Teen Titans Go!: Mission To Misbehave, Season 1, Part 1

When I first saw that they were cancelling Young Justice in favor for Teen Titans Go, I was very conflicted. I loved the old Teen Titans series, and I loved Young Justice. Watching the minute-or-so long shorts Cartoon Network began airing during commercials swayed me, though. This series is brilliant (and it's got all the same voice actors as the original series, which is fantastic -- it just wouldn't be the same with different people doing the voices).No, it's not as serious as YJ or TT. But it's not trying to be. This is a show filled with "soft" moments. We've had 7 years of the Titans doing serious and dire missions (five for TT and 2 for YJ), and I, for one, welcome the change. Not that anything is wrong with the serious stuff, but without the lighter moments, the moments that show the characters outside of missions, the moments that show the characters interacting with each other when the world isn't about to blow up -- without these moments, you forget why the Titans are so close and and why they work so well together.This show is way more about the Titans relationships with each other in their off time. The way they goof off and the way they prank and they way they relax with each other (and there's quite a bit of shipping, too).If Scrubs was nothing but people dying, then J.D. and Turk and Elliot rushing in to save their lives, it wouldn't be nearly as good a show. Scrubs is a great show because most of the show takes place OUTSIDE of the "saving" bit. It's a great show because it's more about the characters being around each other and making jokes and having relationships and just hanging out.That's what this show is. No, it's not super action packed, but it is humor-packed. If you were a fan of episodes like the one where Robin leaves for the day, so the rest of the Titans sneak into his room and dress up like him, then this show is definitely for you. I mean, there was an episode that just aired where the Titans fight the Hive in the first 20 seconds of the episode, but then the next 10 minutes of the episode are about Cyborg and Jinx secretly dating behind everyone's back. The whole series is just hilarious, and it's filled with tons and tons of Easter Eggs for those with a quick eye.I'm a die-hard Titans fans. I own both TT and YJ on DVD, and I've read most every TT and YJ comic book (every iteration, 80's to New 52). And I have absolutely no problem with saying that this series is not only phenomenal, but it is easily in my top 3 runs of the team.If you're on the fence because you're a die-hard fan of the old series or of the Young Justice series, give it a chance. I promise you won't regret it.

As a preschool teacher and a father of two young boys (2 and 6), I am well aware of how much love exists for superheroes among young children, especially boys. But there are very few cartoons made these days that feature superheroes that are fun, light-hearted, humorous and still action-packed. Teen Titans Go! is that show. It is extremely funny and highly entertaining for both my boys and for me. Many fans of the old Teen Titans show will bemoan the cartoonish, silly elements of this new TTG show, but I would guess that most of them are not watching that show with young children. Bruce Timm is extremely talented and I am a huge fan of his artwork, but the dark, serious tone that his landmark show Batman: the Animated Series ushered in led to an overall trend toward overly grave and dark animation that is still being felt today. Much like Alan Moore's inadvertent darkening of comics in the late 80's with the effect his masterpiece, The Watchmen, had on the comics industry, Timm's BTAS has set not only the bar, but the tone for every other animated superhero series that has come after it. Bruce Timm's animated DC shows are great, but he himself says they are not intended to younger viewers. But the pervasive dark and violent tone in superhero shows creates a huge problem for any parent of a superhero-loving youngster that wants to watch heroes in action. Teen Titans Go! is a perfect blend of light-hearted entertainment with tons of effective humor and likable characters. I HIGHLY recommend it to any parent that has a kid who loves superheroes but is too young to the many dark superhero shows out there. About the only other modern superhero show that hits the same mark is Marvel's Superhero Squad - also fun and funny. It's too bad that most other superhero shows have to be written for older kids or even adult-level in their tone. There are so many younger children who enjoy these characters too. Thank goodness for Youtube and DVDs of the many lighter superhero shows of the past like Superfriends, Spider-man and his Amazing Friends, and The New Adventures of Batman.

Pay them no mind. Teen Titans Go is an uproariously funny sendup of the original series that ended nearly eight years ago. It is understandable that so many fans of that series would like to see more of it. But despite the fact that i reached a broad and often unintended audience, Teen Titans was meant to be children's entertainment. Having ended so long ago, Warner Bros. Animation has no financial reason to continue or resurrect it--the audience they want to attract simply has no attachment to it. The fact that Teen Titans Go, a comedy series based on the same basic character designs from Teen Titans and staring all the original voice talent, even exists is a minor miracle. The sooner you get over the fact that Teen Titans was a great animated series that has run it's course, the more you'll come to love Teen Titans Go.TTG is not the old Teen Titans series. It never tries to be, either. But if you were a fan of it, and come to Go with an open mind, you'll find a lot of uproarious comedy and good old-fashioned entertainment. Sure, maybe TTG won't be the kind of show with epic dramatic moments and setpiece battles you'll remember years from now, but that's not what it's going for. TTG never fails to put a smile on my face. Nothing is too sacred, and there is almost an in-joke to the whole thing that if you are actually watching this and remember the old series, you must be hella old. The characters are humorous carictatures of themselves and they're both fun and funny. I think we can all agree on how good Teen Titans was. Teen Titans Go pays homage to it by reminding us all not to take it so seriously. Enjoy TTG for what it is and you'll get a lot out of it. You can cling to the past and vow to keep yourself "Pure" if you wish, but in the end, you're only depriving yourself.