Wednesday, February 13, 2019

On The Shelf: A history lesson for fans of iconic franchises

DC's line of Silver Age reprint collections keeps getting better & better.

Teen Titans, volume 1, takes readers back to the formation of the team in the pages of The Brave & The Bold (1st series), then an issue of Showcase (1st series), before the Titans are eventually promoted into their own series.

That formation starts with Aqualad, Kid Flash (Wally West), & Robin (Dick Grayson), each being invited to take part in an activity with the begruding approval of their mentors, and the long standing friendships among them, and later members Speedy (Roy Harper) & Wonder Girl (Donna Troy), are formed. Their dialogue is so much different from their appearances in, for example, Detective Comics (Robin) or The Flash (Kid Flash), as writer Bob Haney uses to popular slang of the period, in this case, the early 60's.

While Haney had been maligned in his later years due to settling into a basic writing style, he does try to connect with the teenage demographic. Artist Nick Cardy spent the bulk of the 60's at DC working on the series, as well as Western hero Bat Lash, even spending some time drawing Aquaman, as memory serves.

While the current Titans series on DC Universe is centered on the 80's revival of the team, older readers will want to reacquaint themselves. Getting a DVD collection of the Filmation shorts from 1967 would be nice, too (and I already have one).

Rating: B+. There are some clunkers in the mix, but that can't be helped.

Meanwhile, the Doom Patrol not only debuted in the pages of My Greatest Adventure, they took over the book proper. Creators Arnold Drake & Bruno Premiani had the idea of a team of outcast heroes before Stan Lee & Jack Kirby introduced Marvel readers to the X-Men. All three members were in accidents that turned them into "The World's Strangest Heroes", but later iterations have suggested that Niles Caulder had a more sinister agenda in mind.

The Patrol will be on DCU later this month, spinning off into their own series from Titans, with a cast including Brendan Fraser, Timothy Dalton, and Matt Bomer (ex-White Collar). We'll have a review up for that soon.

Rating: B-.

Archie Comics announced today that Archie will be rechristened Archie & Sabrina beginning in issue 705. Yes, the teenage witch is Archie's new love, and I'm told the title change will be in effect for at least five issues. Writer Nick Spencer has courted controversy with his work at Marvel, but given how he's gotten a positive reception for his work on Amazing Spider-Man, the tide of public opinion seems to be changing. Jughead is the series narrator, just like on Riverdale, and is embroiled in a mystery of his own in the current run. Let's see if Spencer really knows how to connect with today's teens.

Rating: B.

When the Wonder Twins were introduced in Super Friends (1st series) 7 in 1977, they were orphans whose parents died when they were toddlers. Not so anymore in the mind of writer Mark Russell, who has rebooted Zan & Jayna for a new audience. Seems the Twins' father was a friend of Superman, and the Man of Steel was the one who brought the super-sibs to earth. No secret identities in this era of inclusion, but there are some notable traits.

For one, Zan tends to refer to himself in the 3rd person. A little too cocky for his own good, which was often the case in the duo's 80's shorts. Jayna is surprisingly shy, but also smart & savvy. That up-raised ponytail is gone, but then, one must change with the times. Russell does go a little overboard in spots, but we'll forgive him. We'll even be happier if Stephen Byrne can be persuaded to put Jayna in a purple two piece bikini, just for kicks. Beast Boy guest stars in issue 2, and Gleek, now with a mohawk 'do (What?), will be showcased in issue 3.

Rating: Incomplete. A full rating is being reserved until after the miniseries concludes this summer.

Update, 8:40 pm (ET): DC has pulled the plug on their superhero-religious satire, Second Coming, due to arrive next month. Series creator Mark Russell has reacquired the rights to the series, which was ticketed for Vertigo. Seems there are Christians more thin-skinned than ye scribe, and they were butt-hurt over the project enough to raise enough of a stink to force DC to pull the book. Russell has plans to shop the title elsewhere. Image might be a good starting point.

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