Teen Titans
With my Justice League in the pocket, it's time to delineate another classic superteam, the Teen Titans.
Originally assembled with the then-current line-up of teen-aged sidekicks (e.g. Batman's Robin and Green Arrow's Speedy), the Teen Titans eventually expanded to include other pre-existing teenagers (like Beast Boy of the Doom Patrol) as well as original characters designed specifically to be teen characters for the Titans (like Raven or the entire line-up from the 1996 series).
Truth is, it's rare that I like characters designed just to join a team. Whether it's the Red Tornado for the Justice League or Bombshell for the Teen Titans, it more often than not comes across as a one-note character designed to fill a specific and obvious niche without much dimension otherwise. Meanwhile, recent years have seen the introduction of enough teenaged superheroes that I get frustrated when they ignore them in favor of de-aging characters like Raven and Beast Boy.
So while my roster isn't completely without such made-for-team characters, I'm mostly putting it together with many of the pre-existing teen characters, all who come with their own lives, families, and enemies and add to the team's mythology rather than just filling a niche.
Speedy
Hands down I think Mia Dearden is the one to lead the Teen Titans. The experience and training she's received from both Green Arrow and Black Canary makes her one of the most skilled members of the team. That she's a character living with HIV is a strong character trait and care must be taken to neither downplay it more than it deserves or to get too preachy about it. My only real complaint is with the name. I get that she's the second of Green Arrow's sidekick, but it was Roy's nickname and it seems odd for her to swipe it. When she joins the Teen Titans, I'll be ripping off Young Justice and changing her name to Artemis to signal that she's not under Green Arrow's tutelage any more.
Miss Martian
The one exception to my dislike of made-for-teaming characters, Miss Martian was created for the One Year Later Teen Titans and totally caught my fancy. The reveal of her secretly being a White Martian trying to atone for her race's sins took me by surprise and gave the character even more depth. I love the contrast between her outwardly sweet appearance and her status as the team's powerhouse.
Vulcan
From the Son of Vulcan mini-series, Vulcan inherited the title when the previous Vulcan died and imbued him with the powers and weapons to fight a secret White Martian invasion. That there's actually a White Martian on his team should lead to no end of interesting interactions. Of all the kids listed here, Vulcan is the least experienced and, despite his vast powers and weaponry, often feels out of his depth.
Originally assembled with the then-current line-up of teen-aged sidekicks (e.g. Batman's Robin and Green Arrow's Speedy), the Teen Titans eventually expanded to include other pre-existing teenagers (like Beast Boy of the Doom Patrol) as well as original characters designed specifically to be teen characters for the Titans (like Raven or the entire line-up from the 1996 series).
Truth is, it's rare that I like characters designed just to join a team. Whether it's the Red Tornado for the Justice League or Bombshell for the Teen Titans, it more often than not comes across as a one-note character designed to fill a specific and obvious niche without much dimension otherwise. Meanwhile, recent years have seen the introduction of enough teenaged superheroes that I get frustrated when they ignore them in favor of de-aging characters like Raven and Beast Boy.
So while my roster isn't completely without such made-for-team characters, I'm mostly putting it together with many of the pre-existing teen characters, all who come with their own lives, families, and enemies and add to the team's mythology rather than just filling a niche.
Speedy
Hands down I think Mia Dearden is the one to lead the Teen Titans. The experience and training she's received from both Green Arrow and Black Canary makes her one of the most skilled members of the team. That she's a character living with HIV is a strong character trait and care must be taken to neither downplay it more than it deserves or to get too preachy about it. My only real complaint is with the name. I get that she's the second of Green Arrow's sidekick, but it was Roy's nickname and it seems odd for her to swipe it. When she joins the Teen Titans, I'll be ripping off Young Justice and changing her name to Artemis to signal that she's not under Green Arrow's tutelage any more.
Static
I'm mostly familiar with the character from his cartoon in 2000, but I think his unique powers and personality make him a welcome member of the team. Uniquely in my Titans, he still has a loving family and home, which would add an interesting dynamic to the team.The one exception to my dislike of made-for-teaming characters, Miss Martian was created for the One Year Later Teen Titans and totally caught my fancy. The reveal of her secretly being a White Martian trying to atone for her race's sins took me by surprise and gave the character even more depth. I love the contrast between her outwardly sweet appearance and her status as the team's powerhouse.
Lagoon Boy
I almost chickened out on including Lagoon Boy here for the simple (and dumb) fact that it would give me two green characters. Silly. LB hasn't been in much over the years, but his appearances in early Young Justice comics and the Sins of Youth event sold me on the character. He's a fun-loving character with a dumb power (amphibious AND able to swell up like a puffer fish), but that just makes him more appealing. I'm a fan of marine biology and can see him taking on a few other sea-life related powers as he develops.VulcanFrom the Son of Vulcan mini-series, Vulcan inherited the title when the previous Vulcan died and imbued him with the powers and weapons to fight a secret White Martian invasion. That there's actually a White Martian on his team should lead to no end of interesting interactions. Of all the kids listed here, Vulcan is the least experienced and, despite his vast powers and weaponry, often feels out of his depth.
Titans Tower will remain on its island in San Francisco and the kids' status as (mostly) orphans will make it easier for them to relocate there if needed. I'm not actually a fan of the current design, but figure I could hold off a while to redesign it after the Fearsome Five destroy it or something.
An element to be added to the team's private lives will be to enroll all these under-age super-heroes into a posh local college preparatory academy. Miss Martian is easily able to change her skin color to maintain a secret identity, but Lagoon Boy has a little more trouble. One of the sea-based powers I'd like him to develop is a cuttlefish's ability to change its skin coloration. This'll help a little, but since he can't actually change his features, he's going to look like a burn victim. Meanwhile, Static will have received a scholarship to the academy which a very proud father will very reluctantly agree to send him off to. Maintaining their secret identities in this new environment will be aided by a new staff member, Rachel Roth, the former Teen Titan known as Raven.
Getting these Titans together will be a bit more of a challenge than with my Justice League. Unlike the JLA, the Teen Titans didn't have a convenient breaking point around my BN#8 launch point where I could smoothly restructure the team. Recent adventures *did* include Static and Miss Martian, so I guess I'm part way there. I also have other plans for Superboy and Kid Flash, so moving them off the team is another step in the right direction.
An element to be added to the team's private lives will be to enroll all these under-age super-heroes into a posh local college preparatory academy. Miss Martian is easily able to change her skin color to maintain a secret identity, but Lagoon Boy has a little more trouble. One of the sea-based powers I'd like him to develop is a cuttlefish's ability to change its skin coloration. This'll help a little, but since he can't actually change his features, he's going to look like a burn victim. Meanwhile, Static will have received a scholarship to the academy which a very proud father will very reluctantly agree to send him off to. Maintaining their secret identities in this new environment will be aided by a new staff member, Rachel Roth, the former Teen Titan known as Raven.
Getting these Titans together will be a bit more of a challenge than with my Justice League. Unlike the JLA, the Teen Titans didn't have a convenient breaking point around my BN#8 launch point where I could smoothly restructure the team. Recent adventures *did* include Static and Miss Martian, so I guess I'm part way there. I also have other plans for Superboy and Kid Flash, so moving them off the team is another step in the right direction.
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