Jonathan Crane wanted to cause chaos in Gotham City, and it looks like he managed to do just that in Titans season 3 episode 10. “Troubled Water” takes viewers back to the early moments after Crane’s toxin was released into Gotham’s water supply, sending the population into hallucination-induced pandemonium.
We’ll call “Troubled Water” a stepping stone because it bridges the gap between last week’s brilliantly artsy “Souls” and sets up the big finale. It’s not the most thrilling episode, but there are some standout performances.
The road to the Titans season 3 finale runs through “Troubled Waters”
There are two big stories in “Troubled Waters.” First, Crane (Vincent Kartheiser) and Jason (Curran Walters) are reaping the rewards of their criminal efforts as Gotham City succumbs to madness. They’ve convinced people that Nightwing (Brenton Thwaites) is the villain, and with a $50,000 bounty on his head, Dick knows he needs to make a move.
Dick decides that the Titans need to turn themselves into the GCPD to help reassure the public, but Red Hood paid off the cops to attack the Titans. When Blackfire (Damaris Lewis) is shot, Connor (Joshua Orpin) goes nuts. Gar (Ryan Potter) is shot with a tranquilizer dart but manages to escape. Barbara shoots an officer to protect the Titans, which puts her job at risk.
Damaris Lewis dominates every scene she’s in. After Blackfire is wounded in the standoff with police, Starfire tries to heal her. While her guard is down, all of Starfire’s power transfers to Blackfire, which it looks like was part of Blackfire’s plan all along.
Gar wakes up to find Rachel (Teagan Croft) with him. Donna (Conor Leslie) is also back, but she has to prove herself before she can return to Gotham City.
In the end, Crane and Jason move into Wayne Manor, which is now “Crane Manor.” Things are falling apart at the seams and it looks like Dick might have lost control of the city once and for all.
Brenton Thwaites, Vincent Kartheiser and Damaris Lewis steal the show on Titans
Naturally, the one person missing from this episode is Bruce Wayne. After being rescued by Donna at the end of “Souls” he’s still on his way back to Gotham City. However, it feels too easy for the Bat to be the only person who can save the city. (Tim Drake is also MIA in this episode; we assume he’s still in the hospital.)
Brenton Thwaites does a great job expressing Dick’s mounting frustration. Batman left him in charge of Gotham and he’s lost control of everything. Barbara’s career is in jeopardy and his friends are in danger.
Vincent Kartheiser delivers yet another inspired performance as the creepy Scarecrow. His manipulation of Jason Todd knows no bounds. For his part, Jason isn’t 100% convinced Crane is on his side, but Crane knows which buttons to push to ensure Jason’s loyalty, and that’s all he needs.
This was a good episode that sets up some big stories for the remainder of the season, but it lacked the punch that previous episodes have had. Given how strong the other episodes have been, this isn’t a critique, but rather an acknowledgement that there are pieces to the puzzle that need to be laid out. With 13 episodes in Titans season 3, there are only three episodes left to bring this sweeping story to a close. “Troubled Waters” is the episode that sets up what’s next.
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