I agree hence “when all is said and done”. DC has totally mismanaged the Titans, their show is extremely popular (quality aside) so they’re still number 2. But all they have is the show. There’s no video game for them on the way like the Squad has, and video games are an even bigger industry than movies nowadays.
If I had to rate the top 5 DC teams in terms of popularity it would be
1. JL
2. Titans/YJ
3. SS
4. JSA
5. LoSH
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For when my rants on the forums just aren’t enough: https://thevindicativevordan.tumblr.com/
This list feels fair but I think the SS have eclipsed the Titans at this point. The Teen Titans are more or less seen of as Robin's squad when it's not an anime nearly twenty years old or the cartoon we millennials still whine about because it's not said anime.
Or an overly grimdark attempt at making them cool. For good or ill, Suicide Squad got two big screen films, animated movies, a AAA video game and has become a vehicle for one of their big cash cows. It's higher on the pecking order for sure.
Most of this stuff is rather recent. And while the SS have gotten two movies, one of them wasn't exactly a critical hit and they had to semi-reboot for the new one. The game hasn't come out yet and none of the animated movies they have are as popular as even Teen Titans Go (let's not forget the Titans have also gotten animated movies as well). I'm comfortable saying the Titans are in a better place than the Squad, at least for now.
Besides, I'm not sure if the Titans being seen as Robin's squad is any worse than being seen as Harley's squad.
While not a critical hit, it did make a fair chunk of change and the next one is looking to rewrite the public's perception of the IP.
Robin has more history as the butt of a joke than Harley and the latter is currently the bigger character in pop culture, for good or ill. Currently Harley and her sidekicks are simply more poised for success because DC hasn't really done much with Robin other than make him come across as some petulant brat that doesn't want to work with Batman.
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Robin hasn't been seen as the butt of a joke since the 90s if that. Harley is the bigger pop culture character but that doesn't make the Suicide Squad themselves big. The Titans have consistently been a more well known and successful brand than the Squad and have far more popular and iconic members. That might change but for now that isn't the case. Whether or not the new film will rescue the Squad from the scrappy heap remains to be seen and even then, it still won't be enough to compete with the Titans having far more success than the Squad's one movie.
To play devil's advocate, I'd say the Schumacher films kind of cemented Robin as the butt of the joke since the 90's. There are jokes on Friends, late night shows, and other pop-culture media, leading WB to hesitate from including him in live action films after Batman & Robin. And look at the way he was portrayed in the two films he featured in that did hit the big screen last decade: The Lego Batman Movie and TTG To the Movies. Yes, those franchises make fun of all characters but Robin moreso than the others.
When I searched Justice League Queer on Twitter, the majority of haters WERE LGBTQIA+ individuals hating on the name and finding it too insulting. I agree. They may as well have named it as Justice League of Gays. It reeks of tone-deaf and shallow "corporate activism". If they wanted the sexuality of the members in the team name, then Justice League Pride would have been the much better alternative.
Last edited by Confuzzled; 04-13-2021 at 05:29 AM.
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