Warning! Spoilers ahead for Titans #21!It’s been decades sinceDeathstrokecommitted one of his worst crimes against the Titans, and now the fan-favorite team is getting ready to make Slade Wilson pay for everything he’s done. Years after his last appearance,Deathstroke is back manipulatingthe DC icons from the shadows once again in pursuit of his own goals.
Deathstroke has been antagonizingthe team all the way back to their New Teen Titans' era, but he cemented himself as their greatest enemy during the infamous “Judas Contract” storyline. While Deathstroke has been missing since the end ofDark Crisis on Infinite Earths, he’s back andthe Titans are getting readyto take him down for good.
The Titans Are Taking the Fight Straight to Deathstroke
He’s Crossed a Line and The Team is Ready to Take Him Down
InTitans #21by John Layman, Pete Woods, and Wes Abbott, the Psycho-Pirate has taken control of an experiment designed to repair Raven’s volatile emotional state. Utilizing the apparatus designed by S.T.A.R. Labs, Psycho-Pirate manages to take control of Raven’s body and enhance his own emotional powers. After taking control of Raven’s body, Psycho-Pirate uses her powers toturn the Titans into his puppets and orders them to kill one another. An all-out brawl occurs between the team just as Roy Harper and Cyborg arrive with their new recruit, the former Titan villain Vanadia.
Asthe Titans begin to turn on each other and fight to the death, Vanadia manages to slip past the Pscho-Pirate’s control due to being all machine now. Psycho-Pirate tries to kill Vanadia, but Raven resists his control, refusing to kill Vanadia again. In Raven’s mind, Psycho-Pirate buries Raven deep in her own mind, but Raven releases her darker half to fight the villain. Dark Raven defeats Psycho-Pirate and rescues her lighter half and the two agree to unite and live as one whole being.
…Slade has been behind all the strange events they’ve been through recently…
The dust from the conflict settles and everything goes back to normal. Raven’s emotions and powers are under control and the Titans are ready to move on. But Raven lets her friends know that the Psycho-Pirate informed her that Deathstroke hired him to target the Titans. Cyborg and Nightwing piece together that Slade has been behind all the strange events they’ve been through recently and determine he’s likely to strike again. Donna rallies her team and informs them thatthey’re not waiting for Deathstroke’s next move and that they’re going to take the fight to Slade.
Deathstroke is About To Get Retribution for His Worst Crimes
Slade Wilson Has a Lot to Answer For
There isn’t a Titans fan alive that doesn’t know the cruel part Deathstroke played in the infamous “Judas Contract” saga. Slade Wilson groomed and manipulated the Markovian metahuman Terra to infiltrate the Titans, using the information he gathered to try and eliminate them. It was one of the most jaw-dropping things he’s ever done and the storyline easily set Deathstroke up as the de facto Titans’ antagonist. Deathstroke has fought a lot of DC heroes in the years since,but his earliest encounters with the Titans have defined his legacy.
They could easily track Slade down no matter where he’s hiding…
Readers may recall that Deathstroke was last seen duringDark Crisis on Infinite Earths, where he was corrupted by the Great Darkness and tried to eliminate legacy heroes with the Dark Army (which led him to almost taking Beast Boy’s life). While Slade barely survived the event, it was revealed that he’s back to his old self and out to take out his greatest enemies by any means necessary. He’s already roped in villains like Clock King and Mammoth toserve as part of his ‘Crime Syndicate’ and take out the Titans once and for all.
Deathstroke was last seen inDark Crisis on Infinite Earths #7clinging to life after someone disabled his life support!
Luckily, the Titans are one step ahead of Deathstroke this time. Not to mention, they’re working with Justice League Unlimited and have much more resources than in the past. They could easily track Slade down no matter where he’s hiding and end whatever he’s got planned before Deathstroke knows what hit him.For the first time since he started taking on the Titans, Deathstroke is in a real position to lose, meaning he’s on the precipice of paying for all of his crimes against the team, all the way back to the “Judas Contract”.
It’s About Time Deathstroke Pay for Everything
He’s Gotten Away with This For Far Too Long
Despite his crimes, Deathstroke has enjoyed a long run of popularity, even holding down multiple self-titled series. But the Titans are pissed, and they’re not going to take his manipulations lying down anymore. They’re going to use everything at their disposal from the League’s assistance to their own powers to find wherever Slade is and make sure he sees justice. Slade may have a trick or two up his sleeve, but with the Titans on high alert,Deathstrokeis on borrowed time.
