Titans #31 – John Layman, Writer; Pete Woods, Artist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: It’s the penultimate issue of this DC KO tie-in, as the Titans are split across the universe desperately trying to save the people of Earth. Starfire and Beast Boy are off on missions on remote planets, while Cyborg has entered the tournament – and unbeknownst to his friends, has already met his end there in the round of eight. But two groups are the focus of this issue, as Donna Troy and Roy Harper are the last ones holding down the fort on Earth. They’re up against Grail, Darkseid’s evil daughter who is leading the invasion vanguard. Grail has always been a fairly generic villain, but she makes an imposing threat here – as well as providing the impetus for Donna and Roy to finally sort some things out. I’m not sure about the hints of a relationship between them, but their growing bond has been one of the more interesting emotional beats of John Layman’s run.
The more intriguing subplot this issue, though, takes place on Gemworld. Nightwing and Raven made their way to the planet to settle some refugees there, but found a deeply unsettling, silent world that turned out to have been taken over by their long-time enemy Jinx. While Nightwing battles to stay alive, Raven heads inside to get the help of their secret weapon – Terra, who has been in a stasis tube since she nearly died in her last fight with the Titans. Layman seems to be laying the groundwork for the character’s redemption ever since she was exploited by Slade as a child, but this issue indicates it may not go all that smoothly. The team is getting a complete revamp in the next few issues, so it’ll be interesting to see how Layman closes out this era of the Titans next issue and sends the original legacy heroes into their solo adventures before handing the baton over to the kids again.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
