Titans #2

Written by: Dan Abnett

Art by: Brett Booth

Coloured by: Andrew Dalhouse and Carrie Sirachan

Lettered by: Carlos M. Mangual

In the previous issue, Lilith attempts to determine the identity of the person who has stolen ten years of their life from them by digging through Wally's subconscious. Meanwhile, the other Titan's go searching for clues the old fashioned way, looking for another villain that was controlled by Mr. Twister during the events of Titans Hunt. Lilith appears to be getting nowhere when the other Titans return, Wally having a hard time concentrating on anything other than Linda Park, his wife from pre-New 52 who no longer remembers him. Just as she gives up, however she gets a terrible feeling, that her probing Wally's memories may have awakened something terrible. Elsewhere, a failed magician finds himself remembering his old life as the Titans villain, Abra Kadabra.

This issue opens with the police surrounding the Titans, who are simply standing in a circle while wearing their old uniforms. Linda, recognizing Wally as the person who reached out to her in the lightning several days ago, walks up to question him when he suddenly takes off, all of the Titans scattering and causing mayhem and destruction. The real Titans finally arrive, mostly pairing off with their counterparts as they fight. Wally in particular shows his intelligence in defeating Kid Flash by not allowing himself to be goaded into making stupid decisions. Garth realizes that something on one of the buildings is controlling them, and goes to stop it, coming face to face with Kadabra, who blasts him with his wand, ending the issue. While not the best issue, it does a good job of highlighting the Titans strengths and weaknesses, showing how they have grown over the years and the trust that they have in one another even after their long and forgotten absence.

The artwork is generally good with one exception, Abra Kadabra himself. I'm unsure if it's a styalistic choice, in which case this criticism is moot, but Kadabra is drawn with his features and expressions weirdly exaggerated, and I'm not a fan. Beyond that, the action flows well, it's easy to tell the Titans apart due to their costumes, and other than the existence of some weird facial expressions, the artwork is pretty solid.

All in all, I enjoyed the issue. It did a good job of reintroducing an older Titans villain, it had good action and we got to see how some of the team has grown and matured since their “sidekick” days, doing a good ob of proving their worth to new readers. As a threat, Kadabra is presented in a way that makes it obvious that the Titan would need to work together to take him down, and as such makes for a good first villain for the team, showing their strengths and their ability to work in a team format. While I enjoyed the previous issue for its focus on establishing characters and relationships, it was time for a bit more action and this issue delivered.