Would U Buy It? #136: Teen Titans, Vol. 1-3

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    Edited By cbishop
    DateWUBI? #136:View:Attached to Forum:Last Issue:
    01/26/23Teen Titans, Vol. 1-3(Blog) (Forum)Teen Titans (1996).WUBI #135.
    Teen Titans (1996)
    Teen Titans (1996)

    I have this series in single issues, but... I don't know. I don't want to say that it wasn't enjoyable, because it had some cool moments. But I was maybe a bit biased, because what I wanted was the 1980 team back. So, that's colored my view a bit. Still, I have to admit that this series wasn't terrible.

    Teen Titans (1996) had a decent two year run plus an annual and a handful of one-shots. It sort of followed the formula from the 1980 New Teen Ttians series: throw in some of the regular Titans members, introduce some new ones, and draw in a few surprises.

    The new members were Argent, Risk, Prism, and Joto. The surprises were Captain Marvel Jr., Supergirl, and a de-aged Ray Palmer Atom. The regulars were Nightwing and Robin, and eventually a few others. They even got their own rivals in the villain team Dark Nemesis.

    For all of that though, even putting my bias for the 1980 team aside, this 1996 series never quite felt right to me. For a long time, I felt like the new characters never really had the baton of approval passed to them, but they did try to address that in both the four "Double-Shots," and in the "Then & Now" storyline about halfway through the series. DC tried hard to integrate them into the DCU, even giving them tie-ins to the New Year's Evil one-shots, the Pulp Heroes annuals, and The Millennium Giants and Genesis events.

    For me though, I have to say: in my mind, Titans are Titans, and for that reason alone, I think this series should get it's collected editions. There are thirty-one issues total to be collected, and I looked at just splitting the count down the middle, but that splits the "Then & Now" storyline. So, I went with three TPB's even though to keep the storylines together, they're not an even split.

    For the title, I would just go with the series title "Teen Titans," but at this point, there have been so many different series, DC might want to differentiate a little bit, and call it "Teen Titans 1996." That seems unlikely from DC, but it's an option. Beyond that, the best way to tell them from other series is to use subtitles for each trade.

    Ultimately, I think if this series ever does see reprint, it would be in the hardcover omnibus format, collecting all thrity-one issues into one book. I'm not a fan of those just based on price point, but I know that many like it. If DC did collect this series in omnibus, I'd just use the first issue as the cover.

    Volume 1

    Proposed Title:Teen Titans, Vol. 1: Coming Out
    Alternate Titles:
    • .Teen Titans, Vol. 1.
    • .Teen Titans 1996, Vol. 1.
    Vol. 1 Collecting 9 Issues:
    Vol. 1 TPB Cover: Teen Titans #5
    Vol. 1 TPB Cover: Teen Titans #5
    Back Cover: Teen Titans #4
    Back Cover: Teen Titans #4
    About Volume 1:

    I don't honestly know if the Titans Beat preview has different material from the first issue, but since the title is playing off the magazine Teen Beat, I'm assuming it's a magazine-like intro to the new characters. If not, hey, leave it out, but include that cover, because it's kind of cool. I like the idea that the DCU might have a fan magazine called Titans Beat.

    For the front cover, for a series that's almost thirty years old (ouch), I think it's most likely that DC would just go with the first issue's cover. Really, that's a solid choice, because the brick wall cover stands out, and pretty easily identifies this series. I think that Issue #5 is a more contemporary type of image though, and it better hints at who is in the series. For the back cover, I'd go with Issue #4, because it spotlights the newer members, and has a nice space for the back cover blurb at the top once the title logo is removed.

    For the subtitle, it's possible that DC might go with "Titans Children" which was the title of the first story arc. I'd go with the second arc's title though- "Coming Out." I think that's a better title for a first volume. Also, that arc runs through the issues I picked for the covers.

    Volume 2

    Proposed Title:Teen Titans, Vol. 2: Then & Now
    Alternate Titles:
    • .Teen Titans, Vol. 2.
    • .Teen Titans 1996, Vol. 2.
    Vol. 2 Collecting 10 Issues:
    • Teen Titans #9-16.
    • Teen Titans Annual #1.
    • Dark Nemesis (Villains) #1.
    Vol. 2 TPB: Teen Titans #16
    Vol. 2 TPB: Teen Titans #16
    Back Cover: Teen Titans #11
    Back Cover: Teen Titans #11
    About Volume 2:

    Volume 2 includes the Annual which I would put in after Issue #11, and the Dark Nemesis one-shot. I don't know if the DN issue has a solid spot in the series continuity, but it seems like the end of this volume is the best place to put it.

    For the cover, my first impulse was #12 with Nightwing prominent, but none of the new characters are on that cover. I've always kind of liked Issue #16 though, with the Atom sitting on a pushpin. For the back cover, I was tempted to go with #15 with Red Arrow prominent just to draw the eyes of the CW Arrow fans. But... it's the back cover, so I don't think that's likely. Issue #11 is a dynamic image with plenty of empty space at the top for the back cover blurb.

    For the subtitle, I'd really like to call it "The Lost World of Skataris" after the first arc of the volume, because Warlord! Yeah! I think that's a niche audience these days though, and "Then & Now" is definitely the more prominent arc for this volume.

    Volume 3

    Proposed Title:Teen Titans, Vol. 3: Titans Hunt
    Alternate Titles:
    • .Teen Titans, Vol. 3.
    • .Teen Titans 1996, Vol. 3.
    • .Teen Titans, Vol. 3: New Life.
    Vol. 3 Collecting 12 Issues:
    • Teen Titans #17-24.
    • Impulse/Atom Double Shot #1.
    • Robin/Argent: Double-Shot #1.
    • Superboy & Risk - Double-Shot #1.
    • Supergirl/Prysm Double-Shot #1.
    Vol. 3 TPB Cover: Teen Titans #17
    Vol. 3 TPB Cover: Teen Titans #17
    Back Cover: Teen Titans #24
    Back Cover: Teen Titans #24
    About Volume 3:

    Volume 3 gives us the last eight issues of the series, and all four of the "Double-Shot" one-shots that paired the new characters with more established DCU characters in one-off adventures.

    I'm tempted to suggest one of the "Double-Shot" covers for this volume's cover, because they were all homage covers, and they would certainly draw eyes to the book. I think though that it would be better to go with Issue #17 which shows Atom holding the team in the palm of his hand- it's a good team shot. For the back cover, what better than Issue #24 that literally says "The End" on it? And yes, plenty of room at the top for the back cover blurb.

    For the subtitle, my pick is "Titans Hunt" - the last arc of the series. There might be some conflict there though since DC reused Titans Hunt as the title of a 2015 mini-series, and there is a trade out there for that. If they viewed it as too confusing for buyers, then my second suggestion would be "New Life" - the title of Issue #17.

    ***

    I'd personally like to see this collected so I could have the trades on my shelf. But you tell me...

    Would U Buy It? Let me know in the comments, and thanks for reading.
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    #2  Edited By cbishop
    Would U Buy It? #136: Teen Titans, Vol. 1-3
    Would U Buy It? #136: Teen Titans, Vol. 1-3

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