Pre-Teen Titans
Terra in her titular episode and debut.
Not much is known about Terra's life before she joined the Titans, except that she traveled around very frequently. However, there are some clues to her past. When Slade had Terra alone with him in the episode "Terra", he stated that Terra did try to help others. He then said that on each occasion, something even worse happened as a result of using her geo-kinetic abilities. This is possibly the reason for her frequent travel.
In the episode "Aftershock - Part 1", Terra fights Robin as he tries to reason with her. She angrily told Robin (while trying to kill the Boy Wonder) that she did not want to be rescued and that she was "not some sad little girl", expressing a vast and deep-rooted anger that was not entirely directed towards him. This may be a clue to her earlier life.
An issue from the comic series "Teen Titans Go!" does provide some insight into Terra's past life. The comic explains that Terra was in fact a princess and had a brother named Geo-Force. They were members of the house of Markov, and their father was the king of Markovia. Later, it reveals that Terra was always a "hard-headed child", confused about who she was and who she was supposed to be. She always had people telling her what to do and how to act. Scientists experimented on Terra and Geo-Force, giving them their powers, then attempted to exploit them. General Immortus was seen monitoring the experiment, which suggests that he was involved with the human experiment. Geo-Force fought them off, while Terra, unable to control her powers, ran away from home in fear of hurting her loved ones.
Season Two
Terra
Terra first appears running away from a giant scorpion in the desert near Jump City. The Teen Titans soon show up with the intention of helping her; but when they arrive, the girl reveals her power to move the earth and eliminates the scorpion by dropping a large piece of earth on it. The girl then introduces herself as Terra, and the Titans quickly welcome her into their ranks, with Beast Boy showing exceptional interest in her. The Titans invite her into their home for the night, where she makes herself comfortable. At first, the Titans believe her to be a hip, funny, young hero who could potentially make a great addition to the team, and discuss offering her becoming a Teen Titan. Robin decides to wait and test her abilities with them the next day; but a seemingly asleep Terra overhears this conversation and becomes unhappy. Later that night, Beast Boy enters the main room where Terra is sleeping and finds that she is missing. Beast Boy searches around for her and finds her outside the tower skimming rocks on the water. Beast Boy joins Terra and the two become better acquainted. Terra claims that she will be unable to stay and makes excuses for leaving, but Beast Boy convinces her to stay the next day. Terra then accidentally moves the rock that Beast Boy is sitting on and reveals to him her secret: She is unable to control her incredible earth-controlling abilities fully; causing great harm to those dear to her.
Terra first demonstrating her geokinetic/terrakinetic abilities
Beast Boy comforts her and tells her that it isn't a big deal, but Terra still insists that Beast Boy keep it secret from the other titans; a promise Beast Boy accepts. The next day, the Titans gather around the training course and allow Terra to display her abilities. With a little bit of encouragement from Beast Boy, Terra is able to complete the course and proves that she has potential with her abilities. As the Titans congratulate her; they receive a signal that Slade has returned and track his location. The Titans begin to move out and Beast Boy invites Terra along with them. At the mining location, Terra assists the Titans in battle with Slade's robot minions but loses control in doing so and accidentally causes rocks to fall on a nearby Beast Boy. As the other Titans check to see if Beast Boy is alright, Terra flees down one of the pathways out of terror. While resting, Terra notices a man running down a nearby pathway and assumes him to be Slade. She follows and corners him; but Slade reveals to her that he wanted her to corner him so they could speak. Terra attempts to fight Slade but he is easily able to avoid her attacks and reveals to her that he has been watching her for a while. He tells her that her lack of control of her powers is dangerous and insists that he can help her control them. Terra considers the offer but recalls the Titan's generosity towards her. Slade tells her that upon learning of her lack of control, the Titans will abandon her just like others in her past. This greatly upsets Terra and she begins to lose control, causing the earth around her to move and turn into a small tornado. As her powers go out of control, Slade disappears and Beast Boy finds her. Beast Boy reaches her and comforts her as she cries in his arms; asking to keep this occurrence a secret as well. Later on at the tower, Terra prepares to leave but the Titans stop her and offer her the chance to become a Teen Titan, which Terra seems excited to accept. However, as she is about to accept, Robin mentions that she will need help in learning how to control her powers and Terra becomes upset. She freaks at Beast Boy for telling the other Titans her secret and runs away; Beast boy claims he didn't tell anyone and chases after her, but is unable to find her. Robin later finds an upset Beast Boy skimming rocks again, and states that he merely figured out that Terra could not control her powers on his own, and that he didn't know it was a secret. Elsewhere, Slade is shown watching Terra as she flees the tower and appears confident that he will soon see her again.
Titan Rising
Terra returns to Titans Tower a while after the events of "Terra", claiming that she would now like to accept their offer and become an official member of the Teen Titans. The Titans, exempting Raven, are excited to see her, but are still reluctant to allow her the offer, questioning her lack of control of her powers from the last time they saw each other. Terra claims this to be the reason for her disappearance and proceeds to show them a demonstration of her powers, which are now in much better control. As the Titans awe over her demonstration, they feel a small earthquake and receive information that other small earthquakes are occurring across the city. Robin deduces that they are not earthquakes, but rather a trail for something moving underground. As the Titans move out to investigate, Robin invites Terra along, but is still reluctant to say that she is officially on the team. As Terra passes by, Raven senses something sinister and remains unsure if Terra can be completely trusted. In the city, a large wormlike drill machine appears from underground and attacks the civilians. The Titans arrive and begin fighting with the drill machine, and Terra again assists in the battle; saving beast Boy from the drill machine's laser and uses earth to allow Robin to reach the drill machine's height. As they continue to fight the drill machine, Terra attempts to throw a large rock at the machine but is stopped by Raven, who insists that it is too dangerous. This causes tension between the two girls and the drill machine shoots the rock, causing an explosion that allows the machine to flee underground. The Titans find that the machine has left a trail underground and are contacted by Slade; who reveals himself as being behind the machine. As the team descends down the trail, Terra attempts to make amends for the rock argument earlier, but Raven is still cold to her brushes off her apology. Beast Boy assures Terra that Raven just needs time to get used to her. The Titans come across a dead-end, but a signal on machinery (and Slade's heartbeat) is picked up coming from further underground. Just then, three of the drill machines appear and drill through walls, creating three pathways. Starfire, Cyborg, and Beast Boy follow the drill machines, but Terra, Raven and Robin begin digging through the earth to find the signal. They eventually reach the signal, and find the main computer that is controlling these drill machines. The Titans discover that the drill machines are being used to drill around Titans Tower and sink it underground. The Titans attempt to destroy the drill machines, but it proves useless, and Robin states that they must hack into the computer to stop the drills. Just then, Slade appears and distracts Robin, leaving Raven and Terra to hack into the computer. Terra suggests breaking the computer with a rock, but Raven disagrees stops Terra from trying it. Terra angrily demands to know why Raven won't trust her, to which Raven states that she must earn it. Terra eventually releases the rock to please Raven, but before they can hack the computer, a loose rock from the drilling falls on it and breaks it, causing the drill machines to drill even faster, and the Tower begins to sink. Slade flees and the Titans manage to destroy the drill machines, but the Tower continues sinking. As the Titans appear to give up on saving the Tower, Terra attempts to lift the tower back up with her powers, and Raven soon assists her. Together, they are able to lift the tower back up and prevent it from sinking. Sometime later, Raven and Terra are walking in a hallway inside Titans Tower, and they both patch up their rocky beginning. Raven then leads Terra into a dark room and turns the light on, revealing the other Titans and Terra's new room. The team then officially makes Terra a member of the Teen Titans and give her a Titan communicator. Terra is very grateful to the Titans and expresses disbelief that the Titans actually trust her.
Winner Take All
Terra appears along with Raven and Starfire at the end of the episode as they are zapped into the Master of Games's tournament of heroines. Though she does not speak, she seems just as curious as to where the three girls are.
Betrayal
Terra spends an undisclosed amount of time with the Titans, and truly begins to feel at home. One evening, the Titans arrive at a factory that is being invaded by Slade's minions. The Titans battle with the minions and easily defeat them. Terra assists with the battle, but is caught off guard at one point and becomes surrounded momentarily by minions. Beast Boy quickly comes to her aid, and destroys all of the nearby minions, saving her. Beast Boy then continues to battle the remaining minions, and Terra expresses a look of sadness on her face. Later on that night, the team is eating pizza, and the last slice is given to Terra. The Titans express their gratitude to have her as a teammate and friend, and congratulate her on her work in battle. Terra is thankful, but states that she is simply doing her job, and doesn't need to be recognized for it. Cyborg then turns on the Tower security for the night and announces that he is going to sleep. Robin, Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy also decides to turn in for the night, leaving Terra alone. Later that night, Terra sends a mysterious email in her room, and is startled by the sound of a knock on her door. She answers to find Beast Boy, who gives her a heart shaped box that he made for her and proceeds to ask her on a date. Terra is in awe from the gift and suddenly becomes distant, stating that she will not be able to go on the date with him and rushes back into her room. Beast Boy is crushed, as he believes that she has rejected him, and returns to his room.
Terra appears outside his window, and asks him if he wants to go out, which he happily accepts as they fly away from the Tower together. They end up leaving Jump City, and Terra takes him to a small restaurant that she apparently went to often before becoming a Titan. The two talk about Terra's life before becoming a Titan, and while doing so, Terra thinks that she sees Slade in a mirror reflection, which frightens her and causes her to leave with Best Boy before they can finish eating. During their quick exit, Beast Boy drops his Titan communicator and leaves without noticing, just as Robin tries to contact him concerning the numerous Slade minions that have mysteriously got into Titans Tower. Terra takes Beast Boy to an amusement park that she also apparently visited often before joining the Titans. While chatting, Beast Boy notices that Terra seems a little quiet, and asks her if she is alright, to which she assures him that she is fine. The two then ride several of the amusement rides together which culminates on them going on the ferris wheel.
While on the wheel, Terra asks Beast Boy if he will still be her friend even if he knows something bad about her. Beast Boy agrees, and the two almost kiss but are interrupted by Slade, who was in the shadowy area of the Ferris wheel cart. Beast Boy attacks Slade and the two battle all over the Ferris wheel while Terra watches. As Slade gets the upperhand, Beast Boy calls for Terra and she causes the ground to break from under the Ferris wheel, destroying it and distracting Slade. Beast Boy and Terra then flee inside the mirror house where Beast Boy realizes his communicator is gone. Slade then reveals to Beast Boy that Terra was a spy who had been working for him since she had ran away at the end of "Terra". Beast Boy at first expresses disbelief, but Terra states that what Slade says is true, and an angry Beast Boy attacks Slade out of rage.
Terra flees to another section of the mirror house, and after seeing her reflection in the mirrors, breaks down crying because of all that she has done. Beast Boy appears and asks her if she was just pretending to be his friend, but Terra states that this is untrue and reminds him of his promise to her that he would be her friend no matter what, which Beast Boy revokes and states that she doesn't have any friends. This statement crushes Terra and she disappears with Slade, apparently with a new plan. The next morning, the Titans' learn of Terra's eventual betrayal and express that when they see her and Slade next, they will be ready to fight against them.
Aftershock - Part 1
Terra is next seen, clad in a new apprentice suit, along with Slade in an unknown location, later revealed to be his underground lair. Slade interrogates Terra about her previous actions and feelings for the Titans; which she claims to have overcome. Slade asks her if she will serve him, which she agrees, and happily accepts the offer to destroy the Teen Titans. A little while later, Terra returns to Jump City and attacks the Titans while they are out for a drive in the city. The team attempts to fight back, but because they still harbor some affection for their former friend and teammate, Terra is able to attain the upperhand rather easily. During the battle, Slade reveals to Terra via a communicator that her new apprentice suit allows him to assist her with her powers in battle; and helps her create reinforcements using the earth. The Titans are overpowered by Terra and her reinforcements, and they retreat out of desperation. During their retreat, Beast Boy and Terra stare at each other silently before Beast Boy disappears into the smoke that Robin created in order to retreat. Terra next appears breaking into the city jail and releasing criminals Overload, Plasmus, and Cinderblock, with the intention of using them to lure scatter the Titans apart across the city, making it easier to defeat them. This plan works, and the Titans separate in order to stop the criminals. Raven goes after Overload, and defeats him fairly easily. Just as she is about to leave, Terra appears and the two fight. Terra gains the upperhand by exploiting Raven's weakness: her emotions, and apparently drowns Raven in the mud. Terra then moves on to Robin and Starfire, who seek and defeat Cinderblock. As they defeat him, Terra launches a rock which hits Starfire and sends her falling into the waters nearby. She then moves on to Beast Boy and Cyborg, who are dealing with Plasmus. Terra causes the earth to break beneath them and sends them underground, apparently crushing them. With four of the Titans apparently annihilated, Robin goes after Terra and the two fight. During the fight, Robin tries to loosen Slade's influence on her, and tries to make her see the error of her ways, but it backfires, and Terra becomes even more set out to win the fight. Terra eventually gains the upperhand, and apparently crushes Robin with a rock, seemingly destroying all of the Teen Titans. Terra then returns to Slade's lair, who congratulates her on her victory, and states that they may now take over the city without any nuisances.
Aftershock - Part 2
Terra then takes over the city with Slade, resulting in the city being abandoned by its inhabitants. As Terra reflects on her previous actions, she claims to harbor no regrets, though her tone and attitude seem to beg to differ. As she travels around the vacant city, Terra secretly reminisces her time with the Titans, thinking back to several events that she was involved in during her time as a member. Terra acknowledges that the Titans are gone; but just as she says this, the Titans appear and begin to fight her, in a much more aggressive state then the last time the saw each other. They reveal to her that they now consider her just another criminal and will not stop until she is brought to justice. Terra fights back, but is outmatched by the now determined Titans and flees as a result of being clobbered. As she escapes, Slade changes his attitude and commands her to fight back. When the Titans encounter her, she is again overpowered, and Slade releases Overload, Plasmus, and Cinderblock who form into Ternion and attack the Titans as Terra retreats back to Slade's lair.
Despite her gratitude for Slade's intervention, Terra is not received as warmly. Upon arrival at Slade's base, her master brutally attacks her while admonishing her apparent cowardice. Disgusted by Slade's cold-heartedness, Terra renounces him and tries to walk out, only to learn to her horror that the suit Slade had given her is connected to her nervous system, allowing Slade to control her like a puppet. While Slade continues to punish Terra for her defiance, Beast Boy, having tracked her to Slade's base, intervenes. Slade attacks him using Terra, eventually managing to pin Beast Boy under a large rock. Before she can finish him off, though, the other Titans arrive, having tracked Beast Boy. With Beast Boy's insistence that it's not too late, Terra finally manages to break Slade's hold over her before attacking him, eventually creating a geokinetic blast that opens up an underground volcano, sending Slade to a fiery demise.
Unfortunately, the lava threatens to consume the entire city. Knowing only she can stop it, Terra tells the others to escape. Beast Boy tries to convince her to run, saying it's too late, but Terra simply quotes him, "It's never too late". After one final goodbye, Terra unleashes her full powers, stopping the volcano but also turning herself to stone. The Titans honor her sacrifice by placing a plaque in front of her statuesque form that reads "Terra. A Teen Titan. A True Friend".
Terra turned to stone
Things Change
Upon returning from a globe-trotting adventure, Beast Boy is shocked to discover a school girl who looks exactly like Terra. Finding Terra's petrified tomb empty, Beast Boy is convinced that Terra has indeed returned - and he pleads with her to return to the team. None of the other Titans actually meet this girl in person, yet each offers separate opinions and theories concerning her, as well as acknowledging neither Cyborg's chemical analysis nor Raven's magical mystical spells were effective in reversing the process. (It was never mentioned, but it is possible that after Trigon took over the Earth and turned everybody except the Titans to stone, Terra was reverted back to normal as well when Raven defeated her father and everybody was reverted from stone to human flesh.) But the girl insists that "things change" and she is not the girl he knew, and respecting her wishes, Beast Boy is able to let go of his own past and look toward his own future, allowing Terra to walk down her own path.
In "Teen Titans Go!", a spinoff comic book series based on the animated TV series, she makes a few appearances. For example, she appears in Issue #51, which is set after the series finale of the animated series. Terra's brother, Geo-Force, arrives at Titans Tower and relates Terra's origin: she was the Princess of Markovia, and along with her brother was experimented on by sinister interests within the royal court, which gave them both earth-based superpowers. Feeling exploited and worried about the safety of her loved ones due to her lack of control, Terra ran away, leading to the events of the animated series. At the end of the story, Geo-Force and Beast Boy consider visiting Terra at her school, but decide to leave her be, as she is the happiest she has ever been (except when with Beast Boy).
Physical Appearance
Terra has big blue eyes and long blonde hair. Before she joined the Titans, she wore a cropped gray shirt with short black sleeves and a black neck band, a long-sleeved white undershirt, blue shorts, and both brown boots and gloves. In the first episode they meet her, she also wears a silver butterfly-shaped hair clip, although she lost it during her fight with the giant scorpion until Slade returned it to her in their first meeting in the mine, and during the fight in the mine, she also wears a pair of goggles that were not seen before. However, when she about to leave the Titans Tower, she was not wearing this hair clip, but at the episode's end, Beast Boy throws it out to bounce on the sea like a rock. When she joined with the Titans, she wore a black cropped top shirt with a yellow Titans insignia, T, in a tiny yellow circle on the front. Just like Raven, she lacks eyelashes.
Personality
Terra started out as a shy and quiet girl but was immediately liked by everybody. Terra is quite insecure. She wishes to do good with her powers, and her determination to gain control of them is evident, but her lack of existent control usually proves them to be a danger instead of a benefit, thus making her reluctant to use them. Before Terra became a Titan, this lack was very evident and surfaced through her weak control over her powers and emotions. She had tried to put up a front of confidence, but was actually extremely afraid of people finding out how unstable she was.
Among the Titans, she is closest to Beast Boy. He feels he knows the most about her and so is the most understanding towards her. She told Beast Boy she couldn't control her powers and Beast Boy still welcomed her. At first, she gets along well with all the Titans except Raven. Later, Raven develops a respect for Terra. After her return, Terra seemed to command much, much more control over her incredible earth-controlling and manipulating powers and capabilities. Beast Boy wanted to go on a date with Terra and she gladly accepted. Beast Boy and Terra are both happy and fun-loving.
However, Terra is a bit naive. Slade was able to trick Terra into becoming his apprentice and annihilating the Teen Titans. She felt betrayed when it appeared that Beast Boy shared her secret with the team (even though Robin actually realized it on his own). Feeling betrayed and alone, Terra turned to [Slade]], who trained her to fully control her abilities. Terra returned to the Titans and joined the team - but was secretly working with Slade to destroy the Titans from within. Despite her mission, Terra began to doubt her loyalties; Just as romance with Beast Boy blossomed, Terra was exposed as a traitor. Hardened and isolated, friendless and emotionally hurt, Terra turned to the only one who would accept her, Slade, and shortly the two united to launch their plans in full motion. Caught off guard and still holding some affection for their former friend and teammate, the Titans were nearly defeated in the first round, with Terra brutally showing far less mercy and restraint, and in the second, due to reinforcements sent by Slade under her control, Robin was forced to make a retreat back to Titans Tower, knowing this battle could not be won.
When the other Titans lost faith in Terra, Beast Boy knew there was still good left in her because he knew her better than anybody. Beast Boy pointed out that they never gave up on Robin when he was Slade's apprentice. Robin battled Terra for a second chance but she claimed she's not a "not some sad little girl" expressing a vast and deep-rooted anger that was not entirely directed towards him. This may be a clue to her earlier life. Terra especially hated Raven possibly over Beast Boy's affections. Never truly losing faith in Terra, Beast Boy stepped in between her and Slade and finally made her realize the error of her ways. Events were eventually set in motion leaving the city in danger from an erupting volcano. In a final act of friendship, she ultimately sacrificed herself to save the city. Now merged with the Earth she controlled and manipulated, the Titans searched for a way to restore her.
Terra's first and last date with Beast Boy
Relationships
Beast Boy
You were the best friend I ever had.- ―{{{2}}}
Beast Boy and Terra had a complicated romantic relationship. Beast Boy had a crush on Terra the moment he saw her while Terra had been charmed by his sense of humor since she first started talking with him. Beast Boy had a lot of support for Terra when she didn't feel welcome and she confided in him that she can't fully control her powers then made him swear not to tell. Slade later tries to convince Terra to turn to evil but she quickly refuses and her powers being to spin out of control. After an obstacle course for training, Robin by observation told her they know she couldn't control her powers. She felt betrayed, thinking that Beast Boy told everyone, she runs off. Terra later returns and wants to become a Teen Titan. Beast Boy later makes heart a heart box for her and asks her on a date but at first said she couldn't. Beast Boy in his room was upset and says how stupid he thought he was all the while Terra listening on a rock in the window decides to go out with him. She asked if he trusted her while he replies, "more than anyone." They go out to an amusement park when Beast Boy asks her if she's having fun. She said that he's her definition of fun. They have fun playing games, going on rides, and taking pictures. While on a ferris wheel, Terra asks him if he knew anything bad about her, would he still be her friend. He replied, "always." They were about to kiss but stopped abruptly when Slade suddenly appeared. Beast Boy battles Slade. Slade tells Beast Boy that Terra turned to evil, and Beast Boy quickly denies it. When he realizes she did, he became deeply hurt. While Beast Boy carried a lot of resentment and rage towards Terra, he never failed to forgive her and offer her support when it mattered. All the other Titans regarded her as evil while he still saw good in Terra. Beast Boy brought up that they never gave up on Robin when he was Slade's apprentice. Robin later battles Terra and whilst fighting, tells her of a second chance but she refuses his offer. When Slade was controlling Terra, Beast Boy gave her confidence and will to fight against him. While Slade was holding her by the throat, Terra began to build up her power to create an explosion which knocked Slade into the lava and cause an earthquake. Beast Boy and Terra share one last embrace before she stops the volcano and petrifies herself. During the last episode of Teen Titans, Beast Boy was positive that Terra was back after seeing her talking with friends at a school. This spiked his curiosity and desire to find out. He eventually accepted that, even if the girl was Terra, she just wanted to live a normal life.
Raven
- Come on, Raven. What stinks the most? That I tricked you, that I nearly wiped out your team, that everyone liked me better than you? Or is it that deep down inside, you really believed I was your friend?
- ―{{{2}}}
Raven and Terra got off to a "rocky start" (according to Terra). Raven had reservations over Terra's arrival as a new Teen Titan, however over time Terra proved herself a worthy and capable ally. Soon after, Terra betrayed Raven and the Teen Titans. While Raven claimed she never trusted Terra, it is later revealed that she did in fact trust Terra completely and considered her a friend, and was deeply upset over her betrayal. It was implied that after Terra sacrificed herself to save the city, Raven, along with the other Titans, forgave her.
Robin
- And now I never now want to see your face again!
- ―{{{2}}}
Robin and Terra's relationship wasn't the best. Robin started out actually accepting Terra and told her that her earthly powers could be used for good with more training and practice. After Terra ran off, Robin knew she was heading to Slade. After that, Robin and Terra fought. Robin told her that she still had time to join the Teen Titans and that she was still a friend and a Titan.
Starfire
- You always were easy to fool.
- ―{{{2}}}
When Starfire heard Terra tell the Titans that she didn't have a home, Starfire was extremely affectionate towards the young blond girl, and very curious too, asking four questions in total. Starfire, as she does with all her friends but particularly Terra (it seems), gives Terra bone-crushing hugs. One thing Starfire liked about Terra was that Terra actually ate one of Starfire's Tamaranean dishes and liked it, even asking for more.
Geo-Force
Not very much is known about her relations with her older brother in the past, but she smiled when she saw him again.
Slade
- You can't control me anymore!!
- ―{{{2}}}
Slade and Terra seem to have and on-and-off love-hate relationship with each other, as mentor and apprentice, master and servant. Terra's first known appearance in the show was when she secretly worked for Slade of her own free will in return for him mentoring and teaching her how to fully control her abilities to their maximum potential. She had a bright and cheery attitude but was still loyal to Slade. Slade made her pretend to be good for the Titans and have them build trust with her so that she could get all of their important data and send it to Slade. At first she was faking her love for the Teen Titans but then, just after she sent the data to Slade, Beast Boy asked her out and she grew attached to the Titans and became good. The two of them had fun together that night, but this was all until Slade came in and told everything about who she really was. After this, Beast Boy broke up with her and left her. After this, Terra became fully evil and worked for Slade. Now, she is no longer had a sunny and chipper personality like before.
She was now a dark and evil person who wanted nothing more out of life than to please him. She helped Slade destroy the Teen Titans and take over the world, but after she did, she was having flashbacks of all the good times she had with the Titans. The Titans mysteriously came back again and Beast Boy convinced Terra to be good. After this, she turned on Slade and destroyed him along with his evil lair. Terra was then collapsed upon by the lair and turned into a statue. The Titans made a memorial to her in honor of how brave she was. A long time after, Terra was somehow turned back into a human again (it is assumed she was turned back in The End along with the rest of the stone people, but this cannot be known for sure) but she did not remember (or simply refused to remember) who she was and thought that she was just an ordinary school girl. Slade seemed to have known a lot about this transition and why and how it happened. All he said was that he had nothing to do with her changing back to a human and that she chose to forget everything that happened; most likely due to guilt for trusting him so much.
Powers and Abilities
Geokinesis/Terrakinesis: As her name is Latin for "earth," Terra has the exceptionally strong elemental ability to create, control and manipulate the earth and other earthly substances and materials; such as crystal, sand, stone, rock, dirt, brick marble, mud, sand, wood, and concrete. She can hurl and lift boulders, generate earthquakes, mudslides, avalanches, fissures, project spikes of stone from the ground and tunnel through the earth. Terra often transports herself and others by riding on a large slab of earth.
Terra preparing to launch a large stone fist at Raven.
She can change earthen matter from one state to another (such as shifting mud into stone), and can manipulate other aspects of earth like mud, sand, wood, and some metals. Her geokinetic abilities also allow her to affect molten rock, giving her the ability to control the flow of magma, lava and to thermo-geokinetically control volcanic activity to a degree. When using her powers, her eyes sometimes glow yellow, and her hands and body will also sometimes emit a yellow aura. She generally uses the motions of her hands to navigate her powers, though she can move earth through sheer concentration alone.
After Slade greatly amplified and strengthened her abilities with the technologically enhanced battle-suit he designed for her, Terra could summon sentient creatures from the ground that obeyed her command through Slade. She was much more relaxed in using her tremendously enhanced geokinesis/terrakinesis and used them in more complex and lethal ways; such molding the rocks and stones into the shapes of a hammer, hands or even pillars.
Weaknesses
Terra initially lacked control of her newly increased abilities and strength, being unable to regulate how much earth she moved, and inadvertently triggering seismic tremors or even minor volcanoes. The more she used her powers over a period of time, the more she struggled to contain them. The special suit that Slade made for her connected directly to her nervous system, allowing Slade to truly control her and her increasingly powerful abilities via his computerized devices.
Appearances
Season 2
Season 4
- Birthmark (mentioned)
- The End - Part 2 (flashback; no lines)
Season 5
Teen Titans Go!
- Finding Nero (cameo)
- Countdown
- Magic and Misdirection
- Beauty & the Wildebeest (Cameo)
- Secret Moves (Game Character)
- The Great Race (cameo)
- Metamorphosis
Sources
- Titans Tower
- Titansgo.net (Archived, No longer online)
Character Facts
Terra's toy.
- Though she possess the ability to control and manipulate the earth and some earthy materials, she seems to be incapable of creating and controlling plants and vegetation; which are also made from the earth.
- Terra was created to be, as Marv Wolfman stated, "an evil version of X-Men's Kitty Pryde."
- Terra appears in a total of eight episodes in the series; one of which she does not speak, and one other in a flashback only. She is also mentioned in the episode Birthmark, but does not appear herself.
- During Slade's flashback in The End - Part 2, the events of Aftershock - Part 2 are briefly shown again. In the flashback, Terra is seen getting up from the ground and punching Slade off of the cliff to his demise. This is slightly different from what is shown in Aftershock - Part 2, with Slade grabbing Terra by her chestplate and unleashing her power to make the area around them explode instead.
- It is curious that Terra speaks of the urgency to be home, and of her supposed parents, as well as her attendance in her school if indeed they do not exist; Beast Boy also does not investigate more deeply into her current life.
- In the DC comics, she is the illegitimate daughter of the king of the country Markovia, and is the half-sister of superhero Geo-Force.
- The name "Terra" means "earth" in Latin, Italian, and Portuguese.
- Terra is voiced by Ashley Johnson; she voices a similar character named Jinmay in Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! a series which reunites her with Greg Cipes (Chiro), voice of Beast Boy.
- Terra is a playable character on the Teen Titans (Video Game).
- In the comics, Terra actually had a sexual relationship with Slade, rather than a warped father-daughter one in the series.
- In the comics, Terra was portrayed as an irredeemable psychopathic villainess.
- Ashley Johnson (Terra) is also reunited with Greg Cipes, (Beast Boy), as Gwen Tennyson on Ben 10: Alien Force, Ben 10: Ultimate Alien and Ben 10 Omniverse. In both these series she once again portrays the girlfriend of Cipes' character (Kevin Levin).
- Terra's hair changes in accordance to her allegiance.
- While she is with the Titans, Terra's locks were kept out of her face
- When she was shown after joining Slade, her hair begins to hang over her right eye.
- Furthermore when she struck back against Slade, her hair was moved out of her face, as if to signify her having doubt over her actions and remembering what is right and wrong.
- In "Things Change", the girl who resembles Terra has a center part, as opposed to Terra's side part, which possibly indicates Terra no longer takes sides and is neutral.
- Terra's hair covering the eye is a reference to Rose Wilson, Slade's daughter, who had cut out her eye in order to show her dedication to her father. Terra and Slade's twisted father-daughter relationship is also reminiscent of that between Rose and Slade.
- Terra's eyes change color, from purple, to sky blue. One note could be that her eyes turn sky blue in Aftershock - Part 1 when she battles the Titans in the city, but when she was with the Titans, her eyes were a deep purple. In "Terra", her eyes were blue but throughout the episode, it started to become purple. Terra's eyes actually have always been light blue. In different lighting, light colors become darker (shadowed). It is common and with all characters be it their eyes, some hair colors, clothing, etc.
- When Terra uses her terrakinetic/geokinetic abilities, her eyes glow bright-yellow and her hands glow with a yellowish aura around them.
- Some fans speculate that when Trigon was destroyed at the hands of Raven, everyone in the world that was turned into stone was changed back. It is possible that Trigon's banishment also managed to free Terra from her stony prison but it is still unclear what could have erased her mind.
- Some fans of Teen Titans believe that Terra may still have her powers and her memory, but she may just be trying to live a normal life in order to forget her criminal past and to avoid hurting Beast Boy and anyone else.
- If the schoolgirl is truly Terra, whether or not with her powers and memories, it is unknown how she was able to remove Slade's apprentice outfit and put on a school uniform, since Slade's outfit was directly attached to her nervous system.
- When questioned at the pizzeria the girl that looks like her makes a fist and the ice cubes in the glass next to her clench up too. However, this is most likely for dramatic effect, as not only are ice cubes known to move in drinks, but ice cubes are made of water, not earth (rendering Terra incapable of controlling them).
- In Things Change, when Beast Boy would refer to her as "Terra," she repeatedly asked why he kept calling her that, implying that she no longer used that name. However, she never says what her new name is.
- Terra has two toys in the Teen Titans toy franchise.
- Terra's favorite color is red.
- Terra likes Apple and Cherry pie.
- Terra's favorite pizza is a supreme pizza with extra anchovies, hold the mushrooms.
Gallery
You can view the full gallery page here.
|
Featured Article
Beast Boy recommends this article! It has been featured on the Main Page. |