New Teen Titans #3 (January 1981)
"The Fearsome Five!"
Script: George Pérez (plot); Marv Wolfman (plot, script)
Pencils: George Pérez (layouts); Frank Chiaramonte (finished art)
Inks: Frank Chiaramonte
Colors: Adrienne Roy
Letters: Ben Oda
Grade: B
Still some careful planning/development coming to fruition in this third installment, as we get a lot more backstory on some of our team members (see "Important Details" near the bottom of this review) and see Titans Tower for the first time
...well, the Titans do at least. We saw it back in
DC Comics Presents #26. And, actually, so did Robin. So why the hell doesn't he think to mention this while he's monologuing about how suspicious the sudden appearance of this place is?
Also weird that such a well-trained detective would freely walk into this trap without having first examined all the evidence.
I think what I'm appreciating most about this series so far is how much downtime Wolfman and Perez are giving the team to bond.
The X-Men did this first, and maybe even did it better, but the Titans are doing it a lot more often, giving them that family vibe right from the start. It's odd, though -- their entire reason for sticking together and (thus) bonding like this is because Raven says they are all needed for a coming threat, and yet Robin is intensely distrustful of this while, at the same time, giving his time and energy to this team without a second's doubt. No further reflection on his identity outside of Batman, he never once brings up the old Titans, and no one ever even considers the idea that this team-up is just temporary. For absolutely no logical reason whatsoever beyond convenience, Dick has totally embraced this team as his new family.
Heck, even Cyborg comments to his father in this issue that the Titans get him the closest to happy that he has felt since the accident. And yet he's the brooding one who (along with Raven) is never present for these little get-togethers.
In short, I don't really buy it, but I like it anyway. I guess that's fair enough in a genre where people fly and fight aliens and monsters on a regular basis.
You know, I began this thing noting that I don't care for Starfire after her first few appearances, but darn if she isn't continuing to charm me here. Her perspective is as deep as a motivational poster with puppies on it, but it brings an interesting perspective to the team, all the same:
Anyway, this issue is named after The Fearsome Five, so I guess I should discuss them. Up until this point, Wolfman and Perez have been cultivating the Titans' antagonists slowly and carefully. Trigon, The H.I.V.E., and even Deathstroke the Terminator were slowly building threats, each of which still has yet to come to fruition. But the Fearsome Five feel far more...lazy.
Don't get me wrong. Wolfman and Perez throw us some delightful misdirection when Dr. Light's method of assembling the team (a newspaper ad) and reason for wanting to attack the Titans (so no other super team would mess with them) both essentially get mocked by Psimon, who was secretly controlling Dr. Light all along.
But they're still an utterly lame team, lacking in characterization with the generic dumb, overprotective brute, the sister who is the source of all of his motivations (it's like Moose and Midge from Archie, only siblings), and an evil smart guy who controls minds. Dr. Light's new comically incompetent characterization, and the utterly unique Gizmo are really the only stand-outs. Gizmo doesn't do all that much in this first outing, but his reactions to circumstances are at least unique and non-cliche, and this had to be my favorite moment in the entire issue:
Wolfman and Perez actually had me rooting
against their new team for a moment.
And I'm utterly lost on the plot. I've read this story probably four or five times now, and I'm still not sure I get it. Raven wants the Titans to fight the Fearsome Five...so that they can then go on to fight The Justice League...cuz her mind told her so. Dr. Light wants to fight the Titans and then the Justice League cuz Psimon told him so. Trigon told both Psimon and Raven to do this. But then Raven
doesn't want the Titans to fight the Fearsome Five, thinking they should seek out The Justice League instead for some reason. Does any of this make any sense to anyone?
Interestingly, I'd forgotten that Psimon was created by Trigon. I don't recall if that ever comes up again after this storyline.
By the way, why would Trigon give him an invisible skull?
Incidentally, considering how this all happens, part of me wonders if the original plan wasn't for Trigon to take over Vic's dad using this method. What are the chances of two scientists opening doors to other dimensions that go horribly wrong around the same time and in the same title? That would give a lot more meaning to the threat Robin foresees in DC Special #26, which is otherwise just a throw-away adventure that never comes to fruition.
Over-all, this is not a great story, as the plot is really confusing (possibly nonsensical) and the villains really aren't very good, but the intense character studies (especially of Starfire and Cyborg), and the team bonding moments still make this installment a good one.
Important Details:- Starfire is of the House of Tykhal and the Princess of Tamaran, originally next in line to rule until she was given away as part of a peace negotiation with Tamaran's hated enemy, The Citadel (which the Gordanians from the first issue serve). Tamaran is a planet said to be at peace with nature but also uninterested in science (so then how are they engaged in an inter-stellar war??). They are ruled by their emotions.
- Starfire was given to The Citadel six years ago and warned that the planet would be destroyed if she ever returned. Wolfman has indicated that he envisioned Starfire and most of the team as being 18 or 19, so this means Starfire was 12/13 when given away, and 14/15 when sold into slavery.
- Dear God...is Wolfman suggesting Starfire was a sex slave? And at 14/15?
- We get our fist glimpse of Starfire's parents, as well as brother Ryandr, six year prior (thanks,
Icctrombone).
- We'd been trying to figure out why Vic has a "street" feel to his dialogue and character when his father is a well educated and highly respected scientist. We now learn that he is purposefully living on the wrong side of town as a means of distancing himself from his father:
- Gar gives us a reminder/update of his life, mentioning the death of his parents, the death of his adoptive mother, and now that he hasn't seen his adoptive father in over a year as he pursues the killers.
- Raven explains to the Titans how she first encountered Trigon...kind of:
She then indicates to Wally that this was not the whole story.
- Incidentally,
Icctrombone, yep. That was Trigon we saw in
NTT #2:
- Donna works a (as of yet not mentioned) job and receives a regular stipend from Hippolyta
Minor Details:- Kid Flash is still weirdly obsessed with Raven, and now it's even annoying Vic.
- They refer to themselves as "The New Titans" once again.
- No acknowledgment here that
Dr. Light fought the original Teen Titans, even though they specifically discuss his encounters with The JLA and even The Atom.
- Cyborg is JUST using white sound in battle, once again. What the hell is the point of all that other gadgetry?
- Raven has been spurned by The JLA previously. More on that next issue when she meets them again.
