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The New Teen Titans: Games (2011)

by Marv Wolfman(Favorite Author)

3.7 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1401203183 (ISBN13: 9781401203184)

languge

English

genre

Graphic Novels & Comics

publisher

DC Comics

review 1: One of the great legends of 1980s comic books was (along with the lost pages of Camelot 3000) the unfinished Teen Titans graphic novel by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, who assembled the team and created half the characters. Amazingly, they ultimately finished the book, using 70 pages Perez had already drawn.Reading this today, I took my time, savoring what would probably be the last Titans story by these two characters. It was notalgic and enjoyable, but ultimately it was not particularly earth shattering. Aside from one aspect, it was like a pleasant 4 issue run in the comic. Part of the problem is that the lineup included Danny Strong (Oliver from the Brady Bunch, grown to be a bratty 13 year old). ANd Gar had a buzzcut with a mullet (huh?). The other problem is that a ... morelot of the resonance would come from the use of King Faraday, an old DC comics character whom I had completely forgotten about except from out of continuity Darwyn Cooke comics.Okay, the best part about the book? Oversized pages for more George Perez artwork. There's a lot of story, though, so not many huge panels, but it was great to see Perez' narrative style and fine linework.
review 2: This stand alone graphic novel features the definitive New Teen Titans creative team, Marv Wolfman and George Perez, finishing a story they began two decades ago. A new foe called the Gamesmaster is playing on a board no one else can see, and his pieces and pawns have targeted the Titans... and their loved ones.I've read a smattering of New Teen Titans over the years and have a fondness for several of the characters, though I've never been a completist nor particularly well versed in their continuity. With a stand alone story, which has been retooled from its original script to reflect the fact that it no longer has a companion ongoing series to match up with, I thought I'd be able to pick up enough as I went. Unfortunately that wasn't really the case. The gist of the current rosters' personalities and powers are conveyed, but not enough for completely new readers. On top of that several developments and plot points lose great impact if the reader isn't previously familiar with certain secondary characters (which I wasn't). Key information is convey so the story can be understood, but it ends up feeling flat. Add in a cliched premise and some unsurprising twists and the core of this comic was a bit disappointing. Now on the plus side, nobody is better than Wolfman at capturing the essence of the New Teen Titans and their personalities and differences shine through. The Gamesmaster's various accomplices are interesting and the specific pairings and tactics used against the Titans fun to watch. The art is fantastic, both in Perez's usual masterful underlying pencils and the vibrant, detailed coloring that brings them to life.While Games fell short of my expectations/hopes I was still glad to spend some time revisiting a great superhero team in one of their best incarnations. But I can't really recommend it to any but the most knowledgable Titans followers or diehard fans of Perez's art. Call it 2.5 rounded up. less

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