Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo

Matt Youngberg

Khary Payton

Tara Strong

Hynden Walch

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

Keone Young

**Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo** is a 2006 American made-for-TV animated superhero film adaptation of the DC Comics superhero team Teen Titans. It is set in the milieu of the animated series *Teen Titans* that ran from 2003–2006 and served as the series finale. The film premiered on Cartoon Network on September 15, 2006 and on Kids' WB on September 16, 2006.

## Plot

Jump City is attacked by a Japanese ninja called Saico-Tek. The Teen Titans manage to capture him, but their tower is damaged in the process. Under interrogation, Saico-Tek reveals the identity of the one who sent him - Brushogun - before he ruptures the room's fire extinguisher system and mysteriously vanishes. Subsequently, the Titans head to Tokyo, Japan, to search for his master.

Upon arriving in Tokyo, after overcoming the language barrier and fighting a Gorgo-like giant reptile, the Titans meet Tokyo's own supernatural defense force - the Tokyo Troopers - led by Commander Uehara Daizo. When Robin questions him on Brushogun, Daizo claims that Brushogun is nothing more than an urban legend. Left with no villains to pursue, the Titans decide to enjoy Tokyo as tourists.

While sitting on Tokyo Tower, Robin and Starfire finally start to express their feelings for each other. They are about to share a kiss together when suddenly Robin starts to focus on Brushogun again, upsetting Starfire. Investigating alone, Robin is attacked once again by Saico-Tek and ends up pummeling the ninja into the ground. When Saico-Tek does not rise, the watching crowd believes Robin has killed him, and despite his protestations of innocence, Robin is apprehended by Daizo. Elsewhere, Starfire is approached and comforted by a little girl, which helps to overcome her depression and makes her realize that despite Robin's earlier objections, their romantic feelings for each other are indeed truly mutual.

The Mayor of Tokyo announces Robin's arrest and orders that the other Teen Titans must either turn themselves in or leave Tokyo at once. Starfire calls the other Titans, but as they attempt to regroup, Brushogun sends out his minions to destroy the Titans. Meanwhile, as Robin is being transferred to a more secure facility, a slip of paper bearing the name "Brushogun" fits into the armored car carrying him and explodes, freeing him. Now on the run, Robin co-opts the identity of a Shinjuku mugger to collect information that Brushogun is in fact real. He is eventually found by the Tokyo Troopers, which leads to a car chase. Robin is surrounded front to back when Starfire comes to his rescue.

Starfire takes Robin to a shrine, where they try to kiss again when suddenly Cyborg, Raven, and Beast Boy barge in on them. Raven relates from a book she found that Brushogun was an artist who dreamed of bringing his beloved drawings to life using dark magic. The spell ultimately turned against the young artist, and he was transformed into Brushogun, a being of paper and ink - capable to bring any creation he could imagine to life - until he suddenly disappeared. Robin realizes that he didn't kill Saico-Tek because he was a creature made of ink, and he was set up to make him look like a criminal. With the knowledge they've gained, the Titans track Brushogun to a comic book publishing factory. Inside they discover Brushogun, trap-wired into a cursed printing press that taps into his powers to create the enemies the Titans have faced. He reveals that he had sent the first Saico-Tek to the Titans to summon them to Tokyo, in order to stop the real culprit who had enslaved him: Daizo himself, who used Brushogun's power to create both his Tokyo Troopers and the monsters that they captured in order to gain a reputation as a hero.

Daizo drops in on the heroes and forces Brushogun to create an army of animated ink minions. A mass battle ensues, culminating in Robin facing Daizo. With no options of escape left, Daizo hurls himself from a catwalk into the ink reservoir of the press, taking control of Brushogun's magic and transforming himself into a hulking mass of ink and machinery, with Brushogun at the center. As the other Titans battle the creatures Daizo hurls at them, Robin frees Brushogun, causing Daizo to lose control of his power and burst. Brushogun dies peacefully in Robin's arms, dissipating his powers and defeating Daizo. With the battle concluded, Robin and Starfire finally share their first true kiss.

Later on, with Robin's name cleared and Daizo sent to prison, the Titans are awarded by the mayor and Tokyo's citizens for their heroic actions. Beast Boy declares that he wants to go to Mexico on their next vacation, which leads to him getting slapped by Raven. As the end credits roll, the Titans sing a literally translated version of their Japanese theme song.