If they made a controversial choice…at least they made it interesting. Yep, that pacemaker is coming into play in a unique way for Wally West, as the team begins to doubt each other’s loyalty and the search continues for Bumblebees memory engram. This issue is chock full of action, with a couple of very interesting twists. Want to know more? Follow us after the jump!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
The Titans have come to Alton Laboratories, a H.I.V.E. front, to retrieve Karen’s memory engrams. All they really found was Endgame, able to access an array of powers thanks to the Hivemind protocols (and all the powers they have taken over time – see previous issues of TITANS). Things are looking pretty bad for the Titans, as Endgame is proving very adept at adding and changing powers on a whim, counteracting all their abilities. That is, until…
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Wally’s heart stops.
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Yes, that heart problem Wally acquired thanks to Damian Wayne’s reckless stunt during the crossover with the Teen Titans has come into play in a major way here. As Wally’s heart skips a beat (okay, it stops), so does time itself! Wally is still conscious, but at first he doesn’t know what to do about this situation. When it happens a second time (yes, his heart stops TWICE in this issue), he realizes he can take advantage of the situation and ends the fight, saving the rest of the team.
Problem is, the memory engram has already been taken. It looks like someone tipped off H.I.V.E. about their coming. Who could it be? Nightwing accuses Omen as the issue ends, but is it really her?
Keep in mind we also have a secondary plot involving Mal, Karen’s husband and also a former Titan. He has enlisted fellow alum Gnarrk to help him hunt…but hunt what? It isn’t clear whether he is more interested in the engram, or more interested in revenge against his former teammates. Yes, they are leaving this open for a variety of suspects. Leave your best guesses below.
SUMMARY: As noted above, if you are going to make a controversial choice (like giving Wally a weak heart that could cause his powers to kill him), at least make it interesting…and writer Dan Abnett has certainly done that here. We now have a new wrinkle in Wally’s connection to the Speed Force for the REBIRTH era, and it plays perfectly into the plot for this tale. We also see a lot of threads beginning to bubble up here, from the potential romance between Wally and Donna to the relationship between Garth and Omen, to Mal’s quest to do…something…we get a lot of interesting tidbits that go beyond the simple “whodunit” of the main storyline. I really like a story that weaves multiple threads effectively, and that’s exactly what we get here. The artwork is good here, with V. Ken Marion stepping in for the pencils with regulars Norm Rapmund (inks) and Andrew Dalhouse (colors). I’ll give this one a 9/10 – what do YOU think? Leave your comments (and your guesses on the traitor to the team) below!