Monday, December 28, 2009

Teen Titans #78 - DC

This issue of the Teen Titans didn't even really feature any of them. Unless of course you still consider Rose a Titan. I don't know. Some people do . . some people don't. I guess . . I do. Anyways, this issue revolves around Slade's family . . Rose, Joey and even Grant. They come together out of necessity and end of revealing and evolving much of their dysfunctional relationship. Grant, now a Black Lantern, ends up bringing them all together. We learn a lot about Joey. And in covering each other's back . . as well as dealing with all the verbal assaults that are thrown their way, Rose and Joey really come back together. But the biggest 'reveal' of this whole issue was when Slade was talking about how he had sent his children out into the world. He trained them the best he could, but he knew that they would never be safe if they stayed with him. They'd always be a target for those coming after him. That's why, in his mind, he deduced that the Titans would be the best place for them to gather team-mates and friends that would get their back. Plus . . it would be a sense of family for them. Something that he would never be able to provide. But that . . that we all knew. That's been gone over numerous times. The 'reveal' I think comes in the realization by Slade . . that was the best plan for them. However . . things change. With this new threat on the horizon, he now thinks that their best bet would be to stick together. I don't think he has any illusions of a family, but . . he thinks they would make an unstoppable team. Joey decides that he agrees. But Rose? Rose has also realized something. 'My mother is still alive. Think about it, Slade. All these corpses that came after us were people from our past. People who could push our buttons . . get a rise out of us. Wade, Wintergreen, Grant. Even Adeline. So, why didn't my mom show up? Where was her undead corpse? I'm going to find the only person smart enough to keep as far away from him as possible. And I swear to god, Slade, if you ever go looking for Lillian, or try to contact her, or even Google her name, I promise . . I will kill you.' Whether she's right or not, in the end Slade let's her go. 'It's given her hope. That's more than most of us have.' Over the last few issues, JT Krul has shown that he really has a good handle on these characters. Unfortunately it doesn't look like he'll be staying on this book. Felicia D Henderson comes on board as the writer next issue. She'll be here, at least, for the next story arc. However, it does look like JT will be on the Titans book for a little while. Joe Bennett provided some great art for this issue. And it looks like he'll be the artist in residence for the foreseeable future. I know this book has it's ups and downs, but I still love it.

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