Posted by Darren in Comics
Oh the hippie, dippy, trippy, late sixties gave way to the love, peace, flower child which traveled through the remainder of America’s struggling civil rights adolescence. While America had passed a civil rights bill, their first Catholic President was assassinated. While desegregation moved forward more violence against African Americans continued in the social holdouts of racism. When some college students followed the Hippie life and dropped out, they became icons of a social war as the younger generation told the older generation, stop sending us to die in your wars. Young men burned draft cards and ran to Canada to avoid the death machine that was Vietnam. A later President would soon be exposed to be criminally implicated in campaign tampering and would resign in disgrace. No one over 30 would ever be trusted again.
It is in this backdrop that the Teen Titans are created.
While Robin, Speedy, Kid Flash, Wonder Girl, and Aqualad had existed for a while now, they had rarely teamed up. In fact, Wonder Girl’s admission is an editorial flub as when she first appeared she was a younger version of Wonder Woman, not a separate character. Eventually, to make the two characters completely distinguishable, Wonder Girl a.k.a. Donna More >
Posted by Darren in Comics
There comes a time in comics when socially relevant stories will creep into what many people consider “funny books.” The most notable of these from the DC Comics stable is from the title Green Lantern/Green Arrow by Denny O’Neil as writer and Neal Adams on art duties.
Well, Batman has Robin right? If Green Arrow is an analogue of Batman, it would follow that he would have a sidekick as well, yes? In fact, our entire conversation tonight is about the original five sidekicks and the character that ties the new story in New Teen Titans with the past is this character, Speedy.
Roy Harper became Green Arrow’s sidekick ages ago and is almost as old as Robin is in DC lore. Eventually all the sidekicks at the time would team up in Brave and the Bold for adventures. Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad at first, then joined by Wonder Girl, and finally Speedy joined the Terrific Teens in this issue below..
The issue of Green Lantern/Green Arrow was published in 1971, a year that has already seen the civil rights movement be fairly victorious, woodstock has happened, hippies are all over the place and not just in Haight-Ashbury, yet Dr. Frederick Wertham and the self-imposed regulatory committee of More >
Posted by Darren in Comics
In the Super Friends days Superman and Batman are best buddies. Calling each other “chum” and going off on adventures together in comics as well as cartoons. This complete and utter friendship upon reflection… really does not make a whole lot of sense.
The two men are opposites in almost every conceivable way.
Superman gets his powers from the sunlight. Batman works at night as urban myth. Superman instills hope. Batman instills fear. Superman is invulnerable. Batman is completely human.
However, there are some similarities between the two men.
Both lost their parents. Clark was too young to know his real parents and had a surrogate family growing up. Bruce saw his father and mother gunned down in front of him in Crime Alley. Both have very strong senses about right and wrong. Clark’s was instilled by his midwestern upbringing and Bruce’s instilled by his father’s example and his desire to make sure what happened to him never happens to another child.
Superman will do anything to protect his friends and so would Batman. Their methods however do not always compliment each other. Superman favors “by the book” actions, while Batman is not afraid to dangle a crook over a ledge to get some information. Superman frequently jumps in More >
Posted by Darren in Comics
I breezed over the first few issues that I collected of the New Teen Titans primarily because they seemed to be mostly filler issues. We did get the introduction of recurring character Frances Kane, the return of the Russian Red Star—formerly called Starfire, and the appearance of a DC villain of some importance named Dr. Light.
All that was well and good, but now we come to some really good stuff with the Titans, in fact two of their most insidious villains. Brother Blood and Blackfire.
Wow, a preview of a new series called Night Force! Wonder what that’s all about huh?
Brother Blood is a charismatic religious cult leader of the Church of Blood while Blackfire happens to be Starfire’s older sister Komand’r on Tamaran.
Our story opens when Cyborg gets a call from his ex-girlfriend.. a girl who left him due to his disfiguring accident. She is scared, but unable to talk. Vic’s girlfriend has gotten herself roped into the Church of Blood and has realized how very wrong it is. Marcy is eventually found dead. Robin does his homework and finds out the connection between Marcy and the Church of Blood and the Titans decide to infiltrate the Church to see what they can discover.
Robin, Wonder Girl, Kid More >
Posted by Darren in Comics
Well, here we are back in the New Teen Titans world for a little bit.
We’re going to buzz through New Teen Titans #18-20. Keep in mind we’re in 1982.
In New Teen Titans #18, a Russian woman is infected with a disease that could infect and kill millions. Her boyfriend is the Russian hero named Starfire, who after this story is rechristened Red Star. Red Star is Leonid Kovar and he becomes an on again off again supporting player for the Titans. He appeared first in the original run of Teen Titans.
Wait. What did I say just then?
“the original run of the Teen Titans.”
Well that makes sense right, if these are the “NEW” Teen Titans then there must have been an original set of Titans right? Well there were an original set of Titans and we’ll be covering them soon.
Needless to say, Leonid is trying to help his girlfriend and misunderstanding runs amok, especially as Leonid and Kid Flash have a large ideological difference. Imagine sitting down Reagan and Lenin, and expecting them to play nice…and frankly in 1982, no American seemed to have a pleasant view of the U.S.S.R. or at least was not that brave to publicly voice it.
Unfortunately, despite all the best efforts Raven’s More >
Posted by Darren in Comics
So, the question posted last time was, “Where was Robin?” Well, I wondered that and I paid my local Magik Market a visit and found this on the shiny comic book spinner rack.
Well, you can clearly see Robin’s costume on the left side of this cover, so I figured this would explain were Robin was, it did that and so much more. This is issue #17 of the New Teen Titans, written by Marv Wolfman and drawn by George Perez. So, let’s run down the characters inside this comic really quickly.
First off, Robin, the Boy Wonder is the team’s leader and he certainly is the same protegee of the Batman as most pop culture has noted. Dick Grayson was a member of the Flying Graysons, and he worked in the Haley Circus. Due to a Protection Racket gone wrong the Flying Graysons, save Dick, were sent to their deaths by unpaid mobsters. Bruce took Dick under his wing as his ward and he began to train as Batman’s protegee.
In the present, Robin seems to be struggling just a bit with his relationship with Batman and how to get out from the Bat-shadow. Dick is the leader of the Titans and More >
