REVIEW: ‘Titans: Beast War,’ Issue #4

Titans: Beast War #4 is published by DC Comics, written by Tom Taylor, with art by Lucas Meyer, colors by Romulo Fajardo Jr, and letters by Wes Abbott. As the heroes face the most devastating attack, Waller puts the final pieces together in her plan to execute Beast Boy.

This is one of the series’ most emotional and powerful issues so far. When a particular character is affected by the spores, it leads to an enormous battle with destructive and tragic consequences. It’s a fight scene with intensity and danger, something that Taylor has always sought to infuse within this book. It’s a ridiculous and fun concept, with heroes and villains transforming into creatures. But the event’s results are dark, and it’s also quite a brutal and scary story. As the Titans rush to defend Ivy Town, the core figures of the issue are called up and forced to act like elite heroes. But the side plot of Titans: Beast War #4 implements something that has been planned since early in the event, and seeing it enacted may not be surprising, but it is brutal and dramatic.

The younger heroes, as the primary characters within the event, significantly change the tone. They have been through a lot and have heaps of experience, but a confrontation like the one they find in this issue is enough to shake anyone to their core. It requires all of them to get involved. The Titans have been able to separate and deal with the event that way, but the sheer scale of the enemy requires them to work together. Included in the bulk of Titans is Superman’s son. Although mighty and brave, he is rattled by the severity of the scenario, especially when he is responsible for more damage. The team’s leaders, such as Nightwing, Oracle, and Starfire, are also unnerved and forced to think as fast as they can. The captions are gloriously melancholy and help orchestrate the darkness of the book. It can describe noises and sights that aren’t necessarily clear within the actual panels.
The use of Waller in this whole storyline has been interesting, as there is much more emphasis on her than the Suicide Squad as a militaristic entity. Peacemaker is there as her bodyguard and errand boy, with Doctor Hate as her real muscle.

The art is tremendous, invoking the battle’s brilliance and ferocity. In the book’s early stages, the true potential of what is about to happen before the main enemy transforms isn’t instantly obvious. The sheer size is imposing, and the change itself is fantastic. The reaction from the characters is amazing, really capturing their fear and dread at what is about to happen. Meyer’s takeover isn’t too drastic, but the facial expressions appear much better in these latter stages. When the toppling skyscrapers collapse, the human impact is immediately recognized, which can often be rare in huge events such as these. There is immaculate detail to everything, from the costumes to the surroundings. Many of the more hardcore characters, especially Peacemaker, have taken a ruthless approach to dealing with the beasts. While it looks awesome, and the damage is horrifying, it can be easy to forget who those beasts are.

The colors are gorgeous. The costumes have a rich vibrancy, but so do the backgrounds. Constantly altering, it makes the book incredibly interesting to look at. The shades often have gradients that create both depth and texture to the panels. The most notable example is Starfire’s hair, which turns into something resembling actual fire at the ends, but nearly every panel features a change in brightness. The lettering is precise and easy to read, with a few terrific changes in font to match the gravity of the sight in front of the characters.

Titans: Beast War #4 sinks its teeth into the event. With three issues taken to assess and get a wide understanding of the scale of the situation, now the real heart of the story is being exposed. There is an atmosphere in this comic that is palpable with dread. The Titans have been exceptional leads, as have all the peripheral characters. It hasn’t overloaded the main book with an enormous cast, with which events can sometimes get carried away. Instead, a core group has been gathered and maintained, prioritizing them in the plot to keep an emotional heart to the heaps of chaos.

Titans: Beast War #4 is available now wherever comics are sold.