DC Universe’s Titans: Episode 9, Hank & Dawn — Review

When Hank and Dawn (aka Hawk and Dove) were introduced several episodes ago, I was unimpressed. They seemed to serve little purpose for the main narrative other than more fodder for the Nuclear Family. Dawn seemed to be ye classic female character who pines for our main character (Dick Grayson, who, in case I’ve not mentioned, is wholly the main character of this show), and Hank was ye standard macho guy who is jealous of our main character. When I saw episode 9 was called “Hawk and Dawn,” I considered skipping the episode entirely because I figured it would be a bore. Turns out, it’s one of my favorite episodes in the series thus far. It’s been getting a lot of flack, but bear with me here.

First, you have to remember that I’ve already argued that this is _not_ a Titans show, but rather a Dick Grayson show. The series has spent an awful lot of screen time breaking down the idea of super heroes, and what kind of psychology would be involved with them. “Hank and Dawn” actually takes this concept one step further by examining two characters who have devoted their life to beating up bad guys. As you can imagine, they’re not super great people.

Boy Meets Girl

The episode is split in half, examining the histories of both Hank and Dawn before they met one another, and after. Hank begins life as a star football player, who is sexually molested as a child by a coach. Later in life he struggles from aggression issues, and finds himself the victim of a few concussions. He then tries his hand at being a super hero with his brother, who is the original Dove. It’s intentionally cringe-worthy as he’s not quite ready to step into the role of crime-fighter, mostly because his sidekick isn’t quite cut out for it. When the brother dies, it’s of little surprise.

On the other hand, we have Dawn, who is initially shown as a ballerina, and appears to have a pretty posh life. Through a tea with her mother (the ineffable Marina Sirtis) we learn Dawn suffered through an abusive father-figure, who continues to abuse her mother. Dawn begs her mother to leave, and she doesn’t. Her mother is later killed, which drives Dawn to an emotional support group.

This is where Hank and Dawn first meet one another. In both a combination of good acting on the parts of Alan Ritchson and Minka Kelly, and surprisingly natural dialog and progression, the two form an uneasy friendship based out of mutual loss. They slowly open up to one another, and the episode follows the trajectory of so many romance novels. Until it takes a sharp turn, when Dawn discovers Hank’s secret attempt at becoming a super hero.

Dawn is not at all turned off or alarmed, but rather confused that Hank has never tracked down his old coach to dole out some super hero justice. As she tracks down the coach (conveniently leaving a cyber breadcrumb trail for Hank to follow) and is nearly overpowered, Hank shows up and continues the fight. In an oddly twisted, romantic moment, Hank attempts to send Dawn away, but she stays to do unseen violence to the coach.

So what does it all mean? Well, a few things. The episode features the first nude scene in the series, as Hank and Dawn have sex for the first time immediately after their act of violence. Which is pretty messed up, if you think about it. Though Dawn expresses remorse in the morning, this takes place many, many years before the events of Titans, implying that this becomes the M.O. for them.

Boy Replaces Dead Friend with Girl

Second, Dawn apparently steps right into the dead brother’s position, fighting alongside Hank, which seems semi-callous. But it also speaks to a larger point that was examined in episode 6, “Jason Todd.” In the world of DC heroes, sidekicks are both disposable and replaceable. Just as Batman replaced Dick’s Robin with Jason’s Robin, Dawn stepped into Dove’s shoes without a mention.

One of the central conceits of the show has been what type of person it takes to be a superhero, and what kind of things it drives you to do. Hank and Dawn were drawn together by loss, and instead of dealing with that loss, they just channel it into violence. What starts as “hey, we should get revenge on this one sick person,” quickly turns into a driving force in both their lives. Much as Dick told Jason earlier, once you start down that path, forever will it consume your — well, he didn’t word it that way, but the thought was there.

But perhaps the most interesting note the show has touched on is how seeped in the past the characters of DC are. Dick Grayson is constantly flashing back to his youth, meeting Bruce, and starting down the road to Robin. In this episode, as we’re treated to their flashbacks, both Hank and Dawn are “visited” by Raven, who is screaming for help, making it clear that this isn’t just an expository jaunt down memory lane. Both Hank and Dawn are dwelling on their past; in fact it seems that much of their lives are lived there. It takes Raven’s desperation to figuratively and literally wake Dawn up (ok, yeah, it’s a complete and total stretch the woman isn’t dead, much less completely immobilized BUT JUST GO WITH IT), and hopefully move her forward.

It was, in terms of super hero TV, one of the more interesting concepts I’ve seen in a long while. Yes, it kind of sucks that episode 8 ended with Kory Anders trying to kill Raven, and we still don’t know what happens there, but I’d argue this was an almost necessary diversion. It’s a rare show that steps back from its premise and asks “Yeah, but is this really a good thing?”