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reesie_omnibus's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
mothmans_mum's review against another edition
2.0
I first read this a few years ago and didn’t like it. I decided to reread to see if my opinion might have changed, but sadly while I didn’t hate it quite as much, it’s still not good.
The setup for the Earth One Titans origin story is blatantly ripped from Runaways, including having one of the teens turn out to be a traitor. Unlike Runaways where that’s a pulled off well and is a huge shock when you find out the identity of the mole, here there is no payoff. None of the characters have any real character development (there is lots of big beautiful artwork but barely any dialogue, and none of it very good), so when one of the bland protagonists turns out to be evil, you just don’t care.
The book aims for lots of drama, but the cartoony art style says “goofy”, and the two do not mix.
The Native American stuff seems real racist.
As is usual with Teen Titans media, the women characters are all in impractical skintight and revealing clothing, while the men aren’t. Raven’s black catsuit with cape and cowboy boots (which is implied to just be normal daywear for Native Americans in New Mexico) and Starfire’s Leeloo-esque “sexy bandages” are particularly notable.
Watching the cartoon and then Reading runaways would be a better use of your time, and much more enjoyable.
The setup for the Earth One Titans origin story is blatantly ripped from Runaways, including having one of the teens turn out to be a traitor. Unlike Runaways where that’s a pulled off well and is a huge shock when you find out the identity of the mole, here there is no payoff. None of the characters have any real character development (there is lots of big beautiful artwork but barely any dialogue, and none of it very good), so when one of the bland protagonists turns out to be evil, you just don’t care.
The book aims for lots of drama, but the cartoony art style says “goofy”, and the two do not mix.
The Native American stuff seems real racist.
As is usual with Teen Titans media, the women characters are all in impractical skintight and revealing clothing, while the men aren’t. Raven’s black catsuit with cape and cowboy boots (which is implied to just be normal daywear for Native Americans in New Mexico) and Starfire’s Leeloo-esque “sexy bandages” are particularly notable.
Watching the cartoon and then Reading runaways would be a better use of your time, and much more enjoyable.
tehani's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this so hard! I've been a Teen Titans fan since I was about 12 and this "origin" story was fabulous! I hope there is more...
sliceofbook's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Interesting take on the Teen Titans characters. I just hope they were a bit calmer. Most of the time the main characters are always shouting and fighting without listening for a moment.
kkevinhb's review against another edition
4.0
This one was the sleeper hit of the Earth One series for me. I haven't read Lemire at length, but what I have read (Justice League Dark) I've enjoyed quite a bit, and this is no exception. Teen Titans is already prime ground for AU storytelling as the current "meta" for Teen Titans as a team book has grown so significantly on its own from its inception as a team for sidekicks. A lot of the themes and ideas that have grown out of the preexisting Teen Titans standard in TV shows and ongoing comics are present in this book. StarLabs plays the part of the evil research lab familiar to Young Justice, yet the biological/shared power source origin feels more like something out of X-Men: Evolution, and the tensions between the Titans and their "parents" seems to have been gracefully lifted from Runaways. All the same, it took full advantage of Earth One as AU, and ran with it, changing some of the standards of the characters' tropes. Starfire is now the one who's "running" things in a way, Raven is seemingly the most in control of her powers, but is simply lacking direction or knowledge of what to use these powers for (those powers being based in mysticism associated with her being Navajo which is a cool angle, and a pleasant surprise in representation for Native Americans), Cyborg is one of the "kids," rather than a middle aged man just hanging out with them. The art is wonderful - appropriately cartoony throughout, but dark and graphic when called for, completely approachable and enjoyable through and through. This title gains my utmost recommendation, not just for Earth One titles, but for any graphic novel.
emanck15's review against another edition
5.0
Recommended by a student. Really enjoyed it. Looking forward to reading more of this series.
drdena's review against another edition
5.0
Surprisingly, pretty ok. I'm not a fan of Teen Titans, but this one's pretty good.
sagesaria's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
apageinthestacks's review against another edition
4.0
Really good. I wasn't instantly sucked in, but after I kept reading I started liking it more and more. Definitely going to pick up volume 2.
vernip's review against another edition
2.0
Not the worst retelling of how the 2nd wave of Teen Titans came together (and there are many worse), but nothing really can top the Murakami-toon Teen Titans nor Young Justice toon for getting a team of young heroes into action. (Although, Season 1 of Stargirl was pretty good too...)