DC Comics 2015
Written by Dan Abnett
Penciled by Paul Pelletier
Inked by Ray McCarthy & Wayne Faucher
Coloured by Hi-Fi
Lettered by Carlos M. Mangual
Well here it is the final installment right before the whole Rebirth is about to start. I’ve got to hand it to Dan for an absolutely stellar job on the original Titans. Yes Wally West isn’t here but that’s okay I suppose since the cast here seems to be almost everyone else that appeared right before Duela Dent made her debut. Though the Ant and Red Star would be nice guest stars in the new series, cough cough hint hint.
I remember a time when Marv and George tried to revamp Mister Twister to make him a more credible and viable threat and seeing what Dan has done with that here just makes me one heck of a happy camper. I mean add in the Mad Mod as a secret agent type and yeah i’m totally on board with this. Using Mammoth as his muscle tying in a lot of pre-crisis stuff for this team was just a brilliant move and for longtime fans like myself, where the 60’s/70’s team was their favourite the reconstruction of this team couldn’t have had a better impact.
So many little easter eggs given to us this issue as well. Karen is a replacement for someone and we don’t know who that is yet. Though honestly with Flamebird still around i’d love it to be her as Bette needs more exposure and a team to flourish in though I wouldn’t be upset if it were Golden Eagle or Harlequin. Still the suspense is kind of exciting isn’t it as we wait for that little tidbit to be revealed. Definitely something to look forward to, as if we needed another reason to add this to our pull list lol.
Usually stories like this play out in a way where the full force, see entire team, ends up together much quicker than partway through the final issue. So that Dan had it work this way I think really demonstrates why he is one of those rare breed of writers who can deliver the unexpected and thrill you while doing it. I love the way Hank was used this issue as a prime example of that. Still very much the character we’ve always known and seen ever since the Crisis first happened and it suits that character to a T.
That this isn’t the end of the threat from Mister Twister is another great thing. The Titans need an arch nemesis and it shouldn’t be Trigon as that’s the New not the Original Titans foe. Using Mad Mod in his current capacity adds another element that will nice to see moving forward and possibly the updating a few other characters from the past as well. I mean Ding Dong Daddy anyone heh, well if that wasn’t him already.
Ah the interiors here have had a revolving door art team and yet they’ve remained consistently strong. I do like Paul’s work and just saw him at Motor City Con, what a great guy! HIs renditions of the younger and current Titans is extremely well done. His eye for the way the story should flow is exceptional and his line work is flawless as usual. The attention to detail of each character made everything that much more exciting to witness.
With the cliffhanger ending, two very good, underused and underrated characters could be returning? Let’s hope that this new run of Titans mixes the old and the new in ways that only serve to strengthen the mytho’s that have come before. Though with Dan at it’s helm the Titans future has never looked so bright!