DC Comics reviews 5/25/21 – Strange Adventures #10, Robin #2

Teen Titans Academy #3

The Suicide Squad needs a speedster and Amanda Waller is ready to call in a favor to get one from Teen Titans Academy.

With Bolt targeted and the original Titans on another mission, it’s up to the most recent Teen Titans and new recruits to stop Red X and the Squad.

The biggest challenge for writer Tim Sheridan is essentially writing three team books in one. Two aren’t too tough since they’ve been established for awhile, but the third component— featuring the Academy recruits — is difficult since Sheridan hasn’t devoted more pages to their development. This makes it harder to be invested in these random characters. Many have potential, but they’re lost in the massive cast.

Ordering for children to be killed who are simply obstacles to a mission goes so far away from Waller’s core values it’s shocking that editor Mike Cotton didn’t catch such an egregious out of character decision.

With Crush moving on to a team-up book with her father, Lobo, Sheridan had to quickly write her off the book. It felt way too forced for a character who has always been portrayed as a hothead that was fiercely loyal to her friends.

Rafa Sandoval handles the bulk of the artwork with some assists from Max Raynor. I’m not the biggest fan of split art responsibilities in a normal sized issue. Raynor isn’t a dramatic clash to Sandoval’s style, but it’s enough to break up the visual flow.

Sheridan’s focus on the Red X mystery is dragging the book down as it feels far too early in this run to develop a mystery that doesn’t seem like it will be paid off anytime soon. And with that major narrative anchor, Teen Titans Academy isn’t in a position to grade out too high month after month.

Rating: 4 out of 10