New Teen Titans #30 (1983)

New Teen Titans #30 (April, 1983)

"Nightmare!"

Writer/Co-Creator - Marv Wolfman

Artist/Co-Creator - George Perez

Inker - Romeo Tanghal

Letterer - Ben Oda

Colorist - Adrienne Roy

Editor - Len Wein

Cover Price: $0.60

Another day, another chapter in The Life and Times of Tara Markov.  Today it's all about teamwork... let's watch and learn.

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We open inside Titans Tower on New Year's Eve with Speedy, Kid Flash and Frances Kane.  They have just taken out the Brotherhood of Evil, and we learn that Phobia had triggered Raven into attacking Wally.  The trio talk, and Wally comes to the conclusion that perhaps it's time for him to step down to being a part-time Titan.  They chat for a moment too long, and the Brotherhood comes to.

Phobia wakes up and forces the teens to face their worst fears, before she and the rest of the Brotherhood take them out... take a lock of Fran's hair... and take their leave.

We shift to a ratty apartment in Brooklyn where Terra had been held against her will by the terrorists.  Gar is less than impressed with the digs, and isn't all that shy about it... he asks Terra why she didn't just use her powers against her captors, and she sidesteps the question... before debuting her new and improved superhero costume.

Terra asks if Gar thinks she's "Titans material", and he's too afflicted with puppy love to notice how pushy she's getting on the subject... instead he's just like... it's not my call, doll.

We join Robin, Starfire and District Attorney Adrian Chase as they enter the television set for Bethany Snow's news program "Snow Storm".  She requested an audience with them, and they cannot help but think they're about to climb right into a spider's web.  Inside, they are taken aback by Snow's change of heart when it comes to the Church of Brother Blood.  She's now opposed to them and terrified for her own safety.

She begins sharing damning photographs of what goes on beyond the walls of the church, when a gunman begins firing into the studio.  Starfire gives chase, but to no avail.  At this point, Snow is frantic, and swears that she'll spill the beans so long as she's protected.

We shift scenes to Cyborg.  He's visiting his "friend" Sarah from the Special School... boy is he surprised when it's not Sarah but her fiance Mark who answers the door.  Vic never knew Sarah was even involved with somebody else, and after a few moments of uncomfortable banter he excuses himself.  As he heads across town he blames himself for misreading Sarah's signals... mistaking her complete acceptance of him as something more.

We briefly return to observe Adrian Chase deliver Bethany Snow safely back to her apartment.  She enters alone, to find a member of Brother Blood's church waiting for her.  Snow smiles, and informs her "sister" that they "bought" it.

Back at the Tower, the Titans assemble.  Speedy shares what had gone down between the Brotherhood and Raven.  Gar gleefully introduces the team to their newest member... Terra.  You can almost feel about a dozen eyes roll at once.  Robin gives her the "you can come along, but don't break anything" treatment... and makes mention of Wonder Girl's absence.

Where oh where can Donna be?  Why, she's getting ready to dine at the famous Rainbow Room with her special friend, Terry Long.  He promises this will be a night to remember, and I can feel the pastrami sandwich I had for lunch rising in my throat.

Next up, Raven.  She is at St. Patrick's Cathedral... which is a strange place for her, indeed.  She is approached by a Priest who offers to help her, even though she refers to herself as "Satan's Daughter".  Their conversation is cut short by the sudden appearance of the Brotherhood of Evil.  Phobia challenges Raven to "take it outside", as fighting in a house of worship is a bridge too far, even for a supervillain team with "Evil" in their name.

Back at the Tower, the Titans are watching the "big ball" descend in Time Square on this New Year's Eve.  Terra and Gar watch as the globe hits the sign... and nothing happens!  Does that mean it's still 1982?

Moments later, Raven's soul-self emerges from the sign... finally illuminating the big 1-9-8-3.  Happy New Year, Titans... hope you survive the yadda yadda yadda.  At that moment, the Brotherhood's hit the streets... amid the thousands of New Yorkers ringing in the new year.  Trouble's a brewin'...

Luckily, the Titans are quickly on the scene.  The battle is pretty even, with both teams getting in some good shots on the other.  It isn't until Frances Kane makes her presence felt, using her magnetic powers to wrap a water pipe around Phobia.

Phobia realizes trying to mess with Kane's mind may not be in her best interests at the moment... and instead heightens the fear levels of several thousand New Yorkers!  Pretty solid escape plan, if I do say so!  The Titans weave their way through the crowd, as Robin begs Starfire not to do anything stupid... I love it!

We wrap up our issue by checking in with Donna and Terry... and it happens... Terry presents Ms. Troy with a diamond, and pops the question.

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It's almost as though I don't need to write reviews for these Titans issues anymore... this was another excellent outing.  Again, so many disparate vignettes woven to perfection.  Everybody's story moves forward... and you'd swear there was more than 23 pages here.

Let's start by discussing Robin, Starfire and the soon-to-be Vigilante.  They're shocked to see that Bethany Snow has changed her tune.  Snow was just such a wonderfully sleazy character around this time.  This ain't the smiling hostess for Channel-52 (remember that?)... instead, this is a cold and manipulative character... even though she's squarely in the Brother Blood camp, you almost feel as though she's got a contingency in place to look after "number one".

The Brotherhood of Evil... ehhh, this incarnation never really did much for me.  Phobia is cool, but the others are kinda just there.  They come across as goofy, and not in that "good" goofy way.  Perhaps it has to do with their target being Raven, who is probably my least favorite Titan during this era.  That's not really a slight... I mean, this roster is stacked... one's gotta be my least favorite!

Cyborg realizing the girl he's been crushing on is engaged was pretty heartbreaking... what's worse, her fiance seems like a pretty cool guy.  Hard to hate a guy like him.  Vic blames himself for misreading the situation... but I gotta wonder, just how much he did.

Speaking of engagements... emphasis on the "gag"... Terry Long pops the question to Donna Troy.  I know my Long-bashing has probably gotten old by this point... but, he really is the worst.  I suppose if I had to say one NICE thing about him... well, at least he's not Danny Chase.  As much as I don't dig Terry, I gotta admit... the wedding story (Tales of the Teen Titans #50) was a wonderful issue.  Definitely a high point in this already excellent series.

Now, the girl of the hour... Terra.  Quite the turnaround here... just a couple of issues back she had to be dragged to Titans Tower, kicking and screaming... and now, she's petitioning for team membership.  This is part of why this era is so incredible... usually, when a team comes across a potential new member, it's the team that initiates the potential draft.  Here, however... it's the exact opposite... the would-be draftee is actively campaigning to be added to the team.  Despite the cover's proclamation, I don't think there was anything official about Terra's inclusion here... which is fine... I like her being more of an "outsider" at this point.  I really like how, outside of Gar, Terra isn't yet privy to the civvies (names).

One question remains... just why is Terra pushing so hard to join up?  What is it about the Titans that makes her want to be one... and why so suddenly?  Don't worry... we'll get there... but, I'm not telling you anything you don't already know...

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New Teen Titans #28 (1983)

New Teen Titans #28 (February, 1983)

"Terra in the Night"

Writer/Co-Creator - Marv Wolfman

Artist/Co-Creator - George Perez
Inker - Romeo Tanghal
Letterer - John Costanza
Colorist - Adrienne Roy
Editor - Len Wein
Cover Price: $0.60

On next week's Cosmic Treadmill segment on the Weird Science DC Comics Podcast, Reggie and I are gonna break down the Judas Contract.  Figure I'd try and work a little sorta-kinda comics-blog-synergy by covering some Terra-centric issues of New Teen Titans. 

So, let's roll on with more of the "Life and Times of Tara Markov".

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We open with Terra fleeing from the Bank of Greater New York with several bags of cash.  No worries though, a flirtatious  Changeling is hot on her trail.  This is really a cute scene... Terra's unflinchingly serious about her caper, while Gar is... for lack of a better term, picking her up.  Just as in her first appearance, Terra claims that she not acting of her own volition.  She expands on that here... if she doesn't commit these crimes, her parents will be killed.

We shift scenes to Brother Blood's Cathedral of Death... it's hard to believe that people ever willingly followed a fella who went by the name "Brother Blood"... it's like getting your prostate checked by a "Doctor Doom".  Inside, Sister Sade, follower and occasional lover of da Brudda envisions herself wrapped in snakes... scaring herself literally to death.  

Another follower gets a bug up his ass and starts shooting up the rest of the crew.  Luckily, a few other followers enter and are able to take him out.  They struggle to wrap their minds around what's brought about this sudden fear attack... and the Brotherhood of Evil present themselves.  What follows is a decent exhibition of powers by the baddies.

We shift scenes to the penthouse apartment of Wonder Girl and Starfire.  Following a rather tasteful Donna Troy in the shower scene, Dick Grayson arrives for his date with Kory.  Donna eludes to the fact that her teammates are perhaps about to get it on, and excuses herself to have her own date with... Terry Long.

Meanwhile, at the Central Park Zoo Terra is still fleeing.  Terra uses her powers and winds up accidentally freeing all of the lions.  Lucky for her, Changeling in the form of an elephant is in the vicinity, and he neutralizes the feline threat.  Amid the distraction, he bops Terra on the head and, taking the form of a large bird, flies off with her.

So much for the afterglow... back at Kory's apartment, Dick is lamenting the fact that reporter Bethany Snow is always on their case.  He even goes so far as to say he'd like to pop her in the nose.  This all plays in with the ongoing Brother Blood plot, and it appears that Dick will check in with the Titans on-again off-again associate Adrian Chase to follow up.

Back at Titans Tower, Raven's meditation is interrupted by one Wallace West.  He's upset that, by all appearances, his buddy Dick's got it all together... if only he could see him now, eh?  They hear a frantic Changeling call for assistance, and hop to attention.  He's brought Terra to the Tower, in hopes that the Titans may help her locate her missing parents.

Terra, feisty thing she is, socks Gar in the gut and attempts to flee.  Wally uses his super speed to make a vortex of air around her head, which robs her of oxygen.  This is a neat way to use his powers, I don't think I've seen it since.  Terra continues to run her mouth as she hits the ground... right at the feet of Cyborg.  

She still ain't done, however... she lets out one final earthy assault, before... unmasking and breaking down.  She shares the story of her parents.  They are heads of a foreign nation, and she also has a brother named Brion.  Hmm, I think there's an Outsider named Brion... with Earth powers... I wonder... Anyhoo, there's a gang who she's supposed to report to in order to keep her folks safe.

We shift scenes (I'm saying that a lot today) to the apartment of our main man... Terry Long.  Donna enters while Terr' is hashing things out with his ex-wife.  Donna, being ya know, a decent person offers to leave.  Terry, being a selfish twit, insists she stay.  Marcia, the ex-wife makes an offhand (but totally accurate) comment about how young Donna is in comparison to her milquetoast former hubby.

We also meet Terry's daughter, Jenny.  She hands her pop a drawing she made of him, which looks almost too good to be him, and inquires about the tall, dark Amazon standing in the living room.  They conclude that Donna is "daddy's friend", and Wondy takes that as her cue to jet.

Next stop, the subway... where the Titans are about to confront the gang threatening Terra's parents.  It's not a terribly long or difficult battle... one of the hoods claims that the parents have been... dead the whole time.  The whole deal ends with Terra using her powers to create a giant earthen fist to crush the baddies.

Gar hops to and gets Terra to cool her jets.  They embrace and she calms down.  The Titans seem to have too many questions to truly celebrate this victory... they all feel (Raven especially) as though something isn't quite right here...

--

Another great issue from THE classic run on the Titans.  Just so many things done right here.  I used to think, coming from my X-Laden adolescence that nobody in comics could do superhero soap-opera better than Chris Claremont.  It wasn't until "discovering" this run that I began to think otherwise.  From the pacing and dialogue, to the dynamic art be it in civvies or spandex... this was such a great time for Titans fans... I lament the fact that I was barely 4-years old when this hit the racks.  Gotta wonder how my "comics upbringing" would have went had I been at the right age for a book like this.

I mentioned "soap opera" just now... and please don't take that as a slight.  I mean it in the best possible way.  Ya see, around the turn of the century, my girlfriend-now-wife introduced me to this wacky thing called Days of Our Lives.  Yeah, yeah, yeah... it's not that it's a great show... (please don't get it twisted, I'm not comparing Titans to Days on a quality basis) but there's a format to it... that is quite similar to the way New Teen Titans is paced.  It's almost completely comprised of vignettes... disparate scenes that advance individual plots, sometimes crossing over with others... sometimes not.  I guess that argument can be made for "most comics", but for whatever reason, I feel it most appropriate here.

Here we bounce from Gar and Terra's story, to Dick and Kory's, to Wally and Raven's, to Donna and... Terry's, before everything comes to a climax.  Masterfully done, none of the characters feel left out... and 23 pages later, you actually feel like progression has occurred.  I know I'm not communicating this as eloquently as a more talented writer would... but, hopefully you get the jist of what I'm trying to get across.

I mentioned yesterday that the Kory-Dick romance was the "one thing" missing from contemporary post-Rebirth Titans... it really didn't take me long to reconsider that!  Changeling is most definitely missing as well... and I know he'll be a TEEN Titan, but he really belongs with the Titans gang.  I'd also say I want Cyborg on the team... but, gotta face facts... at this point, we ain't never getting him back.

The Terra storyline progresses nicely here.  I really enjoy how all the pieces fall perfectly into place... You can tell that this arc was planned out well in advance.  Marv Wolfman himself said that he and George Perez had the Terra plot planned out to completion before even introducing the character.  That's truly amazing... I guess that's just something that could be done before the Internet took over.  These days, they'd spoil the whole thing months in advance.  If I could change one thing here... just one, I'd change the final panel where Raven senses "something" about Terra.  Or, maybe move her thoughts to a different page.  Having the issue end with those thoughts, I dunno, kinda gives something away... to be fair, I'm reading this three decades later... and for the skatey-eight hundredth time... so, it could be just me.

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New Teen Titans #26 (1982)

New Teen Titans #26 (December, 1982)
"Runaways"
Writer & Co-Creator - Marv Wolfman
Artist & Co-Creator - George Perez
Inker - Romeo Tanghal
Letterer - Ben Oda
Colorist - Adrienne Roy
Editor - Len Wein
Cover Price: $0.60

This week's "project", if I may call it that is The Life and Times of Tara Markov.  Going to try and cover some of Terra's bigger moments over her relatively short career.  Today we're going to start... at the start, Ms. Markov's first appearance!

--

We join the Titans as they are returning home from an adventure in space.  Vic and Wally are in the cockpit, and the subject of conversation is the recent revelation that their teammates Dick and Kory are well on their way to becoming an actual romantic "item".

... and so, we shift to Robin (with a broken 'wing') knocking on Kory's door.  Inside, he reveals/clarifies that he's in love with her... and he's not talking as a friend.  He's deeply in love with her... however, he is also deeply confused and conflicted.  Kory appears to be pleased by the news... and promises to wait as long is it takes.

After a brief stop in Turkey, with some swarthy folks transporting "television components"... aka drugs... unsuccessfully (more on them later), we pop in on an apartment in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.  A young boy is talking to... somebody... he's planning on running away to New York to avoid showing his abusive mother all the D's on his report card.

Next stop, da Bronx.  Young Luis is packing his bags in front of his frantic mother and despondent father.  His mom's always bugging him with questions... cuz, you know how moms be... so Luis is pulling an "Anthony" and he's Movin' Out!

Last stop before getting back to the Titans... Skokie, Illinois.  Young, pregnant Lizzie is getting the ol' heavy-ho from her dad.  He tells her to "marry the scum" that knocked her up, and let him take care o' the kid.  He calls her a rotten slut, and tells her to hit the bricks.

We rejoin our young heroes as they arrive at Titans Tower.  Gar is so happy to be home, he literally kisses the ground.  Since they're home, they decide it's probably best to return to their normal lives and responsibilities for a bit.  Vic's gonna check in with his friends at the Special School, Gar's gonna parlay his floor-kissing to girl-kissing, Raven's going to re-enroll in College, and Donna's going to "catch up" with... grumblegrumble... Terry Long.

Later that night, Dick and Kory head out on what would be their first "formal" date.  It is, however, interrupted by the sudden appearance of a certian knife-wielding Minnesotan junkie D-Student... and District Attorney, Adrian (Vigilante) Chase.  The junkie is either on a bad trip or dealing with a horrendous bout of withdrawals... whatever the case, he needs money for another fix.

Since Mr. Chase is the best-dressed man on the scene, the kid heads in his direction.  Adrian easily defends against the blade, however, he didn't plan on getting kneed in the crotch.  The kid runs off... right into the path of an oncoming car... which kills him instantly.

Back at the tower, Gar is getting his butt-kicked while playing Swordquest... gotta wonder which version of Swordquest he was playing... and if he was ever in contention for one of those bad-ass prizes Atari was offering!  Suddenly, an emergency signal hits... something's going down at the Statue of Liberty.  This is where we meet the girl of the hour... Terra.

Gar's arrival allows Terra to demonstrate her powers... she is truly a dangerous threat... but, is she a threat?  She claims that she's been ordered to take Lady Liberty down... and plainly states that it's not something she wants to do.  She continues, begging Logan and the police to back off... so she doesn't have to kill them.  She then flees, while expressing fear that she'll be killed for having failed in her assignment.

We check in with Raven as she's hanging out with some of her classmates.  They all appear to be fascinated by her, and she is uncomfortable from all the attention.  She notices a certain pregnant Illinoisan... and via her empathic nature, feels her pain and hunger.  She introduces herself to Lizzie, and takes her to Vic's apartment for a bite to eat.

Here we learn that she's got this guy... this guy who she gives all her money to.  I don't know why they're skirting around the word "pimp" here, when they're going to use it in a few pages.  Anyhoo, her pimp's name is Howard... and he'd recently been picked up by the police.  We see a man outside the apartment building... watching... waiting... looking very much like a beardless Terry Long... creepy punk.

Vic and Raven take Lizzie to a home for runaways.  Along the way, Vic shares that he'd left home a fair amount during his younger days, and always found a safe place to lay his head at the Center.  Lizzie is introduced to Dr. Raymond, who will give her the once over.  A woman named Ellie brings the Titans into her office, where they run in with... Adrian Chase... who is less than impressed that the "Kiddie Do-Gooders Squad" is on the case... c'mon Ade, why ya gotta be like that?  You give us lip... then ask for help?  Bad form, fella.

Outside the window, young Lerry Tong is listening in... he doesn't hang around all that long... he's apparently got a boat to catch... or stare at through binoculars.  It's the boat of Mr. Scarapelli... presumably, a drug lord.  He's lamenting the fact that the "Turks" snafu'd a shipment worth a quarter of a billion bucks!  Ehhh, no big... they'll just send their stupid runaway kid brigade out to make up for the lost dosh... this sounds quite familiar to the New Titans Drug Awareness issue...

Shortly, due to a glimmer beaming off the binocs, the jig is up.  Lerry runs off while the baddies unload their guns in his relative direction.

At Police Headquarters, the Titans and Chase confab over the recent bout of runaway madness.  Adrian makes mention of being tired of "laws"... he'd rather worry about what's "right" than what's "legal".  This instantly makes Robin think of his pointy-eared mentor.

The Titans leave HQ, and head back to Vic's apartment to reconnoiter... boy are they surprised to find what appears to be Terry Long, face down in a pool of his own blood!  Okay, we all know it's not Terry... it's the boat-watching boy from before.  Maybe he wasn't as much of a creep as I thought!  Needless to say, this is... [to be continued...]

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This is such a great era for the Titans.  Here we have a PSA-style story, and it's still a hell of a good book.  It's stories like this that make those Drug Awareness issues not feel out of place, lack of Robin notwithstanding.  The Titans are a great fit for these relatively low-key street-level bits... no matter how cliche they may be.

Dick and Kory finally coming around to their true feelings was great to see.  This relationship may just be the one thing missing from the post-Rebirth Titans.  Even though in the recent Starfire ongoing series they made mention of it... I still miss it being a "thing".  It's always amusing to me that Starfire actually has a "civilian identity"... I mean, how many 6-foot-plus golden-skinned women with hair to the floor are walking around New York City?

It was neat seeing an Adrian Chase cameo.  I always like it when creators "world build", and watching Wolfman build his is a lot of fun.  Weaving these folks together, at least for me, makes things seem more important... and not nearly as gratuitous as it feels these days.

Let's move on and discuss Terra for a bit, shall we?  This is her first appearance... and I gotta admit, if I were reading this at the time... I'd have bet good money that she'd be our next Teen Titan.  Here we have a young girl acting against her will... actually begging the police and Gar off... pleading with them not to make her harm them.  Of course she's gonna be a Titan!  It's only a matter of time... right?

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