Tales of the Titans #1 // Review
Starfire has occasionally gotten the kind of close-up that she deserves. The warrior from another world gets another shot at the center of the panel in the first issue of the new Tales of the Titans series. The writing team of Shannon Hale and Dean Hale brings a new story of the hero to the page with artist Javier Rodriguez. Though it echoes out of the past through themes that have been explored before, it’s always nice to see another issue featuring a closer look at the princess of a lost world. It still feels like far too little story for so interesting a character.
Babs checks in with the Titans. She’s tracking mass entomology. (Really. She’s just that cool that she’s following the bee population.) She’s concerned that a massive disappearance of bees might be evidence of some kind of larger threat. She’s also got a very specific bit of intel for Starfire. Evidently, a craft from her home world has landed not far from Titans Tower. They’ve specifically sent out a distress signal for their princess. Naturally, she’s going to have to check it out. Naturally, it’s going to involve some kind of serious danger that she’s going to have to tackle on her own.
The Hales do a respectable job of haling Starfire away from the rest of the team. There's a brief introduction involving the rest of the team that is only there for long enough to establish who she is socially. From there, the Hales march forward into a solo adventure that finds the hero running into family issues. It would be a lot more interesting to see her engaging in something that didn't necessarily have to do with her past. So much of what Starfire runs into alone is specific to that. How about something new?
Rodriguez has a reasonably playful sense of action, which suits the character well. And that also suits the action well. However, the drama feels a little weak when it tries to be serious. That being said, there is a nuanced respect for her and her personality that seems to go a long way. It's actually quite charming once the art is given enough of an opportunity to engage Starfire emotionally. It might take a little while, but the art certainly moves in a direction to engage the intricate emotional ends of the character by the end of the issue.
The Hales do little to advance the personal growth of Starfire. However, the one-shot in question does continue to explore the general appeal of a character that has never really been given the right venue for her distinct power and personality. The story present in the first issue of this new series is fun, but it's too much of an echo of what's come before it to make much of an impact in and of itself. The concerns of Starfire’s family are entertaining enough, but they’ve been solidly explored before.
