With the Teen Titans unraveling at the seams, Beast Boy and Raven must return to Titans Tower to help Wonder Girl right the sinking ship. But things are rarely that easy for the team, as you can imagine. Hope aboard for new writer Felicia D. Henderson's second issue, with art by Yildiray Cinar. Scroll below for some preview pages from the issue, which hits 10/28.
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Hi everyone! Brian Cunningham, here—editor of such titles as TITANS, R.E.B.E.L.S., POWER GIRL and more.
When I’m not editing or shirking responsibility, I like to put stuff I like in my office. Some of the stuff is kinda neat, and some of it is admittedly kinda weird. But I like it, and since I gotta look at it all day, that’s most important. I like having stuff around me that inspires me or even relaxes me during those stressful days of deadline doom.
Take my stash of gum, for instance. Anyone who knows me understands that I always have a pack of gum at the ready. It can be at a convention, in the office, anywhere. You need gum, I got gum. Much like wielding a Green Lantern power ring, one can never underestimate the might of minty fresh breath. So I put out a pack of gum on my desk to help out my fellow editors should they feel they need it.
Now if only my generosity would inspire Matt Idelson to share some of his unlimited quantities of oatmeal…
In an earlier blog post a couple months ago, I waxed poetic about my 1976 DC Comics calendar I have hanging up. But what I held back—since I can be cagey like that—was that I also have a vintage 1986 DC COMICS CALENDAR POSTER. I got one’a these suckers for Christmas in 1985 and I don’t think I took it off my bedroom wall until well in 1988, that’s how much I loved it. I mean, c’mon—Pérez Titans! Rogers and Giordano Batman! Giffen Ambush Bug! How could I ever get tired of seeing this?
And, needless to say, 1986 was a HUGE year for DC—what with DARK KNIGHT RETURNS and WATCHMEN, among many other classics—so I like to have “1986” in the back of my head when I edit. I’ll never stop reaching for those lofty heights.
The thing that gets me the most comments in my office—aside from “Uhh…why don’t you have some of your own gum…?”—is my collection of DC Direct BATMAN: BLACK and WHITE statues. I don’t have all of them, mind you, just the ones that I happen to really dig. They range from the Bob Kane version to Brian Bolland’s to my favorite, the Mike Mignola one (which captures Mike’s art so perfectly in a three-dimensional form). What’s really sick and twisted is that I’ve placed them all in chronological order—an off-hand suggestion by Alex Segura, who has quite a B:B/W statue collection of his own! Alex had no idea how brilliant that idea was, and how tailored it was to my O.C.D. mind. Makes me wish I knew exactly where the multi-era George Pérez one should go…
And that’s just a taste of the assorted stuff I have around me. Perhaps next time, if I’m feeling up to it, I may even show you my growing collection of various body parts that my boss Dan DiDio helped me acquire. We’ll see.
If you've been reading BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS (and there's no reason to miss it, I say), then you know the once dearly-departed Terra plays a big role. So, it makes perfect sense to bring aboard writer/artist George Pérez to put pencil to paper for the cover to the mini's final issue. Doubly cool? The artistic master plays homage to his own work, namely, the cover to NEW TEEN TITANS #30. But enough bluster. We caught up with BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS editor Brian Cunningham to get more details on the cover, plus the cover itself (and its inspiration) below. Take it away, Brian:
“Who better to homage the cover to NEW TEEN TITANS (vol. 1) #30 than its original artist George Pérez? He even did a baby Black Lantern Wildebeest on the logo! And Hi-Fi Design knocked the coloring out of the park. You might see Pérez and Hi-Fi team up again on another Titans project in 2010. Stay tuned!”
BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS #3 hits 10/28.
Things are changing over at Titans Tower, as writer Felicia D. Henderson, also a co-executive producer for the hit TV show 'Fringe', teams up with artist Joe Bennett and an all-star cast of Titans past and present to celebrate the 75th issue of the series, and to usher in a new and fresh take on DC's premier teen team.
TEEN TITANS #75 hits 9/30.
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J.T. Krul and artist Ed Benes continue to turn up the BLACKEST NIGHT volume on the TITANS, and we've got a few pages for you to look over. We'll have a more formal (i.e. lettered and colored!) preview, but why make you wait until then? Especially when we have some pretty intense Titan-on-Titan violence? Black Lantern Hawk! Red Star! Pantha! Wildabeest! Plus, a very creepy family reunion. OK, I'll clam up. Check out the pages below for yourself.
BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS #2 hits 9/30.
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Hiya, folks! As the TITANS editor, I wanted to do something a little different to hype issue #17, in comic stores September 9. My first call for ideas was the issue’s writer.
“My first plot had me making out with Starfire for 22 pages,” he said. “But that got shot down for whatever reason.”
The guest writer? Pat McCallum, fresh off his stint of stalking DC editors looking for work.
So what plot was approved for the issue? “The comic book debut of a villain whose only ever appeared in the animated DC universe, some Golden Age Green Lantern cosplay and the…[dramatic pause]…DARK SECRET behind why Beast Boy can’t go by ‘Changeling’ anymore.”
Pressed for more, McCallum provided the below list, adding, “Everything here happens in the issue—really—except one. A free signed copy of Team Titans #1 to whoever spots it.”*
2 Obscure Easter Eggs that only guys like Kurt Busiek will pick up on.
3 Appearances of Beast Boy’s Pérez-era haircut.
9 Panels with Dr. Double-X
300 Pounds of masked pro wrestler hungry for egg salad
800 How many feet a disembodied head is punted
1 billion Copies sold. Beat THAT, zombie Green Lanterns!
* Offer not valid anywhere. So enjoy pages 1-5 of TITANS #17 instead.
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The BLACKEST NIGHT is upon us, and the dead are rising across the DCU. No one is unaffected, and some teams -- like the TITANS -- have seen more than their share of fatalities over the years. Later this month, writer J.T. Krul and artist Ed Benes will bring you the first issue of BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS, which spotlights how the heroes deal with the sudden return of some of their most tragic members. But, to tide you over until then, we've got a look at some interiors from Benes. And, because we asked him nicely, BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS editor Brian Cunningham was kind of enough to give us the skinny on the mini-series. Take it away, Brian:
“Working on these characters is something Ed Benes has wanted for a very long time, so we are more than happy to oblige him! And he has a wonderful script to draw from. J.T. Krul worked closely with Geoff Johns to stay true to the spirit of the ‘Blackest Night’ event, and what they came up with is a horror movie on paper. I really feel both ‘Blackest Night’ fans and Titans fans will be VERY happy with this mini-series.”
BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS #1 hits 8/26.
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My magic blogging eight-ball just said “Blogging Will Be Light,” so I’m going with that. Oh, and it’s a holiday weekend. So, yes. This’ll be it for today. But, we bring you some more fun news from the DCU editorial gang. Specifically, TITANS editor Brian Cunningham. What say you, BC?:
“When is Tempest coming back?”
More often than not, that’s been the question fans have asked since TITANS launched last year. A fair query, since Tempest has been AWOL from the DC Universe for seemingly longer than the Jonas Brothers have been alive.
So when we here at DC started discussing the mega-event called BLACKEST NIGHT with writer Geoff Johns, we all figured, “Let’s bring back Tempest in style.” So, bam, he’s smack in the early pages of BLACKEST NIGHT #1. If that’s not style, I don’t know what is. (This coming from a guy who still wears shirts from 1996. But let’s stay on topic here.)
Okay. So, Tempest is in BLACKEST NIGHT. Huzzah! But then we figured, “Wait. Let’s find out where he’s been first. What’s kept him from appearing all this time?” That’s where TITANS #15 comes in. We find out exactly where he’s been and what he’s been doing. It’s pretty heavy and not for non-swimmers.
With the spiritual guidance of Geoff Johns, writer J.T. Krul plumbs the depths of Garth’s soul, while also setting him up for his future in the DC Universe, which we’ll see in BLACKEST NIGHT and in the BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS mini-series. With gorgeous art by José Luis and J.P. Mayer, I really feel that we’ll surprise people. The last page of TITANS #15 alone should certainly provoke a strong reaction.
So mark you calenders for July 15 when TITANS #15 goes on sale in comic stores. In the meantime, check out this exclusive excerpt below. It’ll whet your appetite for more Tempest. And quite possibly some shellfish.
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TITANS #14 takes a closer look at Vic Stone, otherwise known as Cyborg. But what else is going on in the issue, from writer Eric Wallace and artist Mike Shoyket? We check in with TITANS Editor Brian Cunningham -- along with some pages from the issue, to boot. Take it away, Brian:
"Eric really gets to the root of his characters, and he had a real jones for Cyborg; you’ll definitely see some people from Vic's past pop up in unexpected ways. And Mike gets better with each page; I’ve had the pleasure of seeing his very first samples several years ago, and he’s come light years from that. I see even bigger things from both guys in the future.
Plus, the issue features the debut of a villain called Nano, who will also be mixing it up in Teen Titans in July and August. And you’ll see seeds planted within the story that will take fruit over the course of the next few issues of Titans."
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We've previewed the first two parts of the TITANS/VIGILANTE/TEEN TITANS crossover "Deathtrap," but why stop there? Kicking off right after the events of VIGILANTE #5, the issue finds our team getting roped into Jericho's insane plot to take out the other Titans team. But how do you defeat someone that can control your very actions? We don't have the answers for you here, but we do have some pretty Joe Bennett art and Sean McKeever words. Ain't that enough?
TEEN TITANS #70 is on sale 4/29.
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