S5: For Real

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Opening shot: the exterior of Titans Tower during the day. The scene is very much at peace with itself as the camera zooms in and cuts to the operations center, whose window/screen suddenly fills wit a static-distorted image of Control Freak's fat face. It winks in and out a bit before properly resolving itself; his first two words are delivered with enough force to shake the room.

Control Freak: Greetings, Titans! Your number-one nemesis, Control Freak, has returned!

Snap to black, which resolves into a set of convict stripes worn by the overweight geek as he gambols away from the camera. He is in a prison cell, with the identification number 257-494 on a placard hung around his neck; a reference to the last episode in which he fought our heroes.

Control Freak: You may have thought you saw the last of me in Two-Five-Seven-dash-Four-Nine-Four. But while away, I've been studying your every move, and now, I'm back.

The background snaps to black; he rips away his uniform, exposing his usual Obi-Wan Kenobi ensemble topped with the gray overcoat, as the camera pulls back.

Control Freak: The Ultimate Titans Challenge!

Each of these last three words zooms up as he says it, after which he leans toward the camera for an extreme close-up and thumps up against it.

Control Freak: A series of mind-boggling events designed to test your specific skills and stamina.

He twirls away from us a bit.

Control Freak:And to raise the stakes, I have crafted an arsenal of counter-technology weapons to render your powers useless.

On the latter part of this, the camera backs up to frame some black space around him, and five silhouettes appear one by one. Alien, dinosaur, spaceship, lobster creature, satellite laser: each outline bears a big red question mark. From here, cut back to the operations center.

Control Freak: Prepare to be defeated.

He lets go with a gale of very nasty laughter, but breaks off abruptly after a couple of seconds and looks out with some puzzlement. Cut to just in front of the window/screen, the camera pointing out over the room: this is his perspective.

Not a single Titan in sight, not so much as a loose chewing-gum wrapper on the floor. It looks as if Robin meant business at the end of "Trust," when he said that the team would stay on the road until the Brotherhood of Evil had been stopped; the place is dead quiet.

Control Freak: Hello?

Back to the window/screen. He points his favorite souped-up remote control at himself and clicks a button; the result is to clear away his image and materialize him here in real life.

Control Freak: Hello!

(No response, so he rushes along the ledge that lines one wall and out the main door. Cut to just inside Beast Boy's perpetually untidy room; the door slides open and here comes the intruder with a leap and twirl. Pull back to show that he is alone here, too.)

Control Freak: Greetings, Titans! Your number-one nemesis has returned!

Pull back again, this time to across the room; nothing here but the unmade bunk beds. Silence as he holds his pose, then back to him. Triumph gives way to confusion and then annoyance as the situation starts to work its way into his fat head. Wipe to the gym, whose door opens to let him in; one huge bound carries him to the center of the floor.

Control Freak: Greetings, Titans!

Cut to the T-Ship's launch bay and tilt down in steps to follow him as he zips here and there.

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