Terra (Teen Titans 2003)

— Terra saying goodbye to Beast Boy [src]

Terra was a former member of the Teen Titans, whose role as a hero or villain is complicated. Until the episodes Aftershock - Part 1 andPart 2, she was confused, and wished to be a heroine and friend of the Teen Titans. However, she was led astray by Slade, who tempted her by promising her that he could teach her to control her powers, in return for her unwavering loyalty and apprenticeship.

Personality
Terra is quite insecure. She wishes to do good with her powers, and her determination to gain control of them is evident, but her lack of existent control usually proves them to be a danger instead of a benefit, thus making her reluctant to use them. Before Terra became aTitan, this lack was very evident and surfaced through her weak control over her powers and emotions. She had tried to put up a front of confidence, but was actually extremely afraid of people finding out how unstable she was.

Among the Titans, she is closest to Beast Boy. He feels he knows the most about her and so is the most understanding towards her. At first, she gets along well with all the Titans except Raven. Later, Raven develops a respect for Terra. After her return, Terra seemed to command much, much more control over her incredible earth-controlling and manipulating powers and capabilities. Terra is also a bit manipulative, as seen in "Titan Rising", when she pretended to cry so the Titans would let her join them. She may learned the skill from Slade.

Pre-Teen Titans
Not much is known about Terra's life before she joined the Titans, except that she traveled around very frequently. However, there are some clues to her past. When Slade had Terra alone with him in the episode "Terra", he stated that Terra did try to help others. He then said that on each occasion, something even worse happened as a result of using her geo-kinetic abilities. This is possibly the reason for her frequent travel.

In the episode "Aftershock - Part 1", Terra fights Robin as he tries to reason with her. She angrily told Robin (while trying to kill the Boy Wonder) that she did not want to be rescued and that she was "not some sad little girl", expressing a vast and deep-rooted anger that was not entirely directed towards him. This may be a clue to her earlier life.

An issue from the comic series "Teen Titans Go!" does provide some insight into Terra's past life. The comic explains that Terra was in fact a princess and had a brother called Geo-Force. They were members of the house of Markov, and their father was the king of Markovia. Later, it reveals that Terra was always a "hard-headed child", confused about who she was and who she was supposed to be. She always had people telling her what to do and how to act. Scientists experimented on Terra and Geo-Force, giving them their powers, then attempted to exploit them. General Immortus was seen monitoring the experiment, which suggests that he was involved with the human experiment. Geo-Force fought them off, while Terra, unable to control her powers, ran away from home in fear of hurting her loved ones.

Teen Titans
Upon meeting Terra, the Titans quickly welcomed her into their ranks. At first, it seemed like the hip, funny, young hero might make a great addition to the team, but Terra had a secret: she was unable to control her incredible powers and abilities over the earth and had accidentally caused natural disasters on several occasions. She felt betrayed when it appeared that Beast Boy shared her secret with the team (even though Robin actually realized it on his own). Feeling betrayed and alone, Terra turned to Slade, who trained her to fully control her abilities. Terra returned to the Titans and joined the team - but was secretly working with Slade to destroy the Titans from within. Despite her mission, Terra began to doubt her loyalties; Just as romance with Beast Boy blossomed, Terra was exposed as a traitor. Hardened and isolated, friendless and emotionally hurt, Terra turned to the only one who would accept her, Slade, and shortly the two united to launch their plans in full motion. Caught off guard and still holding some affection for their former friend and teammate, the Titans were nearly defeated in the first round, with Terra brutally showing far less mercy and restraint, and in the second, due to reinforcements sent by Slade under her control, Robin was forced to make a retreat back to Titans Tower, knowing this battle could not be won. Soon, Slade assails three different points of Jump City with Overload, Plasmus and Cinderblock, seeking to lure the Titans out of hiding and eliminate their divided forces using Terra. Raven managed to defeat Overload with the aid of nearby water, but was quickly engaged in further fierce combat by Terra, each clearly seeking to kill the other to the best of their abilities. Despite this, analysis of Raven made during Terra's time on the team had enabled Slade to realize her dark powers and abilities were controlled by emotion, and should the emotions run loose, so too would her focus on her own immense abilities. Terra's taunting of Raven eventually causes her to lash out in sheer fury against her, her sheer anger and rage manifesting in Trigon's form, if but partially, and Terra seized this chance to finish off Raven. A boulder projectile intended for Robin was instead the bane of Starfire, which knocked her out and sent her plummeting into the ocean. A sudden yet deadly fissure through the ground (combined with the element of surprise) was sufficient to overwhelm both Cyborg and Beast Boy, who told Terra she could not kill them, but a smiling Terra merely replied, "Watch me," and four Titans were no more. Terra next tried to face off Robin, who, driven with a desire to avenge his friends, yet also honor Beast Boy's wishes to give her a last chance, brutally assaulted her. While the battle was fierce and neither could gain the upper hand initially, eventually Robin knocks her to the ground and has his staff at her neck. However, he tells her it does not have to be this way instead of finishing her, which allows her to get up and finish him with a boulder. Terra presents Robin's badge to Slade, who begins to launch his plans to seize the city. However, the Titans had each survived Terra's assault and were bent on taking her down, no longer concerned with second chances.

When Trigon was destroyed at the hands of Raven, everyone in the world that was turned into stone was changed back. It is possible that Trigon's death also managed to free Terra from her stony prison but it is still unclear what could have erased her mind. Despite her victory, Terra still felt lost and alone. As the hardened Terra is reminded of her past experiences with the Titans, she appears to be subtly swayed, but claims she has "no regrets" for the horrible things she has done. The Titans furiously and brutally attack her, each showing no mercy, just as she believed they were truly all gone, and with their combined and united forces Terra is quickly defeated by the fivesome, despite her best efforts to strike back at the team. Terra then attempted to retreat, but Slade angrily demanded her staying to continue to fight, and Terra tried her best to do so, but after many near-calls with death at the hands of the now-merciless Titans, runs back to Slade, who begins to physically abuse her in fury and disgust at her defeat. By the time she decided to leave Slade, from both the buried remnants of her conscience and his cruel treatment of her, it was too late. Never truly losing faith in Terra, Beast Boy stepped in between her and Slade and finally made her realize the error of her ways. Events were eventually set in motion leaving the city in danger from an erupting volcano. In a final act of friendship, she ultimately sacrificed herself to save the city. Now merged with the Earth she controlled and manipulated, the Titans searched for a way to restore her.

Upon returning from a globe-trotting adventure, Beast Boy was shocked to discover a school girl who looked exactly like Terra. Finding Terra's petrified tomb empty, Beast Boy was convinced that Terra had indeed returned - and he pleaded with her to return to the team. None of the other Titans actually met this girl in person, yet each offers separate opinions and theories concerning her, as well as acknowledging neither Cyborg's chemical analysis or Raven's magical mystical spells were effective in reversing the process. (It was never mentioned, but it is possible that after Trigon took over the Earth and turned everybody except the Titans to stone, when Raven defeated her father and everybody reverted from stone to human flesh that Terra reverted back to normal as well.) But the girl insisted that "things change" and she was not the girl he knew, and respecting her wishes, Beast Boy was able to let go of the past and look toward his own future, with the girl to walk down her own path, her back to a past that would be forever lost to her.

In "Teen Titans Go!", a comic book series based on the animated TV series, she makes a few appearances. For example, she appears in Issue #51, which is set after the series finale of the animated series. Terra's brother, Geo-Force, arrives at Titans Tower and relates Terra's origin: she was the Princess of Markovia, and along with her brother was experimented on by sinister interests within the royal court, which gave them both earth-based superpowers. Feeling exploited, Terra ran away, leading to the events of the animated series. At the end of the story, Geo-Force and Beast Boy consider visiting Terra at her school, but decide to leave her be, as she is the happiest she has ever been.

Relationships
Beast Boy and Terra: Beast Boy and Terra had a complicated romantic relationship. Beast Boy had a crush on Terra the moment he saw her while Terra had been charmed by his sense of humor since she first started talking with him. While Beast Boy has carried a lot of resentment and rage towards Terra, he never failed to forgive her and offer her support when it mattered. Terra found a confidence in Beast Boy, and shared her emotions and certain details of her past with him. Beast Boy and Terra shared one last embrace before she stopped the volcano and was petrified. During the last episode of Teen Titans, Beast Boy was positive that Terra was back. Beast Boy followed Terra to the school and had to find out. He eventually accepted that, even if the girl was Terra, she just wanted to live a normal life. Raven and Terra: Raven and Terra got off to a "rocky start" (according to Terra). Raven had reservations over Terra's arrival as a new Teen Titan, however over time Terra proved herself a worthy and capable ally. Soon after, Terra betrayed Raven and the Teen Titans. While Raven claimed she never trusted Terra, it is later revealed that she did in fact trust Terra completely and considered her a friend, and was deeply upset over her betrayal. It was implied that after Terra sacrificed herself to save the city, Raven, along with the other Titans, forgave her.

Robin and Terra: Robin and Terra's relationship wasn't the best. Robin started out actually accepting Terra and told her that her powers could be used for good. After Terra ran off, Robin knew she was heading to Slade. After that, Robin and Terra fought. Robin told her that she still had time to join the Teen Titans and that she was still a friend and a Titan.

Starfire and Terra: When Starfire heard Terra tell the Titans that she didn't have a home, Starfire was extremely affectionate towards the young blond girl. One thing Starfire liked about Terra was that Terra actually ate one of Starfire's Tamaranean dishes and liked it.

Powers & Abilities
Terra has the incredibly strong and powerful ability to control and manipulate the earth in any form, from solid rock to mud, which she uses with increasing skill (due to growing experience and tutelage with Slade) for numerous effects, both offensive and defensive in capabilities, such as flying through the air by riding on a boulder moved through her powers, hurling rocks of various sizes (even multiple rocks simultaneously) as projectiles at opponents to drive them back or outright crush them, form a gigantic stone fist out of many smaller rocks to attack an opponent, change earth from one state to another (such as shifting mud into a more solid version), and many other techniques. In Aftershock - Part 1, she could create earthen creatures (she shows surprise at this previously unknown ability, but Slade informs her that her new suit serves as a neural link between them and can now project his own movements and attacks through her). Terra even has the ability to tap into lava flows, as seen in Aftershock - Part 2, although this might be because her geokinetic/terrakinetic powers and abilities had reached their limits. She is also capable of shifting tectonic plates, as she triggered a dormant volcano while turning against Slade inAftershock - Part 2.

While using her powers, Terra's hands usually glowed a yellow aura and her eyes occasionally became completely yellow. During her sacrifice to save the city, Terra's entire body began to glow a bright yellow, suggesting that she was using all of her power to stop the volcano.

Terra usually used hand movements to maneuver her abilities, however, she was shown several times using her abilities without any movement at all.

When she was initially introduced, Terra was unable to fully control her powers, however, by her second appearance, her skills were a lot better. By Aftershock - Part 1, she was shown to have complete control of her powers.

Season Two

 * 3. Terra (episode)
 * 8. Titan Rising
 * 9. Winner Take All (no lines)
 * 10. Betrayal
 * 12. Aftershock - Part 1
 * 13. Aftershock - Part 2

Season Five

 * 13. Things Change

Video Game

 * 1. Teen Titans (Video Game)

SourcesEdit

 * Titans Tower
 * Titansgo.net (Archived, No longer online)

Character FactsEdit

 * Terra was created to be, as Marv Wolfman stated, "an evil version of X-Mens' Kitty Pryde."
 * It is curious that Terra speaks of the urgency to be home, and of her supposed parents, as well as her attendance in her school if indeed they do not exist; Beast Boy also does not investigate more deeply into her current life.
 * In the DC comics, she is the illegitimate daughter of the king of the country Markovia, and is the half-sister of superhero Geo-Force.
 * The name "Terra" means "earth" in Latin, Italian, and Portuguese.
 * Terra is voiced by Ashley Johnson; she voices a similar character named Jinmay in Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! a series which reunites her with Greg Cipes (Chiro), voice of Beast Boy.
 * Terra is a playable character on the Teen Titans (Video Game) .
 * In the comics, Terra actually had a sexual relationship with Slade, rather than a warped father-daughter one in the series.
 * Ashley Johnson (Terra) is also reunited with Greg Cipes, (Beast Boy), as Gwen Tennyson on Ben 10 Alien Force and Ben 10 Ultimate Alien. In both these series she portrays once again the girlfriend of Cipes' character (Kevin Levin).
 * While with the Titans, Terra's hair was kept out of her face, but when she joined Slade, her hair started to hang over her right eye (as if it was clouding her sense of right and wrong), but when she struck back against Slade, her hair was moved out of her face, meaning that she remembered what was right and wrong. It also makes her look more like Slade (due to the curve of the hair, and the fact that you cannot see her right eye, like Slade's mask). Normally, Terra has a side part. In "Things Change" however, the girl who resembles her has a center part. It is possible that this may have been done to show that "Terra" is no longer part of any side and is living a neutral and normal life.
 * Terra's eyes change color, from purple, to sky blue. One note could be that her eyes turn sky blue inAftershock - Part 1 when she battles the Titans in the city, but when she was with the Titans, her eyes were a deep purple. In "Terra", her eyes were blue but throughout the episode, it started to become purple. Terra's eyes actually have always been light blue. In different lighting, light colors become darker (shadowed). It is common and with all characters be it their eyes, some hair colors, clothing, etc.
 * When Terra uses her terrakinetic/geokinetic abilities, her eyes glow bright-yellow and her hands glow with a yellowish aura around them.
 * Some fans speculate that when Trigon was destroyed at the hands of Raven, everyone in the world that was turned into stone was changed back. It is possible that Trigon's death also managed to free Terra from her stony prison but it is still unclear what could have erased her mind.
 * Some fans of Teen Titans believe that Terra may still have her powers and her memory; however, she may just be trying to live a normal life in order to forget her criminal past.
 * When questioned at the pizzeria the girl that looks like her makes a fist and the ice cubes in the glass next to her clench up too. However, this is most likely for dramatic effect, as not only are ice cubes known to move in drinks, but ice cubes are made of water, not earth (rendering Terra incapable of controlling them).
 * In Things Change, when Beast Boy would refer to her as "Terra," she repeatedly asked why he kept calling her that, implying that she no longer used that name.