Titans No. 35 review: One last hurdle left on Unearth

In the penultimate issue of Titans, the team have to break free of Mother Blood’s control and save the multiverse. But who will save them?

Titans No. 35

Writer: Dan Abnett

Artist: Bruno Redondo, Christian Duce

Titans No. 35 cover (Credit: DC Comics)

Kyle Rayner and Steel have been captured by Mother Blood to power up a Source Energy device that will open the gates to all the multiverse, thus allowing the Blood Cult to infiltrate the universe with their evil. Their only saving grace was the creator of Unearth, Mr. Hinton, but the evil Prince of this realm, Travesty, killed him. How these superheroes get out of their latest pickle is resolved in Titans No. 35.

Meanwhile, Beast Boy is once again corrupted by the Bleed, which turns him against his teammates in the battlefield. While Donna Troy continues to put up a fight, Miss Martian is injured, with only Raven as her shield. But Raven has her own problems. An evil version of her soul self stands before Raven ready to take her team down. With the Titans unable to make contact with Ben Rubel back on Earth – or, with anyone for that matter – how can they stop these villains from destroying them?

The Titans’ Savior is… A Deus Ex Machina

The Titans series is on its last legs after being prematurely cancelled. With one issue left, this installment reads like a slap-dash attempt at tying up the many threads of the plot in time for the finale. Unfortunately, the end result feels like a cop-out.

The situation the team are in would have been impossible to get out of were it not for a deus ex machina – and that is the worst kind of writing trope. The Titans series has struggled, but Titans No. 35 a new nadir. Everything is tied to one person’s sudden change of heart; there is no build-up or motivation for the rescue of the team. Again, this probably goes back to the abrupt end of the series. Perhaps the creative team had plans for eking out the character’s reasoning which were removed. One wonders what is next? A heroic sacrifice for an erstwhile villain?

Mother Blood in Titans No. 35 (Credit: DC Comics)

Raven’s Revenge? We’re Not There Yet

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The past few Titans installments have had covers that feel far removed for the contents of the pages. Comic book covers are wont to drum up excitement, but these Titans covers seem to be teasers for the following issue rather than the current one.

Beast Boy wasn’t “unleashed” until the last page of Titans No. 34, and Raven doesn’t even think about seeking revenge until the final panel of this installment, either. What’s the point of giving each issue a title that doesn’t do the material any justice?

It’s almost a pity that Raven’s been given short shrift for so long and appears to only now be coming back into her own. One can only hope that the series swan song gives the character her due, because it’s been a long time coming.

The penultimate issue of Titans suggests that the series is likely to go out on a whimper. But with the Blood Cult and Mother Blood still on the loose, they are up against a Titans team that looks like they’re close to full strength once again and could defeat them.

There have been peaks and troughs throughout, and where the characters go next is up to DC Comics. But Titans and its readers deserve a solid finale that pays homage to the characters’ long-standing history.