The animated TV series Teen Titans, based on the eponymous DC Comics superhero team, premiered in 2003 released to generally positive reviews from both critics and audiences. Over the years, it gained a significant fan following for its unique storytelling, character development, and blend of action, humor, and drama.
Teen Titans was different from other superhero shows in many ways, but the one that stood out the most was probably the fact that the show was not made with the usually popular characters in focus. Besides, it featured a character with no superpowers as the leader of a superhero show. As contradictory as it is, the show creator Glen Murakami explained his reasons for doing this.
Teen Titan Showrunner Glen Murakami on Why Robin Was Made the Leader
Animated superhero shows are a huge part of entertainment even today. Whether it is the show Batman: The Animated Series, which was released in 1992, or X-Men ’97, released this year, the enthusiasm for animated superhero series does not seem to have subsided. Teen Titans is also one of these shows that now have a dedicated fan base even after so many years.
However, the last of these was different in the fact that despite being a superhero show, the leader was someone with no powers. It might sound absurd or even ridiculous, but that was what made this show unique. The leader of the team was Robin/Dick Grayson.
In an interview with Animation World Network, creator Glen Murakami explained the reason they made Robin the leader, saying:
“We made him confident and really kind of cool. A lot of people say, Well, Robin has no superpowers. I dont think that matters.”
The intention of the show was probably to make people understand that superpowers are not all that matter and that strategic thinking and leadership skills can also be the qualities of the main character of a superhero series.
Teen Titans Developers Wanted to Show a Different Kind of Robin
Former vice president of Cartoon Network Sam Register, Glen Murakami, and David Slack were the executive producers of the show, which was not part of Bruce Timm‘s DCAU. According to Murakami, they wanted to tell the stories of the unsung heroes – the lesser-known characters – through this show and make something different from the Justice League.
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Speaking about how they portrayed Robin in the series, Murakami said:
“Using Robin as the lead, well, hes the type of character that everyone can identify with. We definitely wanted to show the audience a different Robin than they thought they were going to see, rather than someone whos normally a sidekick character. Its like taking Batman and putting him out of your mind.”
He further said the team seemed balanced this way as it now consisted of a strategic thinker, an alien, a robot, a shape-changer, and a witch.
Teen Titans is available for streaming on Prime Video and Max.
