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by **LOLtron** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 8:48 pm

After twenty years of waiting - is New Teen Titans: Games worth the wait?

Credits & Solicit Info:

The New Teen Titans: Games
DC Comics
Marv Wolfman & George Perez
120 pages
September 2011

Review:

Let's set the Wayback-Machine to 1979. Over at Marvel Comics, writer Marv Wolfman was at the top of his field writing/editing such books as Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four and the critically praised Tomb of Dracula. He would soon leave as part of a creative exodus to DC after Jim Shooter was named EIC at Marvel. Marv was given some meager books to write, but with friend and editor Len Wein, Marv pitched a Teen Titans revival to DC's publisher. Her response was basically 'meh', but she trusted the two enough to say go for it.

Also at Marvel in 1979, was artist George Perez, who was becoming a superstar in his own right drawing such titles as Inhumans, Marvel Two-in-One, Fantastic Four and the Avengers. George jumped over to DC when Wolfman opened up the possibility of Perez dream job (drawing the Justice League) by offering him his 'in' at DC by drawing the Teen Titans (a book George initially didn't think would last that long).

After a quick intro in DC Comics Presents, The New Teen Titans #1 hit the stands and rest is comics history. The combination of Wolfman & Perez was sheer magic and the New Teen Titans was suddenly (and deservedly) DC number one title, rivaling X-Men in sales and popularity. Robin (soon to be Nightwing), Wonder Girl, Changeling (soon to be back to Beast Boy), Cyborg, Starfire & Raven were the core of the team and for four years there was very little better.

In time, Perez left for other opportunities, and even though there were some great fun stuff that Wolfman continued with, the Titans heyday was over.

But there was till one story left. The two plotted and Perez drew some 50 pages and then... production stopped. Over the next TWENTY YEARS, the book would get a jolt activity and then be forgotten again. TWO DECADES later, the stars aligned and somehow someway, through forgotten plot points and tweaking for a more modern audience, another 70 pages were produced and on September 21, 2011, The New Teen Titans: Games was on sale.

Was it worth it? Hell Yes!

Spoilers...

A deadly game of cat & mouse is being played between a madman and King Faraday (a high ranking CBI agent). The madman known as the Gamesmaster has it out for Farday and he has set up an elaborate series of attacks in the US (primarily New York City). Faraday enlist the Titans for help but they pass not trusting Faraday a whole lot. Faraday's government pals then make the private lives of the Titans nearly impossible (audits, EPA violations, etc). When's it's revealed that the Gamesmaster is aware of their secret identities and that the Titans are now being targeted, they sign up. Meanwhile the bald headed bad guy formulates his strategies as he electronically spies on the Titans.

Warnings are given to the Titans friends and families, but sadly, Cyborg's friend Sarah Simms is killed in a bombing. Finding a package of clues, the Titans split up to investigate each one leaving Faraday in the Titans Tower to coordinate. Each member soon finds themselves in battle against the Gamesmaster's Playing Pieces (a group of brand new villains - each one geared to take on the specific Titans that the Gamesmaster 'arranged' to meet them up with).

As each Piece begins to fall, the master game begins, one that could very well destroy all of New York. Nightwing encounters and after a prolonged battle defeats the bald guy, who Nightwing discovers is NOT the Gamesmaster after all. Starfire gets citically injured and Danny ("the Brat") Chase must sacrifice everything to stop a bomb and then things gets worse as they find that their own headquarters, Titans Tower, is powering up the very energy field that is crushing the city and to top it all off, they realize that the Gamesmaster is really Faraday and that they only way to stop the energy field is to blow up the Tower!!!

Time passes as we see the fallout from the events within, and the Titans determined to take on whatever comes next.

If that recap sounds like there is a lot going, please know that that is only scratching the surface. This book is full of depth and detail that if you're expecting it to read like most comics today (over and done in 5 minutes) you can fugetaboutit. Wolfman hits every Titans characterization perfectly as they feel just like they did way back when. And Perez... the man is pure genius.

My only regret in this book is that while we see the Titans together in thier Tower (or elsewhere) all the battles are done solo (except for one quick bit near the books end that has a couple 'team-up' in a very creative way).

Writing - 9
Art - 10
Overall - 9.5

Review by: Amoebas

http://173.199.169.70/index.php/reviews/comics-reviews/16305-the-new-teen-titans-games.html/

by **avengingtitan** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 8:52 pm

I have been waiting for YEARS on this book and now that its here I cant wait to read it.

by **Amoebas** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 8:57 pm

Someday I'm going to figure out how to publish these things better.

by **chap22** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 9:02 pm

I almost brought Chappy's Blue Plate Specials out of retirement for one last encore performance just for this book, but just never found the time to do a review to do it justice.

A phenomenal book that hit all the right notes for the jaded 35-year-old comic fan on the outside, AND the wide-eyed 8-year-old kid on the inside who will eternally be blown away by Judas Contract. Absolutely worth every second of the 20 years and every penny of the 20 bucks I spent. Best comic purchase I've made in a long, long time.

If you're a Titans fan, a Perez fan, or just a pure superhero comics fan, you owe it to yourself to pick it up. Just a great package.

by **Chesscub** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 9:55 pm

The best thing I've read all year. Amazing story and amazing art. All in all I was blown away

One question : Where would this've fit in continuity? Danny was kicked out following the end of "Who is Wonder Girl?"

by **Amoebas** » Tue Sep 27, 2011 10:39 pm

Chesscub wrote:The best thing I've read all year. Amazing story and amazing art. All in all I was blown away

One question : Where would this've fit in continuity? Danny was kicked out following the end of "Who is Wonder Girl?"

As George Perez says in the Afterward... "When GAMES was originally conceived, it was meant to be a companion piece to the still on-going series. But now, 23 years later, the story needn't be restricted to a specific continuity and was therefore handled like a special stand-alone story where such matters need not be addressed."

by **Zenguru** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 1:15 am

I read it and loved it. Decidedly worth the wait.

by **Kolimar** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 1:30 am

Very nice review.

by **Kolimar** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 1:34 am

LOLtron wrote: but she trusted the two enough to say go for it. and she

And she what? :smt017

WHAT DID SHE DO?!! I must know!!! :-(

by **Amoebas** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 7:06 am

Kolimar wrote:
And she what? WHAT DID SHE DO?!! I must know!!!

And she... got an editor. :oops:

by **avengingtitan** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 8:57 pm

This will totally wash the taste of the reboot of Teen Titans out of my mouth.

by **alaska1125** » Wed Sep 28, 2011 10:47 pm

I think I'm going to order this right now. Any word on how the NTT Omnibus is? I've read it's both a good and bad value. Some say 400+ pages, some say 699+. I'm kind of dying to pick it up.

by **Zenguru** » Thu Sep 29, 2011 1:18 am

alaska1125 wrote:I think I'm going to order this right now. Any word on how the NTT Omnibus is? I've read it's both a good and bad value. Some say 400+ pages, some say 699+. I'm kind of dying to pick it up.

It's the first 24 issues. Plus a tie-in with Batman and the Outsiders. I have all the original issues and I say you won't be disappointed with the reading experience there.

by **avengingtitan** » Thu Sep 29, 2011 1:47 am

Zenguru wrote:It's the first 24 issues. Plus a tie-in with Batman and the Outsiders. I have all the original issues and I say you won't be disappointed with the reading experience there.

Sweet. Some of those issues are hard to find. They need one for the original TT run from WAY back in the day. I have a few issues from that, namely the first appearence of Mal Duncan and Karen, and they are awesome.

by **Zenguru** » Thu Sep 29, 2011 3:16 am

avengingtitan wrote:Sweet. Some of those issues are hard to find. They need one for the original TT run from WAY back in the day. I have a few issues from that, namely the first appearence of Mal Duncan and Karen, and they are awesome.

Wolfman and Perez were really lightning in a bottle in those days. They could do no wrong. And "Games" is just a reminder of the long gone halcyon days of prime comics storytelling. Makes me wish they were back together on a Titans monthly. No matter what the lineup, I'm sure they would make it great.