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 ...

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (CN) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the Cartoon Network, Inc., a sub-division of the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks division of Warner Bros. Discovery. It launched on ...

Glen Murakami Glen Murakami is an American animator, artist, character designer, director and producer best known for his work on ''Teen Titans'', ''Batman Beyond'', ''Teen Titans Go!'', '' Ben 10: Alien Force'' and '' Ben 10: Ultimate Alien''. Murakami is the ...

Sam Register Sam Register (born 1969) is an American film and television producer and businessman. He is currently the president of Warner Bros. Animation, Cartoon Network Studios, and Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe. Career Formerly Vice President of Cartoon N ...

DC Entertainment DC Entertainment is an American entertainment company that was founded in September 2009 and is based in Burbank, California. The company is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery which manages DC Comics characters by working with other units ...

Tara Strong Tara Lyn Strong (; born February 12, 1973) is a Canadian and American actress. She is known for her voice work in animation, websites, and video games. Strong's voice roles include animated series such as '' The Powerpuff Girls'', '' The Fair ...

Cyborg A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.Raven, a telepathic sorceress from Azarath; and Beast Boy, a shapeshifter who can transform into any and all types of animals. The show focuses on the Titans adventures in protecting the city. The first season also features an overarching storyline focused on the Titans' main villain

Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...

, a mysterious mastermind who takes an interest in Robin and also the latter's growing obsession towards stopping him at any cost. ''Teen Titans'' debuted on Cartoon Network on July 19, 2003 and concluded its first season on November 11. The season also aired on

Kids' WB Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming block that originally aired on The WB from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006, and later on The CW from September 23, 2006, to May 17, 2008. Initially launched as a co ...

programming block from November 1, 2003 to February 28, 2004. The season premiered to strong ratings for Cartoon Network while displaying a moderate showing on Kids' WB; the series became Cartoon Network's highest rated new series at the time. While initial reaction to the series was mixed to negative, the season as a whole received positive reviews with many critics highlighting the series' storytelling and dialogue.

Production

The first season of ''Teen Titans'' aired on Cartoon Network. The season aired on

Kids' WB Kids' WB (stylized as Kids' WB!) was an American children's programming block that originally aired on The WB from September 9, 1995, to September 16, 2006, and later on The CW from September 23, 2006, to May 17, 2008. Initially launched as a co ...

Saturday mornings at 8:30 A.M. EST, beginning on November 1, 2003. The series was first greenlit in late September 2002, with American animator

Glen Murakami Glen Murakami is an American animator, artist, character designer, director and producer best known for his work on ''Teen Titans'', ''Batman Beyond'', ''Teen Titans Go!'', '' Ben 10: Alien Force'' and '' Ben 10: Ultimate Alien''. Murakami is the ...

signed on. The series' creation was inspired by the success of ''

Justice League The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived the ...

'', also based on

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

characters, but in contrast to ''Justice League'' and other DC animated television series, the intention behind ''Teen Titans'' was to create the series for a younger audience. Series producer and animator

Glen Murakami Glen Murakami is an American animator, artist, character designer, director and producer best known for his work on ''Teen Titans'', ''Batman Beyond'', ''Teen Titans Go!'', '' Ben 10: Alien Force'' and '' Ben 10: Ultimate Alien''. Murakami is the ...

noted that the series is "lighter and has humor" while staying true to the "intent of the characters". Murakami also noted that the process of transforming material from the comics into material suitable for the target audience was similar to what was done with both '' Batman: The Animated Series'' and ''

Batman Beyond ''Batman Beyond'' (also known as ''Batman of the Future'' in Europe) is an American superhero animated television series based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, and serving as the sequel to both '' Batman: The Animated Series'' and '' The New Ba ...

'': "We kind of have to take into consideration that were not making this cartoon just for fans of the comic book, the ones who know all the backstory and know all the continuity. We have to tell the Starfire story in half an hour! I think we took all those things into consideration, but there's just some things you can't do for children's programming". The series' mixes American style animation with Japanese anime. According to Murakami, the incorporating of anime came naturally, noting that he and Bruce Timm were anime fans and the increased presence of anime at the time.

Cast and characters

The first season employs a cast of five main voice actors. Scott Menville provided the voice of Robin, the Titans' leader and martial arts expert. Greg Cipes voiced Beast Boy, a green-skinned shapeshifter who can change into any animal.

Cyborg A cyborg (, a portmanteau of ''cybernetics, cybernetic'' and ''organism'') is a being with both Organic matter, organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.Khary Payton.

Tara Strong Tara Lyn Strong (; born February 12, 1973) is a Canadian and American actress. She is known for her voice work in animation, websites, and video games. Strong's voice roles include animated series such as '' The Powerpuff Girls'', '' The Fair ...

played Raven, a sorceress from Azarath whose powers are triggered and controlled by her emotions. Starfire, a Tamaranian princess who still struggles to acclimate to Earth customs, was voiced by Hynden Walch. Walch also provided the voice for Blackfire, Starfire's older sister, in the episode "Sisters" while Menville played Robin's alter-ego Red X in the episode "Masks". In addition to the main cast, the season also employs several guest voice actors. Actor

Dee Bradley Baker Dee Bradley Baker (born August 31, 1962) is an American voice actor. Much of his work has consisted of vocalizations of animals and monsters. Baker's roles include animated series such as '' Adventure Time'', ''American Dad!'', '' Avatar: The Las ...

provided the voice effects for Cinderblock, a humanoid concrete monster, appearing in two episodes of the season. Baker also provided the voice of Plasmus in the episode "Divide and Conquer". The episode "Sisters" featured the voices of David Sobolov and Rino Romano respectively as Cron and Kai, members of the Centauri police who came to Earth to capture Blackfire. Veteran actor

Ron Perlman Ronald N. Perlman (born April 13, 1950) is an American actor. His credits include the roles of Amoukar in ''Quest for Fire (film), Quest for Fire'' (1981), Salvatore in ''The Name of the Rose (film), The Name of the Rose'' (1986), Vincent in th ...

played

Slade Slade are a rock band formed in Wolverhampton, England in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The '' British Hit Singl ...

, the season's main villain, appearing in six episodes. The episode "Final Exam" featured the vocal talents of

Lauren Tom Lauren Tom (born August 4, 1961) is an American actress. She began her career on stage, winning an Obie Award, and gained recognition for her role in '' The Joy Luck Club'' (1993). On television, she is known for her roles in the NBC sitcom ''Fri ...

, who voiced

H.I.V.E. The Hierarchy of International Vengeance and Extermination (H.I.V.E.) is a fictional terrorist organization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The H.I.V.E. organization has appeared in ''Teen Titans (TV series), Teen Titan ...

members Jinx and Gizmo, and Kevin Michael Richardson, who provided the voice of

Mammoth A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus.'' They lived from the late Miocene epoch (from around 6.2 million years ago) into the Holocene until about 4,000 years ago, with mammoth species at various times inhabi ...

. Tom also voiced Gizmo in the episode "Car Trouble". In the episode "Forces of Nature", Stuart Scott Bullock, better known as S. Scott Bullock, provided the voice of Thunder and Quinton Flynn provided the voice for

Lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

. Thunder and Lightning are supernatural brothers who use their powers to cause mischief-they would later become allies of the Titans in Season 5. In the episode "The Sum of His Parts",

Tom Kenny Thomas James Kenny (born July 13, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He has been voicing SpongeBob SquarePants (character), the titular character in ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' and associated media since its debut in 1999. Kenny has voice ...

, the voice of

SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' is an American animated television series, animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It first aired as a sneak peek after the 1999 Kids' C ...

in the Nickelodeon series of the same name, provided the voices of Mumbo Jumbo and robot hermit Fixit, the episode's main villains. Recurring villain Dr. Light, voiced by character actor Roger Bumpass, (the voice of Squidward Tentacles) debuted in the episode "Nevermore".

Keith Szarabajka Keith Szarabajka (; ; born December 2, 1952) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Mickey Kostmayer on '' The Equalizer'', Daniel Holtz on ''Angel'', Gerard Stephens in '' The Dark Knight'' and Adam Engell in '' Argo''. He has ...

filled the voice of Trigon. He later returns in Season 4 as the season's main villain, important to that season's story arc. Tracey Walter lent his voice to the main villain of the episode "Switched", Puppet King. The episode "Deep Six" featured the vocal talents of

Clancy Brown Clarence James Brown III (born January 5, 1959) is an American actor. Prolific in film and television since the 1980s, Brown is often cast in villainous and authoritative roles. His film roles include Rawhide in ''The Adventures of Buckaroo Ban ...

(the voice of Mr.Krabs who portrayed the villain Trident), veteran actor and comedian Dave Coulier (who played Tramm and Captain), and actor and writer Wil Wheaton (who voiced fellow hero Aqualad). The episode "Mad Mod" featured English actor

Malcolm McDowell Malcolm McDowell (born Malcolm John Taylor; 13 June 1943) is an English actor. He first became known for portraying Mick Travis in Lindsay Anderson's ''if....'' (1968), a role he later reprised in ''O Lucky Man!'' (1973) and ''Britannia Hospital ...

providing the voice of the titular character. Matt Levin and James Arnold Taylor provided voices for Cash and Sammy respectively in the episode "Car Trouble". Arnold also provided the voice of the episode's villain Overload.

Reception and release

''Teen Titans'' debuted on Cartoon Network on July 19, 2003 with the highest ratings among boy 6–11 for the network. Ratings for the following two episodes showed growth across the target demographics, including a 78 percent rise in viewers age 6–11 and an 87% rise in boy viewers age 6–11. Season one completed its run on the network as the network's most successful new series, averaging 635,000 viewers among the kids 6–11 demographic (2.7 rating) and 1.021 million viewers in the kids 2–11 demographic (2.6 rating). The success of the series on the channel prompted Cartoon Network to order 52 more episodes of the series. The series debuted on Kids' WB with a moderate standing among kids 6–11 with a 3.5%/17 rating. The series ranked among the top ten programs in the target demographics, including kids 2–11, kids 6–11 and tweens 9–14. Initial reviews of the series were negative. KJB of

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming 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 district and is headed by its former e ...

gave the series a 4 out of 10 rating, writing that the series "fails to live up to the source material or its potential. The series is bogged down by an overly cartoony style that looks more like anime without most of the good points". KJB further added: "Teen Titans, from its after school special style attempts at storytelling to its painfully annoying signature tune, fails to meet even the lowest of expectations for this series". ''

Los Angeles Daily News The ''Los Angeles Daily News'' is the second-largest-circulating paid daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California, after the unrelated ''Los Angeles Times'', and the flagship newspaper of the Southern California News Group, a branch of Colorado ...

'' writer David Kronke offered a more mixed review, find the dialogue "occasionally witty", but ultimately dismissing the characters "too bratty to have any interest in saving the world or even in cleaning it up a little". Ethan Alter of '' Media Life Magazine'' also wrote a mixed review of the first two episodes. Alter praised the animation and action scenes, noting that the animation possess "a grace and fluidity" not seen on cable cartoon shows. His main criticism, however, was towards the writing, noting that the stories have been "told a thousand times before in previous superhero cartoons". Despite initial reviews, the full season reviews were more positive. Filip Vukcevic of IGN awarded the season an 8 out of 10 score, writing: "It's clear that ''Teen Titans'' is primarily aimed at children, so you're obviously not going to have anything too mature here. However, what you do get is some very focused, funny, and entertaining storytelling from a group of characters that, when they're gone, you'll actually miss". Writing for DVD Verdict, Mike Jackson gave the first season a mixed review. Jackson found the violence and demonic imagery troubling, saying that he would not let his son watch the show, but praised the voice cast, particularly

Ron Perlman Ronald N. Perlman (born April 13, 1950) is an American actor. His credits include the roles of Amoukar in ''Quest for Fire (film), Quest for Fire'' (1981), Salvatore in ''The Name of the Rose (film), The Name of the Rose'' (1986), Vincent in th ...

, who voiced Slade. David Cornelius of

DVD Talk DVD Talk is a home video news and review website launched in 1999 by Geoffrey Kleinman. History Kleinman founded the site in January 1999 in Beaverton, Oregon. Besides news and reviews, it features information on hidden DVD features known as ...

classified the first season release as "Highly Recommended", except for those with the first two volumes. Cornelius commented that "''Teen Titans'' goes big and broad and bold, to heck with the subtleties, and it actually works. The writers know how to balance the swift action with the crisp dialogue (Starfire's constant comic mishandling of the language has yet to grow stale), and the stories, while zany and far-fetched, become involving enough to capture the hearts of all ages".

Episodes

Home media release

Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment, Inc. (doing business as Warner Bros. Home Entertainment; formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the American home video distribution ...

first released the first season on DVD into two parts. The first volume containing the first six episodes was released in 2004 while the second volume containing the last seven episodes of the season was released in 2005. It wasn't until 2006 that the studio finally released the complete first season. A manufacture-on-demand Blu-ray was released in 2018 by the Warner Archive Collection.

References

{{Teen Titans Teen Titans (TV series) seasons 2003 American animated television seasons