shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Mar 28, 2019 18:57:58 GMT -5
Amazing. The New Teen Titans were my adolescence. I owned all the stories and re-read them regularly. And yet this is the first I've ever heard of this. Thank you. |
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Post by spoon on Mar 28, 2019 21:10:46 GMT -5
I thin the X-Men comparison is most apt in approach to the stories. Wolfman focuses heavily on characterization and inter-team relationships, while also setting up immediate action plots and longer form subplots, building to epic conclusions. the structure was extremely similar to how Claremont and Byrne had been doing X-men, though it was hardly unique. There was also a certain outsider status and a more contained group of villains. Beyond that, similarities mostly stop. Mal and Jericho probably inform the choice of a black character, though racial mixes and gender mixes were regular considerations in team concepts, in this period, as execs looked to broader markets. The New X-Men were made international to build on Marvel's foreign sales and this had similar focus, in character types (domestically, though) Cyborg is as much inspired by Deathlok, a character that Perez had worked on, as Mal or even Colossus. I view Uncanny X-Men and New Teen Titans as different in story structure. Maybe that because most of the NTT I've read is from volume 1, and it may be more intricate in volume 2. But I see NTT following more of a traditional DC structure where a lot of issues are self-contained. You might see arcs of a character in a general sense, but a given issue (or short 2 or 3 issue arc) may have few or no interludes seeding stories for a later issue. In contrast, it seemed like most Claremont X-Men stories had one or more interludes that are just a set-up for a future story or an ongoing subplot for a specific character, which wasn't essential to the main story of the issue. On the other hand, I strongly agree with you point about "outsider status." Even though they're called the New Teen Titans, they tend to come across as a bit older than that. Both the Claremont X-Men and NTT have the in-between sense of being 20-something. They're not the established heroes of a JLA or FF or Avengers, but they're also not the cute kid sidekicks. There's the sense of being on your own and learning things. Granted the X-Men had Professor X, but Claremont put the X-Men in situations where Prof. X couldn't save their hide as much as in the Silver Age X-Men. To me, the Hellfire Club epitomize the sense of the X-Men as young heroes in a perilous stage of life when they're trying to establish themselves. The Hellfire Club, in contrast, were older and were portrayed as wealthy, and perhaps old money. NTT also had notable conflicts with older villains, like Deathstroke or Baron Blood. I think Mammoth and Shimmer were supposed to be a similar age to the Titans, but they seemed older, and the rest of the Fearsome Five were older. The Brotherhood of Evil were retooled from rivals of an older super-team (the Doom Patrol). |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Mar 28, 2019 21:29:07 GMT -5
I am SUPER excited for this! While I can clearly see the comparisons between the NTT and X-Men, there's one major difference. The X-Men were a class, and always had a 'greater good' as motivation.. they never felt like a family like the Titans did.
Then there's also the direct mentor in Professor X that clearly wasn't present, which really changes the dynamic, IMO.
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shaxper
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Posts: 22,860
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Post by shaxper on Mar 28, 2019 21:53:49 GMT -5
I am SUPER excited for this! Yay! The X-Men absolutely felt like a family to me, but that fell apart about a decade down the line when Madelyn Prior showed up and Scott got all weird with the team. Yes and no. While the team has no mentor, Cyclops' relationship to the Professor is a lot like Robin's relationship to Batman: a harsh, demanding, and distant authoritarian from whom he must ultimately learn to distance himself in order to find his own identity. |
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Post by Duragizer on Mar 29, 2019 0:04:49 GMT -5
Started reading the NTT trades not long ago, so I'm excited to follow this thread.
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Post by tarkintino on Mar 29, 2019 3:48:32 GMT -5
I would argue that the X-Men also had a family vibe that feels closer to what Wolfman and Perez ended up capturing. The original X-Men--arguably. The 1975 "new" X-Men...not really. The latter was presented not as a family, or characters with a long, rich history together, unlike NTT where some of the members knew each other not only for some time, but their "vibe" certainly sold it (at times when it was not in the dialogue). This will need to be examined in detail... |
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Post by brianf on Mar 29, 2019 4:15:44 GMT -5
Even though Batman was one of the first comic books I ever bought when I started to actually collect comics in the late 70's I only bought Marvel. Except for the occasional Batman comic (did Don Newton draw it?) I didn't start reading more DC until NTT. so yeah, I love this stuff. And hey, it's worth remembering the NTT only real early crossovers in the main DCU was via Wonder Woman   |
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 29, 2019 5:32:01 GMT -5
I will be following this review thread with interest. I’m tempted to pull out my copies and follow along. By the way, that digest story and the preview from DC presents #26 are reprinted in NTT # 59. That’s when they introduced the Baxter version in 1984 and started to reprint the Baxter stories in the regular title, sort of like a HC to soft cover version to the book.  |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 29, 2019 7:45:42 GMT -5
Looking forward to this! I remember my Mom buying me DC Comics Presents with the NTT preview. I was very happy the team was coming back and I recall with each issue thinking "when are the real Teen Titans going to show up?" I missed Aqualad, Speedy, Mal, and Lilith but soon got caught up in the over the top drama of the NTT! It seems like after issue 50 of the regular series, it started losing steam and after the first 6 issues or so of the baxter series as well, but these early 80s stories are totally awesome!
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 29, 2019 8:12:44 GMT -5
I always loved Kid Flash's costume.  |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Mar 29, 2019 8:48:15 GMT -5
Does anyone know why Speedy was cut from the team? My guess has always been that he and Kid Flash were too redundant and easy to confuse. They were both the team cynic, and Speedy's name always sounded like it should have been Kid Flash's.
I suppose the former drug user thing might have been a factor too?
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Mar 29, 2019 8:48:50 GMT -5
By the way, that digest story and the preview from DC presents #26 are reprinted in NTT # 59. Oh good! Then I HAVE read it. Thanks for this! |
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 29, 2019 8:50:19 GMT -5
Maybe because Speedy is a lousy character. Boring , man.
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shaxper
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Posts: 22,860
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Post by shaxper on Mar 29, 2019 8:50:53 GMT -5
Maybe because Speedy is a lousy character. Boring , man. They were ALL boring characters prior to Wolfman  |
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 29, 2019 8:52:11 GMT -5
I have to say that the Baxter edition of New Teen titans was such a scam. They made you pay more for different paper and then canceled the cheaper one. They did it with LOSH too , but I don't think it was as popular.
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