Titans review: Season 3 Episode 6—”Lady Vic”

Six episodes into Titans season 3 and there’s no sign that the HBO Max series is slowing down. At all. In fact, it looks like things are about to get even more interesting.

In “Lady Vic,” ruthless assassin Lady Vic arrives in Gotham City with an ax to grind, and she’s all too happy to work on Team Scarecrow while taking care of some unfinished business with Dick and Barbara. She’s dark, she’s violent and she has a vendetta, making her more dangerous than anyone imagined.

Dick and Barbara’s past comes back to haunt them this week. After Dick bungled things with Red Hood and the Scarecrow, leading to their escape, he’s on the outs with Barbara, but they can’t stay apart no matter how hard they try.

Scarecrow continues to play puppet master with the highly impressionable Red Hood, and he’s trying to produce as much of his latest toxin as possible. However, Red Hood is tired of someone else pulling the strings and makes a big move that will have far-reaching consequences.

Back at Wayne Manor, Kory is keeping busy with Blackfire, who continues to test her sister’s boundaries as she learns how things work in her new home, enjoying the opportunity to push her sister’s buttons.

There’s a lot to unpack in Titans season 3 episode 6

In a flashback, Dick (as Robin) discovers that the cat burglar at a museum is actually Barbara Gordon. The idea that young Babs was trying to prove a point about lax security while also giving her father something to do is a new but thrilling twist to an already beloved character’s history.

Then, in another twist, she tries to break down some of Dick’s barriers by recruiting him to join her. That’s even more tantalizing, offering a glimpse at their complex shared history that informs their even more complicated relationship in the present.

Seeing Barbara Gordon in her youthful prime, filled with optimism and hope, is powerfully juxtaposed with seeing present-day Commissioner Gordon fighting Lady Vic in a dark alley. This episode features a dynamic performance from Savannah Welch, who performed many of her own stunts.

Though she’s in a wheelchair, she’s no less capable than she was when she battled Robin in the museum. She’s been hurt in the past and doesn’t want to look back, but she can’t deny that Gotham City is a special kind of monster and the GCPD needs vigilantes whether it likes it or not.

Elsewhere, Kory and Blackfire’s complex relationship yields some surprises. Blackfire is goading her sister to see how far she can go before she pushes Kory over the edge, but she’s also trying to figure out where she fits. She tries to help, delighting when her offer causes Kory even more consternation. When Connor tells Blackfire that the Titans are like a family and she might be able to fit in, it changes her outlook. Suddenly Blackfire doesn’t seem interested in leaving. She’s here to stay, although it’s still really fun to see her ruffling Kory’s feathers as only a sibling can.

The final moments of the episode set up another big story in season 3: Tim Drake’s family is attacked at their restaurant, the same restaurant seen in the season premiere. Bat fans know that Tim becomes Robin after Jason Todd’s death, but in this twist it’s Jason’s actions that lead to the death of Tim’s family.

Every Titans season 3 episode thus far has delivered a compelling mix of stories, moving fluidly between formative moments in the past that shape where the Titans are in the present and their dynamic in the future. The foundation is set, the players are in place, and now it’s time for season 3 go into overdrive.

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