After a lengthy hiatus, the Teen Titans return to continue their story following the return of Superboy. Will Pfeifer does a terrific job with the pacing of the story, breaking up the plot between various characters and bringing it all to a culmination at the end.
There are a lot of things the Titans are currently facing, and the common denominator is Superboy. The super-powered teen is all over the news as a wanted man for his murderous rampage. With all the attention on them, the Teen Titans deal with the drama in their own ways. Red Robin, who is always about the mission, is focused on helping his friend clear his name. While Superboy lets off a bit of steam above the city of Chicago, Tim Drake monitors his activity along with Ra’ut L’lwer, Conner’s rescuer. Ra’ut is a Durlan, the same alien race that was allegedly murdered brutally at the hands of Kent. She’s hoping to find her way home and restore the Durlan race, but she believes Superboy was framed and vows to assist in proving his innocence.
Raven, Bunker, and Beast Boy take their downtime to explore Chicago. The three Titans are on the fence about the situation. They’re well aware of Superboy’s rage problems, but they’re not too sure that he would kill innocents just on a whim. The teenagers take some time in the city to sort of unwind. Of course, a relaxing stroll through Chicago is not the same whenever you’re a superhero! The trio are recognized as members of the Teen Titans, and a crowd starts to form. It appears that the Titans still have some adoring fans amidst the current drama the team faces. Miguel and Garfield bask in the spotlight, but Raven is continuing to have trouble keeping large crowds of people out of her mind; it’s having a profound effect on her. The scene quickly takes a bad turn when the crowd gets a little too rowdy trying to clamor around the heroes. A young lady is knocked off of a platform onto the train tracks below with an oncoming train speeding in her direction. Naturally, the fallen citizen cannot get in time to fend for herself. Bunker and Beast Boy are too far away to get there in time, and Raven is feeling overwhelmed. Have no fear, Superboy is here!! The Kryptonian clone swoops in to stop the train and save the damsel in distress. While she is very grateful tat her life was spared, the crowd quickly turns into a mob as they all try to catch a glimpse of Superboy. Conner gets his friends out of that area before things get any worse.
On the other side of the fence are Power Girl, Wonder Girl, and the ever so suspicious Manchester Black. I’ve always been weary about trusting Manchester, and rightfully so, but this was the first time that he was shown as having a devious plan underway. The smug bloke has assembled a new team to capture Superboy and his accomplices. Power Girl being new to the team isn’t so trusting of Conner (or Tim’s decision making for that matter), and Wonder Girl isn’t too happy that her former flame has returned with so much trouble to his name. They’re joined by Manchester’s other recruits, Klarion, Guardian, and Kid Flash. This provides an interesting setup, pitting heroes against heroes. Not quite sure what Manchester Black has in mind, but you can be sure that he has plenty of tricks up his leather sleeves.
Rocafort’s pencils get the job done this issue as everyone has a nice, clean, and consistent look. I particularly loved Beasty Boy as a tiny green teddy bear. The star on the art team for me however was colorist Dan Brown. The pages look very bright and bold with is colors. Superboy and Wonder Girl’s costumes actually glow the brightest, signifying to me the passionate tempers of both characters. They may be unintentional, but that’s how it was interpreted in my mind.
Recommended if:
- You’re interested in Superboy’s return
- You want to see what Manchester Black is up to
- You’ve been following this title
Overall:
Not exactly a “filler episode”, but little happens in terms of the overall story. Nonetheless, it is entertaining as a set up issue. Will Pfeifer handles the different personalities well through clever dialogue and the pairing of certain characters with one another. Looks like we’ll get a big showdown next time, but this issue was a nice return to our regularly scheduled monthly book.
SCORE: 7.5 / 10
