''Teen Titans Go!'' is an American
animated television series developed by
Aaron Horvath and
Michael Jelenic
Michael Christopher Jelenic (born May 12, 1977) is an American animator, screenwriter, producer, and director. He is best known for co-developing the animated series ''Teen Titans Go!
''Teen Titans Go!'' is an American animated television ...
for
Cartoon Network. It premiered on April 23, 2013 and is based on the
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...
fictional superhero team. The series was announced following the popularity of DC Nation's
New Teen Titans
The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...
shorts.
The production companies of the series are
DC Entertainment
DC Entertainment is an American entertainment company that was founded in September 2009 and was based in Burbank, California. The company is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery that manages its DC Comics units and characters in other unit ...
and
Warner Bros. Animation, with the animation outsourced to Canada at Copernicus Studios and
Bardel Entertainment
Bardel Entertainment, Inc. is a Canadian animation studio founded in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1987. The studio's name comes from its founders, Barry Ward and his wife Delna Bhesania.
Bardel is involved in the acquisition, development ...
.
Sporting a different animation style, ''Teen Titans Go!'' serves as a comedic standalone
spin-off with little to no continuity to the
original Teen Titans series (although some references are included as comedic
fan service) or any other media in the
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...
franchise. Many DC characters make
cameo appearance
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
s and are referenced in the background. The original principal voice cast returns to reprise their respective roles. This series explores what the Titans do when they are hanging out around the tower.
A feature film, ''
Teen Titans Go! To the Movies
''Teen Titans Go! To the Movies'' is a 2018 American animated superhero comedy film based on the television series ''Teen Titans Go!'', which is based on the DC Comics superhero team of the same name. This film is directed by Peter Rida Mi ...
'', was released in theaters on July 27, 2018.
In 2021, Cartoon Network announced a
spin-off series based after the ''
Night Begins to Shine'' episodes.
Plot
''Teen Titans Go!'' is an animated series that follows the adventures of the young
Titans
In Greek mythology, the Titans ( grc, οἱ Τῑτᾶνες, ''hoi Tītânes'', , ''ho Tītân'') were the pre-Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (Sky) and Gai ...
: Beast Boy, Robin, Cyborg, Raven and Starfire. They reside in Jump City when they are not saving the world while living together as teenagers without adults who disrupt the young Titans. Unlike most of the other superhero series, the situations are comic, crazy and parodic—for example, juvenile jokes that reach new heights of danger, obtaining a license to drive after destroying the
Batmobile
The Batmobile is the fictional car driven by the superhero Batman. Housed in the Batcave, which it accesses through a hidden entrance, the Batmobile is both a heavily armored tactical assault vehicle and a personalized custom-built pursuit and ...
or washing the suits after staining them when fighting their enemies. The show regularly features characters who have appeared in the original series, albeit with reduced roles and/or exaggerated personalities. It also features greater attachment to the
DC Universe
The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared universe where most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Robin, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Green Lante ...
at large, with more references to other characters including those in the
Justice League
The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...
, plus a few appearances by
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book '' Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939 ...
and
Commissioner Gordon
James W. "Jim" Gordon, Sr. is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane as an ally of Batman, the character debut ...
in lighthearted moments.
The show expresses in-jokes regarding the whole of DC's library, many of them in blink-and-you'll-miss-it moments, as well as numerous jokes at the expense of the show itself.
Episodes
Characters
Home media
Region 1 DVDs
Main series
Compilations
Blu-ray
Main series
Region 2 DVDs
Main series
Compilations
Reception
''Teen Titans Go!'' has received generally mixed reviews by critics.
Common Sense Media
Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children. gave the show 4 out of 5 stars and wrote that it "manages a few positive messages alongside the clever comedy and characterizations".
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa dist ...
writer Scott Collura gave the pilot episode a score of 7.8 out of 10, stating that "DC Animation revamps the beloved Teen Titans series for a new generation – with pretty fun results". Randy Schiff of ''
The Buffalo News
''The Buffalo News'' is the daily newspaper of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area, located in downtown Buffalo, New York. It recently sold its headquarters to Uniland Development Corp. It was for decades the only paper fully owned by W ...
'' praised its writing and animation, calling it a "consistently quirky comedy that is often laced with keen social commentary". After the trailer for the series' film adaptation was released, Scott Mendelson of ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'' praised the series and its "nihilistic madness", writing that "Taken on its own terms, it is blisteringly funny and endlessly clever, offering grimly cynical history lessons, comedically grimdark holiday specials, and occasional pure fantasy freak-outs...amid some serious superhero genre
trolling
In slang, a troll is a person who posts or makes inflammatory, insincere, digressive, extraneous, or off-topic messages online (such as in social media, a newsgroup, a forum, a chat room, a online video game), or in real life, with the ...
and self-commentary". The first season holds an approval rating of 67% based on 9 reviews on review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...
.
Writing for ''
Slant Magazine
''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yo ...
'', Lee Wang gave the show 2 stars out of 4, saying "''Teen Titans Go!'' would offer little to even the most ardent Titans nostalgists and completists". Aaron Wiseman of
Moviepilot
Moviepilot (stylized Movie Pilot) was a fan-centric online magazine covering the film industry. Its content was written predominantly by an in-house team of staff writers, with additional articles from contributors known as Creators.
History
Mov ...
cited various criticisms of the show, noting slight appreciation for the characters of Starfire and Raven.
The show's pilot episode brought in over 3 million viewers. On June 11, 2013, Cartoon Network renewed ''Teen Titans Go!'' for a second season, citing successful ratings.
According to Hope King, a tech reporter for
CNNMoney
CNN Business (formerly CNN Money) is a financial news and information website, operated by CNN. The website was originally formed as a joint venture between CNN.com and Time Warner's '' Fortune'' and ''Money'' magazines. Since the spin-off of Ti ...
, ''Teen Titans Go!'' was one out of three of the most viewed television shows and other media to contribute to a record setting 1.3 million simultaneous
Xfinity On-Demand viewings during the
January 2016 United States blizzard
The January 2016 United States blizzard was a blizzard that produced up to 3 ft (91 cm) of snow in parts of the Mid-Atlantic states, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States from January 22–24, 2016. Evolving from a shortwave trough that fo ...
.
Nominations
In other media
Video games
''Teen Titans Go!'' content is featured as part of the
toys-to-life video game ''
Lego Dimensions
''Lego Dimensions'' is a Lego-themed action-adventure platform crossover video game developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Xbox One and Xbox 360. I ...
'', via two packs released on September 12, 2017. These include a Team Pack containing Beast Boy and Raven minifigures and constructible T-Car and Spellbook of Azarath items; and a Fun pack containing a Starfire minifigure and constructible Titan Robot. The characters are able to access a ''Teen Titans Go!''-themed Adventure World featuring locations from the series, as well as an exclusive episode themed after the game. Additionally, the pre-existing minifigures of Cyborg from
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...
and Robin from ''
The Lego Batman Movie
''The Lego Batman Movie'' is a 2017 computer-animated superhero comedy film produced by Warner Animation Group, DC Entertainment, RatPac Entertainment, Lego System A/S, Dan Lin's Lin Pictures, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller's Lord Mille ...
'' are able to turn into their ''Teen Titans Go!'' counterparts when used in the ''Teen Titans Go!'' Adventure World.
Films
A theatrical film adaptation of the series was released by
Warner Bros. Pictures and
Warner Bros. Animation on July 27, 2018. Titled ''Teen Titans Go! To the Movies'', the film was written by series executive producers and developers Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, and directed by Horvath and fellow producer Peter Rida Michail. The voice cast of the TV series reprise their roles, with
Will Arnett
William Emerson Arnett (; born May 4, 1970) is a Canadian actor, comedian and producer. He is best known for his roles as Gob Bluth in the Fox/Netflix series '' Arrested Development'' (2003–2006, 2013, 2018–2019) and as the titular chara ...
and
Kristen Bell
Kristen Anne Bell (born July 18, 1980) is an American actress. Beginning her acting career by starring in stage productions while attending the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, she made her Broadway stage debut as Becky Thatc ...
also starring.
A second film titled ''
Teen Titans Go! vs. Teen Titans'' was released directly to home media on September 24, 2019.
[‘Teen Titans’ Talent Reflects on OG, New Series Movie Matchup - Media Play ](_blank)