Titans #32 Review and *SPOILERS*

Blood is Thicker Than Water

Written By: Dan Abnett

Art By: Clayton Henry, Marcelo Maiolo
Letters By: Dave Sharpe

Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: January 2, 2019

*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*

Titans has been on an upswing. After being completely dominated by other books and storylines that aren’t even taking place in this book’s pages. However, since we got a little character development and got back to the original storyline, I’ve enjoyed this book. This book has really struggled since the new team was formed but I am finally excited to read another issue. We left our team as they were finally going to go to Unearth and fight the Blood Cult and I’m excited for what is on the horizon. Let’s just jump right into this issue and see where it takes us.

We start with a scene from the previous issue. Two pages worth. It shows the scene where Beast Boy is taken over by the Red and reveals that the team must go to Unearth to stop the Blood Cult. I was going to criticize these pages. I mean, how lazy can it be to reuse two pages from a previous issue, but certain things happen later that I think having this scene fresh in our minds was important. So it gets a pass. Next we see a young woman fleeing from the police. She trips and falls and is easily apprehended. However, just before putting the cuffs on her, the officers are killed. In the dust, it is revealed that the Blood Cult was behind it and Brother Blood brings the woman in.

We proceed to get a story about a member of cult. It is actually really interesting to read and I recommend it to comic readers. The reason this woman chooses to stay in the cult even though she harbors serious doubts is because she has nowhere else to go. If she stays in the cult, she has a roof over her head and a bed to lay down on. Even the parts that she doesn’t like, she deals with because the alternative is worse. Eventually she is called into Brother Blood’s quarters and he puts her in charge of something new. He somehow learns that the cosmos is changing. Blood wants her to research this as he believes it can aid his cult. She agrees but while she is away, Brother Blood was defeated by the Teen Titans. However, the woman and her research assistants were spared as they were away. Then, the Source Wall fell.

The energy transformed her and she was able to control the Red. She tells her research assistants about her plans to control everything. They question her and she uses her powers to show them her ways. They become loyal to her. By harnessing the power of the source wall, Mother Blood has the ability to get what she wants. However, the Titans are in the same race as she and she needs to get rid of them. However, she realizes they can be very useful tools. If she can control them, she can have everything she ever dreamed of. She would be a god. She uses her powers to control the Red and overtake Beast Boy’s mind and lead the Titans to Unearth so she could perform the Last Rites. This is where the issue ends.

So I’m torn on this issue. I really liked it and it showed how someone can really become entrenched in a cult. However, there is a lot of needless dialogue. I get that it is supposed to be her inner dialogue and it shows how she progresses from doubtful follower to cult leader but damn it drags on at the end. In addition, I was actually excited for this issue. I wanted to see our heroes finally going to Unearth. I wanted to see Raven get closer to her soul self. I was excited to see Kyle Raynor be a welcome addition to this group. Unfortunately, I didn’t get any of that. Maybe it’s unfair to let me expectations affect my view of this issue but nevertheless, that’s the way it is.

Bits and Pieces

This issue is really entertaining and well written for the most part. However, near the end it drags quite a bit and there isn’t a whole lot of story progression if any at all. That being said, It was a page-turner and I can’t really complain too much about that.

6.0/10