Episode 28: X
<< previous episode
Beast Boy: "Red X? I thought Robin was Red X!"
Red X : "Think again!
Originally aired: September 4, 2004
Written by David Slack
Directed by Ben Jones


When the Titans track down the culprit of a string of recent robberies, our heroes are shocked to find themselves facing the foe they never thought they'd see again: Robin's evil alter-ego, Red X. While puzzling out the identity of Red X, the team tries to stop him from stealing Xenothium, the rare unstable energy source that powers the suit. Is Robin to blame for Red X's crimes?


Scott Menville as Red X
James Hong as Professor Chang


This episode features the 'return' of Red X - who last appeared in season one's MASKS
Beast Boy's pet worm from DATE WITH DESTINY is seen in the tower
Professor Chang was named after TEEN TITANS series director, Michael Chang
Red X stole from a company named SOTO - a reference to TEEN TITANS series director, Alex Soto
Beast Boy's blackboard of theories to Red X's identity:
- "Evil Twin" [Robin and Nibor [Robin backwards, a subtle FRACTURED reference]]
- "Part of a clone army"
- "Interdimensional Imp" [Larry the Titan from FRACTURED unmasking as Red X]
- "Time Travelling" with image of Nightwing from HOW LONG IS FOREVER?
- "Long Lost Brother" with a Robin image that bears a passing resemblance to Robin's voice actor, Scott Menville
- "Jason Todd" [the second comic book Robin]
- "Bionic Monkey"
The whole episode seems inspired by a John Woo movie. There is a high-action theme, asian woodwind soundtrack, and a white dove appears during the battle - a John Woo signature


Producer/Story Editor David Slack on X: "Sam Register said "Wouldn't it be cool if we brought Red X back and it wasn't Robin in the suit?" So that was where we started. It took a long time for me to find the rest of the story. So what I realized was this: Red X still represents Robin, and it's a side of him that he's not proud of. So it became a meditation on the nature of good and evil and the line between them. And since it was a Robin episode, it became a more film noir story. We wanted to bring that sensibility to it. So now we've got Red X out there. He's the variable. You never know what side he's on - because he's just on his own side. "

"I thought it was also a rite of passage for Robin. Part of growing up is realizing the answers aren't simple. Especially to the important questions. I think in previous episodes, Robin had a pretty black-and-white viewpoint, so bringing back Red X tended to muddy that line for him a little more. It's all part of growing up. That was also the first episode Ben Jones directed after Ciro Nieli moved to do his show for Disney ["Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go"]. And Ben did a great job on it. The gag where Beast Boy turns into a hippo on the eyebeam - that was Ben."

Producer/Story Editor David Slack Red X's identity : "We had some extensive discussions about that when we worked on it. Ultimately, I decided it was more fun to not get in that. Glen had some ideas in mind about revealing some things. In hindsight, I do think it was a fun idea to let the audience guess."


Beast Boy's blackboard of theories to Red X's identity contains a reference to "Jason Todd", who is the second comic book Robin. Jason was brave, but also very impulsive and reckless. After searching for the identity of his mother, Jason was killed by the Joker. That tragedy looms over Batman and all future Robins.

The inclusion of Jason further clouds the issue "Who is Robin?" in the TEEN TITANS series. FRACTURED and HOW LONG IS FOREVER? supported the "Dick Grayson" theory. Now, it appears the creative team is just having fun with us.

For more information on the comic book versions of the characters - including many images - visit titanstower.com's meeting room page.

 

EPISODE SCREEN CAPS