Topic: An EDE Retro Review: Silver Age Titans Archives and Showcase!
Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
Okay, so this is the first in what will be a series of reviews of the classic Teen Titans stories printed in Silver Age Teen Titans Archives, Volume One. I'm reading all of these for the first time, and will be presenting my views on each story as I read it.
We start with Brave & the Bold #54, which isn't exactly a Teen Titans story, but a teamup between Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash from June-July 1964, which set the stage for the later development of the Titans one year later.
THE PLOT The town of Hatton Corners seems like this really boring place, because the biggest problem it suffers from is this "teen-age problem" , which, however, is apparently so important, it's made the national news. Now, it's not clear what this problem is, but it seems like the teen-agers just have nothing to do with their time other than hang out in a dilapidated old barn that passes for a "teen clubhouse", or playing their music too loud at the Soda Fountain, or leading the police chief on "merry chases" around town. Anyway, rather than build them a new "clubhouse" (i.e. teen center), the town's adults are busy trying to solve the problem by imposing curfews and other square measures. The teens call in Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad to speak on their behalf.
Anyway, if this weren't enough of a plot, there's this delusional lunatic named Brom Stikk whose brain, I would guess, has probably been addled from massive drug use, though apparently his ancestors were equally as crazy. Supposedly, his ancestor "rented" the town founders the land on which the town was built, on the conditon that they pay him one passenger pigeon feather or one "stalwart youth" to labor for him per year. So Brom comes to the town and demands the back payment of everything owed to his ancestor's descendants. The town leaders laugh at Brom's silly demands. And, of course, laughing at the the silly demands of a delusional lunatic with a drug-addled brain who comes to your small town is always a mistake.
To make a long story short, Brom, in his new identity of "Mister Twister", kidnaps all the town's teens to work for him in his slave labor camps on "Goat Island" (which is surprisingly lacking in goats!). What he really wants, however, are the passenger pigeon feathers to add to this goofy bird-feather cloak he wears. So, as he has the teens doing silly things like building a giant twister monument, he threatens to destroy the town if they don't give him his feathers, which creates a problem since the passenger pigeon has been extinct since 1913. Oh well, it's a good thing those teens had invited Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash to town.
THE ROBIN'S LESSONS IN HIP LINGO DEPT. "No teen-ager would use the word 'music' in a hip language message... they'd use 'jive!'
THE CATTIEST REMARK OF THE ISSUE DEPT. Kid Flash remarks about some girls admiring Aqualad: "They'd need gills to go on a date with him!"
THE "WE'RE TRYING REALLY HARD TO MAKE AQUALAD USEFUL!" DEPT. Besides hiding the teens on an island, Mister Twister later floods the town, allowing Aqualad's narwhal friend to swim freely in the streets!
THE EVIDENCE OF SPEEDY'S DRUG USE DEPT. Well, it sure is odd that Speedy isn't invited to help present the teens case alongside the other teen heroes. Maybe they didn't think having a dope fiend speak for them would help their case?
And it sure is interesting that Brom Stikk, Mr. Drug-Addled Brain himself, gains his powers from an old Indian cave... and which Titan do we know who was raised by Indians?
SUMMARY Overall, this is a so-so story that's trying way too hard on the whole teens vs. adults issue. If that wasn't enough to tackle, there's also a whole moral thrown in about how Robin isn't useless despite his lack of super-powers.
[ May 04, 2006, 07:14 PM: Message edited by: Eryk Davis Ester ]
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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This is the oldest comic in my collection. I bought it many years ago for something like AU$8 at an old second-hand book-shop in Perth where I grew up.
I've always quite liked it for its historical significance but it is a pretty flat story. Though I have always loved that image of Aqualad riding his narwhal through the streets of the town! I've always had a soft spot for Garth and especially his cute costume. I *so* wanted to be Aqualad more than any other hero when I was a boy!
For some reason I also have a bit of a soft spot for the cheesy villain Mister Twister! Man if that poor guy knew some of the weird transformations his character would make years down the line I bet he would've taken his stick and run home as fast as he could!
From: Australia | Registered: Dec 2003
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Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
EDE RETRO REVIEW: The Brave and the Bold #60
So I decided it makes more sense to do these all in one thread rather than starting separate threads for each issue. Next we have the first official appearance of the Teen Titans, as they face "The Astounding Separated Man"!
THE PLOT This story takes place in a town called "Midville", which strikes me as an odd name for a town on the ocean, but we all know why that's necessary. When our story opens, it's teen government day in Midville, when all of the important positions in the town are filled by teens for twenty-four hours. The boy chosen to be Teen mayor is a fellow by the name of Tommy Holmes. Tommy seems to be doing a pretty good job, but many of the adults are suspicious of him, because a) he's a teen, and b) his father is in jail.
It turns out that Tommy's father was a professor who invented a serum which turned him into the "Seperated Man", a "molecular giant that can separate into different parts". While Tommy's father intended this serum to be used for good, once turned into the Seperated Man he developed uncontrollable criminal tendencies, which eventually led to his imprisonment once he was turned to normal. But shortly after Tommy takes over as mayor, he finds out his father has broken out of jail and the Seperated Man has returned to menace Midville!
All the square adults try to use this as an excuse to discredit Tommy's teen government, so he calls the Teen Titans, which Robin had organized after the Hatton Corners caper, and together they help Tommy capture the Separated Man, who turns out not to be Tommy's father at all but instead his father's cellmate who had stolen a vial of the serum. Tommy's father had escaped prison to stop him.
THE FEMININE INSIGHT DEPT. Wonder Girl: "I believe Tommy! No one with such sincere, blue eyes could lie!"
THE CATTIEST REMARK OF THE ISSUE DEPT. Tommy's girlfriend (in response to Wondy's above remark): "Brrrrrr... Amazon or no Amazon-- if she keeps that up, I'll yank her ponytail off!"
THE "WE'RE TRYING REALLY HARD TO MAKE AQUALAD USEFUL!" DEPT. Tommy tricks the Separated Man into thinking his "secret laboratory" is located in an abandoned lighthouse! Surfing and talking to fish ensue!
THE "I THINK I NEED TO CONSULT WITH QUISLET, ESQ. ON THIS" DEPT. So, Tommy's dad is imprisoned for crimes he commits as the Separated Man, even though he has no control over them, and had good intentions. However, he isn't given additional time for breaking out of jail since he did it to stop the Separated Man. Huh? And why the heck did they let him keep a vial of the serum that turned him into the SM in the first place while in jail?
THE CREATIVE USE OF TEEN STEREOTYPES DEPT. Tommy and his friends chase off a giant eavesdropping ear by playing the Beatles really loudly!
THE "COULD THIS VILLAIN BE ANYMORE CREEPY?" DEPT As if giant floating eyeballs detached from their head weren't enough, they cry tears of fire! This could cause serious nightmares...
SUMMARY Well, this issue was actually pretty good, though I found myself wondering what the Titans themselves actually bring to it. Tommy, his father, and unnamed girlfriend were all very interesting characters, and all the dramatic tension of the issue really revolved around them. As far as I'm concerned, this could have been their story without any Titan involvement. I'm kind of wondering if the lack of genuine development of the Titans themselves is going to be a constant problem with this series, since all of them really primarily belong to other series, and the authors can't really do much with them here. But we'll see...
[ September 20, 2005, 08:10 PM: Message edited by: Eryk Davis Ester ]
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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Hmm. Warming to the idea of buying the SA TT Archive... we'll see if Eryk spots more cattiness and feminine intuition based on eye color in the other tales...
posted
Is it when Aqualad says "It's the Flips! Look at that Joe ride his jet-propelled surfboard...and dig his beat!"?
From: San Diego, CA | Registered: Jul 2003
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Even the hip slang of yesteryear seems ever so "quaint" by today's standards - its the ginchiest! The ultimate!
From: Adelaide, Australia | Registered: Jun 2005
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The Flips are so beautiful I'm going to cry.
Registered: Jul 2003
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Eryk Davis Ester
Created from the Cosmic Legends of the Universe!
posted
quote:Originally posted by Nightcrawler: Is it when Aqualad says "It's the Flips! Look at that Joe ride his jet-propelled surfboard...and dig his beat!"?
Dig the context, cats!
[ September 21, 2005, 09:09 AM: Message edited by: Eryk Davis Ester ]
From: Liberty City | Registered: Jul 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Eryk Davis Ester: [b]THE "I THINK I NEED TO CONSULT WITH QUISLET, ESQ. ON THIS" DEPT. So, Tommy's dad is imprisoned for crimes he commits as the Separated Man, even though he has no control over them, and had good intentions. However, he isn't given additional time for breaking out of jail since he did it to stop the Separated Man. Huh? And why the heck did they let him keep a vial of the serum that turned him into the SM in the first place while in jail?
Presumably the District Attorney met his burden by showing that Prof. Holmes knew or should have known that there were unpredictable side effects to his serum and that this negated his lack of control. His "good" intentions don't count.
It is at the discretion of the DA to charge Prof. Holmes with attempted escape. And even if the DA does charge him and makes his case, the judge has the discretion to sentence him to time served.
As for letting him keep a vial of the serum with him in jail, I assume this is part of the same law in the DC and Marvel universes that give villians their super devices back when they finish serving their jail time.
-------------------- Five billion years from now the Sun will go nova and obliterate the Earth. Don't sweat the small stuff!
From: Boston | Registered: Aug 2003
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