Justice League vs. Teen Titans welcomes the Teen Titans to the ever-expanding canon of classic DC Comics characters within the DC Universe Original Movies. When Damian’s over-aggressive tendencies almost destroy a Justice League mission, he is sent to learn teamwork by training alongside the Teen Titans. However, adjusting Damian’s attitude turns out to be the least of the Teen Titans’ troubles as Raven’s satanic, world-conquering father Trigon begins an escape from his inter-dimensional prison. To complete his return, Trigon must have Raven’s assistance – and to accomplish his goal, he spreads his demonic forces across the globe, infiltrating the minds and bodies of the Justice League to do his bidding. To save the universe and prevent a literal hell on Earth, the Teen Titans must rescue – or defeat – the Justice League, and intern Trigon for all eternity. [DC Comics]
[Warning: The Following Contains Mild SPOILERS From Justice League vs. Teen Titans.]
DC Entertainment’s New 52-inspired animated universe continues with Justice League vs. Teen Titans, the third installment in the Justice League series. However, it also serves as the Teen Titans’ long-awaited introduction into this line of films.
So far, these movies have been good, but they’ve fallen short of DC’s greatest achievements, such as Batman: Under the Red Hood and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. However, this series has been getting better with each installment, and Justice League vs. Teen Titans is no exception.
The movie is very much a Teen Titans story, with Justice League members playing key supporting roles. This is similar to how Aquaman was the star of Justice League: Throne of Atlantis and how the Suicide Squad was the focus in Batman: Assault on Arkham; bringing in the A-list heroes to support the lesser known characters, aka the real protagonists. And for Justice League vs. Teen Titans, it works really well.
The story is more interesting than past installments. Unlike Justice League: War and Throne of Atlantis, which were mostly adaptations of specific comic book arcs, Justice League vs. Teen Titans is an original story not based on a particular arc. This makes the movie less predictable. Also, every character gets a chance to shine. Fans of Raven should be particularly pleased, as she is at the center of this story.
However, the title Justice League vs. Teen Titans is a little misleading. Sure, there’s a bit of tension between members on both teams, and they even fight for about five minutes (a few Leaguers are possessed by Trigon), but the movie isn’t actually Justice League vs. the Teen Titans. It’s largely the Titans vs. Trigon, with the Justice League helping out a bit. So, don’t expect a full-blown Justice League vs. Teen Titans battle for 70 minutes.
The voice acting for Justice League vs. Teen Titans is pretty good. Stuart Allan is improving as Damian Wayne/Robin, who is given some much-needed character development here, thanks to joining the Titans. Taissa Farmiga is good as Raven, while Kari Wahlgreen is fine as Starfire. Brandon Soo Hoo and Jake T. Austin are decent in the roles of Beast Boy and Blue Beetle, respectively.
But Jon Bernthal is just excellent as Trigon; his voice makes the villain even more intimidating. The Justice League voice actors – Jason O’Mara, Rosario Dawson, Jerry O’Connell, Shemar Moore and Christopher Gorham – continue to show improvement as Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, Cyborg and Flash, respectively. Sean Maher is still pretty good as Nightwing. However, I would have liked to see more of the character in this film.
As for flaws, there are still a few, particularly with the sound editing. Every now and then, the film’s score would become so loud, it would have the same volume as the dialogue, if not higher. This served as a distraction from what was going on in the movie. The sound editing here could’ve been a lot smoother. Also, Beast Boy is probably my least favorite member of the team here. He has cool powers and gets some fun scenes, sure, but his immaturity got old after a while.
Nitpicks aside, Justice League vs. Teen Titans is a fine installment to DC’s animated filmography. While not perfect, it has solid animation, decent voice acting, an engaging story, and is just a lot of fun to watch. In fact, an argument can be made for Justice League vs. Teen Titans being the best New 52-inspired film to date. Fans of the Teen Titans should be pleased with this movie, as it finally gives the team their due. Fingers crossed we see more of them in future installments.
Founder and Editor-in-Chief of WOBAM! Entertainment.
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