ComiCoLUMN
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      by
      SEAN
      MCQUAID
     
    
   
   
    
     
      less
      high
      concept,
      namely
      the
      Titans
      $ell-Out
      Special,
     
    

    
     
      which
      will
      have
      been
      in
      the
      bookshops
      for
      about
      a
      week
     
     
      by
      the
      time
      you
      read
      this.
      With
      40
      pages
      of
      story
      on
      higher
     
     
      quality
      new
      format
      paper
      at
      $4.
      25
      Canadian,
      it’s
      a
      good
      read
     
     
      albeit
      a
      bit
      pricey,
      and
      a
      nice
      intro
      to
      the
      Titans
      for
      those
     
     
      unfamiliar
      with
      their
      ongoing
      series.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      T
      his
      month
      ComiColumn
      takes
      a
      look
      at
      something
      a
      bit
     
    
   
   
    
     
      For
      those
      of
      you
      who
      don’t
      know
      a
      Titan
      froma
      hole
      in
      the
      wall,
     
     
      it’s
      understandable;
      the
      team
      has
      had
      less
      exposure
      in
      recent
     
     
      years
      due
      to
      lessening
      popularity
      and
      the
      fact
      that
      special
     
     
      format
      books
      like
      theirs
      are
      only
      available
      to
      the
      direct
      sales
     
     
      market
      (comic
      shops,
      specialty
      stores,
      and
      the
      like),
      but
      DC
     
     
      Comics
      has
      in
      the
      past
      few
      years
      tried
      to
      juice
      up
      the
      Titans
      and
     
     
      restore
      their
      popularity.
      The
      team
      currently
      features
      many
      new
     
     
      characters,
      though
      its
      origins
      stretch
      back
      to
      the
      fifties,
      when
     
     
      they
      started
      out
      as
      the
      Teen
      Titans,
      an
      alliance
      of
      kid
     
     
      crimefighters
      and
      sidekicks
      including
      Robin,
      Kid
      Flash,
      Won-
     
     
      der
      Girl,
      Speedy,
      Aqualad,
      and
      various
      lesser
      known
      junior
     
     
      supertypes
      such
      as
      Beast
      Boy,
      Hawk
      &
      Dove,
      Bumblebee,
     
     
      Golden
      Eagle,
      etc.
      It
      was
      a
      hard
      concept
      to
      take
      seriously,
     
     
      especially
      given
      the
      tendency
      of
      writers
      in
      those
      dark
      decades
     
     
      to
      make
      the
      characters
      sound
      like
      what
      they
      thought
      were
     
     
      typical
      teenagers
      (Like,
      groovy,
      Daddy-O!’’).
      The
      relative
     
     
      -
      shortage
      of
      teen
      heroes
      also
      led
      to
      some
      pretty
      weak
      characters
     
     
      being
      invented
      for
      the
      series,
      including
      Mal
      Duncan
      (angry
     
     
      young
      streetwise
      black
      man),
      Lilith
      (go-go
      dancer
      turned
      psy-
     
     
      chic),
      Gnarrk
      (time-displaced
      caveman),
      and
      the
      Harlequin
     
     
      (who
      claimed
      to
      be
      the
      Joker’s
      daughter
      and
      dressed
      like
      him
      but
     
     
      was
      only
      doing
      that
      as
      a
      sign
      of
      rebellion
      against
      her
      real
      father,
     
     
      Two-Face,
      whose
      criminal
      past
      was
      her
      motivation
      for
     
     
      crimefighting
      ...
      Yeah,
      right).
      With
      characters
      like
      these,
      and
     
     
      villains
      like
      the
      Mad
      Mod,
      Mister
      Twister,
      and
      Ding-Dong
     
     
      Daddy,
      it’s
      perhaps
      merciful
      that
      the
      series
      was
      cancelled,
     
     
      though
      it
      was
      briefly
      revived
      and
      soon
      cancelled
      again
      in
      the
     
     
      seventies.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      There
      was
      a
      lot
      of
      potential
      in
      the
      group,
      though,
      ifa
      writer
      was
     
     
      willing
      to
      take
      them
      seriously,
      and
      that’s
      what
      Marv
      Wolfman
     
     
      did
      when
      he
      and
      penciller
      George
      Perez
      revived
      the
      book
      as
      the
     
    
   
   
    
     
      New
      Teen
      Titans
      in
      the
      early
      eighties,
      with
      Robin
      (Batman’s
     
    

    
     
      original
      sidekick
      Dick
      Grayson,
      who
      soon
      after
      this
      passed
      the
     
     
      Robin
      costume
      on
      to
      a
      new
      kid
      and
      established
      his
      own
      adult
     
     
      identity
      as
      Nightwing)
      leading
      a
      smaller,
      reorganized
      version
     
     
      of
      the
      group
      that
      included
      Kid
      Flash
      (the
      Flash’s
      old
      sidekick),
     
     
      Wonder
      Girl
      (junior
      Wonder
      Woman
      imitator),
      Changling
      (for-
     
     
      merly
      Beast
      Boy
      of
      the
      Doom
      Patrol)
      and
      three
      new
      characters:
     
     
      the
      half-mechanical
      Cyborg,
      the
      mysterious
      Raven,
      and
      the
     
     
      voluptuous
      alien
      powerhouse,
      Starfire.
      This
      §
      group
      was
      by
      now
     
     
      slightly
      older
      than
      the
      previous
      teams
      (most
      of
      the
      team,
     
    

    
     
      including
      some
      of
      the
      former
      Teen
      Titans,
      are
      now
      into
      their
     
     
      early
      twenties),
      and
      a
      bit
      more
      mature,
      and
      Wolfman
      concen-
     
     
      trated
      on
      character
      interaction
      as
      much
      as
      plot
      advancement.
     
     
      The
      new
      group
      was
      a
      wildly
      successful
      hit
      for
      DC
      Comics,
      but
     
     
      in
      later
      years
      the
      book
      stagnated.
      While
      various
      past
      members
     
     
      and
      new
      Titans
      have
      wandered
      through
      the
      series
      in
      the
      years
     
     
      since
      it
      began,
      Wolfman
      brought
      very
      little
      lasting
      change
      or
     
     
      development
      and
      worked
      with
      the
      same
      core
      characters
      for
      most
     
     
      of
      the
      next
      ten
      years,
      during
      which
      time
      the
      title
      switched
      from
     
     
      general
      sales
      to
      direct
      market
      distribution
      and
      suffered
      a
      dimin-
     
     
      ishing
      audience.
      The
      book
      was
      becoming
      a
      repetitive
      soap
     
     
      opera
      and
      also
      languished
      under
      a
      succession
      of
      bad
      pencillers
     
     
      with
      the
      departure
      of
      George
      Perez.
      The
      book
      was
      slowly
      dying.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      As
      it
      turns
      out,
      though,
      the
      Titans
      wouldn’t
      go
      down
      for
      the
      third
     
     
      time.
      DC
      and
      writer
      Marv
      Wolfman
      began
      making
      changes
      in
     
     
      the
      team.
      Some
      of
      the
      more
      embarrassing
      and
      superfluous
     
     
      characters
      were
      either
      killed
      off
      or
      written
      out
      of
      existence
      (i.¢.
     
     
      Aquagirl,
      Gnarrk,
      Harlequin,
      etc.)
      and
      the
      alteration
      of
      the
      ‘‘DC
     
     
      Universe’’
      continuity’s
      time
      line
      by
      the
      events
      of
      the
      Crisis
      0”
     
     
      Infinite
      Earths
      series
      gave
      DC’s
      writers
      the
      opportunity
      to
      do
     
     
      with
      the
      Titans
      what
      they’
      ve
      done
      with
      a
      lot
      of
      their
      characters:
     
     
      rewrite
      their
      backgrounds,
      history,
      and
      origins
      where
      deemed
     
     
      necessary.
      So
      it
      was
      that
      angry
      young
      black
      man
      Mal
      Duncan
     
     
      was
      rewritten
      into
      the
      slightly
      less
      embarrassing
      character
     
     
      called
      the
      Herald,
      Batman-and-Robin-groupie
      Bette
      ‘*
      Batgirl’
     
     
      Kane
      was
      rewritten
      into
      the
      less
      derivative
      character
      Flamebird,
     
     
      and
      the
      Harlequin
      was
      written
      out
      of
      existence
      altogether
      (J
     
     
      guess
      supervillains
      aren’t
      supposed
      to
      have
      kids).
      With
      various
     
     
      other
      cosmetic
      and
      character
      alterations
      to
      the
      group’s
      past
      the
     
     
      old
      Teen
      Titans
      were
      now
      a
      slightly
      more
      respectable
      back-
     
     
      ground
      for
      the
      current
      Titans
      (see
      Secret
      Origins
      Annual
      #3
      for