Review - Titans Volume 1: The Return of Wally West

Having been removed from existence, Wally West has mysteriously returned. He and his friends must work together in order to find the person responsible for his erasure. In the process, he must come to terms with his relationship (or lack thereof) with his one-time love Linda Park and face off against one of his oldest foes.

Titans Volume 1: The Return of Wally West collects Titans: Rebirth #1 and Titans #1-6, written by Dan Abnett and illustrated by Brett Booth.

Put simply, Titans is a deceptively titled series that presents itself as a team book, when in reality it is in fact a Wally West-starring comic with the rest of the Titans in supporting roles. While this is unlikely to be a problem for fans of the Flash, it’s a problem for anyone looking for something that features the Titans in more substantive roles. Wally is front and center in a narrative that sees him confronting classic Flash foe Kadabra, who is responsible for erasing all traces of him from the timeline. While it would stand to reason that the book would primarily deal with the Titans’ various perspectives on this event, it instead focuses primarily on Wally’s complicated relationship with Linda Park. He still remembers a point in time when they were lovers while she has no memory of him whatsoever. The overall thrust thus becomes about whether the pair will fall in love again. Anyone hoping for any kind of depth or development added to any of the other Titans, especially characters like Donna Troy or Lilith who don’t appear in any other books, will be sorely disappointed. They’re merely set dressing, useful only for when the male characters need to flirt or to fill up the panel during action scenes. Sadly, the focus on a rather silly villain and a lack of attention paid to the female members of the Titans did nothing to endear me to this book.

Perhaps a more egregious fault with The Return of Wally West is the cringe-worthy art by Brett Booth.  I wasn’t a fan of his work on the New 52 Teen Titans and I’m still not a fan here. His proportions are wonky and he often gets lazy the smaller characters appear on a panel. As others have mentioned before, his work has a ‘90s quality to it. In fact, I find it to be very reminiscent of Rob Liefeld’s style (just with fewer pouches and shoulder pads).

With a mediocre storyline and subpar art, it’s hard to find a reason to like The Return of Wally West. Perhaps I’d have a sunnier opinion of it were I a fan of Wally West, but unfortunately this book does nothing to make me one. Instead, I find myself frustrated that there’s so little attention paid to the other characters present (all of whom I tend to like more). I’m hopeful future arcs remedy this situation, especially since I rather love the line-up presented here. Lilith, Donna Troy and a sprinkling of Bumblebee? Yes, please! As is, I’d only recommend this one to the Flash fans.

RATING: D+