WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Titans Season 3, Episode 6, “Lady Vic,” available now on HBO Max.
Last week’s episode of Titans Season 3, “Lazarus,” focused on how Jason Todd struck up an unlikely alliance with Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow so as to deal with his fear. This eventually led to Jason’s death and resurrection in a Lazarus Pit.
Here’s a spoiler-filled recap of what happened in the latest episode of Titans Season 3, “Lady Vic.”
Titans Introduces the Deadly Lady Vic
“Lady Vic” opens with the titular villain in a diner listening to two police officers flirt. At one point, Lady Vic ominously fingers the two wedding bands that she’s wearing. After the officers leave, their cruiser fails to start, and Lady Vic kills them both, taking with her a figure representing their desire to run away together. She then enters Gotham’s city limits.
The action then moves to Wayne Manor. Inside, Koriand’r/Starfire and Gar Logan introduce Komand’r/Blackfire to Superboy. Initially, Blackfire thinks Superboy is a welcome gift for her, but Starfire corrects her, explaining just how human culture works. After Blackfire leaves, Starfire warns her two compatriots to watch out for her sister. Still, Blackfire’s attraction to Superboy becomes something of a recurring bit for “Lady Vic,” as later she throws a knife at him flirtatiously.
Titans Returns to the Past
After the opening logo rolls, Titans flashes back to Gotham City six years prior, when Bruce Wayne/Batman was still working with Dick Grayson/Robin. Dick ends up at the scene of a robbery, where he engages in hand-to-hand combat with a mysterious female thief. As the fight goes on, it’s clear that she’s more than a match for the Boy Wonder. Soon, the woman reveals herself as Barbara Gordon. Barbara, for her part, has been committing robberies to test Commissioner Jim Gordon. As the police roll up, Dick and Barbara leave the scene of the crime and go for a drink.
Dick asks Barbara just why she’s robbing places like she’s Selina Kyle/Catwoman. In response, Barbara expresses frustration at being reduced to just Commissioner Gordon’s daughter; she wants to actually make a difference with her life. Dick suggests Barbara train with Bruce, joining them as “Robin Girl.” She replies with the name “Batgirl.” Still, Barbara rejects Dick’s offer, saying she prefers to break rules rather than follow them.
The two then go to Barbara’s apartment, which his filled with stolen loot, and start having sex. However, they’re interrupted when a mysterious gunshot wound appears in Dick’s shoulder and he wakes up at Wayne Manor after being shot by a Gotham City Police Department sniper in “Blackfire.”
Now at Wayne Manor, Dick goes to Starfire, who stitches him up. Starfire then chastises Dick for not enlisting their help in taking down Jason. “This family is dying,” Gar says. “And you go out alone and get yourself shot?” He then starts transforming into an animal, causing Starfire to ask him to calm down. Ever vigilant, Dick gets up and leaves to track Jason again. While Starfire attempts to stop Dick and tell him about Blackfire, he ignores her, saying he only cares about finding Jason and Scarecrow.
Scarecrow Makes Clear How Valuable Jason Todd Really Is
Elsewhere in Gotham City, Scarecrow and Jason go to monitor one of their drug brewing operations. While Jason wants to fight Dick and start distributing their drug, Scarecrow advises caution, asking him to bide his time. Scarecrow then takes Jason to watch a surgery that gets interrupted by Lady Vic, who starts slicing up the doctors and nurses with a sword.
“You are expendable,” Scarecrow tells Jason. “Gotham is an open city now. So I brought in this lovely specimen to help me with a few errands that are near and dear to my heart. If you are unhappy, there are others who are more than willing to take up the cause. Comprende?”
Later, Dick returns to Wayne Manor, interrupting a conversation between Blackfire and Starfire in which the latter lays down the law with the former about polite behavior. After being officially introduced to Blackfire, Dick tells Starfire that there was an attack at Thomas and Martha Wayne Memorial Hospital at which a drug inhaler — like the ones used by Jason — was found. Additionally, a piece of medical technology, known as the Shortwave Positron Multiplier, was stolen. Starfire tries to advise Dick to wait to heal from his gunshot wound, but he pushes ahead, saying Batman wouldn’t have let a gunshot stop him.
However, at the hospital, Dick and Starfire are turned away due to their falling out with Barbara over Nightwing abducting Crane. Starfire tells Dick that he needs to fix his relationship with Barbara, and he heads to the GCPD, where Barbara tells him there’s audio of Lady Vic’s crime, but no video. However, the two start fighting, with Barbara noting the headache he caused by breaking Crane out of Arkham Asylum. In the end, though, they agree that they’re on the same team. That’s not enough, though. Soon, Dick asks Barbara to use Oracle to track down Jason, Scarecrow and Lady Vic, but she refuses, calling the technology deeply dangerous. Barbara then tells Dick to go home.
Blackfire Proves Her Redemption Is Real
In the Bat Cave, Blackfire, Starfire and Superboy attempt to figure out why Crane stole the Shortwave Positron Multiplier. Blackfire ends up being a good source of advice, though she tries to goad Starfire for not leading the Titans. Still, Superboy soon tracks down the technology’s inventor, and the three head out to find her. When they arrive at the lab, Starfire tells Blackfire to stay in the car, with Superboy on guard — and flirting — duty.
The two soon find common ground in their experiences of alienation. Blackfire also reveals she was treated poorly on Tamaran for her lack of powers and that she craves acceptance rather than power. Superboy invites Blackfire to join the Titans, but he does note she’ll have to earn her spot.
Inside the building, Starfire finds alarms going off and the scientist they’re looking for strapped to a table with a bomb implanted in her chest. Superboy rushes in and whips up a de-activator, saving the woman’s life before the bomb explodes. They then get information from the scientist, which leads to the revelation that the Shortwave Positron Multiplier would allow Crane to make chemicals faster. As they get back to the car, though, the duo discover Blackfire has disappeared.
After returning to Wayne Manor, Superboy and Starfire find Blackfire waiting for them. Blackfire reveals she’s been gathering intelligence, and there’s a mobster who is particularly unhappy with Crane and his plan. Afterwards, Starfire tells Blackfire that she can’t trust her. However, Blackfire claps back by saying Koriand’r needs her to be the bad sister.
Dick and Barbara’s Past Comes Back to Haunt Them
Against Barbara’s wishes, Dick climbs through the vents at GCPD, aiming to steal the recording of Lady Vic from the facility’s storage room. Guiding his friend from the Bat Cave, Gar asks Dick if he was going to kill Jason, just like Batman murdered the Joker. However, Dick says he doesn’t want to have to kill Jason. Gar then expresses confusion as to why Jason broke bad and his feelings that Crane must be manipulating his friend. Dick, though, expresses some doubt before dropping into the storage room.
The action then shifts to Barbara, who gets a phone call from Bruce on a secret phone. “Barbara, it’s me,” Bruce says. “I’ll be where it all started. Come quickly. And Barbara, don’t tell Dick.” Of course, Barbara then walks into what is obviously a trap.
At the Bat Cave, Dick and Gar listen to the stolen audio of Lady Vic’s massacre at the hospital. He’s able to glean a lot of information from the audio, figuring out the assassin’s identity from her physiology and methodology. To illustrate the point, Titans once again flashes back to six years prior. Dick and Barbara are working together to break into a secure location. While Barbara keeps her eye on the prize, Dick proceeds to talk about their relationship, though they’re interrupted by a call from Batman. In the end, Dick decides to help Barbara rather than Batman. Soon, they’re attacked by Lady Vic and her partner. During the scuffle, Lady Vic hits her partner with a throwing knife, and as she mourns him, Barbara and Dick flee.
In the present, Dick tries calling Barbara just as she walks into the trap set by Lady Vic using a copy of Bruce’s voice. Barbara and Lady Vic fight. Barbara is eventually able to draw her gun, and Lady Vic disappears in a flash of light. Once their confrontation is done, Lady Vic returns to Crane, who asks if Barbara is dead. For some unclear reason, Crane needed a picture of Barbara.
Afterwards, Dick and Barbara meet up and talk about Lady Vic’s reappearance. Barbara correctly realizes Lady Vic is working with Crane, though Dick is less sure. He goes inside to check Barbara’s apartment for traps, where he thinks about their previous romantic entanglements. Dick then leaves Barbara without further incident.
Scarecrow and Red Hood Have a Big Falling Out
As all of that’s going on, Jason makes his move against Crane. At Scarecrow’s lab, Jason starts demanding the scientists give him the drug they’re working on. Jason then distributes Crane’s anti-fear drug to a group of criminals. After taking the drug, they shoot up the Chinese food restaurant where Tim Drake works. Outside, as Jason wrestles with the enormity of what they’ve done, Tim loses a friend inside. Jason then takes a hit from his anti-fear inhaler and walks away from the crime scene — and his relationship with Scarecrow.
The first six episodes of Titans Season 3 are available now on HBO Max. Episode 7 releases Sept. 9.
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