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Mild Mannered Reviews - Teen Titans

Teen Titans #53

Teen Titans #53

Scheduled to arrive in stores: November 28, 2007

Cover date: January 2008

"The Titans of Tomorrow... Today!" Part 4 - "Combine and Conquer"

Writer: Sean McKeever
Penciller: Eddy Barrows
Inker: Rob Hunter

Reviewed by: Jeffrey Bridges

Click to enlarge



The Titans Army, a large group of Titans from the future who are led by a future Lex Luthor, have arrived in full force. Lex says that when the future Titans previously encountered the current Titans, it left the current Titans thinking that their future selves were fascists and oppressors. As a result, when the future Titans returned to their own time, everything began to change and delve into chaos. So Lex dispatched them back to meet the present Titans AGAIN in hopes of fixing that.

And then Starro attacked.

In the course of battle Miss Martian BEHEADS her future self in a gory display of violence, the future Kon-El gets his butt kicked by Supergirl, Robin completely doubts himself and the entire Titans Army (and many of the Teen Titans) fall under Starro's control, leaving Blue Beetle alone against them.

4Story - 4: So I know a little more about what's going on here, but still please bear in mind that I am new to several of these characters (Miss Martian, the new Blue Beetle) and still have not personally read the first portion of this story or the original Titans of Tomorrow storyline that this picks up from. I know the basics of them, but without reading them myself I cannot truly review the piece as a whole.

But what I did see here seemed solid. To me, at least, Miss Martian's beheading of her future self came as a complete surprise but didn't feel misplaced, really, from what I've been able to gather so far.

Supergirl also had a good role here in dispatching (at least temporarily) two different villains on her own and laying the smack down on future Kon-El in an entirely satisfying manner. Not only that, but she was also in no way annoying, chasing boys, or whiney, which gets bonus points in my book.

I'm enjoying this book a lot right now, even if I don't fully understand all that's going on. For that reason alone I look forward to the conclusion of this story and what lies beyond so that I'm able to provide you folks with more well-informed reviews.

At least for now, though, the book is certainly seeming to be promising. Good action and good character are always a plus.

4Art - 4: I actually REALLY like the art here. Future Lex looks old, yet still imposing. Kara looks fantastic, Tim looks distraught and the action is very kinetic and... lively? It feels that way. The only thing that really bugged me was Wonder Woman (future Cassie) on page 2 in the big middle panel... she looks like she's lacking internal organs there. That must hurt.

3Cover Art - 3: The concept is good, but the art itself feels pretty generic outside of Blue Beetle. I like the rough, raw feel of some of the characters in the background, which reminds me of Bogdanove in a good way.

Actually, I think my main problem here is with Tim, Conner and Cassie, as they're the centerpieces of the background. If they had as much personality put into them as Blue Beetle does, this cover would be a lot better. I love everyone behind them and in front of them, but those three just bug me for some reason.


Mild Mannered Reviews

2008

Note: Month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.

January 2008

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