Teen Titans
Official Team Names: The Teen Titans
Team Nicknames: The Titans
Former Team Aliases: Titans West; The New Teen Titans; The New Titans; Team Titans; Titans L.A.
Other Current Team Aliases: No other known current aliases
Status
Team Status: Active
Team Identity: Secret
Base of Operations: San Francisco, California; Formerly New York City, New York
Organization
Team Leader: Cyborg (Victor Stone)
Active Members: Kid Devil, Ravager (Rose Wilson), Robin (Tim Drake)
Former Members: Argent (Toni Monetti), Arsenal (Roy Harper), Atom (Ray Palmer), Baby Wildebeest, Battalion, Beast Boy (Garfield Logan), Bumblebee, Bushido, Captain Marvel, Jr., Hero Cruz, Damage, Dove (Dawn Granger), Dove (Don Hall), Flamebird (Bette Kane), Flash (Wally West), Flash (Walter West), Fringe, Gnarrk, Golden Eagle (Charley Parker), Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner), Harlequin (Duela Dent), Hawk (Hank Hall), Herald, Jericho, Jesse Quick, Joto, Kid Flash (Bart Allen), Killowatt, Christopher King, Kole, Minion, Mirage, Nightrider, Nightwing (Dick Grayson), Omen (Lilith Clay), Pantha, Phantasm, Prestor Jon, Prysm, Raven (Daughter of Trigon), Red Star, Redwing, Risk, Robin (Jason Todd), Speedy (Mia Dearden), Starfire (Koriand'r), Superboy (Kon-El), Supergirl (Linda Danvers), Tempest (Garth), Terra (Tara Markov), Terra (Tara Markov clone), Troia, Wonder Girl (Cassandra Sandsmark)
Known Allies: Doom Patrol, JLA, JSA, Outsiders, Wendy and Marvin
Known Enemies: Brotherhood of Evil, Fearsome Five, Trigon, Deathstroke, Brother Blood, Superboy-Prime
Origin
Place of Formation: Place of formation unknown
First Appearance: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD Vol. 1 #54 (1965)
Origin: Origin unknown.
Comic History
The Teen Titans first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #54 (July 1964), portrayed as a junior Justice League consisting of Robin I, Kid Flash I, and Aqualad, joining together as had their mentors (respectively, Batman, The Flash II, and Aquaman). They were soon joined by Wonder Girl I, whose existence as a teenaged version of Wonder Woman had previously been established, but this character was new and separate from the adult character, and their link was not immediately clear (the mystery of Wonder Girl's background would linger in the series until finally resolved in the 1980s).
The Teen Titans were popular enough to be awarded their own series, with issue #1 (cover-dated February 1966). The early issues were noted for their artwork by Nick Cardy. While Green Arrow's ward Speedy would naturally join (though would later be retconned to be a founding member despite not showing up for several issues), the series later introduced entirely new teenaged heroes, notably Lilith Clay and Hawk and Dove.
The series' tone was often torn between the freewheeling excitement of the 1960s, and its darker side as keyed by the Vietnam War and the protests thereof. One memorable storyline beginning with #25 (February 1970) put the Titans in the middle of the accidental death of a peace activist, leading them to reconsider their means and goals, and leading to the temporary departure of Robin. The theme of teenagers learning to take on adult responsibilities was common throughout the series.
The series' popularity flagged heading into the 1970s, and it went on hiatus as of #43 (February 1973).
A few years later, the series was revived resuming with #44 (November 1976), but struggled to find focus, moving through a number of storylines in rapid succession. Notable among these were the mysterious Joker's Daughter, as well as the Teen Titans West, consisting of a number of other teen heroes from around the DC Universe. The revival was short-lived, and the series was cancelled as of #53 (February 1978).
The Titans were again revived with a new series. Previewed in DC Comics Presents #26 (October 1980), The New Teen Titans #1 (November 1980) introduced a team of new Titans, anchored by previous members Robin I, Wonder Girl I, and Kid Flash I. It re-introduced the Changeling (formerly Beast Boy), and introduced for the first time the man-machine Cyborg, the alien Starfire, and the dark empath Raven. Raven, an expert manipulator, formed the group to fight her demonic father Trigon, and the team remained together thereafter as a group of young adult heroes.
The brainchild of writer Marv Wolfman and artist George Pérez, it has been widely speculated that the book was DC's answer to the increasingly popular X-Men from Marvel Comics, and indeed both books involved a group of young adult heroes from disparate backgrounds whose internal conflicts were as much a part of the book as their combat against villains. In any event, both books were instrumental in moving mainstream comics in a more character-driven direction. The title also borrowed the use of long story arcs and having the characters swept up in galactic battles and interdimensional conflicts. Much as X-Men made a fan favorite out of artist John Byrne, The New Teen Titans did the same for Pérez.
Even the villains' motivations could be complex, as in the case of Deathstroke the Terminator, a mercenary who took a contract on the Titans to fulfill a job his son was unable to complete. This led to the Titans' most complex adventure, in which a psychopathic girl named Terra I infiltrated the Titans in order to destroy them. This story also included the original Robin, Dick Grayson, adopting the identity Nightwing. The series also made regular feature of The Monitor as a background character.
In 1982 there was a four-part mini-series by Wolfman and Perez, Tales of the New Teen Titans, that detailed the back stories of Cyborg, Raven, Starfire II, and Changeling.
Other notable stories included "A Day in the Life..." which featured the personal lives of the team on one day. There was also the story "Who is Donna Troy?" in which Robin investigated Wonder Girl's true identity (#38), and "We are Gathered Here Today...", the story of Wonder Girl's marriage (#50 and noteworthy for being a rare superhero wedding in which a fight didn't break out).
The series underwent some numbering confusion when DC moved some of its more popular books from the newsstand to the direct distribution market (to comic book specialty stores) in 1984. The New Teen Titans became Tales of the Teen Titans for a year (not to be confused with the earlier Tales of the New Teen Titans mini-series), while a new book named The New Teen Titans was launched with a new #1. The former book began reprinting the latter's stories for the newsstand a year later, and ran to #91, but the new stories were in the direct market book.
Issue #1 of the new direct market book got some controversy as Dick Grayson and Starfire were depicted in bed together, although it had been established for some time that they were a regular couple.
Pérez left the book after #5 of the second series, and the series seemingly went into a tailspin (at some point Wolfman reportedly suffered from writer's block, and other writers chipped in from time to time). José Luis Garcia Lopez followed Pérez, and Eduardo Barreto contributed a lengthy run. Then Pérez returned with #50 (the book again being renamed, this time to The New Titans, the characters effectively no longer being teens) to tell another origin story for Wonder Girl (her previous link to Wonder Woman having been severed due to retcons in Crisis on Infinite Earths), resulting in her being renamed Troia. Pérez this time hung on through #61.
Following this, the book introduced a number of characters, put others through some radical changes, and though it ran for another 7 years, the group which appeared in the final issue, #130 (February 1996), bore little resemblance to the one which had anchored DC's line-up in the early 1980s.
A completely unrelated group of Teen Titans began their own series later that year with a new #1 (October 1996). Led by the Atom, who had become a teenager following the events of Zero Hour, the series ended with #24 (September 1998). The entirety of this run of the title was written by Dan Jurgens.
The earlier team was revived in a 3-issue mini-series, JLA/Titans, featuring nearly everyone who had ever been a Titan. This led into The Titans #1 (March 1999), written by Devin Grayson. This incarnation of the team consisted of a veritable grab bag of former Titans, including Nightwing, Troia, Arsenal, Tempest II, and the Flash III (from the original lineup), Starfire II, Cyborg, and Damage (from the New Teen Titans era), and Argent (from the 1996 series). This series lasted to #50 (2002).
It was followed by the Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day crossover, that led directly into the new Teen Titans series, and set also the grounds for the new Outsiders series.
Writer Geoff Johns launched another Teen Titans series in 2003, again featuring a mix of previous and new members, many of whom had previously been part of Young Justice.
The original lineup of this version of the team was intended to mirror the lineup of Marv Wolfman's New Teen Titans series. Cyborg, Starfire and Beast Boy return, this time as the veteran members, whilst the current Robin, Superboy, Wonder Girl and Kid Flash (who, as Impulse, served very briefly with the New Titans before that series's cancellation) are portrayed as the rookies, inverting the dynamic of the earlier series. They were initially the core of the teen team Young Justice. Raven joins the team in the first few issues, her soul housed in a new body and having to relearn how to use her powers, putting her in a middle-ground between the veterans and the rookies. While Starfire left to join the Outsiders, Mia Dearden, the new Speedy, also joined the team during the "Lights Out" storyline.
This new series saw also a relocation of the team from the east to the west coast. The headquarters of this new team are located in San Francisco instead of the traditional New York City location.
Team History
Animated Series
Cast of the new Teen Titans series
- Teen Titans is an animated series, created by Sam Register, Glen Murakami, and Bruce Timm, that premiered on Cartoon Network on July 19, 2003. It is based on the DC Comics superhero team, the Teen Titans. The series is loosely based on The New Teen Titans comic books and its related series. It revolves around the main team members Robin, Starfire, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Raven. Titans Tower, is used as a headquarters for the team and is based on the comic book tower. Self-referential humor is used throughout the show with villains of the week for many episodes. Seasons two and four were based upon two of the most popular New Teen Titans arcs, "Judas Contract" and "Terror of Trigon" respectively. Many characters from the comics, such as Aqualad and Speedy, have appeared occasionally throughout the show. One unique quality of the show is that it is character driven and intentionally often focuses on the struggles the main characters have with being teen-aged superheroes. Many episodes deal with the relationships between the characters as friends and with the personal limitations of the characters.
- While most episodes are not connected with a central plot, each season has several episodes devoted to a continuing storyline. The first season introduced Slade, an arch-rival of Robin and the Titans. The season two adaptation of "Judas Contract" brought Terra into the series. She eventually betrays the Titans to Slade, just as the original character had in the comic books. Season three focused on Brother Blood and the H.I.V.E. academy, and ended with the creation of the Titans East team, based primarily on the East Coast. The fourth season adapted the "Terror of Trigon" arc, showcasing Raven and her relationship with the father, the demon-god Trigon. Season five has begun airing. It focuses on the Brotherhood of Evil, long enemies of the Doom Patrol, a fellow heroic organization.
- The show is set in Jump City (which is seemingly far from Gotham, as stated by Cyborg), while the Titans East is located in Steel City.
- A quirk of the series is that the characters maintain their superhero identites while the concept of an alter-ego or secret identity is sometimes hinted at but rarely explored. In particular, there is some debate over which of the Robins actually leads the Teen Titans. While many signs point to Dick Grayson the original Robin.
- The animation style portrays a heavy anime-influence, represented by the art style as well as references to popular anime such as FLCL. The series's theme song also alternates between the English version and Japanese version of the song, both sung by the Japanese rock band Puffy Amiyumi.
- A comic book based on the show, Teen Titans Go, written by J. Torres is being published by DC Comics.
early cartoon concept art
- The show is rumored to end its run on Feburary 4, 2006, but this is unconfirmed.
- A source of controversy among fans has surrounded the place of the series in the DC Animated Universe. Series producer Bruce Timm has stated that there will be no crossover with Justice League Unlimited. Also, series producer and creator Glen Murakami has stated that the inspiration for the series is the 1980s The New Teen Titans comic book series, and not the Justice League animated series. Although Batman does refer to the Titans in the Static Shock and Justice League crossover episode "Hard as Nails," there is no proof that the mentioned Titans relate in any way to the ones represented in this series. The issue of continuity ties in directly with the debate about Robin's secret identity: if Teen Titans fits into the larger DCAU, then Robin must be Tim Drake, unless Teen Titans is a flashback series, contrary to the slightly ambiguous on-screen hints that he is Dick Grayson. However this is contradicted by the existence of a pre-Arsenal Roy Harper (the first Speedy), a pre-Tempest Garth as Aqualad and most recently the Wally West version of Kid Flash, all three of which hail from Grayson's era. There is not enough evidence to either prove or disprove its place in the continuity of Justice League Unlimited.
Statistics
Total Members: Total number of members unknown
Total Allies: Total number of allies unknown
Total Enemies: Total number of enemies unknown
Miscellaneous
Equipment: No known equipment.
Transportation: No known transportation.
Weapons: No known weapons.
Notes
- No special notes.
Trivia
Recommended Readings
Related Articles
The New Teen Titans: The Judas Contract The New Teen Titans: Who is Donna Troy? Teen Titans: A Kid's Game Teen Titans Go! Vol. 1: Truth, Justice, Pizza!
External Links
References