Teen Titans Academy #2
Writer: Tim Sheridan
Artists: Rafa Sandoval and Jordi Tarragona
Color Artist: Alejandro Sanchez
Letterer: Rob Leigh
Review by Steve J. Ray
Summary
Red-X looms large, Bolt hits her stride, mysteries deepen, and secret ties are revealed, in the great Teen Titans Academy #2, from DC Comics.
Positives
I love what Tim Sheridan is creating here. Last month we met some of the new recruits, but in this issue some of them are fleshed out a little more, and I can slowly – but surely – feel myself getting attached to a bunch of them. What’s more exciting, and scary, is that I’m also sensing a betrayal on the horizon, of “Judas Contract” level proportions.
Then add the character moments between Dick and Kori, the ties showing that his story is based just before the events in Nightwing‘s ongoing solo book, and the exchange between Victor and Dick about Barbara Gordon. It’s all brilliant.
What I’m also really enjoying is the humor. The camaraderie and relationships between Nightwing, Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy – the elder statesmen of the group – is beautiful. Sheridan is writing characters that are true to their 1980s counterparts. but are still totally today. The new characters are intriguing, and the inclusion of Bolt, a speedster with prosthetic legs, is such a great idea.
Look out for a hilarious room-swap request, and Cyborg delivering a laugh out loud Janet Jackson reference, which totally goes over Nightwing’s head.
More Positives
Rafa Sandoval, Jordi Tarragona, and Alejandro Sanchez are killing it with their art. Team books must be a nightmare to draw, and I remember a ton of comics when I was younger, that featured characters that I could sometimes only tell apart because of what they were wearing. Every hero in this book is distinctive, there’s a great range of ethnic diversity, and even the inclusion of characters with disabilities. Teen Titans Academy feels like the future of team comic-books.
Negatives
Now, this are just my anxieties talking. The tension is killing me, and these cliffhanger endings are shredding my nerves. Of course, they’re there to entice us to pick up the next issue, but… Tim, Rafa, Jordi, Alejandro, Rob… I’m already sold. I’m a sure thing.
Verdict
Teen Titans Academy #2 is terrific. The writing, art, and lettering is all of a high standard, the intrigue is deepening, and an unexpected X-Factor turns up, both in the title of this month’s story, and in the aforementioned cliffhanger. Who is Red-X, and is the fact that he’s wearing a Robin costume on the variant cover a massive clue, or a clever red herring?
I’m looking forward to finding out.
Images Courtesy of DC Entertainment
