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 ...

Bob Haney Robert Gilbert Haney, Jr. (March 15, 1926 – November 25, 2004) was an American comic book writer, best known for his work for DC Comics. He co-created the Teen Titans as well as characters such as Lance Bruner, Metamorpho, Eclipso, Cain, and ...

Bruno Premiani Giordano Bruno Premiani (; January 4, 1907 – August 17, 1984
at the

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 ...

in the United States. Developed by

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 ...

, and television writer

David Slack David Slack is an American animation and television writer and producer. He has written and/or produced on such shows as ''Law & Order'', '' Lie to Me'', ''In Plain Sight'', ''Teen Titans'', '' Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi'', '' Jackie Chan Adventures'', '' ...

. The series was produced by

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 ...

and

Warner Bros. Animation Warner Bros. Animation Inc. (abbreviated as WBA) is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Group, a division of Warner Bros., which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery and serves as the animation divis ...

. The series focuses on a team of crime-fighting teenaged superheroes, consisting of the leader Robin, foreign alien princess Starfire, green shapeshifter

Beast Boy Beast Boy (Garfield Mark "Gar" Logan) is a superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity ...

, the dark sorceress

Raven A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...

, and the technological genius

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.Terra Terra may often refer to: * Terra (mythology), primeval Roman goddess * An alternate name for planet Earth, as well as the Latin name for the planet Terra may also refer to: Geography Astronomy * Terra (satellite), a multi-national NASA scient ...

, a hero possessing the ability to move the earth while struggling to accept her boundaries and the Titans as her friends, with Slade's looming presence in her life making it all the more difficult. The season premiered on January 10, 2004 and ran until August 21, broadcasting 13 episodes. The season also aired on Kids' WB on later dates. The season re-aired on Kids' WB during the 2007–08 U.S. network television season on The CW for the final time, but instead airing episodes out of order. Warner Bros. Home Video released the second season on DVD in the United States on September 12, 2006 and in Canada on September 26. Upon release of the season on DVD, the season received critical acclaim with the Terra story arc being singled out for praise.

Production

Season two of ''Teen Titans'' aired on

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 ...

Saturday nights at 9:00 P.M., from January 10 to August 21, 2004. During its broadcast, the series shifted from programming blocks Toonami to Miguzi, beginning on April 17. The season was produced by

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 ...

and

Warner Bros. Animation Warner Bros. Animation Inc. (abbreviated as WBA) is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Group, a division of Warner Bros., which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery and serves as the animation divis ...

, executive produced by

Sander Schwartz Sander Schwartz (born January 7, 1954) is an American Daytime Emmy award-winning producer of television animation. He was President of Warner Bros. Animation between 2001 and 2007, followed by President, International Productions of Sony Picture ...

and produced by

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 ...

,

Bruce Timm Bruce Walter Timm (born February 5, 1961) is an American artist, animator, writer, producer, and director. He is best known for contributing to building the modern DC Comics animated franchise, most notably as the head producer behind '' Batman: ...

and Linda M. Steiner. Staff directors for the series included Michael Chang, Ciro Nieli, and Alex Soto. The episodes for the season were written by a team of writers, which included Adam Beechen, Rick Copp, Rob Hoegee, Dwayne McDuffie,

David Slack David Slack is an American animation and television writer and producer. He has written and/or produced on such shows as ''Law & Order'', '' Lie to Me'', ''In Plain Sight'', ''Teen Titans'', '' Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi'', '' Jackie Chan Adventures'', '' ...

, and Amy Wolfram. Producer Murakami worked with Derrick Wyatt, Brianne Drouhard, and Jon Suzuki on character design while Hakjoon Kang was the background designer for the series.

Cast and characters

Scott Menville Scott David Menville (born February 12, 1971) is an American actor and musician who is known for his voice work in animated films, television series and video games. He voices Robin in Cartoon Network's ''Teen Titans'' (2003–2006) and ''Teen ...

,

Hynden Walch Hynden Walch (born February 1, 1971) is an American actress best known for voicing Starfire in the ''Teen Titans'' franchise and Princess Bubblegum in ''Adventure Time''. She also voiced Penny Sanchez in '' ChalkZone'', Elsie in ''Stanley'', ...

,

Greg Cipes Gregory Michael Cipes (born January 4, 1980) is an American actor. He is best known for his voice roles as Beast Boy in ''Teen Titans'', ''Teen Titans Go!,'' '' Young Justice'', and ''Beast Boy: Lone Wolf''; Michelangelo in ''Teenage Mutant Nin ...

,

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 ...

, and

Khary Payton Khary Payton (born May 16, 1972) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as King Ezekiel on the AMC horror drama series '' The Walking Dead'' and Dr. Terrell Jackson on the soap opera ''General Hospital'', as well as voicing Cyborg acr ...

reprise their roles in the second season as their respective Teen Titans - Robin, Starfire,

Beast Boy Beast Boy (Garfield Mark "Gar" Logan) is a superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity ...

,

Raven A raven is any of several large-bodied passerine bird species in the genus '' Corvus''. These species do not form a single taxonomic group within the genus. There is no consistent distinction between crows and ravens; the two names are assigne ...

, and

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.Ashley Johnson providing her voice.

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 ...

reprises his role as 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 ...

, in four episodes of the season.

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 ...

returns to the series, providing voices for several characters, including the Alien Dog and villain Soto in "Every Dog Has His Day"; Plasmus in two episodes; Overload in part one of the season finale; and Larry, Robin's double from another dimension, in the episode "Fractured".

Wil Wheaton Richard William "Wil" Wheaton III (born July 29, 1972) is an American actor and writer. He portrayed Wesley Crusher on the television series ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', Gordie Lachance in the film ''Stand by Me (film), Stand by Me'', ...

returns to his role of

Aqualad Aqualad is the alias of several superheroes in American comic books published by DC Comics and appearing in media published by DC Entertainment. The character was originally created by writer Robert Bernstein and artist Ramona Fradon, serving as ...

in the episode "Winner Take All". Season two of ''Teen Titans'' featured numerous guest actors providing voices for recurring and guest characters. In the episode "How Long is Forever?",

Xander Berkeley Alexander Harper Berkeley (born December 16, 1955) is an American actor. Since beginning his career in the early 1980s, he has appeared in over 200 film and television projects. His films include ''Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' (1991), ''Candyman ...

plays the villain Warp.

Keith David Keith David Williams (born June 4, 1956) is an American actor. He is known for his deep voice and screen presence in over 300 roles in film, stage, television, and interactive media. He has starred in such films as '' The Thing'' (1982), ''Pla ...

and actor and comedian

John DiMaggio John William DiMaggio ( ; born September 4, 1968) is an American actor. His various voice roles include Bender on ''Futurama'', Jake the Dog on ''Adventure Time'', Marcus Fenix in the ''Gears of War'' series, Dr. Drakken on '' Kim Possible'', ...

provided the voices of

Atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of world map, maps of Earth or of a continent or region of Earth. Advances in astronomy have also resulted in atlases of the celestial sphere or of other planets. Atlases have traditio ...

and Spike in "Only Human". In the episode "Fear Itself", veteran voice actress

Tress MacNeille Teressa Claire "Tress" MacNeille (; born June 20, 1951) >https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/macneille-tress-1951 is an American voice actress, who has contributed to voice-over work with credits including vo ...

and actor

Alexander Polinsky Alexander Polinsky (born October 7, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Adam Powell on '' Charles in Charge''. In animation, he has voiced Control Freak on ''Teen Titans'' (2003) and ''Teen Titans Go!'' (2013), Argit in the ' ...

provide the voices of Horror Movie Actress and the villain Control Freak, respectively. Film actor Thomas Haden Church provided the voice of Killer Moth, a villain who breeds an insect army, in the episode "Date with Destiny".

Will Friedle Will Friedle (; born August 11, 1976) is an American actor and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as List of Boy Meets World characters#Eric Matthews, Eric Matthews in the American Broadcasting Company, ABC sitcom ''Boy Meets World'' (19 ...

also voices the characters Fang and a frozen promgoer in the episode. The episode "Transformation" features narration by British actor

Tony Jay Tony Jay (2 February 1933 – 13 August 2006) was a British actor. A former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, he was known for his voice work in radio, animation, film, and video games. Jay was particularly noted for his distinctive raspy ...

and voice acting from

Cathy Cavadini Catherine Cavadini is an American voice actress. She is most well known as the original voice of Blossom on Cartoon Network's short series '' What a Cartoon!'' and the animated television series '' The Powerpuff Girls'', and as Tanya Mousekewi ...

as the Cironielian Chrysalis Eater. In the episode "Winner Take All", Mike Erwin provided the voice of

Speedy Speedy refers to something or someone moving at high speed. Speedy may refer to: People * Speedy (nickname), a list of people * Speedy Long (1928–2006), American lawyer and politician * Speedy Mashilo (born 1965), South African politician * ...

while

Jim Cummings James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in over 400 titles. Cummings has frequently worked with the Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., serving as the offic ...

provided the voices of the Master of Games, the episode's main villain, and Wildebeest. Musician

Henry Rollins Henry Lawrence Garfield (born February 13, 1961), known professionally as Henry Rollins, is an American singer, writer, spoken word artist, actor, comedian, and presenter. After performing in the short-lived hardcore punk band State of Alert in 1 ...

voiced the character Johnny Rancid in the episode "Fractured".

Reception

The season received critical acclaim with the Terra story arc being singled out for praise. Writing for

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 ...

, Filip Vuckevic gave the series an 8 out of 10, calling it fresh and fun. Vuckevic praised the season's visual, highlighting the episode "Fractured" as an example, and the story arc focused on Terra. John Sinnott 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 ...

deemed the second season release as "Highly Recommended", writing that "these shows are just as entertaining as the first season episodes were. They are action filled, but the characters have real personalities. There is a good amount of humor and the occasional touching scene that works well". Sinnott highlighted episodes "How Long is Forever", "Fear Itself", and "Fractured" as his favorites while "Only Human" was his least favorite. Sinnott praised the episodes centered on Terra as "a pretty good adaptation of a great comic story". Mac McEntire of

DVD Verdict DVD Verdict was a judicial-themed website for DVD reviews. The site was founded in 1999. The editor-in-chief was Michael Stailey, who owned the website between 2004 and 2016, and the site employed a large editorial staff of critics, whose revie ...

praised the Terra story arc as "expertly played" and further commended the series' more dramatic moments, including the mud fight between Tara and Raven, Beast Boy's late-night date with Terra and Robin's last-ditch effort to sway her for good, but remained critical of the comedic aspect of the series, noting that the "two key elements of the series—the action and the comedy—were often at odds with each other". He also criticized the lack of back story for the main characters.

Episodes

DVD release

References

{{Teen Titans Teen Titans (TV series) seasons 2004 American animated television seasons