Tales of the Teen Titans #59 (November, 1985)
"Where Nightmares Begin!"
"Reunion!"
Writer - Marv Wolfman
Pencils - George Perez & Carmine Infantino
Inks - Dick Giordano & Romeo Tanghal
Letters - Ben Oda
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Editor - Len Wein
Cover Price: $0.75
Hey Gang! Welcome to this most special day... for today, we are celebrating our Three Year Bloggiversary!!! (with three exclamation points). That's right... three full years of Daily Discussions and Reviews (including a Leap Year!).
I wracked my brain thinking about a book that would "fit" for today's milestone entry... and my mind wandered back to the very start. I had mentioned way back in the long ago (and more recently during an episode of the Chris-Show), that I had this sorta ritual/routine (whichever word sounds less demented) wherein every New Year's Day I would attempt to start a new blog.
Every year it would be a different comics theme... and I'd come out the gates full of P&V... until losing complete and total interest by around midday. Well, the year we started this journey (2016), that "theme" was going to be the New Teen Titans.
So, I sez ta myself... self; what better book to act as our last regular Discussion and Review here (more on that below), than the one that (if the bloggy-stars aligned differently) would have been the first!
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We open with Robin stood before S.T.A.R. Labs being filled in by a couple of police officers about a terrorist stand-off going on inside. They're threatening to detonate a bomb if their demands aren't met... and so, Robin goes to rush on inside... only, he's overcome with a most strange sensation. He suddenly finds himself stirred back to "reality" by Wonder Girl... and he's now stood before the... never before seen - Titans Tower! He doesn't have a clue what's going on... and I'd wager most of the folks reading this at the time felt the same way!
They head inside, where Dick is reunited with Beast Boy (now going by Changeling) and introduced to a couple of brand-new faces: Starfire and Cyborg! Dick hasn't ever seen these people before... but they definitely know him.
Wally speeds on to the scene a moment later, and Robin's just happy to see another familiar face. Everybody looks at Dick like he's got three-heads... because he really shouldn't be this confused. After all, they're teammates!
Finally, Raven arrives. This is another brand-new face to both Dick and the original readers of DC Comics Presents #26 (where this story first appeared as a "Bonus Book").
She comes with the dire news that a certain scientist managed to open a portal into another universe. Now, if you think that sounds like a really bad idea... you're right. From this portal oozes a gelatinous beast that overcomes the scientist.
The Titans (?) decide to hop-to and see if they can't topple this terror. Gar attempts to rally the troops by doing a little Titans-Rah-Rah. The best he can come up with is... "Titans--Let 'er Rip!", which I'm sad didn't catch on.
The team heads out, and finds the Flan-Beast atop a high-rise building. Raven sends her soul-self into the monster... and finds herself immediately separated from it. Even in her first appearance, Raven was so over-powered that she had to be kayoed within the first couple of beats of battle! Worth noting that Wally is particularly protective of Raven... which is neat, considering their upcoming arc.
The rest of the Titans try and take the fight to the Pudding-Horror, however, all of their offense proves to be ineffective. Then... Robin "wakes up". He's back outside S.T.A.R. Labs, where one of the Police Officers informs him that he had to shove him down out of the way of a terrorist bullet!
Robin shakes off the weirdness, and decides to attempt to infiltrate S.T.A.R. Labs via his "rocket grappler". No sooner does he scale the building than he is thrown back into that other reality... where he's battling the Custard-Critter!
The Titans fight the monster for a bit longer... not gaining much in the way of ground. Then... after Cyborg is able to wound it using some heavy-duty decibels the thing finally attempts to flee. At this point, Robin has an idea. He's certain that the Wobbly-Wicket is heading back to its "point of origin", and he has a sneaking suspicion that place is somewhere inside S.T.A.R. Labs. Upon arrival, Cyborg is none too pleased to head inside.
Robin rushes inside and chats up that scientist that called the thing here in the first place. He informs him that there's no way they can beat this baddie... and their only hope is to send it back from whence it came. Since this things primary attack is converting Oxygen to Methane... they realize they're going to have to get this Whopper into an air-tight room. Starfire volunteers to act as a lure, since she doesn't need to breathe Oxygen anyway.
Then, they do the thing... and everything's hunky-dory.
As the dust settles, Cyborg has words with the scientist... who we learn is actually his father, Silas Stone... also, the man who created Cyborg's mechanical body (though, if we're being technical, he also created his organic one). It's clear that there's no love lost between the Stone men.
Suddenly... Robin "wakes up" again. The Officers thank him for ending the terrorist stand-off without a single loss of life. He hasn't the foggiest idea what any of them are talking about. Then, he's approached by a most grateful Dr. Silas Stone... which ups the confusion all the more!
We wrap up with Robin heading off, questioning just about everything that just went down. He ultimately writes it off as a dream/nightmare and decides to just sleep it off. Raven is nearby, however, to inform him (and us) that this was no dream... the New Titans are his (and our) future!
Our second story begins with an unconscious Speedy being dumped into a lake. Thankfully, Aqualad is nearby... and he scoops him out before he can drown.
We jump over to Titans Tower, where there's a knock at the door. Starfire goes all lunatic-warrior-alien, and lunges toward the door as though she's about to wreck whoever dared knock. Donna lassos her up before she can do any damage... and it's a good thing too, because their guests are... Aqualad and Speedy! How 'bout that?
After Roy comes to, he shares his tale of woe. Ya see, he was investigating a group of drug dealers. He watched them from, of all places, up in a tree. Which... I mean, if you're going to wear a bright yellow and red outfit... maybe hiding in trees isn't the best idea? Maybe if it was Fall we could give that a pass... but, this is just dumb. Anyhoo... one of the drug-runners just happened to be a machete expert. I tell ya, this dude is so good at throwing machetes that they turn around in mid-air! From here, Speedy got dumped in the lake.
After giving Starfire the quick 'n dirty on just what drugs are, the Titans decide to take care of bidness. Robin takes point, and sends Wonder Girl and Starfire off to follow the druggies' helicopter to Miami (I guess that's the location of the Druglord's "Corporate Offices"), while the fellas are going to attempt to topple the local chapter.
And... well, that's exactly what happens! Really not much more to say. In the matter of two pages, the Titans win the war on drugs. The story wraps up with Roy and Garth being invited to stay on as full-time Titans... but they're both too busy to commit. Annnnnd, that's that!
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Now, that was a nutty couple of stories, wasn't it?
I feel like reading our lead story without the proper context does it a grand disservice. Unfortunately, it's pretty damned difficult to just "forget" everything that happens after this... and treat it like the (in some cases "literal") brand-new thing that it was when it appeared as a "Bonus Book" in DC Comics Presents #26 (October, 1980).
I'd love to be able and go back to experience this one the way it was meant to be experienced. It's just such a strange way to introduce, not only brand-new characters, but a whole new concept for an existing property. I wonder if there were people who were annoyed by this... if there were any readers who felt this besmirched the "sanctity" of the Teen Titans. If only I could find USENET posts going back all the way to 1980 (the earliest ones I've found are around 1984)!
The story we get here... uh, I guess you could say it's a bit difficult to follow, perhaps hindered more by our current-day familiarity with the Titans. Robin not knowing any of the newbies puts us in this strange "is it a dream/nightmare/twilight zone?" mindset which is kind of difficult to shake off, ya know? That's probably why I usually skip this issue anytime I did a New Teen Titans "re-read project".
I never felt like it added all that much... though, if we can squint enough to view it as a sorta-kinda "flash-forward", there are things to dig here. We get (some of) the skinny on the tension between Cyborg/Silas. It's made pretty clear here that Wally and Raven have some sort of connection. Beast Boy now goes by Changeling. All things that we will know to be true sooner than later.
The backup story (which first appeared in The Best of DC (Digest) #18 (November, 1981)... was... ehhhh. It kind of feels like a(n extremely) dry-run for the Anti-Drug PSAs that would come in 1983... only without the Protector. Super-quick superheroics... with some rather unpleasant Carmine Infantino art. Not much more to say about this one. It filled the pages... it did that much.
So yeah... that's that! Three full years of "Random DC Comics Discussions and Reviews" in the can. This is usually where I'd get all gushy and do the "Oscar Speech" thing... but, we'll forgo that this time around... just know that if you've ever visited the blog, reached out, said hi, left a comment... you've made my day. I've loved doing this... and I love y'all for stopping by.
So, here's the thing...
In a scant handful of weeks, I will be heading off to Grad School in order to procure my Ed.S. and State Certification to become a School Psychologist... this is most certainly going to put a crimp in my "free time".
Now, this little blog may not look like much, but I do put two-to-three (sometimes four) hours of work into it each and every day. That's upwards of thirty hours a week... could be over a hundred a month. That's a lot of time.
Between the blog and the "Chris and Reggie Network of" show(s)... I knew something was going to have to "give". There's no way I could continue both and still have time for school, work, and family. And so, after more sleepless nights than I'm comfortable admitting to (though, I suppose I sorta just did), I decided that with this Anniversary post, I was going to "put a pin" in the site.
I decided that around New Year's... so, like a month ago.
Then, I found myself going through the classic Kübler-Ross stages of grief. Ya see, as if this isn't abundantly clear, I have sort of an addictive personality... and a hard time letting go of things. I mean, this blog, as unspectacular as it may appear, has become sort of my "digital home", ya know? It's also like the second-longest "relationship" I've ever had.
And so, I eventually hit stage three on the Kübler-Ross Scale: Bargaining. How could I somehow continue this blog... while returning to school, and maintaining the Podcasts (and ya know, all that "real life" stuff too)?
As I was pre-hearsing my final sign-off for this blog... that's a normal thing people do, right? Like write bits and pieces of their blog while in the shower or doing the dishes or something. That's not obsessive behavior, is it? Well, anyhoo... while mentally pre-writing what I assumed would be my final "send-off" and farewell... well, I think I might've found a way to keep on truckin'... it's going to be kind of different, though somewhat familiar.
And at this point in my writing, I'm chuckling to myself because really... nobody cares about "my process". Barely anybody knows or cares that this blog exists in the first place. Ah well, in for a paragraph... in for an essay.
One of the books I've wanted to discuss long-form, almost from the get-go is... Action Comics Weekly. I've wanted to go through and cover every story in the anthology... but always considered it too daunting a task. I mean, there's a lot of pages in those books... and not all of 'em look fun. Action Comics Weekly is also a subject Reggie and I want to cover the entirety of in future episodes of the Cosmic Treadmill (we've already done four-episodes on the Green Lantern chapters alone!).
So, here's the plan... for now. We're going to cover a single-chapter from Action Comics Weekly a day. ACW has six chapters per issue... so, each issue will take a week (on the seventh day, I'll compile the chapters into one great big "normal" post). We'll call this project:
Now, this isn't to say that we won't deviate from Action Comics Weekly, should I get the urge to write about something else... because, that's going to happen. It's also not to say that this whole thing won't blow up in my face, and peter out in no-time flat. I can say for certain that it'll likely be a bit wonky at first while I iron out any wrinkles and get situated.
I'm generally a pretty rigid dude when it comes to how I format my stuff... so, this will likely be quite the learning experience for me. We'll play with it... because, I mean... it's not like there are any rules here to break... only the ones I've imposed on myself!
So, I hope you'll join me for our adventure into Action Comics Weekly... and for anything else I'm able to fit in. Thanks so much for stopping by... especially if you managed to read through all my mutterings to this point.
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(Not the) Letters Page:
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Tales of the Teen Titans #60 (December, 1985)
"Shadows in the Dark!"
Co-Creators/Co-Editors - Marv Wolfman & George Perez
Letterer - Todd Klein
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Cover Price: $0.75
Awhile back I'd said that I believed George Perez's work looked much better on non-Baxter paper. I'd have to track it down to confirm, but I believe I said something like "it doesn't do him any favors".
Well, this blog is all about challenging my preconceptions... so, we're going to do us some comparin'... and probably some fence-sittin' to boot!
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We open in the Danger Roo... er, outside Titans Tower, where the team is running through some training exercises. Nightwing leads the team as they try and hunt down their newest member, Jericho! This proves to be a bit more tricky than anyone expected... considering Jericho could, with nothing more than eye-contact, body-hop and take control of any of them. And he does just that, starting with Gar!
From here, the Titans shift their focus, and try to figure out a way to expel Joey from Gar. Cyborg blasts him with a "zillion" decibels... but that doesn't quite work... all it does is annoy poor Master Logan. Donna manages to snag Changeling with her lasso... and as Starfire goes in for the catch -- CONTACT -- Joey jumps from Gar to Kory!
It comes down to Cyborg... who, wisely closes his one actual eye, making "contact" impossible. He blasts Starfire with enough voltage to "stun" her... causing Joey to be ejected. Vic then biffs Joey in the chin.
Nightwing hops onto Joey's back, piggyback-style... and Donna wraps them both up with her lasso. It looks like it's all over but the cryin' at this point... but then... Raven shows up! As is usual with her, she's got some dire news... and is in need of aid. Joey uses this opportunity to -- CONTACT -- hop into Raven's body! This doesn't go all that well.
Raven vanishes, leaving Jericho a quivering mess. He begins signing at an unfollowable pace. When he finally gets his wits back about him, he reveals to the team that he felt a great evil inside of her. He wants to help her... which leads the Titans to ask themselves why they hadn't tried reaching out to her of late.
After heading inside, the Titans recount what just occurred. Jericho volunteers to go to Raven's room for a chat... and after a little hemming and hawing, Dick agrees. As Joey leaves the room, Vic suggests that Raven's appearance might be changing. More on that in a bit.
First, we'll follow Jericho. Inside Raven's darkened room, she speaks... kinda in riddles about her "destiny". I mean, we all know this is Trigon stuff, right? It's always Trigon stuff with Raven. She refuses to leave the room without her hood, which kinda backs up Vic's deduction that she's beginning to look different.
After the chat, Raven appears in the Titans meeting room... and quits the team! She doesn't want the team to feel responsible for her anymore. She feels as though she's been more of a hindrance and a liability of late. I tell ya what, she's often a hindrance to my enjoyment of an issue! Anyhoo, her plan is... staying the night at the Tower, and leaving in the morning. The team protests... but, it's no use.
For something completely different... and potentially even more boring than Raven... we shift scenes to Vegan Space, and Tamaran. We learn that thanks to the Omega Men, the war is over. Peace will reign, and it's now safe for Princess Koriand'r to return home. Now, I love subplots... but not that kinda subplot.
Back at the Tower, Gar walks in on Vic while he's screening some old video. Gar giddily asks if it's porn... but, no dice... Vic is actually looking at old Titans footage, footage featuring Raven in particular. Here we see the progression of Raven's appearance. Starting with her softer look early on... to a more severe look... to her current almost sinister appearance!
Elsewhere in the Tower, Jericho sits awake... trying to practice his guitar, however cannot shake his worry over his soon-to-be-departing teammate. He decides to take the situation into his own hands, and visits Raven while she sleeps. What's kinda neat is that he actually "suits up" in his complicated Jericho attire before leaving his room.
Then -- CONTACT -- sorta, I think. Maybe Raven sleeps with her eyes open... maybe Joey just pried one open before hopping. I dunno.
Next stop for Jericho... yawn... the craggy cliffs of Azar. He looks on as Raven is tortured by visions of her mother, and the shouting of... well, duh... Trigon.
Trigon even notices Joey's presence... and figures, "what the hay", and begins torturing him a bit for good measure.
The Titans are awakened by one whopper of a scream... Dick suggests that it wasn't even human in origin. The team rushes into Raven's room, only to find Joey. Raven, has vanished. Joey frantically signs the word "father".
Joey finally regains his composure and explains the whole thing. Dick meekly lectures him about entering Raven's body... but Vic reels him in. The Titans now know what they're up against... however, before they can take the fight to Trigon... they're going to have to find Raven!
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If you're interested in my thoughts about the issue itself, check out this piece where I went covered my feelings. Go 'head and click the cover... then we'll get into our little experiment.
Now, onto our comparison. I'm using some new-to-me technology to take a look at both images, and interact with them via a slider. Hopefully, this actually works! I'm going to be out of town... so, fingers are crossed!
We'll start at... the start!
The first thing that jumps out at us is... Baxter=Brighter. Heavier paper certainly has its advantages. At least right out of the gate, I can't see much of a difference in the pencils. Maybe those differences might just be in my head!
More noticeable color differences. In the far-left panel, the entire background color is different/inverted. Instead of our body-hopping Jericho being depicted as a white outline... it's the rest of the area that's gone white. Not Earth-shattering, but interesting enough.
Here's an interesting shot. If you look at the bottom of the page... in the Baxter version, Donna's leg and foot escape the panel... in the newsstand, it's been cut off! Another benefit to the upscale format!
More Jericho-inversion. I might be seeing the error of my ways.
Our first look at Raven... the blacks are much richer on Baxter stock
Speaking of "richer blacks"... I wanted to include this image to show that off. While the newsstand "look" is definitely more, I dunno... comfortable to me... I can't deny that the Baxter is really sharp!
Included the above image simply because Gar's heart-jammies are altered in the Newsstand edition.
Here the Jericho outlines have been altered. Again, inversion is a necessity for the lighter weight paper.
And a couple more just to show off the vibrant "hi-definition" look.
So, the verdict? I'm just as lost as I was before! There are certainly some benefits to both the Baxter and Newsstand formats. Immediately we can see that both clarity and color are so much better in the more upscale Baxter book. While at the same time though, the newsstand definitely has its charms. I still think that Perez's work looks more like I expect it to in the "lesser" format! But, at the end of the day... that doesn't make it "better".
Tomorrow we'll take a look at another artist I swear looks better on newsprint... Jim Aparo. Can't wait to see how wrong I am about that one!
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Tales of the Teen Titans #45 (August, 1984)
"Old Times, Old Friends"
Co-Creators/Co-Editors - Marv Wolfman & George Perez
Finishes - Mike DeCarlo
Letters - Ben Oda
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Cover Price: $0.75
Here's a fun one... what could be more terrifying than... Terry Long's Bachelor Party?!
Worth noting, this issue doesn't have a story title... "Old Times, Old Friends" was added later for a collected edition. I'm nothing if not completionist, so I'm gonna include it.
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We open with Aqualad arriving at Titans Tower, with a rapidly declining Tula in his arms. They're both having a heckuva time breathing... and are in desperate need of some fresh water. They take an endless elevator ride down to the Titans' pool, however collapse before making it into the drink.
We shift scenes to a shady arms deal goin' down at some old warehouse. Gar has taken the form of a wildcat and is looking on from above. After the deal is done, he pounces! There's something different about young Garfield today, we'll get into that shortly.
The baddies decide to flee... and I can't say that I blame them, especially after Gar shifts into a porcupine and nestles in one of their... uh, "pusses". Yee. Unfortunately for the would-be smugglers, they run right smack into Cyborg!
Gar then takes the form of an elephant... and charges at the lead baddie. Despite his pleas, Gar just keeps pushing... crushing the fella... even crying as he does so. Vic rushes in to pull Changeling off... and remind him that Titans don't kill.
Then, we get a pretty amazing scene. Gar just unleashes all of his frustrations on Vic. We're in the shadow of The Judas Contract at this point... Terra just died. Gar, having been smitten with the traitor, would've loved to have someone to talk to about his feelings after the dust settled. Turns out, none of his Titanic pals were around for him. Not even his supposed "best pal", Vic Stone! Vic gives some halfhearted excuse about being "too busy" because his grandparents were coming for a visit... which sounds so lame. Gar give the ol' "I know where I stand" line, and flies off. Loved this page!
Speaking of Vic' grandparents, they've just now arrived to Vic's ramshackle apartment. These codgers are a hoot. Love the way they're depicted here. Anyhoo, Vic ain't home... so, Maude picks the lock with her "lucky" hatpin. Before Vic heads home he tries calling Gar at Dayton's via a payphone... not sure why he didn't just call from home, but whattayagonnado? He's informed by Jeeves that Master Logan hasn't checked in yet. We can see that there is a guest at Dayton's with a heavy English accent.
Then... we're off to Terry Long's Bachelor Party... and it's a rather packed house! I mean, (best man and brother) Barry Long does it up right! Seems everyone besides Dick Grayson and Terry himself are three sheets to the wind even before the giant stripper-filled cake is rolled in!
During the strippery festivities, Dick scoots off to sit by himself. He is soon joined by Terry, who gives him his "guide to ogling"... it's basically "it's okay to look", a motto he surely carries with him into the classroom. Ya know, I poke fun at Terry's creepiness quite a bit (perhaps too much), but I rather enjoyed this scene. I like the idea of Terry and Dick becoming friends. Maybe I'm just a sucker for soap-opera.
Meanwhile at Paradise Island, Donna is having a sorta-kinda Bachelorette Party... which is more like her trying to get permission to marry from Queen Hippolyta... and in so doing, relinquish her powers. She's asked if she "loves" Terry... a question she... sidesteps. I'm not sure what it is, she never seems to plainly say "I love him". Weird. Anyhoo, Hippolyta gives the thumbs up... but doesn't take her powers from her. In fact, she is presented with a new pair of bracelets from her sister Wonder Woman, showing that she is of "two worlds" and "welcome in both".
Over at Manhattan College, Raven is heading home from class. She's chatted up by some dude named Steven... who tells her that he feels great when he's in her presence. Ya see, Raven might unwittingly be using her empathic powers here... something she is aware might be a possibility... so, she tries to keep her distance. She's picked up by Joey... and they share a moment of "mutual kindness" on the ride home. Raven is summoned to Titans Tower by someone she never expected to hear from again... she bugs out, leaving behind a book on sign language, which fills Joe's heart with happiness.
Back at the Tower, we see that she was summoned by... former sorta-squeeze, Wally West. He (and new squeeze, Fran) found Aqualad and Tula dryin' out on the ground. Right now though, they're in a special tank, and Nightwing is trying to get them rehydrated.
Next, we get another great little exchange. Wally wants to know why nobody told her that Terra died! He's upset that he couldn't attend her funeral... after all, she sorta took his "spot" on the team! The Titans are keeping her turncoatedness hush-hush here... and their reasons for doing so, are up for debate, I suppose... we'll talk more about that later. Kory changes the subject back to the Aqua-teens.
Dick deduces that there is a strange chemical in the lungs of the Aquas... and is repeatedly flushing it out of their systems. After a few tries, the Aquas begin to stir. Once they're outta the tank, they share their story. Turns out, they were swimmin' outside of the hustle and bustle of Atlantis... and were in the proximity (and wake) of a terrific explosion!
They were then attacked by the... yawn... H.I.V.E. Before the scuffle, however, Tula realized that she can no longer breathe! The Aqua-teens hitched a ride on a pair of whales to get as far away as possible.
At this point, Dick's heard enough. He's all "suit up, Titans... even you, Wally!", to which, Wally says "nope". It's okay though, Jericho will come along on this adventure... despite not officially being a Titan just yet.
We wrap up with Wally and Fran leaving Titans Island... and learning that any time Wally uses his powers, he is left in terrible pain. He refuses to tell the Titans about that, because he sees it as "his problem". Meanwhile, the team has loaded into the T-Sub, and is headed for the... yawn... H.I.V.E.!
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Okay, shocker... I loved this! This kind of issue has the perfect... to me... "formula" for making comics. In only 23 pages, we bring several subplots up to speed, and introduce a threat. Everything feels like it's building to something... and actual "pay off", and not just a neat 'n tidy six-issue trade paperback.
Let's take a look here... using our mutant ability of hindsight.
We've got Gar dealing with his emotions... a plot that will bubble along until, one of my personal favorite issues... and perhaps part of the reason this blog exists, Tales of the Teen Titans #55.
Vic's grandparents showing up... which will lead to a pivotal Cyborg story arc in the pages of Tales of... before it becomes a reprints-only mag.
The Terry and Donna Bachelor/Bachelorette Parties... which are obviously leading up to the milestone Tales of the Teen Titans #50.
There's Raven trying to get a better grip on her powers... Joey working his way onto the team... Wally's speed-induced maladies... that English-accent visiting Dayton's. I mean, all of this... and we haven't even touched on the actual cover story yet! I hate using the word "perfect" to describe, well anything.... but this is the format I love my comics in. Probably why so much of my fandom is informed by New Teen Titans and X-Men comics.
Now, let's dig a bit deeper.
I wanna start with... Terra. It could be argued that the Titans are keeping her death "virtuous" in order to protect her family and legacy. Seems silly to keep Wally in the dark about this, but, we'll get to that. Part of me feels like they're keeping this all "mum" because it... I dunno, makes them look bad for allowing a traitor into their midst. Early on in the issue, Vic more or less says just that:
"None of us wanted to talk about Tara. We were all so naive. We believed her because why shouldn't we believe?"
Sure, the Judas Contract changed the dynamic of the Titans... it affected their worldview and forced them to "grow up" a bit. I gotta say, I love the idea of each Titan dealing with the reveal... but not sharing their feelings with each other. It's more powerful this way... it's just a festering ball of doubt and regret... which none of them are equipped to put into words.
I like the idea of Wally being this strange outsider among his friends. That feels very real to me. Right after High School... like literally, two days after graduation, my family moved across country from New York to Arizona.
I didn't get back "home" until about a year later... and, it was at that point that the realization hit me... people's lives actually go on without me! What nerve, right? It was a tremendously tough pill for me to swallow. I didn't have the emotional intelligence or maturity to realize that my friends wouldn't just slip and fall into molten amber awaiting my return.
Wally's reaction to seeing his old friends is similar to the way I felt: "Wanna hear something funny? I felt like a stranger. I'm gone three months and the whole group's different. They sure didn't waste any time replacing me." Definitely a tough pill to swallow... and the kind of uneasiness I still have sometimes, even all these years later.
The pre-Wedding scenes were pretty great, despite my allergy to T. Arthur Long. I said it during the synopsis, but I really dig the idea that Terry and Dick would become pals. I found it a bit funny that he was the only Titan present, but considering the other two fellas are A) green, and B) mostly machine, I guess I understand. There was something about that panel, where Terry and Dick are laughing (included above). For whatever reason, that one panel really drove home what a family these folks have become.
It's funny... if I were to have a single complaint about this issue... it's the cover story! H.I.V.E. is tremendously dull to me... always has been, probably always will be. The idea that the Titans are headed back into battle with them... does nothing for me. Aqualad and Tula... ehhhh, they've just never really been that big of a part of "my era" of Titans, so, I can pretty much take them or leave them.
Overall though... despite my boredom with H.I.V.E., this was a wonderful issue. I find it interesting that this came out around the same time as New Teen Titans (vol.2) #1 (the Baxter Series), and, if you ask me, is head and shoulders above that one in enjoyability. As mentioned above, this issue has been collected... it is also available digitally.
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Baxterrific Letters Page:
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