Teen Titans Go! Digital Issue #23: “Save the Date”
Written by Sholly Fisch
Illustrated by Lea Hernandez
Lettered by Wes Abbott
I love Star Wars. When I was in middle school, which was around the time the original trilogy was re-released as “Special Editions,” I got really, really into it. I would watch the movies all the time, get any and every action figure that I could find, and read the related novels in the (now defunct) Expanded Universe.
I also love Spaceballs, which pretty much exists to make fun of Star Wars. Even though I enjoy that universe, I can still appreciate some of the more ridiculous aspects of it an laugh at it. Being a fan of something doesn’t mean you find things you love infallible, nor should it; you love it because it speaks to you, moves you, or interests you in various ways.
Going along with this, while I love the character of Robin, I can laugh at funny portrayals of him, which is pretty much why this comic exists. And man, this Robin is so serious about being a hero, and so in love with Starfire, that it almost borders on psychosis. And it’s hilarious.
On a whim, Starfire decides to set up an online dating profile for herself and another for Raven, who reacts about as you’d expect.
Robin, upon finding out about this, also reacts about how you’d expect: first he gets almost pitifully mawkish…
…and then he spends the rest of his time being a complete and total jerk. It’s pretty hilarious.
A parade of suitors for Raven and Starfire start to show up at the door, each being dispatched in various ways. Robin gets pretty extreme about driving Starfire’s dates off, as you can see above where he pretty much threatens to kill J’onn, but hey, this is a series of exaggerations. It’s funny, because in the previous Teen Titans show he was almost too serious at times, so now creators can poke fun at that. Sholly Fisch is always good for some laughs, and this is no different.
Lea Hernandez does some good work here as well. It’s not as close to the source material as some other artists render the characters, but she draws some pretty good gags.
The story just kind of ends, which is a bit of a drag, and it’s kind of weird that all of these adult heroes are showing up for dates with teenage heroes, but it’s all in good fun. I mean, they could be 19, right?
For a quick read with a surprising number of gags and DC universe references, you could do a lot worse than this. Like I said, even if you love something dearly, it’s nice to be able to laugh at it, so having a series that doesn’t take its source material too seriously and has a sense of humor about it is refreshing.
Recommended if:
- You like the TV show.
- You want a quick, funny read.
- You want something that’s pretty unobjectionable.
Overall: Breezy and fun, I had more fun reading this installment than I thought I would. Some of the aspects were a little weird if you think about them too hard, but it’s harmless and in good fun. Nothing earth shattering here, just a fun, easy read that will make you laugh.
SCORE: 7.5/10
