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Wildebeest Society
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The Golden Eagle was one of the first Titans to fall during Titans Hunt - from NEW TITANS #72 [1991]. |
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Jericho revealed! |
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The future Baby Wildebeest |
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Secret Society
| Joey is revealed as the Wildebeest leader in NEW TITANS #75 [1991]. |
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The Wildebeest Society was formed as a criminal organization intent on accumulating vast fortunes through whatever illegal method was deemed necessary. To that end, the original Wildebeest, who became the Society's leader, created the clever strategy of permitting only one member to be seen in public at any one time. This created the belief that there was only one Wildebeest, a menace whose method of operation was so complicated it could not be discerned by police or super-powered adventurer alike, as the approach to each robbery or action bore no resemblance to that of any other Wildebeest attack.
The first time Wildebeest encountered the Titans, he attempted to set up Starfire for murder. Wildebeest used robot likenesses of himself to antagonize Starfire, then switched one robot for a suit with a dead man inside it. Nightwing found the evidence required to clear Starfire.
Wildebeest's second attempt to destroy the Titans involved capturing the pregnant Mother Mayhem in hopes of controlling her child. The infant supposedly would become the new Brother Blood. Wildebeest set up an elaborate red herring, grouping second-string villains (Gizmo, the Puppeteer, Trident and the Disrupter) into what people would think was a new super villain group. Wildebeest was thwarted, Mother Mayhem gave birth to a girl, and the case was closed. Wildebeest got away and did not seem upset at his defeat.
Wildebeest's third attempt gave him control of Cyborg, which would seem to indicate that Wildebeest has connections at S.T.A.R. Labs, where maintenance is performed on Vic Stone's cybernetic body. Wildebeest was defeated and unmasked, but his brain shut down.
Nightwing meets the real leader of the Wildebeest Society in NEW TITANS #82 [1992]. |
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Jericho's Gambit
The Society was soon taken over by a member of the super-hero group known as the New Titans. Jericho, a mute body-possessor, was possessed himself by an evil force who wished to take over and inhabit the bodies of Jericho's super-powered partners. The altered Wildebeest Society began a series of genetic, chemical-organic experiments designed to create the perfect recipient host body for the evil force to possess. The Society began with the genetic alteration of humans and animals. A11 their experiments failed but one. That one, labeled X-24, a human/pantha, escaped (only to later join the New Titans in their battle against the Wildebeests).
Shortly after this, current and former members of the Titans were hunted and captured by the Wildebeest Society, for unknown reasons. Deathstroke, Nightwing, Troia, Pantha, Phantasm, Arella and Red Star joined forces to track them down. Upon locating the captured Titans, the heroes were shocked to learn the identity of the leader of the Wildebeests was their own teammate, Jericho.
The original Wildebeest leader relates how Jericho took control of the
Wildebeest Society! It all happened in NEW TITANS #82 [1992]. |
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It seems the tainted souls of Azarath regained their strength and merged with Jericho shortly after Trigon's second defeat. The souls now needed powerful vessels for each of them to survive. Now possessed by this force, Jericho sought to acquire superhuman beings as vessels for the souls of Azarath. He used the Wildebeest Society as a front to kidnap the Titans to house the tainted souls of Azarath. During the soul transfer process, Jericho resurfaced briefly, begging his father to kill him; He was beyond help and killing him might destroy the twisted souls of Azarath. To spare his son any more pain and save the remaining Titans, Slade Wilson was forced to drive a sword through Jericho, killing him instantly.
As the conflict continues, Phantasm is revealed to be Danny Chase, who is himself slain along with Raven's mother Arella as the Titans defeat the Wildebeests. Raven is transformed utterly and disappears.
The Society also experimented with the creation of living Wildebeest host bodies. Only one body-a true, living Wildebeest baby-was genetically created before the New Titans destroyed the Wildebeest's plans and the Society.
Wildebeest Society members wore a hairy exosuit that boosts his strength and agility to amazing levels. The Society was originally made up of strategists and tacticians who have studied the Titans very carefully. In order to throw his opponents off balance, The Society never implemented the same idea twice.
New Teen Titans (second series) #36-37 [1987]: Wildebeest frames Starfire for murder. First appearance of Wildebeest in issue #36.
New Titans #57-59 [1989]: Cyborg, whose internal circuitry has been tampered with, is captured by Wildebeest - and programmed against the Titans.
New Titans #71-84 [1991-1992]: The Trigon-possessed souls of Azarath take over the Wildebeest Society in an attempt to create bodies to house their energies. Jericho is possessed, takes control of the Society, and kidnaps and nearly destroys the Titans before being killed by his own father, Deathstroke the Terminator. In the ensuing battles, Golden Eagle is slain, Cyborg is nearly destroyed, Titans Tower is demolished, and Phantasm is revealed to be Danny Chase, who is himself slain along with Raven's mother Arella as the Titans defeat the Wildebeests. Raven is transformed utterly and disappears. This event is catalogued as "Titans Hunt."
DC Secret Files, supplemented by titanstower.com
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The Wildebeests II
The New Wildebeests in SINS OF YOUTH SECRET FILES #1 [2000] |
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The new Wildebeests and their keeper
from TITANS #35 [2001]. |
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When the Titans were effected by Klarion the Witch Boy's aging spell, the demonic Goth once again plotted against them – and allied himself with the Contessa. To this end, he created a new army of ‘upgraded' Wildebeests. These Wildebeests looked like their predecessors, but once unmasked, were revealed to be actual Wildebeest-looking man-monsters. Goth commanded the new Wildebeests to attack JFK International and Grand Central Station. The Titans eventually defeated these new Wildebeests.
A pack of these same Wildebeests surfaced later in Brooklyn, NY. Beast Boy, Flamebird and the DEO Orphans first fought the 'beests, before meeting their keeper - an older gentleman who trained and domesticated the Wildebeests to help keep his neighborhood safe.
The New Wildebeests are fierce, feral beasts. The seem savage when provoked, but at the same time are simple creatures, who can be trained by the right 'master.'
Sins of Youth Secret Files #1 [2000]: In a tale from the past, the Silver Age Teen Titans prevent rock-star Limbo from stealing an anti-aging formula. In the present, Goth uses real demonic Wildebeests to cause havoc. Goth revealed to be in league with the Contessa. Goth revealed to have taken various guises to lure teens to subversion, including Limbo. Origin of Goth.
Titans #35 [2001]: Beast Boy and Flamebird roll into town on a "secret mission" - but it doesn't take much counter intelligence to realize that Beast Boy wants the kids to come back to California with him so he can exert full leadership control of the next version of Titans West. Meanwhile, Jesse's mom's new fiancee is unexpectedly found dead in bed.
Titans #36 [2001]: The Wildebeests are on the loose, and it's up to the D.E.O. kids - aided by Beast Boy and Flamebird - to stop them! But who are the Wildebeests working for, and is what they're doing necessarily bad? Also, the murderer of Liberty Belle's fiancee is discovered, and the implications for Libby's and Jesse Quick's relationship run deep.
titanstower.com
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The Wildebeests III
The new cybernetic Wildebeests from
TEEN TITANS/OUTSIDERS SECRET
FILES AND ORIGINS 2005. |
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Cyber 'Beests
When Starfire and Robin were mysteriously abducted from Titans Tower, the Outsiders and Teen Titans worked together to rescue them. Nightwing was able to track them down to the abandoned basement of the New York based Titans Tower on the East River, where they were held captive by a cybernetically enhanced Wildebeest. Once the cyber 'beest was defeated, he was sent to S.T.A.R. Labs for testing.
But the Wildebeest was intercepted by a mysterious shadowed figure - who was engineering the Wildebeest experiments for an unknown yet nefarious purpose.
Project M
The cybernetic Wildebeest were later revealed to be part of Project M. Led by the mysterious Mr. Orr, Project M was an experimental super-soldier program using cyborg's technology in military applications. The project resulted in the creations of the several other cybernetic super-powered individuals: Equus, an artificially created life form that battled Superman; Ron Evers, former friend of Victor Stone, now transformed into a cybernetic killing machine; and The Phantom Limbs, an elite team of wounded soldiers saved by Cyborg's technology.
The new scientifically-created Wildebeests are fierce, feral beasts. They are also enhanced with technology through cybernetic parts.
Teen Titans/Outsiders Secret Files 2005 [2005]: DC's hottest new teams collide in an explosive one-shot! Following the events of "The Insiders"crossover, a villain from the Titans' past returns with a plan for revenge on former Titans! Plus, what's the deal with the crazy Titan who calls herself the Joker's Daughter?
DC Special: Cyborg #1-6 [2008]: Cyborg exposes the secrets of Project M, an experimental super-soldier program using his advanced technology. The project resulted in the creations of the several other cybernetic super-powered individuals: Equus, an artificially created life form that battled Superman; A group of cybernetically anhanced Wildebeests; Ron Evers, former friend of Victor Stone, now transformed into a cybernetic killing machine; and The Phantom Limbs, an elite team of wounded soldiers saved by Cyborg's technology.
titanstower.com
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Prelude
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THE NEW TITANS post-Titans Hunt |
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New Titans took a radical change in direction with the controversial "Titans Hunt" storyline with issue #71. The Titans Hunt story itself ran from New Titans #71-84.
New editor Jonathan Peterson, an avowed Titans fan, felt the book had grown to complacent. From the letter column of #71: "You see, what we all agreed on was the fact that the Titans as a group had become too settled in. Things were far too quiet. So we gleefully decided that it was time to, well how can I say it, "shake things up." And I mean A LOT. Over the course of the next few months things are not going to be what you expect. I can guarantee it. Over the course of the next few months the Titans Universe will change in ways you never thought we'd dare to change it. You'll see an entire new evolution in the characters themselves and in the debut of a new team. That's right--I said a new team. It's been ten years since the Titans debuted and to celebrate that fact we thought it was time to introduce some all-new team members. Where does that leave us? Well, in the months ahead some Titans will stay...some will go...some will die...some will get marr--oopsl Don't want to spoil all the surprises."
Jonathan Peterson, Titans Editor: "Marv realized that while Titans had once been a lynch pin of DC...I mean, it rivaled the X-Men at one point in sales and popularity...it was now nowhere near that level. So even Marv knew changes had to be made. And to be honest, that's how I presented it to him. I literally just asked him, "Yeah, but are you REALLY having fun writing the book anymore?" And Marv replied, "No, not really. After all these years, I'm not sure I have many stories left in me to tell. I mean, what's left?" At that point I pulled out my notes and said, "Look, issue 71 (if I have the number right) is going to be the tenth anniversary issue. After 10 years there's more than enough history for us to screw with...to just jump in the pool and have fun with. So let's just stir the pot. I mean, what's the worst that can happen?"
The Titans Hunt generated excitement and interest, but editor Peterson left the book before the ambitious three-phase storyline was finished. Peterson was the driving force behind these changes, and the book was left in a state of disarray [New Titans #92 was his last]. The "Titans Hunt" had written out some long-time members and introduced new members Pantha, Baby Wildebeest, Red Star and Phantasm. The storyline also introduced the time-tossed Team Titans (also featuring a new Terra) in New Titans #79. After the smoke had cleared, the book was direction-less and flooded with new characters.
The Hunt Itself
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| A 2004 commission of Wildebeest by Tim Seeley. |
During the Titans Hunt, Golden Eagle is slain, Cyborg is nearly destroyed, Titans Tower is demolished, and Phantasm is revealed to be Danny Chase, who is himself slain along with Raven's mother Arella as the Titans defeat the Wildebeests. Raven is transformed utterly and disappears. Also, in order to defeat the society, Deathstroke was forced to slay his own son, Jericho.
One of the problems the Titans have had for many years was playing to the status quo." says Wolfman, "We weren't doing anything. I was bored with it. And so were the readers-we just weren't pushing." New editor Jonathan Peterson was instrumental in pushing for changes. When Peterson took over the book, Wolfman says artist Tom Grummett, inker Al Vey and outgoing editor Mike Carlin got together for three days to come up with the current storyline that has them all excited again.
"I was really thrilled," says Wolfman. 'Occasionally, I like my characters so much that I never want them to go through any major problems, and of course, that's what makes the stories interesting. Jonathan kept at us, and we kept coming up with new characters and a new direction. We couldn't believe how well the new stuff tied in to everything we had been doing for 11 years on Titans.
"The status quo was becoming stale, not the characters. We were following the same type of stories that we had been doing. Mike Carlin and I had been talking about changes. too, but we never got to work on it to the degree we wanted. Jonathan was Mike's assistant, so he knew of all this and was gung-ho to make the changes.
"We all sat down and came up with the ideas together. We were able to bring in things from the first issue and have them tie in precisely with what we wanted to do, so nothing came out of left field. Everything actually functions within things that have happened before, yet it's actually all brand-new. That's what makes it really exciting for us. We could have come up with anything, but this actually ties into continuity, and we very clearly set it up years ago!"
One of the best examples is Jericho, who betrayed his fellow Titans when he became the leader of the Wildebeest Society "The stuff with Jericho very specifically ties into the first five issues of the second version of the Titans, when he tries to cure Raven after she has been taken over by Trigon. Jericho tried to enter her and was horribly repelled. The ending of that particular story made the whole changeover into what we currently have. Also, the very first real storyline in Titans in years ago was a Raven storyline - why Raven assembled the whole team. So in a way. it goes right back to their origins." Although Wolfman says he obviously didn't plan the current events a decade ago, he was surprised at how many plot seeds were planted.
"We were able to pick up on threads we had left," he says. "When a writer is in this mode with continuity stories, he leaves things behind specifically unsettled, even if he doesn't know it. I've had too many situations in the past where I've been able to tap into things and go. 'Why did I leave this here?' and it was obviously an unconscious thing to be picked up on later.
"This stuff was clearly set up. Jericho's personality had drastically ~ changed over the last few years anyway. Granted, that wasn't tied in with what we were doing, but it certainly leaves it open to be interpreted as retro-continuity; you could explain some of it because of what we're doing now. I (lent think I've ever been in a series of meetings where so much was accomplished that it shocked us. We knew where we wanted to go, we knew we wanted to shake things up."
The New Team
| Wildebeest by Ariel Olivetti |
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Along with the deaths, Wolfman has introduced new team members Phantasm and Pantha in the last storyline. 'When the dust has settled, there will he a slightly different group of Titans." I don't want to pinpoint the competition, but unlike other books, those characters are not going to come back, with the status quo maintained and the exact same group they began with. Some of these characters are gone for good because they're dead! We've been very careful in The New Titans-when we say they're dead, they're dead!"
There still won't be a solid Titans membership roster. Instead, the team will vary.
"That's one thing I like about the current set-up," says Wolfman. "Not all of the characters are going to be there. Cyborg is currently brain-dead. How long that will last hasn't been worked out. There's going to be a two-part Cyborg story appearing in DC Showcase at some point that puts the final kibosh on his easily getting back his brains. We don't have that resolution timed out-it's a long-range story, but right now, he's little more than a robot. Troia will be out of the group. Raven and a couple of the others are pretty much out. The only ones we know for sure are Nightwing, Starfire, Changeling, Phantasm and Pantha - but I may he wrong at this moment. Those are the characters who are technically supposed to stay.
"[Readers] first reaction was, 'How dare you do this? How dare you get rid of the characters that we've grown to love for 11 years?' Slowly, everybody saw that this was a major change, and they started to become interested in the book. Now, the reader reaction is 98 percent positive. incredibly so. People don't know where we're going, and they want to read it. We've done exactly what we wanted to do, and now we have to maintain that by continually shaking up the status quo."
New Faces
Jonathan Peterson: "I thought we could always "bring people back" one way or another...but first I thought we should try the whole "new blood" approach. I mean, that only made sense to me. Any way you look at it, in a revamp, you've ALREADY seen the other character. So would you rather see an upteenth revamp...or something new? Me...I vote for new."
The Titans were joined by new members: the violent Pantha, former ally Red Star, the mysteriously re-formed Phantasm (now an amalgam of Danny Chase, Arella and the souls of Azarath), and Baby Wildebeest (a leftover genetic experiment from the Wildebeest Society).
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Marv Wolfman on Titans Hunt
[A Marv Wolfman Interview - conducted by titanstower.com 4.10.01]
Q: Let's talk about TITANS HUNT. How was the storyline conceived?
Marv: I don't recall. Sorry. All I remember was working it out with Editor Jonathan Peterson. Beyond that I can't remember much of it.
Q: The storyline featured the deaths of a few members of the team [most notably, Jericho]. How did you decide who would be on the chopping block?
Marv: The death of Jericho was a mistake. I believe he was the ONLY one who died, though. Cyborg never was supposed to die and didn't. But what did happen to Cyborg I know wasn't my idea. He was supposed to be brought back - in changed form, yes - within 2-3 months instead of many years later. The end of the story didn't work out for many, many reasons.
Q: Danny Chase also perished and merged with Phantasm ? whose idea was that? And how did you envision Phantasm fitting in with the team?
Marv: Danny was supposed to merge with Phantasm so he didn't die. That was the plan. He continued to live in another form.
Q: Did you ever intend to kill Aqualad, or any other members?
Marv: No. Never.
Q: What was your original idea for the Wildebeest? [it seems doubtful he conceived him as Jericho].
Marv: He wasn't conceived of as Jericho. The entire storyline simply didn't work.
Q: Let's talk about the introduction of the Team Titans. How did that come about?
Marv: Jonathan Peterson asked me to do a one-shot annual featuring these alternate universe characters. I came up with them for a one-shot only and somehow they get put into their own book. Had I known that was going to happen I would have spent a lot more time working on them so they could sustain a book. I never thought they should be their own title as they were a one-note concept.
Q: The Team Titans initially seemed rather different from the incarnation that made it into their own book (i.e., Killowat as a being of pure light, etc.) Why the changes?
Marv: I didn't remember we changed any of the characters. Sorry. Memory glitch here. The Team Titans title was not one of my favorites. I did like the individual members, though and I really liked what I did with their origin stories. It's just the book itself never should have been published.
Q: The ‘return' of Terra was quite a shocker. How did that come about? And why the later ‘tease' that she may be the real one?
Marv: Terra 2 is NOT and was never conceived of as Terra. The villain was playing on the old Terra to con the Titans the same way she originally had. The second Terra was someone whose memory was tampered with and was given the powers. Terra - Tara Markov is and should always be dead.
Q: It is rumored the original Team Titans leader was Danny Chase [it was later revealed to be Monarch]. Why the change?
Marv: I got off the book. The next people decided it was Monarch.
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