Titans season four episodes 5 to 12 reviewed

 

Episode five sees attempts to protect Sebastian being foiled partly because one of those big snakes gets loose inside Star Labs. The snake is convincing enough even in the bright lights of the base though might have been more effective had some reason been found to blow out half of them for atmospheric darkness. Like a lot of the jeopardy moments though it is over and done with too soon and too easily in this case. In the end, as he had to be, the unwilling Sebastian is taken by his acolytes and really it is only down to Joseph Morgan’s trembling fear that any sense of impending doom is rendered for the viewer. 

By far the best episode to this point, part six manages to find a purpose amidst the somewhat aimless to-ing an fro-ing we’ve thus far seen. Likewise Superboy also finds the same, with a shaved head and an attitude he is bringing out his Luthor side. Though much of the episode takes place within the torch laden occult cave or the gleaming white spaces of Star Lab a palpable tension is present. We do have some flashbacks of Sebastian’s downtrodden life though from what we see he probably needs a therapist more than he needs to become some God but that’s America for you.

When the action comes its in a busy climax that sees a bonkers idea involving transporting played out. I’m not sure that it has the verisimilitude of Star Trek- the first bit involves eating some hair- but you know pretend science is part of the game and it plays out in a good sequence at the end. The fact that Sebastian cannot be forced to enter into the ritual gives the narrative time to expand a little and there are some nice moments between different cast members.

When this season originally debuted on Netflix in the UK they put episodes 7 and 8 in the wrong order which is funny when you consider where we are by this episode. Much of the action takes place in a town called Caul’s Folly a place not on any map and from which it seems impossible to escape and where the horn, aka another ancient artefact with amazing powers is rumoured to be.  So the Titans minus Superboy who now has his own stroppy agenda, go on a field trip. 

You wonder why the occult people are not already there considering their powers but presumably they stopped off for a supernatural Maccies. The rather nifty portable HQ the Titans are using suddenly vanishes and following in the car behind Tim and Barnard are left looking at thin air. Dick, Rachel and Kory find themselves in this strange town which has definite frontier vibes and where they constantly play vintage pop over loud speakers. The inhabitants are either hat tipping types who call people “sir" or "ma’m”  or quivering workers afraid of something. It’s a premise we’ve seen many times before so you know the grizzled but superficially likeable Sherriff is a wrong ‘un though it’s a better pivot to discover some of the locals are wanting to get out of the town. Visually the idea that you can’t leave is represented by that push- pull camera effect known as a dolly zoom, that will disorientate the viewer nearly as much as it does the characters. This is a two part story but I feel more could have been made of the town and its inhabitants before we cut to the chase at the end.

Elsewhere the tone is lighter as Barnard and Tim end up stopping at a motel overnight which is a sequence right out of a romcom and like a lot of aspects of this season it seems as if we are not seeing a lot of character stuff that would support scenes like this. The biggest example of this comes with Rachel’s powers. She lost them then got some different ones back, her appearance has altered twice yet she seems so nonchalant about the whole thing compared to Superboy’s extreme reaction to his changes. It’s as if the writers are only interested in some of the characters leaving the others with superficial plot developments. Jinx’s death is also handled with a minimum of attention as if nobody is that bothered. Maybe it was felt that earlier seasons were too melodramatic but that was the tone the series set, we are in comic book territory after all. The calibration seems to have gone too far in the opposite direction with some of the cast getting much more decent material than others. Poor old Krypto is reduced to a couple of barks an episode now!

The extent to which people have been integrated into this town is shown during part eight in which that constant music is revealed to have a more sinister purpose. I suppose this is to stop anyone who might come here looking for the horn but then again it seems an elaborate deception when you could just hide the thing somewhere. I notices it’s a common trope that when a super powerful object is hidden away someone always leaves clues!

Anyhow Dick and Kory find themselves having to pretend to be a suburban couple more interested in housework and cars than battling super villains. Meanwhile Tim and Barnard are trying to unravel the mystery by finding what remains of the town in our own dimension. I was pleased to see some good clunky dials in this place and the manner with which Dick and Kory are sprung is clever enough. I still feel the scenario could have been given both more tension and also more surreal moments but I suppose the rigours of television production don’t allow those tints that a movie might have. There is some well staged combat though in the town church and a reunion between a son and his parents at the end is quite touching.

What does puzzle me is the fact that having got the horn and left the town, what happens next? At the end of the episode we see Sebastian having a coffee which seems an odd thing for someone who lately pulled an artefact out of a container full of lava might do. What happened to the urgency of their task? Or maybe he’s thinking `well there’s still four episodes to go so I can have a break`. The presence of Superboy coming to cheer him on suggests his Luthor side takes over though in a in a season packed with antagonists is this just too much?

Part Nine is given over to a somewhat psychedelic excursion into `The Red` a place that connects all living matter, a realm that it is apparently Gar’s destiny to protect. The results initially seem like nothing we’ve not see before as a mysterious being called Freedom Beast explains this to our bewildered character in as vague and drawn out a way as possible. Fortunately actor Nyambi Nyambi has a lightness of touch and streaks of irreverence as well as determination that really brings the role of to life. The episode is co -written by actor Ryan Potter which also seems to add a pizzazz to proceedings. The visualisation of this strange void is also busily colourful and packed with things zooming about. Plus there are some cameos from other series including The Flash to underscore the impression of the reach of the place. In the end it all comes across as an episode with a heart and a sense of wonder which is all you can ask for. Like Gar at the start I was wanting to get back to the main story but by the end this episode seemed to have given glimpses of how a series can fly to very different, less linear places.  

This somewhat uneven season rallies to a strong climax as well as a couple of enjoyable diversions in the last trio of episodes which I watched in one go. There are amusing sequences set in Doom Patrol’s house where good vibes seem to predominate as displayed by Gar’s positively giddy demeanour during the stay and the fact that there is plant matter growing everywhere. This is all presumably leading to a forthcoming plot we’ll never see. Equally good is Tim’s excursion back to Gotham where he is coached briefly by Red Hood aka Jason. Curran Walters is an actor of such energy that his presence has been missed this season even if his character was the victim of a somewhat random narrative last time. It’s a shame Jason didn’t go back to Metropolis with Tim as surely his skills would surely have helped.

The final two episodes see the very drawn out scenario of summoning Trigon which has been the aim all season finally come to pass as he climbs out of cauldron of lava- only to be despatched about five minutes later. Rather like Jason’s allegiances last season, Sebastian’s motivation has flip flopped at the whim of the plot meaning that for all Joseph Morgan’s laudable acting, he is still an oddly constructed character. The video game plot seems like it comes from another show, it would have been better to have focussed on the Trigon plot perhaps with a number of objects needing to be collected.

Still the pace of these final two episodes does make up for some of the longueurs that this season has dropped. I’d question whether even in the realms of pretend science the power of a black hole could be created or held inside a metal cylinder but the visuals are good. It’s also refreshing for at least some of the resolution to involve something other than martial arts fights or people firing static. Pulling cables out of sockets has never been this exciting. It’s a moot point whether the denouement is the right choice, I suppose if there was going to be a season five they would have let Kory’s fate remain unresolved but they went for the feelgood finale which is probably for the best.

This season has probably been the least even of the four despite some excellent performances and set pieces. Too often the narrative meandered down a side alley while at the same time there were points in the main plot that needed attention. The whole Sebastian resurrecting Trigon was just too drawn out with multiple changes of direction yet without enough explanation. I suppose my dislike of hokey horror plots didn’t help me enjoy it as much- the tone of the initial episodes seemed like a different kind of show altogether. I found myself yearning for the more traditional antagonists of previous series. Also leaving out Red Hood, sidelining Rachel for a lot of the time and the perfunctory way Superboy swapped sides then back again didn’t help. Meanwhile Dick seemed  so Zen the whole time that I wondered if I’d missed something.  I’m all for character evolving and growing up but the previous seasons have leaned into him as the central character so much it felt odd that he seemed to have now just become Mr Exposition.

Given the different destinations of the characters stated at the end the potential for spin offs is wide though it looks as if the lid has been closed on the entire idea for now. Titans did not quite manage a perfect season- for me the second was the best- yet was often full of good ideas that suffered from the need to fill so many episodes. The talented cast made up of some of these shortcomings and you could guarantee that for every scene that didn’t quite land there would be something better just round the corner.