Titans #5 – Tom Taylor, Writer; Nicola Scott, Artist; Annette Kwok, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: There are two main plots this issue, and for once, it’s hard to say which is the headliner. The mystery of who killed Wally West in the future has been pending since the first issue, and we now know that it’s involved with the mysterious church that has seduced Tempest and now possessed Linda Park-West—just as she and Wally are going into 24 hours of seclusion to protect him. The situation of a possessed spouse in a locked room with the target is very tense, but the way it plays out is actually sort of… funny. There’s a murder attempt, a clever twist, a desperate attempt by the horrible creature, and a reminder that it’s not all that powerful outside of the body. And now that Wally is safe—we think—the focus turns to the villain behind it all, and there’s a fascinating twist about who and what he really is that potentially sets up the big event Taylor has been building to.
And speaking of that event—the second subplot, featuring the rest of the team, is fascinating. Beast Boy is leading a team mission to Borneo to try to repair the damage to the environment, but he’s increasingly angry and desperate. That changes with the recruitment of a new ally—Levi Kamei, aka the new Swamp Thing. Levi is more in touch with the human world than Alec Holland was, able to transform back and forth at will, and he becomes an unlikely ally for the Titans as they create a new ecosystem. But it’s what Taylor does with Beast Boy’s powers here that’s the most fascinating—giving him a massive level-up that makes him a true powerhouse, as well as giving him a major new risk that might play into the events of Beast World starting next week. These characters have been around—and honestly, pretty static—for a long time, but Taylor seems to be giving them new life with every issue.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
