TEX'S BACK-ISSUE QUEST 2.0 EPISODE 14

REVISED July 23, 2018

Happy there!!!

    We are back again with the groove to make you move!

     We've heard rumors of a coming Teen Titans show for years now. The Teen Titans Project over at TNT went bust. When Geoff Johns said that there may still be a chance, that gave me hope for having another great comicbook-based show hitting the airwaves to help fill my already cluttered DVR like Arrow, Flash, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Legion, and the Preacher TV series (from DC's Vertigo Imprint) on AMC

    A while ago, DC dropped news of the creation of their very own streaming service with original shows...And the Teen Titans show made the list!! Then, just a few days ago at San Diego Comic-Con 2018, DC dropped the trailer for the show that sent waves of controversy through the comics-fan community:

   As you can see, Titans will have a darker tone, and a cast that looks to be in their early 20s. And then there's Dick Grayson's "the F-Bomb heard 'round the world." I have to say, I found the trailer a bit shocking, but I still want to check the show out anyway and give it a chance - it might be great. After all, I am a Teen Titans fan from WAY back.

   But while we wait for the debut of the show, here's a fix of Teen Titans goodness from my personal collection:

It's my copy of The Brave and the Bold #54, published in 1964, featuring the very 1st appearance of the Teen Titans (Aqualad, Kid Flash, and Robin). Aqualad, (Garth, the 1st Aqualad), Kid Flash and Robin unite to save a town from the sinister Mr. Twister!

FUN FACT 1: Along with Bob Haney, forgotten Italian artist, Bruno Premiani, co-created the Teen Titans. 

FUN FACT 2: These young heroes never referred to themselves as the Teen Titans in this comic.

and

It's The Brave and the Bold #60, published in 1965, featuring the 2d appearance of the Teen Titans and the first appearance of Wonder Girl (Donna Troy), who joins the team.

It's Showcase #59, featuring the 3d appearance of the Teen Titans. In this issue, the Titans take on Jack, Jill, and Joe - hip, teenage crimesters known as The Flips. This is their first appearance. 

It's my copy of Teen Titans #1, published in 1966! The Teen Titans get their own comic!

FUN FACT 3: On Paradise Island, a male scribe is erroneously pictured in this issue. No dudes are allowed on Paradise Island!!

It's Teen Titans #2!! This comic features the first appearance of Titan's Lair. 

    And:

It's DC Comics Presents #26, published in 1980, featuring the first appearance of the modern Teen Titans. More specifically, it features the first appearances of Cyborg, Raven, Starfire (Koriand'r), and Titans Tower. Robin has a mysterious vision, a vision which reveals the coming of New Teen Titans!!

FUN FACT 4: Marv Wolfman and George Perez are the masterminds behind the modern Teen Titans. 

FUN FACT 5: Marv Wolfman, along with Len Wein, had actually been sort of blacklisted for writing a scathing Teen Titans story earlier that never saw the light of day. In the story, the first African-American superhero would have debuted in April of 1969, a few months before Marvel's Falcon would have debuted in September of the same year. You can read all about it here: The Controversy of Teen Titans #20.

FUN FACT 6: There had been three DC Comics characters named Starfire before Koriand'r. The first was Russian superhero, Loenid Kovar, the first official Russian superhero in the DCU - he first appeared in Teen Titans #18 in 1968. He changed his name to Red Star. The second was the female leader of a ring of con-artists, and an enemy of Supergirl who first appeared in Adventure Comics #402 in 1971. The third was a bi-racial, alien freedom fighter on a nameless planet, who first appeared in Starfire #1, published in 1976.

But wait, there's more:

    It's my copy of The Titans vol 1, #1. This series brings back the three original Teen Titans, Nightwing, Tempest, and The Flash, along with later members, Troia, and Arsenal. They decide to reunite the team and add a few new members, and for their efforts, they are attacked by a dangerous new foe: Damien Darhk, with a new incarnation of H.I.V.E.! 

FUN FACT 7: The Titans #1 marks the first appearance of Damien Darhk, a major Titans villain (for about a year, until he strangely disappeared from the DCU). Darhk is a young, brilliant, enigmatic villain with a lot of influence and access to advanced technology. He was made immortal by contact with the immortal blood of Adeline Kane/H.I.V.E. Mistress, Deathstroke's insane ex-wife. Damien Darhk, while almost forgotten in comics, has found fame as a MAJOR villain in DC's Arrowverse, played beautifully by Neal MacDonough. The Arrowverse's Darhk is at least 20 years older than the comics version, and nore powerful, supernaturally speaking. 

Darhk was murdered by Lady Vic (at the behest of Vandal Savage), resurrected, and made his final appearance in comics here:

(My copy of Titans vol 1, #12)

FUN FACT 6: If you would like to know about THE RAREST Teen Titans comic ever published, click HERE. 

ENJOY!! And keep your fingers crossed for the success of the TV Teen Titans adaptation!!

Thanks for visiting!

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