Review of Teen Titans: Raven

11/18/2024

OTHER REVIEWS IN THIS SERIES: Raven | Beast Boy | Beast Boy Loves Raven | Robin | Starfire

With Teen Titans: Starfire now available, I thought I'd take a look at the entire series written by Kami Garcia and illustrated by Gabriel Picolo. We'll start with book one, Teen Titans: Raven.

As some background, the series is new look at DC's Teen Titans, a group of young superheroes, most of whom began their careers as the sidekicks of Justice League members. The comic book series premiered in 1964 and was led by Dick Grayson (Robin), Wally West (Kid Flash) and Garth (Aqualad). The group was formed partly because the Titans were frustrated about operating in the shadow of their older and more famous mentors.

Garcia's take is one that provides a decidedly modern young adult aesthetic to the story. The synopsis reads:

When a tragic accident takes the life of seventeen-year-old Raven Roth's foster mom — and Raven's memory — she moves to New Orleans to recover and finish her senior year in high school.

Starting over isn't easy. Raven remembers everyday stuff like how to solve math equations and make pass, but she can't remember her favorite song or who she was before the accident. And when impossible things start happening, Raven begins to think it might even be better not to know who she was before.

But as she grows closer to her new friends, her foster sister, Max, and Tommy Torres, a guy who accepts her for who she is now, Raven has to decide if she's ready to face what's buried in her past... and the darkness building inside her.

Having the story take place in New Orleans is a great choice, as the city's literally built on supernatural lore and Raven appears to have some latent supernatural powers. She has disturbing dreams about being overwhelmed by a large, raven-shaped shadow and menaced by a multi-eyed demon whose voice frequently invades her thoughts. Even more disconcerting, sometimes her thoughts, especially when she's angry or vengeful, appear to come true. On several occasions, she's unintentionally humiliated the school's resident "mean girl." Since she has no memory of her past, she has no context for these experiences... and they scare her.

Fortunately, her new foster mom and sister, Natalia and Max, have some helpful abilities. They have the power to summon and manipulate spirits and Natalia uses these abilities to understand Raven's mysterious past, Meanwhile, Max trains her on how to create a psychic shield so she's not constantly bombarded by the thoughts and feelings of others. This ability makes her reluctant to connect to others — even handsome Tommy Torres — who seems unusually interested in her.

Garcia is great at infusing humor and authentic characters into her drama. The expressive artwork by Picolo, with a limited color palette emphasizing Raven's black-and-purple brand, is perfect. (The books get visually brighter in future editions, but the colors always reflect the mood and primary characters.)

All in all, Raven is a great first installment and reboot to the Teen Titans lore, setting the stage for a much longer and more complex story arc.

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