Contains New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #16-23, Omega Men #34 (January – August 1986)
Written by Todd Klein (Omega Men #34), Marv Wolfman (New Teen Titans #16-23)
Pencilled by Rich Buckler (Omega Men #34), Chuck Patton (New Teen Titans #16), Dick Giordano (New Teen Titans #16), Eduardo Barretto (New Teen Titans #17-23), Rick Leonardi (#22), Tom Mandrake (#22)
Inked by Pablo Marcos (Omega Men #34), Romeo Tanghal (New Teen Titans #16-23), Dick Giordano (New Teen Titans #16), Pablo Marcos (#21), Tom Mandrake (#22)
Coloured by Carl Gafford (Omega Men #34), Adrienne Roy (New Teen Titans #16-23)
Spoilers from thirty-six years ago
The last trade in this series was a little unsatisfying, in that it didn’t really work as a trade. It had the Titans’ foray into the world of the Crisis on Infinite Earths, and dealt with the team splintering. They didn’t break up, but Nightwing and Jericho went with Starfire to Tamaran, while Changeling dealt with family drama, and Cyborg’s mostly imagined relationship came to a clear ending.
Basically, what made this book so successful in the 80s is what doesn’t make it work as a series of trades today. The stories weren’t written for collection the way today’s comics are, so Marv Wolfman just continued a whole bunch of plotlines, and worked at a much larger and grander story. I’m fine with that, especially when I’m able to read the next volume pretty soon after.
So, let’s see if things tighten up a little more with this one, which starts with an issue of Omega Men that’s relevant to Kory’s story. This intrigues me, because this is one of those series I’ve often wondered if I should go back and acquire.
This book features the following characters:
Teen Titans:
- Starfire (K’oriandr; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-19, 22-23)
- Nightwing (Dick Grayson; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-19, 21-22)
- Jericho (Joseph Wilson; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-18, 22)
- Wonder Girl (Donna Troy; #18-21)
- Cyborg (Vic Stone; #18-19, 22)
- Changeling (Garfield Logan; #18-19, 22)
- Raven (#18, 21-22)
- Hawk (Hank Hall; #19-21)
- Speedy (Roy Harper; #19-21)
- Aqualad (Garth; #19-21)
- Flash (Wally West; #19-21)
- Robin (Jason Todd; #19-21)
Villains:
- Auron (Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16)
- Blackfire (Komand’r; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-18, 22-23)
- Turan (Blackfire’s soldier; #16)
- Dor’ion (Blackfire’s lover; #16)
- Mother Mayhem (Church of Blood; #18, 21-22)
- Mento (Steve Dayton; #18-19, 22)
- Cheshire (Jade; #20-21)
- Wen Ch’ang (#20-21)
- The Confessor (Church of Blood; #22)
Guest Stars
- Primus/Artin (Omega Men; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16, 22)
- Elu (Omega Men; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16)
- Green Man (Omega Men; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16)
- Kalista (Omega Men; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16)
- Ynda (Omega Men; Omega Men #34)
- Harpis (Omega Men; Omega Men #34)
- Tigorr (Omega Men; Omega Men #34)
- Oho-Besh (Omega Men; Omega Men #34)
- Alfred Pennyworth (#18)
- Batman (Bruce Wayne; #18)
- Robin (Jason Todd; #18)
- King Faraday (#20-21)
- John Constantine (#22)
Supporting Characters:
- Ryand’r (Omega Men; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-19, 22-23)
- Captain Karras (Tamaranean; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-19, 22-23)
- Myand’r (Koriand’r’s father; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #17-19, 22-23)
- Luand’r (Koriand’r’s mother; Omega Men #34, New Teen Titans #16-19, 23)
- Tariya (Tamaranean; #16-17)
- Terry Long (Donna’s husband; #18-19, 21)
- Arella (Raven’s mother; #18, 21-22)
- Azrael (#18, 21-22)
- Jenny Long (Donna’s stepdaughter; #18)
- Dr. Jenet Klyburn (STAR Labs; #19)
- Dr. Sarah Charles (STAR Labs; #19)
- Sarah Simms (Vic’s friend; #19)
- Gary Sellers (Sarah’s boyfriend; #19)
- Tucker Stone (Vic’s grandfather; #19)
- Maude Stone (Vic’s grandmother; #19)
- Bethany Snow (reporter; #21)
- Lian Harper (Speedy’s daughter; #21)
- Frances Kane (#21)
- Adeline Wilson (Searchers, Inc; #22)
Let’s see what happened in the comics, with some commentary as I go:
- The first chapter in this volume is an issue of Omega Men. The team (Primus, who is also host to an AI named Artin, Ryand’r, Elu, Green Man, Ynda, and Kalista) are on their ship when they are visited by Auron, a former member who is now working for Blackfire. He tells them that X’hal, their goddess, is going to destroy the entire Vegan system. He burns Ynda on the leg. On Tamaran, Koriand’r, Dick, and Joseph are still reacting to the news that Kory is expected to marry Captain Karras. Auron appears to them, telling them that his mother, X’hal, is coming to see them soon, but also warning that the Omega Men have had their minds altered by the Psions, and that they are now enemies. In space, the Omegans react to the visit with chaos. Their ship is out of control, and it looks like it’s about to crash into Tamaran. Kory flies up to try to help, with Dick and Joe following on horse-like things. Elu is able to put Primus back in charge of his shared body, while Ryand’r fears that he’s killed Ynda. Kory helps to slow the ship’s descent, and it comes down in the courtyard of a temple. Ryan comes out of the ship to meet his sister, and as the king and queen arrives, Primus warns them of Auron. We see that Blackfire is behind all the suspicion being sown. Later, Ryan introduces the rest of the team to his family, and Kory tells him about her impending marriage. Later again, Myand’r announces Kory’s impending wedding, but the event is marred by the return of Auron, who is upset that the Omega Men are in the throne room. The Omegans prepare to fight him, and Kory asks her friends to step in to stop them.
- Auron is able to amplify everyone’s emotions, and soon the Omega Men are fighting the three Titans, all of which is being watched remotely by Blackfire, who is reveling in it. Kalista has the ability to cast illusions, and she makes Joseph think his father is there and wanting to reconcile with him. He figures out that it’s not real because Deathstroke knows he can’t speak. Kory and her brother fight, until Joey tells her to stop. He enters Kalista’s mind and together they figure out what’s happening. They stop Primus from hurting Kory, and then turn Kalista’s powers on Auron himself. He sees his mother, the goddess X’hal, and his influence lifts off the others. Primus and Kory blast him, and it gives him a moment of clarity where he realizes that Blackfire has been lying to him. We learn that the Omegans are trying to find X’hal, after she tried to destroy a number of worlds, and that they now suspect that someone else was controlling Auron. Dick walks off, and Kory goes to talk to him. He’s upset that she is expected to marry Karras, in that instead of fighting for their love, she is just giving in to her father’s demands. Kory tries to make it clear that the marriage won’t change their relationship, and that she’ll come back to Earth with him, but I guess he’s traditional, because he gives her an ultimatum, and when she doesn’t respond as he wants, walks off on her. She gets mad, and then flies around. Later, she goes to talk to Joey, but their one-sided conversation is interrupted by the Omega Men, who are leaving. Ryand’r says he’s staying to talk to Kory. Elsewhere on Tamaran, Blackfire addresses her followers, stirring them up. Kory sleeps, and Ryan talks to Joey. As they walk around, they find Dick, who gives him an earful about his culture. Ryan points out that he’s being a bit of his namesake, and judging their world, and Joey convinces Dick to come for a tour of the planet with them. Blackfire leads her troops on a march to the capital, and talks to her dead lover, Dor’ion, in her head. Kory walks through the palace and finds Karras and his lover, Taryia, and realizes that he’s in the same position that she is. She interrupts them and promises to not come between them (other than the marriage, that is). As Ryand’r flies the two other Titans around in an aircar, they come across Blackfire’s troops. She shoots their ship down, having not recognized them right away. They hide in a forest, and try to make their way to the closest town while Blackfire’s people chase them. Kory gets dressed for her wedding, and her mother comes in to give her some advice about arranged marriages. Kory’s most upset that Dick is not there. Blackfire’s people catch up to our heroes, and take them all prisoner. There is a page that shows both Kory and Blackfire approaching the Temple of X’hal, for different, but parallel, reasons.
- Issue sixteen had a backup story that showed how Komand’r survived her fall into a river the last time we saw her fighting Starfire. She was blinded, but Dor’ion was with her, and he took time to train her to manage without her eyesight (I think she must have regained her sight at some point, based on the lead story). She learned to fight and use her other senses to get around, but couldn’t tap into the powers that Dor’ion knew she had. One night she woke up on the ground (they’ve been living in the woods this whole time) to sounds of struggle. She heard attackers behind her and opened fire with her energy, striking Dor’ion, who staged the whole thing to encourage her. He died telling her to be strong for their shared cause.
- Blackfire resumes marching on Tamarus, the capital of Tamaran, with Dick, Joey, and Ryand’r trussed up in such a way that they can’t move, and Joey can’t make eye contact with anyone. Komand’r argues with Ryand’r about what she’s doing, and proves to him that the people following her really believe in her vision for the planet. He gets free, and they fight briefly. Dick acts as a relay so that Joey can take over one of their guards, and free him and Dick. They grab one of the flying cars to escape. Ryand’r drops Komand’r to the ground and jumps into the vessel with his friends, hoping to warn his father of this coup plot. Komand’r gives a speech to her followers, urging them to head to Tamarus. In the capital, Koriand’r’s wedding is about to begin. Kory talks to Karras about how neither of them want the marriage, but they are both willing to go through with it for their world. Dick urges Ryan to hurry up, and Ryan figures that he is more concerned with delaying the wedding than saving the monarchy. As our heroes rush into the temple, they realize that the ceremony is already under way, and stand around to watch. Kory hopes that Dick will say something to interrupt it, and is hurt when he doesn’t do anything. Dick, meanwhile, thinks it’s already too late and so does nothing. The bride and groom are raised up on a dais, and undergo some kind of ritual that bonds their souls. It looks like they become one person for a bit, and when they separate again, they are married. Dick just wants to leave, but that’s when he sees that Komand’r has already arrived. Both he and Joey get shot, and then the rebels attack. Blackfire moves her troops into the city, and fighting breaks out. Kory goes to fight, while some of Blackfire’s people come to arrest the king and queen. Karras is shot, but not badly. Some of Komand’r’s other soldiers take over the communications hall, and the ruling council. They set up a machine connected to the local power plant. Kory realizes it’s her sister in charge of this attack, and they begin to fight. Komand’r offers to let her rule with her, but Kory fights back instead. Komand’r tells her that she’s got a bomb hidden in the city, and unless the king abdicates, she’ll destroy everything. The royal family stands around while she talks, and are joined by Karras and Dick. Myand’r walks out onto a balcony with his family and gives a speech to the people below, offering them their choice of leader. They start chanting Komand’r’s name, and she promises to “make Tamaran great again” (she actually says a variation of this three times in this issue, and while it’s not something that anyone would have paid attention to when it came out, it reads differently now). We see that the people are calling for Komand’r because gunmen are forcing them to – when one man objects, he’s beaten. Komand’r takes the royal family in a shuttle to a mothership in orbit. She talks about her childhood and says she wants the royals taken to Okaara. This interaction is broadcast, and it makes Dick, who is with Joey and Karras, very angry. Blackfire teleports back to the surface, and prepares another broadcast. She addresses the world, and talks about restoring the ‘greatness’ of the planet, promising to return to the warrior spirit of her world. She claims that her family wants to go to Okaara for training so they can become warriors again, and gaslights the planet. One of the guards on the ship admits that Komand’r is lying, and is restrained. Dick, Joey, and Karras are imprisoned together, and watch the ship carrying the royal family on a screen. Komand’r presses a button, and the ship explodes.
- Dick, Karras, and Joseph react to the ship exploding, believing that the royal family is dead. Blackfire comes to gloat, and the whole thing kind of breaks Dick. Just after Komand’r leaves, a guard comes and opens the door to the cell, explaining that the royal family is still alive, and that he’s still loyal to Meand’r. He helps them escape the cell, and insists on the killing of any guards they find to keep their leaving a secret. He delivers them to a planet-hopper, and as the ship departs, the guard is shot dead. Another craft takes the royal family to Okaara. It seems that the Okaaran who was on the previous ship discovered the explosive device, and got the Tamaranean royals to a smaller ship. Once on Okaara, Koriand’r and Ryand’r pledge to return to fight. An Okaaran tells them that another ship is coming and they need to meet it. Kory is happy to learn that her husband, boyfriend, and friend are all safe. The men are transported to Kory’s ship, but decorum insists that Kory only greet Karras, which hurts Dick. For a few weeks, Kory and Karras are trained by the Okaarans, and learn to fight as a single unit. There is also a celebration of Dick’s birthday. Finally, Dick decides that he should head home. He goes to talk to Kory, and ends up blowing up at her, angry not just because she’s married, but (basically) because her ways are alien to him. He storms out on her while she keeps yelling that she loves him. Dick and Joey depart on a cruiser, and while Karras consoles Kory on Okaara, Dick stays angry. Back on Earth, Wonder Girl, Cyborg, and Changeling meet on Titan’s Island (Terry Long is there too). Their headquarters is finally rebuilt, and they’re reeling from the events of the Crisis, and the number of heroes that were killed. Vic is especially upset that Kole died, and is also resentful that he thinks Joey and Dick are lounging on a paradise planet. Vic and Gar want to go looking for Steve Dayton (who, when we last saw him, was being driven mad by his Mento helmet, not counting a lucid appearance in Crisis). Donna wants to help them, but has to go help Terry write a paper for his university (this is a very lame excuse). Gar shares that he’s fed up, and is thinking that the Titans aren’t really a team anymore. In Massachusetts, Mother Mayhem checks in on her prisoners (Raven and Arella), and then chats with Azrael, who still questions if he’s really an angel (he’s not). Ryand’r lets Dick and Joey know that they’re approaching Earth, and Dick is rude to him. We see he’s stopped shaving. Donna and Terry have been hanging out with Terry’s daughter Jenny (instead of working on this important paper), and are surprised to see Joseph. He updates Donna on what’s happened, and then she tells him about the Crisis. His mother’s already told him about Kole, and we know he’s sad, but Donna can’t figure out what to do. Joey insists she go check on Dick, and Terry whines about having to get Joey to help him write his paper (I mean, who is the professor here?). Dick is a jerk to Donna, but she refuses to abandon him. Vic and Gar have finally tracked down Dayton – he’s sitting in a warehouse repeating a riddle about John Constantine. They debate going to get Donna, but decide they should act on their own. Dick shows up at Wayne Manor, where he’s rude to Alfred, and then feels hurt that Batman prioritizes going out with Robin to rescue a young boy rather than attend to his feelings. Vic and Gar burst into Dayton’s lair, and he attacks them (this is maybe not the right way to approach a situation like this). He yells at Vic to give up, and then Vic collapses.
- Cyborg tries to rally the strength to fight back against Mento, but collapses. Gar tries to get through to his father while fighting him, but Dayton shows him nightmarish visions of the Doom Patrol that have been haunting him. Dayton prepares to kill Gar, but Vic manages to blast him from behind. Gar runs to his friend, and doesn’t see Mento escape somehow. He carries Vic to STAR Labs, where he finds Dr. Klyburn. She rushes to get him to surgery, concerned that his system is not able to maintain its connection with his cyborg parts. Sarah Charles also arrives to help. Gar worries that Vic could die, and that could be the end of the Titans. Donna tries to talk to Dick, who is pretty terrible to her. He tries to bring up the fact that he believes Raven and her mother were kidnapped by Brother Blood’s people, and throws the fact that Donna didn’t investigate in her face. He basically blames her for Raven’s fate, whatever might happen to Vic and Gar, and even for Kole’s death, saying that it was more important to her to help her husband write his paper. Donna ends up hitting Dick right through a wall, but he keeps lashing out at her. He says he’s going to go look for Raven on his own, and once he’s in the park and changed into his Nightwing gear, he starts to recognize that he was unfair, but just focuses on his mission. Terry is in a meeting with his superior when he gets a call from Donna. He relays to her that STAR Labs called. His boss talks to him about the fact that his paper is three years overdue (!!!) and that he might lose tenure. Terry is worried that Donna will think poorly of him (so, his wife was in high school when he started working on a single research paper, and it’s still not done? I really hate Terry). Donna arrives at STAR where Gar fills him in. Sarah Charles mentions that Vic mumbled the phone number she used to find Donna (I’m not sure why Gar couldn’t have called anyone), but Sarah doesn’t like the attitude that Donna gives her in return. Klyburn explains that Vic’s mechanical parts are putting too much strain on his body, but she hopes she can fix things using Promethium (which is what is making Mento go crazy, not that Gar notices that). Klyburn makes it clear that if this surgery she’s planning doesn’t go well, that could be the end of Vic. Donna and Gar go for a walk in the park, and Donna asks if she’s been a terrible leader. Gar is serious for once (Donna made a cutting remark before about him joking too much, and it hurt his feelings) and tries to help her see how people view her. They come across the kids from Sarah Simms’s school, and then meet Sarah and Gary. Donna tells them that Vic is in rough shape, scaring the kids. Sarah heads to STAR to see him, and meets the other Sarah. They discuss the fact that Sarah Charles has feelings for Vic, and would like to be in a relationship with him, which Sarah Simms supports. Nightwing slips into one of Brother Blood’s churches, and starts looking through the files on a computer. He’s found by two guards who he gets into a fight with. He messes up trying to get away from them, and corners himself. He manages to get out of the building, but recognizes that he’s messing up as much as Donna is. On Tamaran, Kory’s training isn’t going all that well, because she can’t really concentrate. Karras knows she’s thinking about Earth, and an Okaaran kind of chews her out for it. She and Karras go to their room, and Kory says she wants to connect with him more, so they have sex. Vic’s surgery begins, with Gar, Donna, and Vic’s grandparents watching from an observation room. It’s clearly not going well, and everyone is tense. Gar thinks it’s time for the Titans to call it quits, and Donna decides she needs to leave the room. On the way out, Klyburn gives her a thumbs up, so she knows the surgery went well. Donna goes to Titans’ Tower, which now stands empty. She answers the phone, and King Faraday tells her that the government needs the Titans for a mission. She tells him she’ll get back to him. A little later, she talks to her team, thanking them for coming, but we see she’s brought back the original Titans – Dove, Speedy, Aqualad, Flash (it’s Wally, but he’s just taken on the Flash mantle), and Robin (Jason Todd).
- Issue twenty opens in Kwazulu, an independent breakaway nation within the borders of apartheid South Africa. Cheshire has been hired to kill the director of the country’s Black African League, and leave behind clues to make it look like he’s working with a Soviet spy network (when did comics become so political?). She takes three hundred dollars out of the $10 000 she leaves in his pocket and leaves. When she meets with her employer, a white South African, she accepts her payment but says that it’s over by three hundred, and hands him a stack of cash. After she drives away, she calls a security company to report on the guy, explaining that the money he has matches the numbers on the bills on the dead body. She drives to connect with Wen Ch’ang, who is cavorting with some local women. Cheshire doesn’t like him calling her Jade, which he does when she says they’re going to Switzerland to find the father of her child. Donna meets with her new team of Titans, explaining that the government wants the team to provide security for a secret meeting between American and Soviet ambassadors. Faraday knows that there have been threats made, and wants the team on hand. Hawk is all for it, although he’d rather “kill commies” than protect them. Flash worries that it’s too political, and Speedy wonders why they were chosen. Donna reveals that Cheshire has been hired to stop the meeting by some Soviet radicals. Robin feels lucky to be involved, and Aqualad, who is clearly depressed, just agrees to go. The team loads into their plane, and Donna starts asking Jason for his thoughts on her leadership. She’s so distracted, she almost flies into the World Trade Center (that scene hits differently now). They arrive in Switzerland, at a chalet village that’s been emptied of tourists and staff. Flash runs a quick reconnaissance, and Roy uses a camera arrow to check as well. They head into a chalet despite assuming Cheshire is around, and hang out. Donna mentions to some of the others that she’s worried that Garth isn’t up to the job. Donna marinates in her self-doubts, and doesn’t notice that someone is planting a bomb nearby. Garth stares at the fire and thinks of the recently killed Tula, but then notices some sounds outside. Wally races out to check, and finds Cheshire and a group of men. Some other guys are planting another bomb in the distance. Wally, who does not have the same speed he had before the Crisis (but is no longer dying from using it), so has to be careful of the bullets flying at him. Cheshire uses a computerized rifle to follow some kind of heat-seeking mini-missile at Wally. It catches him in the shoulder and drops him. Cheshire says something about a bomb, so Donna clears the chalet just as it explodes. The team is mostly fine, but Garth and Roy are stunned. Jason is about to attack her, but Hank gets in the way, and starts fighting some of Cheshire’s men. Jason and Cheshire fight briefly, before Donna ropes her. Hank is going to shoot one of the henchmen, so Donna has to stop him, and they fight briefly, and argue some more. Donna ends up pinning Hank against a wall and keeps hitting him, until Jason pulls her back. Jason is shocked when Donna puts him in charge and walks away. He chases her and tells her that she’s treating him like he’s Dick, and giving him too much responsibility. Donna starts to cry and asks for forgiveness. While all this is going on, I guess Cheshire is just standing around. She stops her men from killing the other Titans, and tells Wally, who is hurt, that she’s going to kill one of the ambassadors the next day, and wants him to tell the others that, “Cheshire remembers.” The next morning, the team talks about things, and again debate killing. Donna tells Wally to stay behind to heal while the rest of them get in a cable car to go up the mountain where the meeting is happening. Apparently it’s too high to fly to by helicopter, so it’s seen as a safe place to meet. King Faraday meets the team, annoyed that they are late (I’m not sure where all the ambassadors were before this). Jason and Roy head into a nearby tunnel to warm up (Jason is on top of a mountain in his green speedo). Jason tells Roy that he’s been watching him, and can tell he’s hiding something. This is when Cheshire and some of her men arrive, having used a jet cable thing to come up the mountain. Cheshire takes Jason out first so she can talk to Roy. It’s clear that they had a relationship when he was undercover, and that he is the father of her child (does he know this?). She pulls out a gun and plans to kill him.
- Roy and Cheshire talk some more, as Roy explains that he didn’t turn Cheshire (whom he calls Jade) in, but saw that they needed to get away from one another. It’s clear now that he never knew she was pregnant. She still wants to kill him though, so Robin jumps in, giving Roy the distraction he needed to gain the upper hand for a moment. Cheshire slashes him with her nails though, calling him the only weakness in her life. She tells him to stay inside while she goes about her business, so she won’t kill him. Roy, of course, won’t give up. The rest of the Titans continue their fight with Cheshire’s men. Donna is upset when Hawk tosses a guy off the mountain, and she leaps into the air to try to save him. Donna doesn’t really fly though, she can only glide on the air, and since the wind is so strong, it’s a struggle to control her movements. Cheshire slips past the other Titans, but Roy is following her. Donna catches up to the falling guy, but isn’t able to snag a strong rock outcrop with her lasso, so they keep falling. Cheshire throws a grenade into the room where the ambassadors are meeting, and Garth dives into the room to get it. Roy hits Jade in the chest with an arrow. She tells him again that things aren’t what they seem, and slashes him with poison that causes him a lot of pain. She hooks her rocket thing to the cable lines to fly down the mountain. Garth tosses the grenade, but since it doesn’t explode, they decide it’s a fake. Donna manages to snag some cables with her lasso, and she and the hired gun start sliding down the mountain. Roy, who is recovering quickly from the poison, has figured out that Cheshire wasn’t trying to kill the ambassadors, and didn’t poison him. King Faraday explains that they’ve been set up – he didn’t have clearance to bring the Titans to the meeting, and the Soviet ambassador is very upset about it. Flash is walking around the chalet village, feeling sorry for himself when he sees Cheshire trying to get Roy’s arrow out of her chest. He attacks her, and is about to take her into custody when Mother Mayhem shows up with some Church of Blood soldiers. Mother blasts Flash, and asks Cheshire to report. They leave with Cheshire, and we learn that it was the Church that hired her to make sure that the Soviet Union and America don’t come to a peace agreement. Donna finds Wally lying in the snow, and dragging her prisoner behind, rushes him somewhere just as the other Titans arrive. We see that various news broadcasters are reporting on the Titans’ unsanctioned involvement in the peace talks, with Bethany Snow doing her best impression of a Fox News reporter. The Titans return to New York, and see protestors across from their island. In Zandia, Azrael talks to Mother Mayhem about his destiny. In the Church’s prison cells, Raven embraces Arella, promising her peace, but it’s creepy somehow. While this is going on, Dick is infiltrating the Church, using a device to mask his heartbeat. Mother’s people pick up on his presence anyway, and she allows him to proceed. The Titans stand around the tower, while Donna tries to find Terry on the phone (it’s weird she’s not checking in on Vic). Roy leaves to take care of some business. Donna wants to go see Terry at his office, but first wants to have a talk with Hank. At the college, Terry’s boss lets him go for not having finished the paper he’s already had extended multiple times. As Terry leaves, a number of female students flirt with him (why?), and he decides it’s Donna’s fault that he didn’t write his paper (I really hate this guy). Donna arrives looking for him, and his secretary lets her know what happened. Donna rushes to their home, but Terry isn’t there (she’s blaming herself). We see him standing on a dock. Roy has arrived in Hong Kong, and is heading for Jade’s home. He finds her with Wen Ch’ang, and kind of apologizes. She takes him to meet his infant daughter, Lian, who has red hair like him. Dick makes his way to the bottom of the Church, and takes out the guard outside Raven’s cell. He opens the door and speaks to Arella. Raven seems strange, and when Dick gets a look at her, he reacts with horror. At the same time, Mother Mayhem is watching this on a monitor, and says something about “resurrection day” coming. Donna is out with Wally and Frances Kane, and when she returns home, Terry is waiting. He’s been gone for three days, but he explains he had to go look at the ocean for a while and think. He makes it clear that he doesn’t blame Donna for being fired anymore – he admits that he had writers block for a year before he even met her, and that his not finishing things is part of what ruined his first marriage. He thinks about other possible jobs he could do, and asks for forgiveness. They embrace.
- Issue twenty-two is split into three stories, with a framing sequence. Jericho is staying at his mom’s house (and still wearing his costume. He helps her practice her skeet shooting, but doesn’t want to shoot for himself. It’s clear that the disbanding of the Titans has made things hard on him. Dick reacts poorly to how much Raven has changed, looking older and dressed in white. She talks about being a new person, free from Trigon’s evil, and wants to take Dick’s pain away. Arella insists that Dick not touch her, and claims she’s brainwashed. That’s when Mother Mayhem and some guards arrive. Dick tries to fight but is overwhelmed and taken prisoner. Raven walks with Mother, and it’s clear to us that she’s working with her. Mother talks about how she’s had Dick prisoner twice before, and they’ve altered his mind, which is why he’s been so angry and confused lately. Mother wants Raven to help her make Dick part of the church. A man called the Confessor enters and attaches a gas mask to Dick’s face, which he uses to help take control of Dick. Later, as Raven sits over the unconscious Dick, Mother leads Arella to the cathedral where she talks about how Azrael will help restore Brother Blood. Arella knows that Azrael is an alien, but Mother says it doesn’t matter because their believers believe he’s an angel. Arella sees Dick among the people praying.
- Starfire’s chapter (drawn by Rick Leonardi) is split in two, with Blackfire giving her perspective on half the page, and Kory giving hers on the other. As Kory continues to train on Okaara, Komand’r watches as two men compete to be her general. She gives them both leadership roles, and then learns that her family is alive. Komand’r calls on Kory over viewscreen, and shows her that she’s destroyed an empty city, and will start killing people if Kory doesn’t return home. Komand’r tells her people that the royal family is behind the destruction of the newly built city, and then tries to solve some administrative issues. Primus calls her, and says that he’s not sure he wants to join an alliance with Tamaran. Kory and her group of Tamaraneans prepare to leave Okaara to fight; Kory is starting to question if her father can lead, especially since he’s decided to sit out the fight. Komand’r is upset that her family is spoiling her plans, but also genuinely believes she’s a good leader. Kory’s people attack, and while she makes it clear they are only to kill people who fight them, she worries that she’s brought war to her planet. This story ends with both sisters ready to fight for what they believe in.
- Changeling and Cyborg are the focus of the third story, drawn by Tom Mandrake. Vic is still recovering from his surgery, and is in a wheelchair. He and Gar talk about how much things have changed, and then they talk about Steve Dayton. We see that Mento is sitting on Mount Rushmore, waiting for John Constantine, but decides to use his helmet to cause some mischief. Gar is about to open up to Vic about his discussion with Deathstroke some time back, but Mento takes control of Vic’s body and attacks him. Vic can control his speech, but can’t resist what Dayton is doing to him. Gar tries to fight back gently, while arguing with Dayton. Vic tries to fire up the Titan’s jet in the hangar, so Gar has to break through the windscreen and shut it down before the building is burned down. Mento talks about a new group – the Hybrid – and how they’ll destroy the Titans. He leaves and Gar sits with the badly hurt Vic. John Constantine approaches Dayton, and we learn that whatever is up with them will take place in Swamp Thing’s book. In the epilogue, Adeline tries to talk to Joseph, but it’s even more clear, as he leaves his painting in the rain, that he’s very depressed.
- Komand’r is furious that her sister is attacking her. She feels like she’s done a good job running Tamaran, and is not prepared to give it up. She’s still pretty ruthless though, ordering that anyone opposing her rule that she’s not related to should be killed. Koriand’r leads an assault, and she thinks about how angry she is that her sister is making her do this to their planet. After her attack is successful, she rejoins her husband and brother on a cliff. Karras and Ryand’r tell her that their attempts to recruit others to their side has been fruitless, as people are generally happy with Komand’r’s rule, and because they were never told about her betrayal of the planet to the Citadel before, they have no reason not to trust her. Kory vows to kill her sister. Komand’r meets with her advisors, who know that she tried to have her parents killed. They forbid her from trying again. A medical supply ship approaches Tamaran, and Komand’r’s people board it to search for contraband. They don’t check out the crew, and so don’t notice that Myand’r and Luand’r are onboard. Their people teleport them to the planet, where the meet with Kory’s forces. The King is less angry than Kory, having heard that the people like Komand’r’s rule. Kory leaves to continue the fight on her own, and Karras’s feelings are hurt that she didn’t even pause to talk to him. Kory attacks a weapons depot and blows it up. This makes Komand’r realize that she has no choice but to fight her sister. The King goes to meet his former advisors. Kory has doubts, and that’s when Komand’r attacks. They fight for a few pages, rehashing old arguments, while Karras and Ryan fight her men. Kory knocks down some buildings so reinforcements can’t help Komand’r, and their fight gets even more physical. Kory gets her sister on the ground and keeps punching her, preparing to kill her with a large starbolt. Myand’r arrives on a flying platform and orders her to stop what she’s doing. Kory argues with her father and his main advisor, who want Komand’r to keep the throne. The deal is that Komand’r has to listen to her father and her council, but they support her continued rule. Kory is furious. Later, she tells her parents that she’s going to return to Earth. When Karras tells her he’ll get ready to go with her, she tells him that there is no love in their marriage, and that he should stay on Tamaran with his true love. Komand’r promises to look after the planet. Kory and Ryan teleport to a ship, and as Ryan prepares to take her to Earth, Kory cries quietly.
Fractured storylines don’t work all that well in trade paperback. During this era of the New Teen Titans, following the Crisis on Infinite Earths and the departure of George Pérez, Wolfman ripped the team apart for a while. We had Starfire on Tamaran (initially with Nightwing and Jericho), Cyborg and Changeling doing their own thing, and Wonder Girl feeling like she has to hold it all together. Their stories didn’t exactly alternate in the book, but there are long stretches here where Kory is on her own, and the only Titan to appear in some issues, and others where Donna brings back some older members to help her out on a mission.
These are good comics, but they do not make a good trade. I’m fine with that, though. I grew up with multi-year storylines, and sub-plots that would simmer for months in the background before reaching a boil and taking over. I’m also thankful that I just read Volume 10, and have Volume 12 sitting on a shelf waiting for me, because this doesn’t work at all as a standalone book, but is great in a longer sequence.
I like the idea of Wolfman disassembling the team for a while. I think ensemble books work best when the characters know why they are working together, and letting them have some time off to consider what they really want will either strengthen their commitment to the team, or help them to move on to other things. It also creates some suspense, as readers wonder who is coming back, or if someone new is going to join up.
There was some real subtlety to the way that Wolfman wrote some of the characters here, especially Dick. His relationship with Kory on the rocks, especially after her arranged marriage, it wasn’t a surprise that he was a little sensitive and testy, but then he went so far as to get physical with Donna when she tried to hold him to account for his nonsense, and as readers, we knew something was seriously wrong. Learning that he was being influenced by the Church of Blood came as a bit of a relief. Now that it’s been decades of Dick having his own series, I kind of forgot that when these comics came out, this was really the only place he lived.
Wolfman’s approach to Donna is kind of interesting here too. The Crisis created huge problems for Donna – if Pérez was going to reboot Wonder Woman as just now getting in touch with “man’s world” in his Wonder Woman title, how exactly has Donna existed as her sidekick? Instead of addressing any of this, Wolfman instead starts setting up a possible out for her to leave the team, after doing a poor job of leading it. He also further showed that there is something seriously creepy and wrong in her relationship with Terry, who I continue to despise. The thing is, I don’t know if that’s intentional, or if it was just normal for men in the mid-80s to blame their wives for their own professional failures. I feel like it might have been…
Kory became a much more fleshed out character in this volume. The idea that her sister might be a leader that her people want doesn’t occur to her, because of the depth of her personal hatred for her. I thought it was interesting that Kory, who always just went along with whatever her father wanted – agreeing to be sold into slavery, agreeing to be forced into marriage – drew the line at accepting her sister. I’m not sure that anyone writing Starfire today makes her anywhere near as interesting.
The rest of the Titans didn’t get a lot of screen time in this volume. Gar is still dealing with his crazy evil stepfather (I really don’t remember Mento showing up in Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing, and think maybe it’s time to read that series for a column or two – I’ve never read Veitch’s controversial stuff). Vic is dealing with his surgery. Joey is just sad, but more about the team breaking up than about Kole’s death, which is kind of forgotten quickly.
I also thought it was really interesting that it was in this book that Roy Harper’s relationship with Cheshire was revealed, as was his daughter Lian, considering that he’s not even a regular character here. I think that Speedy was criminally ignored at this time, and would have been an interesting person to give his own book for a while. Maybe that’s what Wolfman was hoping for.
Eduardo Barreto was a very good replacement for Pérez. Of course he wasn’t as much of a star, but he had a very good handle on these characters and their personalities, and this book maintained its general aesthetic.
I’m looking forward to reading the next volume of this series. Originally I was just going to get through the Pérez issues, but there’s always a reason to come back for more. (I just need to get my hands on any volumes that have come out after #12).
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