Hulu DC Series Is Non-Stop Fun For Everyone

Teen Titans Go! is a spin-off series from Teen Titans, an animated series released in 2003 on Cartoon Network. The creator of Teen Titans, Glen Murakami, wanted to remain true to the story lines of these heroes in their own right. As such, the characters, Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy, maintain their hero identities as we watch them battle villains, develop relationships amongst themselves, and grow into maturity as the supposed sidekicks of the “bigger heroes.”

The original series, which is based on many of the comics that began in 1964, ran for five seasons with positive critical ratings. 

Then, in 2013, years after the series ended, Teen Titans Go! was released, also on Cartoon Network, with the voices of the original Teen Titans characters returning. If Teen Titans deals with the heady material involved in exploring one’s identity, coming of age, and coming out of the shadows, Teen Titans Go! turns all of that on its head and makes fun. Seriously, non-stop giggles and jokes and hilarious fun.

Creators Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic seem to have gone into the archives of every DC comic in existence and pulled material to satirize and make light-hearted, with excellent results. 

Where Teen Titans follows the narrative arc of each of the heroes and has us following plot lines with serious intent, Teen Titans Go! exaggerates the personalities of each of those heroes, and has us behind the scenes, watching what happens when the friends aren’t fighting crime or exploring their personal struggles. The animation is more cartoonish, the voices are more high-pitched and hysterical, and the stories are downright silly. 

Teen Titans Go! also gives us tons of behind the scenes fun and breaking the fourth wall action, with the crew getting upset over the “evil composer” changing the music in their show, the team heading to the Warner Bros. studio to speak to the director, and a villain adding extra commercials to the show to enrage the Titans. We also see many other characters from DC Comics get involved in Teen Titans Go!, whether our heroes are fighting well-known villains or taking out their frustration on their “more powerful” heroes, like Batman. 

GFR SCORE

Every episode is filled with opportunities to laugh, and there are so many in-jokes, which run by so fast that even the most fanatic DC reader and viewer will have to watch these 11 minute episodes more than once to catch them all. I listen to my kids rewatch the Teen Titans Go! shows from the other room and hear them laugh hysterically, rewind, and watch them again. There are very few shows to stream that you can say that about. 

If you’ve got Hulu, Teen Titans Go! is definitely worth checking out. At only 11 minutes per episode, you can start small, and I have no doubt you’ll get hooked. Then, you’ll find yourself listening to every word to try to catch those allusions and in-jokes.