Teen Titans: Raven

Definitely not the same Raven I know from the teen titans show but I can see it blending in. The Raven prior to putting all her emotions into her mirror. I like that she's just trying to be a normal teenage girl and that she has mild amnesia. We don't get to meet her as super moody for no reason but instead as herself being affected by her powers little by little. The story plotline itself was... Okay and I think could have used a BIT more work BUT it was a nice introduction and I'm easily pleased. Only thing is I wasn't big on the weird and sudden romance and to be quite honest, put that completely out of my head. The art style was really beautiful and I thought the choice to make Raven be the pop of purple throughout the novel a cool choice, leaving the rest of the characters looking mostly black and white. I also like that the Raven in this story is a bit more Witchy with her telepathy powers and she can read minds. I'm not too caught up on the lore but has Raven always been able to read mines?! Overall I enjoyed it and I got the rest of the series which follows, including Beast Boy and the one with her and beast boy :)

My friend got me the third of this series, and I bought the other two for myself so I could read them to understand what was going on, and it's so good!! We both grew up as big TT fans, and we have both been fans of Gabriel's work from IG so when we seen the novels we both knew we had to read them, and I owe a thanks to my friend for giving me the kick start to finally start them as I had been putting it off. It's such a good storyline, I'm not going to say anything about it because spoilers, but if you grew up on Teen Titans this is definitely worth reading!! And as always Gabriel's art work is phenomenal, he captures the characters so well!! I've read all three of them and can't wait for the fourth one, let my friend borrow to read and she really likes it too!!

In "Teen Titans: Raven," Kami Garcia delivers a beautifully crafted story that follows Raven Roth as she navigates the complexities of starting over after a tragic accident steals her memories. Moving to New Orleans to complete her senior year, Raven's journey is fraught with challenges as she grapples with her identity and the supernatural occurrences that begin to unfold. Garcia effectively captures Raven's internal struggles and the pain of losing her sense of self, which resonates deeply as she learns to embrace her new life and the supportive relationships she forms with her foster sister, Max, and her friend Tommy. The blend of personal growth, friendships, and supernatural elements creates a compelling narrative that keeps readers engaged. As Raven confronts her past and the darkness within her, "Teen Titans: Raven" is a powerful exploration of resilience and the journey to reclaim one’s identity amidst adversity.

Gabriel Picolo has been making Teen Titans art for years; these characters are basically his children. For DC to hire him on a Teen Titans book, and then again for Teen Titans: Beast Boy, coming Summer 2020, must have been a dream come true for him, and even just as a fan of his work, this has been incredible to see. Then there’s the writer, Kami Garcia, who in her acknowledgements states she needed to be convinced to write a graphic novel, much less a Raven story. Make NO mistake, the art is an absolute treasure, and this book can still be immensely appreciated and enjoyed based on its art alone. However, this contrast in the artist and writer’s interest, willingness, and dedication to these characters is hard to ignore, and is why the story falls flat. While typically a story in this medium should be judged on its writing and art together, DC Ink and DC Zoom’s line of YA graphic novels makes that very hard to do. It seems as though DC just slapped together a bunch of novelists and artists, expected the novelists to be good at writing in an entirely different medium, and expected the artist to just illustrate whatever the author wrote. When instead, DC should have carefully paired up artists and writers with good synergy, who would work together to create a story where they both played to each other’s strengths. But what we get is KAMI GARCIA in huge lettering on the front cover and a barely noticeable credit to Gabriel Picolo. It’s also worth mentioning that Picolo was not allowed a foreword like Garcia was, which I thought was extremely unfair. While the reader does not need any prior knowledge of the Teen Titans or Raven to understand or enjoy this story, the team producing it should still understand core aspects about these characters, which Gabriel Picolo absolutely does. Kami Garcia, however, barely wrote a Raven book. So much of this story has nothing to do with Raven, and it’s clear that that’s because Kami Garcia doesn’t know who Raven is. Garcia adds a bunch of original characters and concepts that have nothing to do with Raven or the real story at hand, that it ends up reaching a climax with poor build-up and an even poorer resolution. Back to the art, while Gabriel Picolo’s art is phenomenal and really the only reason you should buy this book, and you should, something seemed off. I don’t know if it was the editor, or Garcia herself, but Picolo’s art and coloring is very subdued compared to the Teen Titans art Picolo’s fans are used to seeing on his socials. They are vibrant with colors that pop, where this book is gray and maybe sometimes purple. The pictures included with this review are an example of a subdued page, followed by those that exhibit Picolo's strengths as a colorist. These few panels where things are more fully colored, you can see Picolo’s skill shine through; perhaps his vibrant pages could have even brightened Garcia’s dull writing. More on that, though, is that in the sneak peek we get for Teen Titans: Beast Boy, there’s already a noticeable difference in how it’s colored. So maybe Picolo has more freedom in the next one. Kami Garcia is still the writer for the next one, which is very unfortunate, but I’ll be buying the graphic novel regardless, because these are fantastic lookbooks of the characters, and it’s incredibly satisfying getting to Gabriel Picolo’s art in this officially licensed capacity. He’s come so far, and that’s worth supporting no matter who writes the book.

First off I need to say this is the FIRST book I have finished in YEARS! I am NOT an avid reader by any means and especially fiction! This was such a wonderful story of Raven I am itching to re-read it again! Most books fail to keep my attention span but for some reason I could not put this down without wanting to finish it! I got this finished in 3 days with many interruptions! I really hope there is a 2nd book because Kami NAILED IT! Gabriels art was a wonderful fit and these two seem to get storytelling in a way that has thrust me from a non-reader, into a graphic novel enthusiast! Even my wife was impressed I finished a book! I prefer reading non-fiction/medical books even though I'm not a medical student. I am one of those weird girls!

Loved it. The work put on this was amazing.

I have always been a huge fan of the Teen Titans and it’s awesome to see this new take on Ravens character! The art is beautiful and while a little short the story is also very good. I am excited to see more in this series and how it grows and adds the other titans.

Overlooked the fact this would be a graphic novel but that makes me more interested and excited about reading it.

Als eingefleischter Teen-Titans-Fan habe ich mir es nicht nehmen lassen und schon Anfang des Jahres den Comic bestellt, als er dann heute endlich ankam, war ich begeistert von den wunderschönen und liebevollen Zeichnungen von Gabriel Picolo Das gezielte Einsetzen von Farben bei seinen Illustrationen, um den Gefühlen von Raven oder speziellen Momenten Ausdruck zu verleihen ist einfach toll!! Die Story ist sehr gelungen, obwohl mir als Fan die restlichen Teen Titans momentan fehlen Ich bin schon sehr gespannt auf den zweiten Teil und wünschte, er würde schon morgen raus kommen und nicht erst nächstes Jahr =/

Maybe I'm just pretty easily satisfied, but this was another 5 star read for me. I've been eyeing it on my shelf since I bought it a couple weeks ago, and so today while continuing to drag myself through The Devil's Thief I eventually gave up in favour of reading this instead. Previously my main point of reference for these characters probably would have been from Titans and while I liked Raven in that, she definitely wasn't my favourite character (that place was reserved for Gar and only Gar), so reading this I was surprised by how much more I liked her. I also got myself a phat crush on Max. I loved the art style a lot, and the colours, I've decided that Gabriel Picolo is now one of my favourite illustrators and I absolutely cannot wait to get Beast Boy in 2020.

Premetto che amo il tratto di Piccolo quindi vederlo finalmente sulla mia supereroina preferita è stato il realizzarsi di un sogno. Il volume non costa molto e la storia l'ho trovata molto interessante. Diciamo che piccolo ha voluto dare una nuova impronta a Raven senza buttarsi subito sulla classica nascita del super eroe, preferendo piuttosto una Raven dei giorni nostri che scopre poco alla volta chi era e chi adesso vorrebbe diventare. La storia si conclude con una evidente futura parte due dell'opera, probabilmente riagganciata alla storia di Beast boy. Insomma, lo ritengo un fumetto veramente buono, dal tratto molto pulito e che consiglio vivamente.

As a fan of Picolo's art and the teen titans, i was waiting to get my hands on those comics. I couldn't resit to take them all. I loved to read it again and again for the story and the drawing. What a pleasure !

The book pages are great colour quality and love the book itself