Teen Titans Omnibus By Geoff Johns

by Robert Greenberger

Ever since there have been kid sidekicks, gathering them together as a team has seemed like a natural outgrowth of the adult teams that were proliferating after the arrival of the Justice Society of America. Oddly, though, it fell to Stan Lee to invent the Young Allies over at Marvel, using Bucky and Toro despite DC having Robin, Speedy, Dan the Dyno-Mite, Stripesey and so on.

However, while kid groups of varying types have been a staple in comics since Joe Simon and Jack Kirby gave us the Newsboy Legion and Boy Commandos, the notion of actually training the next generation of heroes didn’t really emerge as a theme until Geoff Johns revived the Teen Titans for the umpteenth time. When the sidekicks first gathered in The Brave and the Bold #54, it was a chance to pal around and their ongoing series of the 1960s saw the largely characterless teens enjoy one another’s company while stopping the likes of Mr. Twister (although Nick Cardy’s artwork was superb).

Johns, with artist Mike McKone, put a fresh spin on the group by initially having them meet on the weekend to learn from one another under the watchful eye of the now adult Cyborg. They were to train but also to bond and by now, each member of the team was a very distinctive personality. This flourished under Johns, who was by then gaining attention for his fidelity to the past while spinning exciting new yarns for contemporary readers.

Now, those first fifteen issues are being gathered in a Teen Titans Omnibus, not to be confused with the New Teen Titans Omnibus, which gathers the early issues from Marv Wolfman and George Perez, and was the series that made this a brand name of some note. The book contains not only Teen Titans (third series) #1-15, but it contains material from Teen Titans ½, Titans Secret Files #2, Teen Titans/Outsiders Secret Files 2003, Legends of the DC Universe 80-Page Giant #2, and the Johns-penned Beast Boy miniseries.

What happened during those first few years? Plenty as we discovered new facets to the heroes and villains. Tying the current team to its previous incarnation, they first take on Deathstroke but we learn Kid Flash can read and memorize tons of facts via the public library using his speed. We segue right from ‘Stroke to Brother Blood showing that being a Titan is more than just A Kid’s Game. The team also warily welcomes Ravager, Deathstroke’s daughter, who has been a great catalyst for character conflict ever since. The focus then shifts to Beast Boy before Raven returns and remains a pivotal player for some time to come.

Johns never loses sight of the group dynamic as alliances rise and fall as do heartbeats as Connor and Wonder Girl’s romance heats up. Robin remains the natural leader, a legacy Tim Drake inherited from Dick Grayson much as Cassie Sandsmark was the centered Titan that everyone could be comfortable around. He also added dashes of humor, none better than when Kid Flash learned to drive… in the Batmobile.

The Omnibus format is clearly here to stay and one advantage to having this is to watch Johns grow as a writer and to see the seeds he plants early on sprout into full epics. This collection is pretty much the first three Johns’ written trades so you have to decide for yourself if this hardcover is worth adding to your shelf if you own them. If you don’t then this is the volume to have as the echo of “Titans Together!” rings loud and clear.

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Teen Titans Omnibus By Geoff Johns

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