Teen Titans #98 Review

The Titans title starts to wind down, which is even more disturbing with the arrival of Superboy Prime!

Teen Titans #98

This month, JT Krul brings us “Prime Numbers,” which features the return of former hero they decided to make a whiny, annoying villain, Superboy Prime. Prime was originally kind of a throwaway character introduced in Crisis on Infinite Earths, who helped the heroes a bit. Then, in Infinite Crisis, the powers that be decided to bring him back evil, as well as former hero Alex Luthor, also gone bad, and kill off Superman of Earth 2, the original, the first, comic book hero who launched the modern industry. Think about that a sec, and then DC’s decision to jettison so much of their history in the reboot makes more sense, in a sick kind of way.The issue opens with a montage of Titans going about their lives. Superboy and Wonder Girl continue to break up, Ravager keeps hitting on Superboy, Raven whines that Solstice is, apparently, the anti-Raven, and Beast Boy meets an old friend from his acting days for lunch. Oh, and Kid Flash is doing VR training scenarios where he beats all the Flash Rogues and then kills his opposite number, Inertia. Who the Rogues themselves killed a while ago (remember that point).Elsewhere, the fight with Headcase a while ago apparently somehow or other brought Prime back to the DC Earth. Oddly, it also brought him back in costume, which he had no reason to be wearing back “home” as well as in a version of last seen destroyed in Legion of Three Worlds. Prime yammers about since his girlfriend doesn’t exist in this universe, it doesn’t deserve to exist, and he will get home if he has to kill all the Titans to do it. Personally, if I were trying to get to another world, I might try and get help from the Flash and his Treadmill, or any of the high end magic users, but no one said Prime has much in the way of logic or brains.Prime attacks downtown to draw out the Titans (why didn’t he just go to their Tower? Oh, yeah, thinking again) and he’s somehow gotten a team together. With him are various former foes, including Sun Girl, Persuader, Zookeeper, Headcase, the former Outsider Indigo (who was destroyed a while back), and the aforementioned dead Inertia. Basically, he made the anti-Titans, although I guess he didn’t bother with one for Red Robin. That’s ok, to make sure he won, he somehow or other brought along three more versions of Superboy, including his Connor Luthor look, the original costume for Connor, and his Young Justice era costume. How’d he get more Superboy dopplegangers but not manage to get home? Anyone’s guess. Red Robin just sort of hangs out and doesn’t fight as the others attack their opposites, and then the other Superboys burst onto the scene on the last page.I really like JT Krul, he’s written some good stuff. This, however, isn’t it. There are so many holes here, and over used plots. Raven seems to not be able to stand Solstice, as they are dark and light based. That’s new, never seen that. Raven, after snubbing Beast Boy so much, is upset he’s moving on. Angst! Drama! And, of course, we have the suddenly appearing Prime, in costume for no good reason, as well as the destroyed Indigo and dead Inertia, although Red wonders if this can be the same one, noting a height difference. If not, then Prime somehow or other found another youthful speedster and persuaded him to don the costume, I guess?

What I liked and what I didn’t:

Ok, it’s not all bad. Personally, since it’s been handled so badly and so much like a soap opera, I’m glad to see Gar moving on from Raven. They could have been great together, but this has been nuts, and good riddance to it. . Gar’s date seemed to have potential, and I’d be looking forward to it developing in the future, if there were a future for them. And Tim is playing detective, trying to figure out why Bart’s acting so nuts, which is a good use for Mr. Drake.

However, there’s a lot that doesn’t make sense to me. I guess it’s supposed to imply that the black hole that Headcase created somehow drew Prime here. How, and why he’s in costume, is a bit iffy. Also, why he goes from “I’ll kill everyone to show a great a hero I am” to plotting and recruiting and where he got his team from is a big blank which just seems a rather glaring gear shift.

With so much that could have been done, I’m not sure why we end up with Prime Putz again, instead of wrapping up some loose ends. Krul seems to be slipping, or he’s been editorially futzed with again.

Tags: JT Krul Red Robin Superboy Prime Teen Titans Titans