I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: hiatus

[READ: May 20, 2023] Teen Titans: Raven

Kami Garcia has written (and Gabriel Picolo has illustrated) a trilogy of books about Raven and Beast Boy from the Teen Titans.

I only know about Teen Titans from teen Titans Go! which I think is hilarious and (which I realized years after watching it) has nothing really at all to do with the actual Teen Titans who are serious (and kind of dull in a DC comics way).

But these stories are interesting and seem to be breaking out of the darkness that DC is under with these lighter (but not nearly as light as Teen Titans Go!) origin stories.

As with all comic book characters, origin stories are canon.  Until they need to be modified for the new series. I don’t know what the actual origin stories of either of these characters are, but I enjoyed these quite a bit.

This story begins in Atlanta where teenage Rachel (Raven)’s foster mother is planning to adopt her.  But there is a car accident and Raven’s mother is killed.

She is then brought to her aunt’s house (this would be her foster mother’s sister) where she will be taken care of by her aunt and her cousin, Max.  However, Raven has terrible amnesia from the accident and really doesn’t remember much of anything.

Raven and Max go to school together, but Raven can hear everyone’s thoughts–it’s overwhelming and horrible.  And when a very snobby and mean girls says some horrible things, Raven wishes something bad would happen to her.  And something does.

Raven tries to hide out from everyone for a bit by going to the gym.  But Tommy is there.  He thinks some very nice things about her (which she can “hear). But when he gets nervous about something, she fears he is pulling away from her because of something she did.

Back at home, we learn that Raven’s aunt can do some super power magic of her own.  And that Max (who is really awesome and is new to the Teen Titans canon) also has some super skills.

Things start to go on an upward turn for Raven, until her horrible nightmares reveal that he father is actually a demon.

And then we see that a man with an eye patch who has been stalking Raven (or something) is actually talking with Tommy.  Is he not what she thinks?

The story ends with something of a cliffhanger as Raven is given a mysterious note from someone called Slade.  And she decides that she is going to track this guy down and get some answers.  She says she’s going by herself, but max tags along (on the same train).

The next book shows us Beast Boy’s origin story.