by Arune Singh, Staff Writer
Posted: November 10, 2002
courtesy of http://comicbookresources.com
Geoff JohnsWhile 80's nostalgia has been returning to the comic book
world in the form of classic cartoon characters, like "G.I Joe"
and "Transformers," DC Comics latest set of new release announcements
for 2003 seem to have a sort of "welcome back 80's" feel to
them, too.
Arguably one of the biggest announcements is the relaunch of "Teen
Titans," under the auspice of writer Geoff Johns and now DC exclusive
artist Mike McKone, which spins out of the "Titans/Young Justice:
Graduation Day" special that is also slated for mid-2003. Taking
time out of his busy schedule, writer Geoff Johns spoke briefly with
CBR News about "Teen Titans," though he admitted that he didn't
want to say much as the series wasn't due out till next July.
"Yes, I'm writing Teen Titans! I can finally speak out... it was
so weird reading all those rumors and seeing what was going on. Some
of the stuff was like 'what?' but others were dead-on. With the amount
of people that knew about this I'm actually surprised it didn't get
out earlier. I'm very excited to take on this team with Mike (McKone),"
says Johns who currently writes "Flash" and "Avengers"
solo and co-writes "Hawkman" with James Robinson and JSA with
David Goyer. "Yes, I'm busy. I know," says Johns, "I
love writing, I love the creators and characters I work with and I'm
going to do nothing less than my best. I do promise that.
"I've been dying to write Superboy since he first appeared and
I can't wait to tackle Deathstroke. Move over Captain Cold."
The formation of this new group of Titans is sure to excite a lot of
fans of both the classic team and Young Justice, as it's membership
includes Robin, Wonder Girl, Beast Boy, Cyborg, Superboy, Starfire,
Impulse, and Raven (to start with), and one of those excited fans is
Johns himself. "Dan DiDio approached me, he knew I was a Titans
fan, and asked me if I wanted to write the new 'Teen Titans' book- so,
of course, I said YES! And Editor Eddie Berganza's passion for Titans
is exploding as always," said Johns. "Dan is a great asset
to DC and I'm thrilled he's there. He takes personal interest in everything
you do and invests time and thought into every decision made. He was
vital in the creation of the Teen Titans and in the new direction for
Flash next year. He cares about the company, characters and talent.
I'm very, very glad he's at DC.
"My goal with 'Titans' is to tell action-filled character-centric
stories with a balance of history and new territory. I also am thrilled
to work with kids again, which I did in 'Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.' I love
Star and Jakeem Thunder in 'JSA.' The kids make it feel very, very different
from other team dynamics and I'm trying to make it very accessible.
At the same time it'll have an edge to it... just wait and see. Another
personal goal is to give 'Titans' the best cliffhangers on the stands.
I want people dying to read the next issue."
Some fans might be skeptical, with all the different incarnations of
the Titans, teen or not, in recent years and Johns says that he does
have a unique perspective to bring to the book, but he can't go into
too much detail yet.
"I'm really focusing on the kids being kids, teenagers being teenagers
and why they have to be together, but I can't really talk specifics
at this point," says Johns. "It's just too early and I don't
want to spoil Judd's mini-series or our first arc. But I can tell you
that I chose the characters for this book because those are the characters
I gravitate towards and the reason they mirror the Wolfman/Pérez era
is because that's my favorite era, of course. No one said I had to take
the characters - I chose them. And yes, before anyone points it out,
I realize that Cyborg and Starfire are not teenagers. However, you'll
be seeing a very different kind of Raven... "
As mentioned previously, Johns' series will spin out of the "Graduation
Day" special written by Judd Winnick and while Johns didn't have
a lot of input into the events in that issue, he isn't worried about
the outcome. "I just know how it begins and ends so far. But all
the credit, everything goes to Judd," admits Johns. "I read
the first script and he's doing a really great job. I love his work,
and what he did with the characters in 'Exiles' - I can't wait to see
what he's going to do with 'The Outsiders!'"
In regards to the other series coming out of "Graduation Day,"
namely Winick's "Outsiders" that features Nightwing as leader
of a new team of heroes, Johns said that readers need not worry about
buying both series. "They'll stand alone. There might be some inter-connection,
we don't know yet."
While Johns has barely begun his collaboration with artist Mike McKone,
whose work he admired on Marvel Comics' "Exiles," Johns says
he has a good feeling about his new creative partner. "It's great,"
says the writer of the art samples he's got back so far. "He's
done some designs, we don't start working for a couple of months, but
it seems like it's gonna be amazing. I'm a big fan of Mike's work and
he's a big Titans fan, so I know we're going to work well together.
Plus his re-designs on the characters are fantastic. Cyborg kicks ass.
Raven is dark and mysterious. And our speedster... perfection."
It's no secret that Titans fans are some of the most devoted and most
vocal fans in the comic book industry and Johns has some encouraging
words for those fans, and all others, who might wonder what this new
Titans series has to offer. "It's the same take that we did on
'JSA'- the old and the new," says Johns passionately. "The
old and the new, that's it. We're trying to make the best of the both
worlds. I'll be able to get into more specifics in a few months after
we really begin working. Check back in with me then. It's going to be
a very, very fun ride. And we're taking these characters in directions
most couldn't ever predict."
