This stuff is just great, and that is saying something because Teen Titans has rarely, if ever, been great. Sure it’s been mediocre, alright, occasionally good, but seldom great. In the hands of Geoff Johns, Teen Titans has become a beacon of hope in an otherwise muddled and hole riddled world of plots in the DC universe. Not that DC has been doing a bad job, but things tend to get overly complex and involve outlandish writers conveniences without much if any explanation that the average read can understand let alone piece together with the countless alternate dimensions, time streams, and random revival of dead characters.

This newest series of Teen Titans has been simple, by comparison, focusing on the interaction of only a few of the many DC heroes, as well as short yet poignant stories that are both extremely fun to read and stay on focus in a way that many comics should, but don’t. You may find it interesting that The Outsiders shares all of these brilliant characteristics, and the stories of the two groups are often related if not intertwined. The artwork in Teen Titans is top notch. It has a very modern style, but with a lot more lines used for shading than most. What I really like is that it never gets sketchy.

Well anyway, in Issue #24, Superboy receives a strange message over the internet from someone who might have been his creator, (bizarrely the message comes exactly when Superboy is contemplating the darker side of his genetic heritage) and Superboy loses his cool and dopey grin, shaves his head, carves a large “L” into his shirt, and like so many of the Teen Titans before him, he goes on an insane Titan smashing rampage. (It is strange that when Superboy shaves his head, he looks exactly like Lex Luther… Strange or painfully convenient.) But I don’t remember ‘ol Lex ever wearing a shirt with a big L on it. Shouldn’t Superboy have like, put on a suit or something? Meanwhile, the Outsiders suffer one, if no two, rebellions of their own, and whether these insurgents are true traitors or, like Superboy, are victims of mind-altering, plot-creating foul play, it looks like the younger DC heroes are all in for some heart wrenching dialogue and bone breaking butt kickery.

-Fumanchu