Titans 2025 Annual #1 – Phil Jimenez, Artist; Arif Prianto, Colorist
Ray – 10/10
Ray: DC has had to reshuffle the past of a lot of its characters as they refine their continuities – some gett major changes, like Supergirl. But none have had a trickier knot to untie than Donna Troy – who has had a tangled path even before any reboots. Remember, she wasn’t even supposed to be her own character, originally starting as a young Diana in flashback stories before being accidentally added to Teen Titans. But she’s stood the test of time, and now DC brings in one of Wonder Woman’s most iconic creators to tell the definitive Donna Troy story, retelling her origin and bringing her into the modern day – and Phil Jimenez absolutely hits it out of the park. This isn’t just the best Donna Troy story, it’s the best Titans story in decades.
This story starts with a framing segment of Donna in the present day as she gets shocking news – her biological father wants to meet her. This book goes with the origin of Donna being a child who was orphaned in a fire, saved by Diana and brought to Themyscira, where she was adopted by Hippolyta. This wasn’t a smooth process, and there are some really touching segments dealing with Donna’s struggles to adjust. After she becomes Wonder Girl, she meets with the Titans for the first time and forms the bonds that will define her life. There’s a fantastic segment where she manages to be one of the only people to make Batman see that he might possibly be wrong, and the annual really delves into the connections she has to each Titan.
Terry Long is barely touched on, thankfully, but Donna’s late son Robert looms large, and there are some incredible musings on grief that hit hard. Without spoiling anything, the final segment dealing with the identity of Donna’s father is one of the most powerful things I’ve read in comics in a very long time, and comes from the same deeply personal place that Jimenez’s stunning Pride story came from a year ago. This one-shot might wind up being an Eisner winner, thanks to both Jimenez’s incredibly powerful, personal writing and his stunning art. This is a franchise that hasn’t had any real big wins for a long time, still struggling under damage done in events two decades ago, but this book is a masterpiece.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
