I was a huge fan of those comics as a kid and agree that it was probably the freshest DC superhero comic of the period --the concept still holds up and has been translated to tv.
Like I said, people have a lot of goodwill towards the series. And that goodwill was deserved.
As for the Titans cartoons - since I don't have cable television, I can't comment. But from what little I saw, it looks neat; a THUNDERCATS and JAYCE AND THE WHEELED WARRIORS for the Britney generation. The Japanime style was jarring, but then again, so was the blocky, simplified Bruce Timm animated style and I got used to that, too.
Extended series runs that have subplots, like Titans did, and the Claremont UNCANNY X-MEN too, are
designed for television. It doesn't surprise me in the least that Titans became a cartoon, nor was I surprised when the Morrison JLA became a cartoon that had everything but Morrison's name tied to it.
What DOES surprise me, though, is that THUNDERBOLTS never got a show.
There must be a leak around my window allowing the diesel fumes from the truck parked across my street to seep in here because I generally agree with almost everything you said about the good qualities of that series!
Same here. I can't believe I wrote a whole darn article talking about how much I liked Wolfman's NEW TEEN TITANS. I mean...am I off my medication here, or what?
I wouldn't describe the Wolfman/Perez Titans as "fresh" - their subplots, with each character having one passed out among themselves neatly, were entertaining and highlighted the character, but they weren't that different from the "hero with problems" that say, Danny Rand (Iron Fist) or the X-Men had.
Again, I have to say that I love that Wolfman never gave in and made the book about any one character that he fell in love with. Everybody got equal screen time. Every character got a subplot and a supporting cast. While they weren't characterized with the brilliance and suckerpunch powerful moments that somebody like, say, Kurt Busiek would give them, the subplots MOVED, they weren't just page-killers: Donna Troy got married. Starfire became a model, lost control of her emotions, and then acquired control of them. Raven and Kid Flash fell out of love, and Raven was mastered by her evil Pop, and then came back.
Stuff HAPPENED. Unlike say, the 90s X-Books, where they harped on the theme of the Twelve for TEN YEARS, before it was revealed in a titanic anticlimax, to be thunder made of a fart. True, after ten years anything would be an anticlimax, but the Twelve resolution was such an incoherent betrayal that it wasn't just anticlimactic, it was downright stillborn.
In a perfect comic book climate, TEEN TITANS should be the sort of work that composes 90% of titles. Decent work that satisfies the reader and makes them feel like they got their money's worth. It's tragic how far comics have become acceptant of utter idiocy and mediocrity in recent decades, that Titans stands as a highlight.
What I don't get is the "smart books for dumb people" slam. My impression is that the books you mention were unduly venerated by fans who should have known better at the time, and continued to be venerated for many years as canonical superhero books that all others would be judged by. Is this a common phrase in talking about the latest comics? Based on your past critiques of Morrison, wouldn't his work fall more into that category?
Yeah, you just defined it there, pretty much.
The term as I and others use it, refer to comic books that are pointed to as being "adult" and "intelligent" that are really, neither of these things. Some unworthy recent comics, too, though, have been bafflingly enshrined and fall into this category.
Yes, Morrison and his hipster sycophants are guilty of this, but Morrison loves Weisenger Superman so I can forgive him anything.
The "smart comics for stupid people" biggest offender, however, is Warren Ellis. I can't BELIEVE his PLANETARY, a work based on plagiarism whose characters do nothing to aid in the resolution of the story, whose idea of what characterization is, is having characters swear and explain who they are to each other, is pointed to as the biggest thing since WATCHMEN. And then we have Y: THE LAST MAN, a big dumb action movie of a book that if it came fifteen years ago, would have been called "not as good as TANK GIRL."