Art by: Stephen Segovia
Colors by: Annette Kwok
Letters by: Wes Abbott
Cover art by: Dan Mora
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: February 20, 2024
Titans #8 deals with the aftermath of the Beast World event when Amanda Waller and her lackeys continue to spin the media and public opinion against the Titans, while Evil Raven uses the situation to her advantage.
Is Titans #8 Good?
Oh, Okay. Evil Raven is going to pretend to be Good Raven to manipulate the Titans into following her into bad situations that could destroy the world. Are we doing this again? Really? Fine. Whatever.
When last we left the Titans in the finale of the Beast World crossover, Gar was returned to normal when the Titans gathered the Garro spores in one spot to restore his body and retrieved the severed Garro limb from a distant galaxy to restore his mind. During the finale, we learn Dr. Hate was really Evil Raven wearing the Helmet of Chaos. Off-panel, Evil Raven secretly traps Good Raven in her crystal but pretends to be Good Raven to everyone else.
Now, we find Sgt. Steel on a media tour to spin the dangers of putting trust in the Titans for their part in the Beast World disaster. Meanwhile, the Titans head to Florida to assist with rescue efforts during a hurricane... because there are no superheroes on the planet powerful enough to quell a hurricane apparently. Oy!
What evil things does Evil Raven do? Nothing. She has a few secret meetings with her demonic father (Trigon with a new/different set of horns) to scheme and plan, but for the most part, Evil Raven minds her Ps & Qs.
What's great about Titans #8? With the outlandish of Xand'r, the Necrostar, and Beast World behind them, it's nice to see the team working together as a team and a coordinated unit. Even Tempest gets in on the hurricane rescue efforts... because there are no other superheroes on Earth powerful enough to quell a hurricane apparently.
If you haven't noticed the nuclear levels of snark, I can assure you it's there. Why? The fundamental flaw of disbanding the Justice League in favor of the Titans taking the spotlight is Tom Taylor's assistance in that the main Titans series does not do more than face basic environmental threats like forest fires and hurricanes. Especially when a single DC hero, including a few that are on the Titans, could disburse a hurricane in minutes. Taylor insists on making a mountain out of a molehill, and it just doesn't work.
What's great about Titans #8? Again, it's nice to see the gang back together and working as a team, even if one of them is secretly evil and the threats they face don't rise above government relief agencies.
What's not so great about Titans #8? Red Tornado is still around. How about Firestorm? I'm sure Nightwing has at least one of the Supermen on speed dial. Why is Taylor wasting everyone's time with humdrum tasks?
How's the art? It's good to very good. Ironically, the most eye-catching scenes involve Evil Raven's secret chitchats with Trigon, which is a bummer since Segovia got the demon lord's horns wrong. Overall, nice work from Segovia.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Bits and Pieces:
Titans #8 fails to capitalize on the minor goodwill created by the Beast World crossover by fighting against mundane ecological disasters that half their team should be able to dispel in a matter of minutes. Still, Agent Steel's press tour to turn public opinion against the Titans has potential, and Evil Raven's secret scheming is intriguing.
6/10
I generally like Taylor's work, but this series is underwhelming and I cannot with a straight face that the Titan are on the same level as the JL -
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