2023 has not been short on comic book events from DC Comics. Thus far the only event in the Dawn of DC era that has hit was The Flash: One-Minute War. Every other event such as Knight Terrors and Gotham War were giant swing and misses. Now as 2023 is coming to a close Tom Taylor and Ivan Reis are stepping up to take a crack at creating a DC Comics event. Acting as a spinoff of Taylor and Nicola Scott’s Titans run, the latest DC Universe event is titled Beast World. With such a title we can expect Beast Boy to be thrust as a main character. What other characters will step up in the DCU’s latest big event? Let’s find out with Titans: Beast World #1.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Tom Taylor
Artist: Ivan Reis
Inker: Danny Miki
Colorist: Brad Anderson
Letterer: Wes Abbott
SOLICITATION
“THE BIGGEST THREAT TO THE DC UNIVERSE IS…BEAST BOY?! CAN THE TITANS SAVE THE WORLD AND THEIR TEAMMATE? SUPERSTARS TOM TAYLOR AND IVAN REIS TEAM UP FOR AN UNPRECEDENTED TITANS CROSSOVER!
Clawing its way out of the pages of Titans comes an unprecedented threat to the DC Universe. Superman, Wonder Woman, Starfire—all are powerless to stop the Necrostar from ending all life on Earth. The only hero who can save the world is…Beast Boy?! With Nightwing, Raven, Cyborg, and the Titans beside him, can Garfield Logan rise to battle an ancient evil? What will Amanda Waller do to take advantage of the situation as millions of people are changed into rampaging creatures? Can humanity survive all-powerful heroes and villains transformed into ferocious beasts?
Friends will fall. Heroes will rise. And nothing will ever be the same again. Earth is about to become…Beast World. DC proudly presents the Titans’ first crossover as the world’s premier superhero team, with universe-shattering repercussions. Brought to you by the all-star creative team of writer Tom Taylor and artist Ivan Reis, this story promises to be an epic one that sets the stage for what’s to come for the DCU!” – DC Comics
REVIEW
The opening of Titans: Beast World #1 immediately did bring up a concern that this latest event would fall to the same continuity pitfalls Knight Terrors and Lazarus Planet fell into. Brother Blood’s speech definitely gave the vibe if you weren’t reading the current Titans series you would be loss. To Tom Taylor and Ivan Reis’ credit as a creative team quickly shifted Beast World to be its own story that DC fans as a whole can get into.
Outside of the Brother Blood involvement, the opening worked to establish this as the Titans being at the front and center of things. They are the first to deal with the latest crisis hitting the DC Universe. Taylor and Reis gave the Titans the Justice League spot of being the first and last line of defense for Earth.
It all is related to Starfire was an effective use of the reveal from Titans #5. Brother Blood being a Tamaranean is a major development that ties right into Starfire. That tie-in provided a greater cosmic connection to how Beast World kicks off as Starfire was the one with the information on the Necrostar gave way to make the transition from this spinning off a plot from the Titans series to involve the entire DC Universe.
Taylor effectively made sure that the information about the threat of Necrostar did not overstay its welcome. Starfire quickly downloaded all of the heroes on why they needed to come together to fight this new threat. The historical context tying back Necrostar and Starro together added to the former’s threat level.
All of that being established in two pages created a sense of urgency with the heroes quickly coming up with ideas. In this way Taylor was able to further get into the Titans having the Justice League spot. They are the ones driving the story. This being the first time the Titans are the main drivers made the balance of how it was Beast Boy who came up with the plan. Beast Boy being called out on his lack of certainty by Batman but then being backed up by a confident Nightwing who trusted Gar work into that narrative.
Then seeing the shots of Starfire, Nightwing, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Raven, Flash, and Donna Troy all being front and center with the action was great. Even with the likes of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern it was never lost in Reis’ artwork that the Titans were the leads.
Through all of the chaos Taylor took the time to give Beast Boy and Raven’s relationship a lot of strong development. Raven being there to boost Beast Boy’s confidence worked well off him still recovering from Deathstroke shooting him. She was the support system Beast Boy needed to finally step up when it was his time to save the DC Universe. This all made Beast Boy transform into Starro and defeating the Necrostar a more epic moment.
Necrostar’s defeat gave a false sense of security that made Dr. Hate sudden appearance and using his magic to control Beast Boy in his Starro form a strong swerve ending. Dr. Hate using Beast Boy plays further into the greater Amanda Waller plot of turning the world against all the superheroes. Focusing on that aspect of the story will help get Dr. Hate over as a villain and avoid questioning the ties to Knight Terrors. Though the bit of continuity does help with those readers who did read Knight Terrors and further connect Beast World as the next big event in the DC Universe.
All of the storytelling in Titans: Beast World #1 is elevated by Ivan Reis ability to deliver big event-level artwork. From the moment you open this comic book the scale feels big. This isn’t just a Titans story. This is a story involving the greater DCU and Reis artwork shows that. No characters get lost in the story as Reis makes sure each hero has plenty of detail. The scale of Necrostar helps to get over it being this major threat needing all of the DCU’s heavy hitters. Reis also nailed the sudden horror of the evil Beast Boy Starro infecting everyone and how dangerous it is with Black Adam being the first heavy hitter to fall.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Titans: Beast World #1 is an excellent start to the latest DC Universe big event. Tom Taylor and Ivan Reis nail what the scale of a DCU event needs to be. The story is framed around the Titans, specifically Starfire and Beast Boy, helps to further elevate the team as the premiere superhero team. If you are a DC Comics fan make sure to pick up Titans: Beast World #1 this week.
Story Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
