A Few Personal “Best Comic Book Stories of All Time” - Part I
Over at the Silver Bullet Comic Books Forums there’s been a thread running devoted to discussion of “The Best Comic Book Story of All Time.” I’m doing something along that line here, but much more personal. Over the next few Comic Effect columns I’m going to discuss some of my favorite comic books published over the years. Be forewarned: at times, the “best” here is going to be purely subjective!
(excerpt)
NEW TEEN TITANS #19
(May 1982)
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The New Teen Titans #19
May, 1982. DC Comics.
“The Light Fantastic.”
Writer: Marv Wolfman: Artists: George Perez and Romeo Tanghal. Editor: Len Wein.
For a while in the early 1980s, the new Teen Titans ruled the comicsverse. And for good reason. Marv Wolfman and George Perez created some terrific characters and some breathtaking storylines. This issue is a break from all that. It’s lighthearted, and not only because Dr. Light is the villain. It has a classic comic book plot and structure, but seems fresh and new, probably because the Titans were such an intriguing bunch of characters. And Perez draws a mean Hawkman. This isn’t necessarily representative of the series, because, as with Sandman and so many other titles, I could easily do a Top 25 New Teen Titans list. But this story has it all: action, adventure, humor, characterization, mythological overtones, and lots of teamwork. At one time, the Titans really came together as a team. This longtime favorite story reminds me just how good they were.
