628 TEEN TITANS
raised by the apes. In 1996, Tarzan vs. Predator at the Earth’s Core has the hero battle the
aliens from the popular fi lm franchise.
In 1967, Burne Hogarth captured the essence of Tarzan when he wrote of the jungle
hero: “He is energy, grace, and virtue. He symbolizes the inevitable life source, the earth,
the speed, the rain, the harvest, achievement, the triumph over adversity and death”
(Richardson and Duin 433).
Selected Bibliography: Richardson, Mike, and Steve Duin. Comics, Between the Panels.
Milwaukie, OR: Dark Horse Comics, 1998.
Charles Coletta
TEEN TITANS. A team of teenage superheroes, the Teen Titans elevated adolescent
characters from their traditional role as sidekicks to become the protagonists of their
own adventures. Teenage sidekicks were a popular element in comic books of the 1940s
beginning with the debut of Robin as Batman’s apprentice in Detective Comics #38
(1940). Writers often employed these characters to provide their protagonists with
allies with whom they could confi de and advance plotlines. Th e teens further gave the
young comics-reading audience characters with whom they could identify. Th e inclusion
of Robin into the Batman franchise caused sales to nearly double. Robin’s popularity
was so strong in the Golden Age of comics that most superheroes of the era were nearly
obligated to form a partnership with a hero-in-training. In 1964, DC Comics intro-
duced the Teen Titans, a superhero team which placed the kid sidekicks at the forefront
of the action.
During the Silver Age of comics, DC Comics introduced Justice League of America,
a powerhouse title that combined the company’s top superheroes. Its success spurred
editor George Kashdan to approach writer Bob Haney with the notion of creating
a “junior Justice League.” Th e team, which included Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash,
made its debut in Th e Brave and the Bold #54 (1964) as the teens joined forces to battle
the villainous Mr. Twister. Th e heroes returned for another adventure and were for-
mally called the “ Teen Titans” for the fi rst time in Th e Brave and the Bold #60 (1965).
Th ey were joined by Wonder Girl, whose earlier comics appearances had presented her
merely in stories depicting the exploits of Wonder Woman as a youth. Th e quartet’s
popularity led to an appearance in Showcase #59 before they were ultimately rewarded
with their own title, Te e n T i t a n s #1, in 1966. By issue #4 Speedy, sidekick to the Green
Arrow, joined the roster. Numerous other teen superheroes, such as Beast Boy, Aquagirl,
feuding brothers Hawk and Dove, psychic go-go dancer Lilith, and Mal Duncan—the
fi rst black Titan—made guest visits to the title.
Th e most notable feature of the 1960s Teen Titans stories is the unbearable dialogue
with which the middle-aged writers strained to be “hip” for a younger readership grow-
ing up in the counterculture era. Th e writers did mildly explore current events as stories
dealt with issues surrounding racial tensions in the inner cities and Vietnam War pro-
testers. Th e Titans also faced a notoriously weak rogue’s gallery that included villains
