Teen Titans/Outsiders: The Insiders

Teen Titans (2003) #4.5

by Geoff Johns, Judd Winick, Matthew Clark (Illustrator)

The Outsiders think that Indigo, the mysterious and beautiful android, is a traitor, but before they learn who set her up, they receive a cry for help from the Teen Titans as their own traitor is revealed.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book, Batman

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 4, 2006

About the author

Geoff Johns originally hails from Detroit, Michigan. He attended Michigan State University, where he earned a degree in Media Arts and Film. He moved to Los Angeles in the late 1990s in search of work within the film industry. Through perseverance, Geoff ended up as the assistant to Richard Donner, working on Conspiracy Theory and Lethal Weapon 4. During that time, he also began his comics career writing Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. and JSA (co-written with David S. Goyer) for DC Comics. He worked with Richard Donner for four years, leaving the company to pursue writing full-time.

His first comics assignments led to a critically acclaimed five-year run on the The Flash. Since then, he has quickly become one of the most popular and prolific comics writers today, working on such titles including a highly successful re-imagining of Green Lantern, Action Comics (co-written with Richard Donner), Teen Titans, Justice Society of America, Infinite Crisis and the experimental breakout hit series 52 for DC with Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka and Mark Waid. Geoff received the Wizard Fan Award for Breakout Talent of 2002 and Writer of the Year for 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 as well as the CBG Writer of the Year 2003 thru 2005, 2007 and CBG Best Comic Book Series for JSA 2001 thru 2005. Geoff also developed BLADE: THE SERIES with David S. Goyer, as well as penned the acclaimed “Legion” episode of SMALLVILLE. He also served as staff writer for the fourth season of ROBOT CHICKEN.

Geoff recently became a New York Times Bestselling author with the graphic novel Superman: Brainiac with art by Gary Frank.

Reviews

[Ben Truong · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Insiders is a Teen Titans/Outsiders crossover storyline written by Geoff Johns and Judd Winick with illustrations by Matthew Clark and Carlos D'anda. Teen Titans/Outsiders: The Insiders collects all five-issues of the storyline (Teen Titans #24–26 and Outsiders #24–25, 28).

"The Insiders" is a four-issue crossover storyline (Teen Titans #24–25 and Outsiders #24–25) that has the Outsiders and Teen Titans joining up to fight a common foe in Brainiac 8 and Lex Luthor. Superboy resolves to tell the Teen Titans that he's learned Lex Luthor is one of his genetic fathers, but before he has the chance, Lex enables a sleeper program that pits Superboy against the Teen Titans. Tim Drake as Robin calls the Outsiders for help, but they're attacked by their own teammate Indigo. It turns out Indigo is Brainiac 8, and Lex Luthor has teamed with Brainiac 13 – their plan to destroy that generation of superheroes.

The villains attack the teams at Star Labs with an army of Superman robots as Cassie Sandsmark as Wonder Girl is able to awaken Superboy, while Shift must kill Indigo to save her. Superboy subsequently leaves the Teen Titans, considering himself a threat and Dick Grayson as Nightwing quits the Outsiders and Jade recruits Frederick Freeman as Captain Marvel Jr. to add power to the team.

"Soul Searching" is a one-issue storyline (Teen Titans #26) has Conner Kent as Superboy questioning his fate after being control by Lex Luthor to hurt his friends. "Letting it Go" is a one-issue (Outsiders #28) has the Outsiders recruiting a new member – Frederick Freeman as Captain Marvel, Jr.

Geoff Johns (Teen Titans #24–26), Judd Winick (Outsiders #24–25, 28) penned the entire trade paperback. For the most part, it is written moderately well. Johns and Winick handles the team-up between the Teen Titans and Outsiders rather well, which harkens back to the Young Justice/Titans: Graduation miniseries, where both incarnations of the team teams up together to stop a mind-controlled Jon Kent as Superboy and Indigo – the true mole of the Outsiders. It ends with Superboy subsequently leaving the Teen Titans and Nightwing quits the Outsiders and Jade recruits Captain Marvel Jr. to add power to the team.

Matthew Clark (Teen Titans #24–25, Outsiders #28), Carlos D'Anda (Outsiders #24–25), and Tony S. Daniel (Teen Titans #26) penciled the trade paperback. For the most part the pencilers have distinct penciling styles, which made the artistic flow somewhat rough – it doesn't help that the core story has interchanging pencilers.

All in all, Teen Titans/Outsiders: The Insiders is a mediocre continuation to what would hopefully be a wonderful series.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty cool crossover.

So what happens when a member of your team goes bad? I mean, this has happened so many times before. It's really about two major things. Is the person going bad a big enough threat to scare you? Also, is their an emotional connection to these characters? Do you feel their pain of fighting their friend/loved one or is it just to create false tension? This time we have Superboy and Indigo have gone bad. You do find out who's behind it, but them going bad creates a lot of emotional moments for the Outsiders/Teen Titans. Especially for Wonder Girl and Shift.

Good: The emotional bits worked well for the most parts. Actually, my favorite part are the after results of the fight. It's both touching and sad to watch our heroes deal with the outcome of their actions. Who lived/died felt justified in the way it happened too. The crossover also blended well enough and didn't feel bumpy. I like how it set up some interesting changes for each series (At the time of reading this I still have to read Teen Titans).

Bad: I thought a lot of the characters except for 4 central ones took a backseat. It did feel rushed. I mean you have power players taking on the evil side, let this shit ride for a bit. Also, it feels more like Teen Titans event than Outsiders, so I felt little lost not reading Teen Titans first.

Overall, a well done cross over. 3.5 out of 5.

[Lono · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably would have enjoyed this even more had I been keeping up with both teams prior to reading Teen Titan/Outsiders: The Insiders. After reading Winick’s Red Hood stuff over in Batman, I thought I should track down some of his other work. So I've read the Outsiders collections leading up to this book, but not the Titans stuff. Judd and Geoff Johns did a pretty good job with the individual characterizations with such a large cast of heroes and their “voices” or personalities were pretty spot on. Thankfully, Winick seems to be getting less and less corny with every issue. Unforturnately my homeboys, Nightwing and Arsenal, sorta took a back seat in this one. Grace too. Not being a fan of the Titan's members certainly hurt the book for me a bit. Shift (Metamorpho 2.0) and Wonder Girl hogged the spotlight throughout the collection along with the two “traitors” of the collection. For those of you that haven’t looked at the cover or figured it out yet, Superboy and Indigo At least we finally got to see some real villains in this one.Lex Luthor and Brainiac Some dynamite throw-downs in the first half of the book were definitely highlights for me. Couple of folks get a real ass-whoppin’. The second half slows it down quite a bit and the heroes deal with the fallout from the rumble. Not everybody makes it out alive and some of the ones that do aren’t gonna stick around. Lots of soul searching in the second half too. Snore. But with that said, there were still some pretty fun moments packed in this one.



The art was pretty solid throughout. Matthew Clark and Tony Daniel did a good job handling the Titans stuff and Carlos D’Anda is on Outsiders. D’Anda is a favorite of mine and I have really been digging his Outsiders issues in the other previous collections. Wish he had done more than a couple of issues here.



Fans of the Young Justice animated series might recognize some of the story lines from the show, but it didn’t really ruin anything for me. I have got to believe that readers would get the most bang for their buck out of this book by checking out both series just prior to the crossover. At least to get some background, explanations about relationships, and familiarize youself with the newer characters. I enjoyed this one enough that I’m picking up the next Outsiders collection to see what my man Judd has up his sleeve for the team.

3.5 stars out of 5

[Chelsea 🏳️‍🌈 · Rating 2 out of 5]

There’s nothing to really latch on to here. I’m confused about the character direction for Dick Grayson.

This is a cross over/tie in, whatever with the Teen Titans but I honestly struggled to understand why the Outsiders were here? Sure, Indigo was a member of their team but the Outsiders were barely given anything to do. As with the last volume, Starfire seems to be here just to be Dick’s sounding board and attack. That’s it. It’s a bummer after The New Titans where she’s a great character and given a lot of personality and personal storylines. This was just abysmal.

I’m confused as to why Dick appeared to take Indigo’s death harder than he took Thunder’s near brush with death? He didn’t seem particularly close to Indigo. It’s just odd. Anyway, the aftermath issue with Shift, Grace and Anissa dealing with Indigo’s death was the only part that truly felt like the Outsiders to me.

But honestly, this may have been before X-Men: the Last Stand or near that release date but I’m so sick of the “they’re out of control; I have to kill the one I love” tragedy. Especially for Indigo who was pretty much just treated like Shift’s girlfriend despite the fact that she had a lot of great qualities outside of that. Urg.

Clearly I’m more attached to the Outsiders than the Teen Titans who were... here.

I have questions about Gar’s age all the time because in the New Teen Titans, he’s younger than the others but how old was he? How old were Raven and Wally? I know DC characters are like Marvel characters in that they don’t age at all. Damian was 10 for years it seemed. But it just strikes me as odd that Beast Boy seems eternally part of the Tern Titans and the others age up into the Titans.

But anyway, I’m not sure what all transpired from the 1990’s Young Justice to this team. Superboy has a new look and I must say, I prefer the old one. Cassie had her glam up and now she’s got long, flowing blonde hair and looks more like your typical comic book heroine. I know why but I liked the look she had before. At some point she hooked up with Superboy? Or this was her grand play for him after years of pining. Eh, I’m not really invested.

Superboy’s struggle with his parentage was interesting and semi compelling. For me, who hadn’t read everything that came before this in Teen Titans, I could have used more on that. It would have been great but I know they covered more of that plight in the TT series.

So... this isn’t a recommend for me. If you’re supper attached to the plights of Vision and Scarlet Witch, maybe you’d find a plot like this sympathetic. I personally didn’t. There wasn’t enough of Superboy to really feel anything. The Outsiders honestly didn’t get a lot to do here. I was eh about it.

[Batastrophe · Rating 3 out of 5]

So...I'm not a big fan of crossover events, and I can't say this book really changed my mind about that. It was, however, one of the better-written crossover events I've read in a while, so it has that in its favor.

I got spoiled for what the big twist was before I even picked this book up, but I was a little sorry to see that it doesn't seem like the book itself even tries to hide the twist. It's literally on the cover. The story wastes no time in getting to it, and the way it's revealed? It's so rushed, it really makes you think the writers assumed we already knew what was going to happen. I'm not sure what the marketing was at the time, so maybe the readers of the time actually did already know. In any case, it's not a very interesting reveal.

The pacing of the whole thing also feels very rushed. I think this is mainly due to it being a crossover--there are so many characters to juggle, it's impossible to account for all of them at once. Additionally, everything wraps up too quickly and too neatly to be satisfactory--it feels hard to believe that the villains spent this long setting up this scheme only to have it foiled that easily.

Speaking of the villains, I found their motivation to be rather opaque, so that was disappointing.

On the bright side--I didn't find this nearly as convoluted as some crossovers I've read, and it wasn't totally unenjoyable. I wish the pacing could have taken its time a bit more so we could have seen more characters interact with one another. The final two issues were also by far and away the best--the Teen Titans issue has Superboy reflecting on the events and doing some (literal) soul searching, and the Outsiders issue has various team members coming together to reflect, remember, and mourn. I liked the space given here to have their reactions, because they were super rushed in the actual crossover issues--Nightwing's especially. It was good to take the time to see how everyone was feeling, and I really appreciated that.

Overall, some game-changing events happen here, so it's worth picking up. Definitely not the strongest installment of Outsiders so far though.

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't caught up on both teams which were a mistake going into this.
It wasn't great for me.
Will say I'm quite sad about the death in the end. It was an emotional moment. I was a fan of the character up to this point. The team will be very different in the upcoming volumes and I'm not sure if I'm ready for that.

[Emmett Spain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, sharp, and hitting hard, this crossover shows what happens when a beloved teammate is turned into an enemy. The final issue, Soul Searching, gives weight to the events and sets a direction for the Outsiders going forward. I’m really enjoying this run.

[Gabi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe if I had read even a single issue of this incarnation of the Outsiders in advance, I would have gotten more out of this book. As it was, I went in really only caring about the Teen Titans side of the crossover. Fair enough, I suppose. Superboy's (unwitting) betrayal was enough to drive the book for me, even if I had no idea who Indigo was nor why I ought to feel so betrayed when she turns on the Outsiders. The whole thing was better written than I had expected it to be, especially the aftermath. Both the Teen Titans issue (with Superboy discovering that he does, indeed, have a soul) and the Outsiders issue (showing the team struggling to cope with even the idea of mourning the Indigo they knew) are both surprisingly well done. I honestly didn't expect much out of this collection (it is a crossover, with a lot of characters I either don't know at all or don't really care about) and was pleasantly surprised. Not exactly ground-breaking, sure, but quite good for what it is.

[Sketching Girl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was good, but a little heavy for my liking. Both teams are hit hard by events, so I don't think it makes for quite as happy or light reading like I was expecting. I think it also helps if you've read the preceding comics before it, as it does seem to carry straight on from previous events. However they do give a good introduction to all the main characters of both teams with a short backstory of each up to this point. A good read, but not my absolute favourite at the moment. Though die-hard Teen Titans fans will probably still enjoy it.

[Graysen Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reminds me of the good ole days at DC. *sigh* Really miss the Titans being a family and not a bunch of teenagers who can't even work together. I can't stand Scott Lobdell's writing. It's lazy,sexist and just plain stupid.If you want quality Teen Titans stories then go back to the early to mid 2000's. Hopefully Will Piefer will save this series. This crossover was great though. This is the Teen Titans. Geoff Johns. Marv Wolfman.George Perez.Judd Winnick.
Titans Together Titans Forever.

[Bud · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought it was pretty good. I love how Geoff Johns brings out the characters and makes them so much alive.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good, but something was missing. Good, but not great.

[Matthieu Savignac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bon sang, que ça fait du bien d'avoir d'aussi belles pages pour les Teen Titans. Le travail de
Matthew Clark mais surtout celui de Carlos D'Anda est incroyable. Quel rythme, quel trait, quelle mise en scène le travail de Carlos D'Anda sur les issues des Outsiders donne envie de découvrir plus de ses travaux.
Le mélange des dessinateurs passe plutôt bien et cela ne gène en rien la lecture de ce crossover.

L'histoire en elle même est plutôt intéressante et soulève quelques sujets dont les prémices ont été disséminés depuis pas mal de temps dans les deux séries. On sent que l'on commence à s'approcher d'évènements un peu plus sérieux, et qu'il va y avoir des répercutions pour les personnages concernés.

J'ai beaucoup aimé parcourir ces issues et prend plaisir à revenir apprécier certaines planches !

[machado · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Gusgus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una o unas traiciones, un par de enemigos, un sacrificio. Es un buen final para lo que se estuvo cocinando desde el principio de ambas colecciones, aunque tubo algunas inconsistencias el guion.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Insiders (#26-28). It's great bringing the Outsiders and newest Teen Titans back together in an explicit sequel to Titans, Young Justice: Graduation Day, really bookending these two-to-three years. And having a traitor in each group is a great way to do so. Finally, having those traitors be Superboy and Brainiac Eight nicely brings a new generation to an old super-villain teamup. With that all said, the storyline is somewhat underwhelming, as it's a big, long fight. There's some really ugly art in the Outsiders issues, too. The coda is better, with Raven bringing new hope to Conner (but there's some silly fighting there too) [3/5].

[Richard Schaefer · Rating 5 out of 5]

In which the Titans and Outsiders are each respectively (and collectively, given that this is a crossover) betrayed by one of their own. A glance at the cover will reveal who the betrayers are, but just in case you’ve avoided that, I won’t mention their names here. I will say that the Outsiders fare a lot worse coming out of this event; their team is changed in a more permanent way, and I’m not just saying that because the Outsiders is the better of the two series.
I will say, while still keeping it vague, that the fact that the relatively newly created betrayer dies here, while the more established one sort of gets off the hook without consequences, kind of bugs me. It reeks of the sort of editorial interference that keeps flagship characters alive while stifling creators who attempt to introduce new characters. That said, Winick writes the death of that character well, so maybe it really was his choice and I’m wrong. Either way, this is an important part of both the Titans and Outsiders series.

[Nicholas Palmieri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book serves as the "finale" of sorts to the initial era of both the 2003 Outsiders and Teen Titans series (both went on to tie into Infinite Crisis immediately after this, then re-start with "One Year Later"). As such, it's almost a sequel to the terribly mediocre Titans, Young Justice: Graduation Day which launched these two titles, shedding light onto that story through its themes, intentional parallels, and the villains' plans, actually making me glad I read the initial story. As the culmination of elements set up throughout the preceding three volumes of Outsiders and four volumes of Teen Titans, this book contains tons of moments of great payoff and is an essential and satisfying end. Taken on its own, however, it's a bit less great. The first three chapters are nearly completely action, with a slightly convoluted plot from the villains. The fourth chapter (and final part of the "Insiders" storyline) turns things around, however, adding a ton of heart to the battle and making us care for what happens. The final two issues of the collection are heartfelt epilogues from each series, each of which serve as both epilogues to the battles and epilogues to each of the series. This isn't a book to jump into with no prior knowledge, but if you've been reading Teen Titans and Outsiders up to here, this is the endpoint- and while not perfect, it's a solid, fun, and ultimately rewarding read.

[Alan Kagiri · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a mild graphic novel fanatic, I enjoyed catching up to the events of my favorite set of heroes, the teen titans, in this new installment of the series. The new twist of the new team members being rogue and part of a criminal mastermind was both shocking yet exciting. I knew that Superboy was created from Lex's DNA, but the activation code that turns Superboy rogue and the master plan to create a superman clone immune to kryptonite were new surprises that left me craving for more. I off course loved the animations and the action, and Johns does not fail in giving just enough clues to leave one craving for the next installment. All in all, I really enjoyed this book, and gladly endorse it to all DC Comics fanatics!

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was only a matter of time before the sidekick teams of the DCU teamed up - and this crossover is the result. Both teams find themselves betrayed from within; Lex Luthor triggers Superboy to take on the Teen Titans, while Brainiac activates Indigo's Coluan programming against the Outsiders. Devastated by the attacks, the groups coalesce to form a counter-attack and attempt to bring both former heroes back to their senses. A nice look at how both teams have grown beyond their sidekick roles into formidable fighting forces. I enjoyed the take on betrayal and redemption, as both teams looked to evolve in the wake of this event. Johns does it again!

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just love the Titans and the Outsiders. This one's where we find out that both teams have a mole; there's a big fight and a sacrifice. I thought it was very well done.

And god, Superboy and Robin are killing me. Truly. Nightwing is, too, but the dynamic between these two... sigh.

[Fugo Feedback · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lo leí en la miniserie de 4 números que sacó Sticker Design en Argentina, así que marco la edición española por aproximación. En sí la historia está buena, pero no deja de ser un fanfic ascendido a canónico por un guionista con buen timing. Después me explayo.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book in 2 parts. First is a huge fight, second is an old case come back to haunt the Outsiders. It's probably an essential book for Outsiders continuity, as characters go through something major. The old case was more interesting than the fight though. A good read.

[Paolo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Would have enjoyed much more if I read up on the Outsiders. The story was enjoyable albeit had no idea who Indigo was and not caring too much for Superboy. The aftermath was nicely done. Showed the complications of both teams after each member left their respected team.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Indigo and Superboy both deal with their overly controlling progenitors. Since those progenitors are Lex Luthor and Brainiac, things get very interesting.

[Ercsi91 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poor Superboy, he sure has a problem behind his back:D
Anyway the outsiders are cool:DDD

[Amani Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very nice crossover

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one really has something going for it. The art was crisp and the characters were flushed out and the pacing was on target.

Wonderful story arc with everything I wanted in a tall tale today.

[Koen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Outsiders AND Teen Titans.. just love those two teams.. They have amazing characters all of them and all the stories I've read so far are mind blowing stuff! I'm a big fan and I want to read more ;)