Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #2

An encounter with an impostor St. Nick at Wayne Manor sends 10-year old Jason Todd and his friends Starfire and Roy Harper on a trek to the North Pole to find out why the real Santa Claus didn't come to visit Red Hood and the Outlaws. 

The New 52 had a lot of memorable moments. However, the fun moments were few and far between as this incarnation of the DC Universe was much more dark and gritty. This holiday annual was lots of fun as it seems that fans of the Red Hood, Starfire and Arsenal got to explore an untold tale from their early days as youths. Only something just doesn't add up and it's not Dan DiDio and Jim Lee playing fast and loose with continuity. 

Scott Lobdell gifted fans with a festive story that was gritty, violent and absolutely bonkers. Yet, it was a wild ride that I will definitely visit again in future Christmas comics reading seasons. Jonboy Meyers' art was great and while the cover by RB Silva and Walden Wong is deceptively cute, it made for a great wrappage for this package full of New 52 twists and turns!

I've never read any of the Red Hood and the Outlaws books previously. Thanks to this 2015 annual, I may just start. I didn't really understand the concept of the series. I'm still not 100% understanding of why Starfire is with Jason Todd and not the Teen Titans; but I now have a better grasp of this series' concept enough to give it a go.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Teen Titans Go! Undead (Family Comic Friday)

Get a crash course on how to survive a zombie apocalypse, Teen Titans Go! style.

When the skies over Jump City turn an eerie purple color, the Teen Titans investigate... by going to the mall. There, they discover that the population has all turned into zombies. Only there's no virus going around making everyone sick. It turns out that the shopping outlet has a big online sale today that is turning the citizens of Jump City, both alive and dead, into the dreaded 'Undead.' Oh, and that asteroid that came crashing down last night in the town square might also have something to do with it...

This 2022 graphic novel, while not a Halloween themed read, was a fun way to get into the spirit of the holiday. Teen Titans Go! is a Cartoon Network series that thrives on absurd humor, catchy oddball tunes, and being about as gross and irreverent as allowed for viewers aged 8-12, which is also the recommended reading ages for Teen Titans Go! Undead according to Amazon. Pretty much if parents and guardians let their wards watch the cartoon, then you'll have no issue with this graphic novel. But if your expecting this book to be an innocuous as Super Friends or Batman: The Animated Series, you've got another thing coming. Instead, Teen Titans Go! is like the DC Universe if crafted by the creator of Ren & Stimpy.

The book was perfect Teen Titans Go!, as long as you don't like the songs. The musical episodes have always been my least favorite and thankfully, there's only 1 song and it's mercifully short. There's not very much of the rest of the DC Universe in this book. There's like maybe 1 reference to Batman and a second to Darkseid and that's about it. But there's a whole slew of references to other supporting characters created for just the series. Oh, and a great gag involving Robin's rival over Starfire's affections, Speedy, as well as their arch-enemies, the dreaded teens of H.I.V.E..

I don't think that this book is an adaptation of a full-length episode or special. If it isn't, then this graphic novel should be adapted into a 5 day event for fans of the animated series. It's got the feel and pace of such a thing and it would make a fantastic entry in Cartoon Network's annual Halloween programming. I know it's too late to do for this year. But 2024??? Fingers crossed!

Lots of fun. Not scary. In fact, if anything, it pays tribute to the zombie horror genre while mocking it and making it seem about the most silly idea to end the world ever! But that's mostly due to the Teen Titans! For a fun-filled Halloween read that won't keep you up at night, Go!- to your local book store and demand a copy today!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Marvel Comics Presents #86

The newest tale that dives into the long and mysterious past of Wolverine continues to impress me. Cyber is a villain that terrifies Logan to his core. I love it!

This entire issue really impresses me, actually. 

The Firestar story really heats up as Angelica Jones plans an assault on the government facility that has captured her father. At the risk of her personal freedom at the hands of both the US government and Emma Frost's Hellfire Club. I'm loving the anti-hero dynamics of Freedom Force- the mutant version of Suicide Squad led by Mystique. I'm lamenting that this team never saw their own personal series or mini.

Hank McCoy becomes embroiled in an international incident during some sort of genetic symposium. We start to see parts of his past along with a developing subplot that will see The Beast becoming an ersatz secret agent. I'm excited about the prospects.

Lastly is another story starring the bounty hunter, Paladin. He takes an assignment to protect the owner of a minor league baseball whose life is threatened. But the assailant has a bomb and so Paladin must save the entire stadium. That is if his client ups his handling fee...

A flawless issue of MCP. A rarity in this series for sure.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars. 

Teen Titans Go!, Volume 2: Welcome to the Pizza Dome

Time for more Teen Titans Go! Hijinks.

Featuring Beast Boy, Robin, Cyborg, Starfire, and Raven, this collection contains early issues of the monthly comic from DC and is based on the controversial cartoon series of the same. (Don’t worry- there’s nothing offensive or dirty with TTG. It’s just that some fans think the silliness of the show is unforgivable and wish the series was more like the more serious Teen Titans cartoon of the early 2000s.)

I for one love the show. But I admit, it’s gets a little off the wall. Especially when they sing. Nevertheless, Beast Boy is my spirit animal and I wish I was as chill as him.

In this volume, there are laughs aplenty as:

 The Titans learn the dangers of growing a moustache.

 Robin becomes a teen idol to impress Starfire.

Raven attends her family reunion in the deepest pits of Hades.

And the team fight to the death- for the last slice of pizza.

Scooby-Doo Team-Up’s Sholly Fisch crafts these stories. I have said it once and I will say it again- if Fisch was the writer on the show, it would not have so many haters. He’s that good and super talented when it comes to all-aged materials. Other stories are by Amy Wolfram and Merrill Hagan. Those are not bad but they tend to fall into the very silly trap that has cause some fans to no longer watch TTG.

The artwork was picture perfect. Ben Bates (Scribblenauts) and Lea Hernandez (Killer Princesses) do an amazing job of making the entire cast of characters look just like they do on the show. Plus, they seamlessly craft characters that have never been on before, like Wonder Woman, to look as they might if they ever were to guest star on Teen Titans Go.

Sometimes silly. Often hilarious and very entertaining, this volume was a great read for when you don’t want a serious comic. Kids will delight while older fans would be mixed about this. I for one enjoyed it quite a bit.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

The New Teen Titans: Terra Incognito

     
     The Teen Titans have just accepted their first new member since this incarnation's formation. Her name is Terra and with the ability to manipulate earth and soil, she's like a muddier version of Magneto. Claiming to have been a member of the Markovian Royal Family and recently escaped her kidnappers, elements of her story don't add up. Can Terra be trusted or is she a wolf in sheep's clothing?
       Meanwhile Dick Grayson is struggling to maintain balance as the Titans' leader, Robin, as well as being Batman's sidekick, and as a college student. Trying to become his own man, Dick's relationship with fellow teammate Starfire is in serious jeopardy as well. Adding to his problems is an Assistant District attorney named Adrian Chase, who's quest for justice against a mob boss who keeps skirting jail time, may send the Boy Wonder down a rabbit hole of bent rules and lawless vigilantism to which there is no return.
       The New Teen Titans by the legendary team of Marv Wolfman and George Perez were DC's answer to the revitalized X-Men. Those merry mutants from Marvel were a great read, but unless you had a chart to assist you, it was really hard trying to keep up with the endless characters and soap opera style story-lines that writer Chris Claremont weaved throughout a number of titles. Titans seems to have that same soapy feel as X-Men, and there are quite a bit of players all over the place- but it's of a lesser (and easier to follow) extent.
      Recently, I've been trying to clear my bookcases of things that I amassed but wasn't 100% sure if after I did, that I'd want to keep it. This volume was from my best friend's collection I inherited a couple of years ago. He was a huge Teen Titans fan and I had held on to it because of that. 
    So, what's the verdict?
    I'm hooked. I want the other volumes! This was a tremendously fun read and I want to know what happened before this storyline and I definitely have to know what happened afterwards. 
    Plus, if you collect the short-lived 80s series Vigilante like I do, then you will want this volume as it details the character's origin are covered in great detail. 
     There might even be some backstory to the Crisis on Infinite Earths lurking around a few corners in this awesome collection.
     A true classic made by some of the masters of the comic book industry.

    Worth Consuming

     Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Teen Titans Go!/ Scooby-Doo Team-Up #1 (2015 Free Comic Book Day)

    The girls take over Titans Tower as they throw Starfire's first ever slumber party. Meanwhile, Beast Boy and Cyborg decide to go bowling. But is Vic using his targeting system to cheat? As long as there are bowling alley nachos, we'll never find out.
     On the flip side of this Free Comic Book Day offering, the Mystery Gang are asked to help the Super Friends with a ghost problem. A group of 7 ghosts of different colored ghosts are haunting the Hall of Justice and one has caused Superman to disappear. Featuring Supergirl, some mystery villains and the most legitimate answer to what ever happened to Wendy, Marvin, and Wonder Dog?! It has the makings of a great issue...
      I really enjoyed this comic but I kinda wish I hadn't read it. The Scooby-Doo Team-Up story was left as a cliff hanger and it's a an issue of my favorite team-up series that I don't have! I wanna know what happens now!!!
      Along with the two stories, there were some fun activities for kids: a pizza maker game for the Teen Titans and an art grid of Wonder Woman and Batman. I thought this was a neat addition. Though I always hated that grid thing as I never could get the artwork right.
       A neat sampler of DC's children comics in 2015. But I hate not having the full Scooby/ Super Friends tale.

     Worth Consuming

     Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.

Teen Titans Go!, Volume 6: Titans Together!

  The original series of Teen Titans Go! did something most cartoons still refuse to do- it aged and evolved with its audience. In season one, you meet the inexperienced group of young superheroes trying to make a difference in the superhero community while finding their place in the world. In season two, the team started adding new associate members and by the third (and final season) the team started to grow up and on at least one occasion, we trekked to the future and see the Titans drop the 'Teen' from their name, taking over after Batman, Superman, and the rest of the Justice League retired. 

    This volume was published after those future episodes were shown on Cartoon Network and the series' future rested in limbo. Here we encounter the group fighting their main enemy HIVE, associate members such as Aqualad & Speedy teaming up together, and the future is now when Nightwing travels to the present day to prevent his younger Robin self from becoming evil. It's a trippy time-traveling yarn that is full of mind-bending paradoxes. 

   Fans of the original Teen Titans Go! series will delight in this volume. It's a little bit anime, a little bit dramatic, with bits of activity and joke book thrown in and not at all like the new series that most TTG purists absolutely hate! A fun collection that's very much worth consuming. 

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Teen Titans Go!: Thunder and Lightning Strike! ( A Family Comic Friday Extra!)

  

Reprinting Teen Titans Go! #6

In this library edition of Teen Titans Go!, a pair of brothers with the powers of thunder and lightning are reaking havoc over the city in which the Titans love so dear. The entire city will come crashing down if the Titans don't act quick enough. However, it seems that their interference in a domestic dispute is just making things worse. It's up to level-headed Raven to save the day and the city.

Another masterpiece from J. Torres covering the first animated incarnation of the Teen Titans on Cartoon Network. The story itself was pretty good and it would have been excellent if you had removed Thunder and Lightning from the story altogether. That right, I said it, the main villains of the story were NOT needed.

 First of all- they look rediculous. Lightning looks like a knock-off of fan favorite Firestorm (and mine too!) Whereas, Thunder looks like a gorilla in a samurai costume. This is really strange as their DC Universe comic book design look nothing like the actual characters in the DC Universe. Notice the image of the cover of Superman #303 below. Now compare it to the image of this hard cover edition of Teen Titans Go! #6. They look like 2 different sets of characters.  
  
  Another problem I had with these dueling siblings is how silly they are. Lightning mishears Thunder who is giving him sage advice to control his powers over an otherwise crowded city. Thinking it to be an insult, a clash ensues. How can you mishear thunder? It's like super loud! You can hear it three counties over without mistakes. Sheesh...
    
   Torres and the gang rarely drop the ball in this series. That was until this one. However, I put some of the blame on the animation staff at Cartoon Network. It's mentioned at least 3 times that this is the return of the weather-themed duo. So, the archetype for both the look and atittudes of Thunder and Lightning apparently were first established on the Teen Titans TV show. If Torres was bound to use that version of the villains in this comic, then he was severely handicapped before have even typed up the first page of the script.

    There's a website that publishes Garfield cartoons without Garfield in them. If that site could take this issue and remove the baddies from it, this book would make a great read. It might make for some awkward and confusiing moments but it would still be a better read without them in it.

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

(Note: Like the other library editions in this series, a glossary of terms, discussion questions, and writing exercises are included in the back. However, this volume did not include an activity page as others have for some reason.)
    

Teen Titans Go! #7 (series 1)

 

 Starfire's sister Blackfire returns under the guise of spending some time together for some family bonding. Their time together involves Starfire trying to best her older sister at a series of physical challenges. These contests might look innocent to the naive Starfire but her teammates smell a rat and well they should as these tests of might and strength are a ruse for Blackfire who's secretly trying to sell her baby sister back into slavery in return for a pardon of her many intergalactic crimes.

   I really enjoyed this issue as I've finally figured out this series formula. Along with an original story, every issue features at least one brain teaser by Raven, a Beast Boy/ Starfire knock-knock joke, a few factoids by Robin and/ or some other visual gags that are drawn like a Manga. I really didn't give the first Teen Titans cartoon a fair chance so I don't know if that series also had jokes and gags sprinkled throughout the action like this comic. But I'm suspecting that it did.

    I'm very glad that my library has started to carry some of these back issues (in library binding form. This format includes a glossary of terms and some thought provoking questions that are great exercises for up-and-coming writers and cartoonists.) Also, these books are really peaking my interest in watching the show as well collecting this series.

    Lots of potential fun for the entire family.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Superman Family Adventures #7

   

   I went a little bonkers at the library last week. They had several issues of Superman Family Adventures in library binding and I couldn't resist. I love the work of Baltazar and Franco and anytime I can get my hands on some new stuff, I jump.

   As I have mentioned before, these comics are intended for kids. But that's okay because Baltazar and Franco realize this. They also understand that parents will be reading these to their kids and so they include really great Easter eggs that only the adults enjoy.

  For starters, I read issue #7. In this issue, the Toyman sets his sights on the younger members of the Superman Family who've invited their friends Beat Boy and Starfire to the Fortress of Solitude for a Kryptonian Tooth Fairy party. Toyman is up to his usual bag of tricks decking out some sweet Justice League action figures to attack the superheroes. There are some really cool cameos, but I would have to say my favorite was udders down, Batcow!

This is another gem in the DC Kids treasury. Lots of fun for parents and kids to both enjoy. There's also a fun "What's Robot Bug Saying?" deciphering game through the book, plus a glossary, and some review questions that are great exercises for kids who might be interested in creative writing.

Worth Consuming

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Teen Titans Go! #1 (Free Comic Book Day Reprint Edition) (Family Comic Friday)

Today’s review is not only about a great comic book but one of my all-time favorite cartoon series. Teen Titans Go! started out as a Cartoon Network series that ran from 2003-2008. The series was designed to be like a Manga with experimental angles, mind blowing animation, and a range of genres and themes used to underline themes. But the show at the time was more serious and aimed at teens.

  When the series ended in ‘08, that seemed to be the end to the Titans on TV. Then in 2012, Cartoon Network started a new block of shows based on DC Comics properties called DC Nation. In between half hour shows, the network aired 3-5 minute vignettes the started some of the lesser known stars of the DC Universe. One set of minisodes featured the Teen Titans original line-up of Robin, Beast Boy, Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire. The voices were also by the actors in the first series. Only this time, the adventures of the Teen Titans were funny and revolved around the everyday mundane events of the team.

   The reboot proved so popular, Cartoon Network brought the show back. It now airs in 15-minute segments multiple times a week. New Episodes usually air first run on Thursday nights but with this week next being Thanksgiving, I don’t see it on the schedule. So I don’t know if it’s on hiatus and only airs in reruns right now.

    The show and this comic in which it’s based is a hoot. My favorite character is Beast Boy. His childish antics mixed with a Zen-like laziness is both absurd and thought-provoking. The normally dark character, Raven, still has her literal demons but it’s offset with her secret love of My Little Ponies. Cyborg is a master mechanic and he’s the perfect partner  to go on off-beat adventures with his best bud, Beastie. Starfire is an alien whose grasp of English colloquialisms is in serious need of work. But it makes for some great lines.

 Perhaps my least favorite character is the most well known of the bunch: Robin. The Boy Wonder is so uptight, he brings everyone and everything down. He’s such a drag, except when he’s near Starfire, whom he secretly pines for. When he’s near her, he’s a tongue-tied goof ball.

The comic captures this formula perfectly. The only thing missing is the soundtrack. Both the show and comic are all-age friendly. However, sometimes Raven can get a little intense and it may scare little kids. Her father is the demon Trigon, you know.

The show is top notch. Not only will kids love this show but so will fans of the Titans and the DC Universe. There’s so many great easter eggs and guest appearances by superheroes from other teams and comics that makes this show offer just a little bit of everything for everyone. I highly recommend, even if things too get a little silly from time to time.

But as a wise Doctor once said, “What’s the point of being a grown-up if you can’t be childish from time to time.”

Worth Consuming

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

The New Teen Titans #16

This issue actually marks the first appearance of Captain Carrot. In the middle of this issue, there is a 16-page insert that introduces readers to mild-mannered Clark Kent and his secret identity of Superman. Wait, What? I thought this was supposed to be a funny animal book?

   In an attempt to garner readership, the Man of Steel makes an appearance on an alternate earth ruled by walking (upright) talking animals. As a strange energy beam causes people on earth to turn into animals, Superman intercepts a meteor and somehow breaks a dimensional plan to sweep him to Earth-C.

  I’m not sure why Superman was chosen to team-up with the Zoo Crew and not the Teen Titans. I mean, this whole set-up takes place in their magazine. If you’re not going to use them, why not put the Zoo Crew preview in an issue of Action Comics or DC Comics Presents? BTW, you’ll actually need this issue as a cliff-hanger occurs that’s only resolved in Captain Carrot #1. In fact, until I stumbled upon the book in a 10-cent box, I would never have known I needed this title to complete my collection. I would have been pissed if that happened.

In regards of the Teen Titans, I enjoyed that book very much. Starfire falls in love with Mr. Right. Only he’s a HIVE mole and is using her to infiltrate the Titans. The book is full of drama and teen angst and low on action. But, that’s okay. It’s like DC’s answer to X-Men, only with a smaller cast to keep the plots tighter. I appreciated that and the George Perez art ain't bad either. I think I’ll be collecting this title real soon!

Worth Consuming.

Rating for Captain Carrot Preview: 8 out of 10 stars.

Rating for Teen Titans story: 10 out of 10 stars.

Average rating: 9 stars.