DC Comics 2015
Written by Dan Abnett
Illustrated by Paulo Siqueira & Geraldo Borges
Coloured by Hi-Fi
Lettered by Carlos M. Mangual
Ever since the Crisis on Infinite Earths the original Titans history has been decimated time and again and with many characters missing in the New 52 it seemed that it wouldn’t get fixed anytime soon. For it’s time the book was revolutionary in bringing kid sidekicks together and making them individual characters that stood out from their adult counterparts. Along the way they also introduced us to many new creations and made kids of colour play important roles in what looked like the new regime.
When Wolfman and Perez revamped the Titans and left out much of their past members longtime fans were treated to something new but always longed for the inclusion of the. Here now DC has decided it’s time to bring the original team back and make the kids who started it all relevant again. Dan Abnett is an excellent choice in this revival and he’s showing us why.
Opening with Roy Harper and showcasing his struggles with alcohol and addiction is a great nod to his past. Even better was the clerk in the story being Gnarrk. The writing is fantastic here with elements of their forgotten pasts and interactions in play during the dialogue really is fun. It’s like repressed memory coming to the forefront. Plus the name of the shop Gnarrk is working at yeah it’s the little moments like that which showcase Dan’s talents. Dick as Agent 37 finding an Atlantean and those residual memories also were just that incredible to see. Though this version of Garth is angrier than i’ve seen before that does fit with with Atlantis’ view of surface dwellers in this new setting.
Donna’s intro is a bit more mysterious as is the abandoned waterfront building she’s in front of as if waiting for someone to arrive or that this place holds a special meaning she can’t quite grasp. Mal and Karen thank goodness are still married, though please tell me she was Bumblebee because she’s too important a character not to have been who she was. A young black woman with her intelligence who created her suit and weaponry to be heroine yeah we need her. Though I do love the whole Mal writes a score that wins an award presented by Buddy Baker it keeps his roots true as well.
When we finally see Lilith it’s like everything clicks into place. She’s kind of a blend between her original precognitive self that asked to join the Titans and Omen the character she would evolve into. Much more interesting is that she alone among them remembers that there was a Titans before the current team. It’s not a hard summation to say that there was one villain who forced Lilith’s hand to wipe the teams memories of each other and their time together and that it’s back. That Lilith, now a psychiatrist, has files on the team members in her office makes me think of Martian Manhunter in JLA Year One or Batman helps make her an even more valuable and stronger member than she was.
Paulo, Geraldo and the folks at Hi-Fi make the perfect team bring this series to life. It’s clean, crisp and extremely detailed in all the best ways. It’s really the kind of artwork that this series needs.
This has everything that’s needed to bring the Original Titans, sans Kid Flash, back and bridge a gap for longtime fans feeling let down by the all recent shake ups at DC. There’s also a part of me that hopes should this be as well received as I hope it is that they’ll be a regular series book come out, forget placing it in the present tell it from the team’s inception to when the were disbanded and forced to forget about each other.
For me this is off to a phenomenal start and it promises to be a new different version of the classic I am so fond of.