Blackfire
Episode 4 of Titans Season 3 begins with those inside the mansion still reeling from what happened to Hank. Conner blames himself, lashing out against Gar and ending up teary-eyed in the presence of Dawn. On the back of this, Dawn decides to leave. Dick is there to see her off, but it only fuels his desire to stop Jason more than before. Barbara rings though, confirming Crane has been shanked by someone inside Arkham working with Red Hood. Well, Crane is moved from Arkham for his own wellbeing but during the transfer our good Doctor is snatched up by Nightwing and taken to parts unknown. Unfortunately all of this is recorded on camera, which puts Barbara under fire and given until midnight to track down Nightwing before things escalate. Dick takes Crane out into the woods to an abandoned cabin. He’s convinced that Crane is the one behind everything and demands answers. Back at the mansion, Kory continues to lose control, this time attacking Gar with a flurry of fireballs. When she does finally regain control, Gar hurries away, leaving her scared and forced to try and explain her actions. Kory feels torn and her visions are becoming worse than before. When Gar encourages her to start exploring these in more detail, she suddenly wakes up to find herself in the middle of nowhere with Gar in the trunk and Kory confused and clearly rattled over what’s going on. Under the car though is a hidden hatch which could well hold Blackfire. Anyway, the pair descend down and realize this matches some of Kory’s visions, especially those involving her chained down to a stretcher. Continuing on, Kory and Gar run into a mad scientist who’s excited to see them. It seems like this guy is in charge of finding and experimenting on extraterrestrial beings. Apparently he’s a big fan of the Titans, and with Blackfire his only prisoner, Kory heads in to talk. This containment cell apparently nullifies super abilities, leading Kory and Blackfire to engage in a good old fashioned fistfight instead. With Blackfire imprisoned, Kory turns away from her commander and ignores her antagonistic retorts. It turns out Blackfire is going to stay locked up indefinitely – even when these guards leave. Having heard enough, Kory decides to take Blackfire out with them and the trio leave together. As the episode closes, Red Hood falls straight into Nightwing’s trap, as the pair end up toe to toe fighting. Jason’s antagonistic quips are enough to let his guard down, although when a helicopter shows up for GCPD, a shot is fired knocking both Jason and Dick down. It’s just the ticket Jason needs to slip away, as Dick is left emptyhanded and shot through the shoulder.
The Episode Review
Following Hank’s death, Dawn has obviously left and it splits the Titan team up. On the one hand we have Kory and Gar’s side quest off on the hunt for Blackfire. I’s still unknown what happened between her possessing that woman in the parking lot during season 2’s finale and ending up in this containment cell but there’s still time for a flashback episode yet. Meanwhile, Dick Grayson finds himself descending down a dark path. He not only kidnaps Crane, he also ends up questioning his own motives. It’s a good inclusion to the story and one that builds on the shocking antics last season for a similarly devastating reveal here. Either way, the ending leaves things wide open for where this one may go next.
