Category Archives: Robin
Review: Teen Titans #17
Here we go! Buckle up, boys and girls, because the next era of Teen Titans is upon us! New writer Greg Pak takes the reigns, at least for a little while, hoping to right this stagecoach for a few issues, until Rebirth comes along to maybe change everything up again. It’s a little hard to get excited about the new writer when there’s every indication that nothing will stick. But I’ve stuck with Teen Titans this long, and I’m always eager for something new from this series.
Teen Titans #17
So it’s damn exciting that Greg Pak immediately and unequivocally solves one of my biggest complaints about this series. This is close to being the Teen Titans I’ve always wanted.
Comic Rating: 7/10 – Good.
The biggest problem with Teen Titans in the New 52, and even in DCYou, is that the characters are treated as little more than action figures. They are costumed superheroes first, people second. All they do is fight bad guys, bouncing from one random opponent to the next. Famously, Red Robin never once removed his costume when Will Pfeifer was writing the series. There was apparently no interest in addressing the Teen Titans as teenagers or youngsters or human beings. They were action figures, trapped in a strange mess of stories, many of which were likely tugged back and forth by demanding editorial.
I may never understand why Teen Titans was so shackled when things like Batgirl, Ms. Marvel, Young Avengers and Teen Titans Go! were allowed to exist.
Teen Titans #17 doesn’t fix everything. Pak and DC don’t go for the nuclear option. This is still the same team, carrying on the same storyline, and existing in the same New 52 world. But Pak treats them as people for the first time in a long time. There is more characterization in this one issue than in Pfeifer’s entire run. There are character moments that legitimately shocked me for how little we’ve seen that level of depth. And for once, the threat doesn’t come from some outside force, but from within. For once, the Teen Titans are driving their own story.
And you better believe that Tim Drake shows up in this comic! Join me after the jump to see for yourself!
6 DC Superhero Games That Rocksteady Should Work On Next
Finally, at long last, I’ve played and beaten Batman: Arkham Knight. I made the decision to abandon video game consoles with the new generation and focus all my attention on PC and Steam…only for Arkham Knight to receive a PC adaptation that was so bad that Warner Bros. took it off the shelves and offered everyone a full refund, no questions asked. That’s about as bad as things can get.
But then I went and splurged on a new, high-end computer last Fall. And when I decided to take the plunge a few weeks ago and see how Arkham Knight held up on my machine, the game ran perfectly. You couldn’t even tell there’d ever been a problem.
He was the most obvious one…
So for the past few weeks, I’ve been kicking bad guy butt, hunting down the Scarecrow, and finally living that great, glorious dream that all my console friends had already experienced. I enjoyed the game well enough. The story wasn’t the best and I felt too many parts were ‘on rails’, where the game just pointed you in the direction they wanted and gave you the button prompt to enact the next little thing they put in front of you. And there were far too many gadgets and combos to keep track of in the otherwise stellar fighting sequences.
But overall, I enjoyed the game, like I’ve enjoyed all the Arkham series. Those games could very well be the high water mark of all superhero games. Now, Arkham developer Rocksteady is done with Batman, so they say, which means they’re free to move on to a new franchise.
And surely Rocksteady and DC aren’t about to give up on superhero games just yet!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 1/30/16
We’re still tepidly awaiting the reveal of the new DC Rebirth here in Comic Book Land. Will it be a complete reboot like the New 52? Or just a relaunch like Marvel’s Post-Secret Wars plans? Your guess is as good as mine! I’m just gonna keep reading and enjoying myself.
One comic that I know will never let you down is my own, Gamer Girl & Vixen! We’re gearing up for another Kickstarter soon, so if you missed out on getting the comic the first time, we’re going to go bigger and better soon! I’ll try not to talk your ears off too much about it.
Until then, let’s enjoy new issues of the Avengers, Spider-Woman, We Are Robin and more! This week finally saw the release of Faith #1 from Valiant Comics, which I was excited about, but which didn’t live up to the hype. Fortunately, the new issue of Grayson steals the show with one of the best non-Squirrel Girl jokes I’ve read in awhile.
Wait for it…
Consider that Comic Book of the Week material!
Also, for anybody tuning in for my ongoing coverage of Saga, I decided not to review the new issue because not a whole lot happens. Brian Vaughn kind of just moved a few pieces around the board. Not a big deal.
Comic Reviews: All-New, All-Different Avengers #4, Angela: Queen of Hel #4, Faith #1, Grayson #16, Spider-Woman #3 and We Are Robin #8.
Turns Out There’s a Full Justice League vs. Teen Titans Trailer
So much for that teaser I posted this morning! The full trailer for Justice League vs. Teen Titans is here!
Looks neat, but my comments from this morning stand: I’m just not all that interested. But I know I have a lot of Titans fans who read this blog, so I wanted to share. And now that I think about it, what the heck is up with this Titans lineup?! Starfire? Cyborg? What the heck is DC doing? Their animated universe is based on the comics in that it has Damian as Robin, and they do a lot of comic book stories, with appearances by the Court of Owls and Batwoman. But when they introduce the Teen Titans, they go with the animated Titans?! No Bunker? No Wonder Girl? What is with this odd disparity?
Speaking of animated Titans, I’m currently catching up on Teen Titans Go! That show is hilarious!
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Justice League vs. Teen Titans Teaser!
I haven’t watched the DC Comics animated movies in awhile, even though they’ve currently taken up a strong continuity telling the story of Damian Wayne. Well in the next one, he’s going to join the Teen Titans! And it’s going to be Justice League vs. Teen Titans!
Part of me wants to watch these movies, but another part of me already has seen a few, and knows they’re just not very good anymore. But hey, more power to everyone involved!
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Henchman-4-Hire 