Another week, another Titans and this week it’s a slightly less frustrating one with “Atonement”. After Dick’s big revelation last week–um two weeks ago, the Titan’s split up and go their own ways into neatly packaged A, B, C, and D storylines that take us from compelling galactic royal intrigue to um…rural Wyoming. Let’s get into an episode that drops these young adults at their lowest point yet and beware spoilers!
1. It’s not me, it’s you
Dick has shared his truth and everyone hated it. Hank punches him immediately which is wild! The OG Titans are mad because Dick told them that Jericho was dead when he got there and Donna gets pissed at whatever other half-truths he’s told. Rachel is jealous that they even got half-truths, Rose obviously is upset because Dick got her brother killed and didn’t say anything (speaking of which WHERE was Rose in the Jericho flashback episodes??). Everyone leaves in their Ubers and Lyfts out of the tower except for Gar and Kory but Kory’s gotta blast because she’s a space princess and we will not drop that plot thread so help me God!
Something odd happens in Donna and Rachel’s Uber. Donna is mad that Dick played them as soldiers when Rachel retorts that the OG Titan’s played their part (She is totally right because I distinctly remember Donna pushing to use Jericho in that last episode). Rachel then does her weird powers and gets out of the Uber and Rachel walks out of the rest of the episode and this is also the last we see of Donna.
This framing sequence is the most frustrating part of the episode. Clearly “Atonement” is meant to be the “Big Split Up” episode but the path of getting there feels incredibly forced. The OG Titans really have no reason to be as upset as they are at this revelation. The excuse that Dick told them that Jericho was deas when he got there was never mentioned before and Jericho dying in a fight really doesn’t change anything significant enough to warrant that response, especially from Donna who was pushing to keep using Jericho for their revenge. The only Titan who’s anger feels justified is Rose and we truly don’t see her at all in this episode after she gets in her Lyft with Jason.
2. Sister, Sister
After the big split, Kory doesn’t support Uber or Lyft but instead opts to get a ride from her ex/royal bodyguard Fadei and they chat about the galactic politics of Tameran and discussing dear sister Blackfire who has taken over the royal court and now wears the crown and that it’s best she stay far away and her ship is destroyed. Fadei still has his ship and Kory decides that’s where they are going. They stop at a gas station and as Fadei does his best Bart Simpson impression (very true thing that happens) he gets a space slug in his ear which seems bad! The two then end up at a bar where Fadei casually drops “Blackfire’s not thaaaaat bad, right?” to which Kory says “Nah she’s kinda trash and has weird fucking laugh” while staring at Fadei. Surprise, surprise Fadei is being controlled by Blackfire which is “revealed” when they get to Fadei’s ship. Turns out that this weird space slug process is fatal and Kory has to burn Fadei (RIP) to reveal a digital hologram (?) of Blackfire who says that she killed mummy and daddy and has a New Family that let her have a puppy and she can’t see it.
This was definitely one of the smaller parts of this week’s episode and also just a little frustrating due to how much is told and not shown which is both understandable and frustrating. Kory and Fadei’s conversations are exclusively expositions with sprinklings of sexual tension which makes sense because this show DOES NOT have the budget to show a whole alien world and the politics that go on there (Gar shows off their CGI budget a little later). Another frustrating aspect of this plot is how separate it is from the rest of the show. It would be really nice to see the rest of the group interact with this plot but that’s not an option especially in this episode but with this storyline, in general, it’s frustrating how isolated it is.
Continued below3. The Misadventures of Frank and Shawn
Hank and Dawn’s magical Uber takes them back to the far off land of Wyoming in which they attempt to pick up their old lives but this time with a twist…The Hank and Dawn you once knew are GONE…Now and Forever they are FRANK and SHAWN!
To get over the frustrations of small-town life, Hank and Dawn debut these new identities at a karaoke bar where they do a full musical rendition of “Ain’t no Mountain High Enough” and get TURNED ON but their sensual moment is interrupted by Ellis’s sister who announces that she’s going to make their life hell for them getting her brother killed. This really rattles Hank to think that maybe trouble just follows the two of them no matter where they go and theorizes that maybe if the bad would stop if there weren’t a two of them. Hank drives off leaving Dawn in Wyoming. Hank ends up in a bar ordering a diet coke before asking the person next to him where he can find some more serious substances. 🙁
This is also one of the smaller plots but oh boy what a sad one. The descent for these two is extremely quick but I think the focus on Hank’s addiction and doubts make it feel just a little more natural. I will say that Dawn is not really focused on in terms of what she wants besides Hank. This storyline does really sell that this episode is about putting the Titans at a low point which is definitely reflected in other storylines. Definitely curious to see if this is the end of these two.
RIP Frank/Shawn 🙁
4. Gar and Conner; Sweet Boys Gone Wild
As the team splits up, Dick leaves Gar in charge of the naked Superboy in the tower and that’s his one job. What could go wrong?
Gar is very hopeful of the Titans’ return and keeps a log over the course of his time alone and gives off major home alone vibes. It’s sad to see sweet little Gar just hopefully waiting for his friends to come back but all that changes when Conner wakes up naked and presents himself to Gar. I don’t know what Joshua Orpin’s contract looks like but his bare ass has been in every episode he’s in and it feels intentional at this point. Gar explains the concept of the Titans to Conner who is eating a big ass bowl of cereal. Gar is supposed to call Bruce Wayne so he can set up Conner to meet Superman but what he does instead is take Conner on the town to teach him about heroism. Gar wants the Titans to help people and as he tells Conner about his hope for this goal, Conner hears someone saying their being hurt. The person in question is a guy being arrested by some cops. Conner says “ACAB” and wrecks a lot of cops and runs away. Gar is left in the tower trying to call Dick and explain that he messed up.
Conner’s duality of finding out if he’s good or bad feels a little clunky in this plot. There’s also a lot to think about in terms of the politics of the cop attack scene. The scene tries to avoid political trappings by having a Black police officer and white police officer arresting a white guy who looks like an extra from Boogie Nights . The show really tries to brush over the issue of police brutality by having the casting of the cops not fit traditional narratives of police brutality in order to refocus on the idea of “Conner attacking cops is BAD” which feels like a lot of work for a payoff that could have been done in a lot more interesting and less clunky ways. Like most of the stories in this episode feels like it lacks an amount of weight. Conner feels like more of a tool to break Gar’s optimism rather than a character.
5. Red Dick Redemption
The true “Atonement” of the episode is focused through Dick Grayson and him finally trying to find some closure for Jericho’s death. This journey takes him to Adeline, Jericho’s mother. He explains who he is and how his manipulation led to Jericho’s death and he apologizes. Adeline calls Dick out on how his apology is just as self-serving as his manipulation of Jericho and that she does not forgive him. However, he can try apologizing to who’s in the other room…Slade whos sitting in a Lazy Boy recovering from injuries (I have no memory of him receiving these because there were 30 flashback episodes in between the last time we saw him in the present).
Continued belowSlade says he’s one because he’s isolated Dick and has taken away the people he loved. He says that their war is over so long as Dick serves his punishment of living alone with the guilt of Jericho’s death. Dick tries to defend himself by saying Slade didn’t deserve Jericho before Slade stands up despite being heavily injured and threatens that if Dick reunites the Titans “even for a weekend” he will kill them all.
We next see Dick at an airport asking where’s the furthest and most remote place he can go. The receptionist and him agree on Greenland. However as the intercom calls for the flight to Greenland, Dick drops his boarding pass and attacks the two cops nearest to him before kneeling on the ground yielding to be arrested.
Dick’s storyline, while surprisingly sparse is one of the more weighty ones of this episode. Primarily Dick’s confrontation with Slade. Esai Morales truly is something else in this role. The delivery of “even for a weekend” is very very good and honestly, every time he is on screen I can’t look away. Dick’s arrest at the airport is also a shocking turn but feels much more connected than other sharp turns in this episode. If other characters are getting shorted in plot it definitely feels like the focus is on Dick’s character journey.
While Dick is going to jail for attacking cops, it looks like the other Titan who attacked cops is on the chopping block next week when Mercy Graves comes knocking in “Fallen”. Tune in next week!
