DC Comic 2021
Written by Cavan Scott
Pencilled by Jose Luis
Inked by Jonas Trindade
Coloured by Rex Lokus
Lettered by Carlos M. Mangual
The Titans face their greatest challenge-their own powers! Nightwing, Donna Troy, Superboy, Starfire, Raven, Beast Boy, and Red Hood kick off a thrilling new case that will lead one of their own to question not only their place on the team, but their very existence.
Well I am a fan of Cavan’s work so with him taking on the Titans, which is based off the television show, and bringing us one heck of a first issue like this makes me one happy little camper. Already I like the premise here and I am immensely enjoying seeing this lineup of characters in their traditional DCU attire and feeling a lot more like the team we’ve been wanting to see. There is just something about this and the dynamic of the team that just really works under Cavan’s writing. The family feel of the characters, the sarcasm and just the overall way that they interact with one another feels like they have indeed known each other for what would be considered a lifetime. Donna also has the best line in the book and I gotta say and it took me by complete surprise and I absolutely love it!
I’m very much enjoying the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how they act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does a marvellous job bringing them to life. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages introducing us to the story and the characters does a magnificent job in pulling the reader into these events.
How we see this being structured and how the layers within the story emerge and grow is exceptionally well rendered. The layers are where we see the bulk of the characterisation and plot twists and as they open up avenues that may or may not be further explored they all add some great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is impeccably rendered.
I am completely in love with the interiors here. The linework is spectacular and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create the level & quality of detail within the work is truly astounding. How we see the backgrounds being utilised to enhance and expand the moments is gorgeous. How we see them work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling. I am in love with the detail work we see throughout this book and the use of powers and costumes (Dove’s waist dove’s for instance) and just the strength that the visuals bring. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work show a phenomenal eye for how colour works. From the choices, the application and how light sources change the shades are all done exceptionally well.
This is the Titans I want to see, granted there are some missing and some of these that are surprising to be a part of things but overall the Titans have as many members as the Justice League and many of the more obscure ones really do need a place to come back and shine, hint hint. So with some strong, interesting writing and absolutely stellar characterisation wrapped up in these phenomenal interiors make this the Titans book we’ve been waiting for.