And Then I Read: NEW TEEN TITANS, GAMES

Images © DC Comics, Inc.

Over twenty years in the making, as they say, this project began in 1988 and was always intended as a separate stand-alone graphic novel about the then very popular teen super-group. Writer Marv Wolfman and artist George Pérez came up with a plot, then George started drawing, but at a much larger size than usual, as he wanted this to be full of the detail his work is known for, and expected the deluxe format would show that off well. The art is not standard proportions, so I'm not sure if it was originally intended to print at the present 8 by 10.75 inch size, but it sure looks good, and George is aided by fine inking from Mike Perkins and Al Vey (as well as some of his own) and great coloring by Hi-Fi. The lettering by Travis Lanham is also good.

George worked on, getting well into the story, which Marv would dialogue when it was all finished, but at some point felt he needed to move on from the Titans to new projects. The book sat unfinished for years, though George did work on it some more occasionally, but it wasn't until recently that the art was all completed. By that time both Marv and George had forgotten the details of their original plot, and some things needed to change with the times, so they worked out a new storyline that incorporated nearly all of the completed art, and here it is.

If you were a Titans fan in the eighties, as I was, you will certainly want to have this. Even if you weren't, it's a great read. The plot is complex, the character list is long, as it incorporates not only all the Titans but also many of their friends and family. The storytelling is excellent, and of course the art is wonderful. If you were to make a film of it, it would come out something like "Mission Impossible" with superheroes. There's government agencies, dirty tricks, a dozen or so villains with powers and/or bombs, and a chess-like plot to essentially destroy New York City. Despite the setting, this didn't echo 9/11 for me, it was too different in approach. I'd forgotten some of the relationships and interplay between the characters, but Marv and George bring it all to life, and soon I was back in the Titans world and loving every moment of it. There's plenty of action, suspense, and real danger. One character does not survive. Others are badly hurt. Yet the team dynamic and the camaraderie bring it all home quite well.

Highly recommended!