I NEED everyone to see this preview for Titans #6 right nowww

I Am Not Starfire, And That's Okay

I recently read I Am Not Starfire and I had lots of thoughts, which are under the cut. It is spoiler-heavy and an analysis of the main character, who I find to be a charming, flawed, and incredibly human character.

Mandy is a fascinating character and a great look at a teenage girl who feels ostracized by the people around her and who feels disconnected from her parent. Mandy is by no means flawless, and that's what makes her very interesting. It also makes her relatable.

Mandy starts by talking about how she's noticeably different from her mom, being the "Anti-Starfire". She's a regular kid, can't fly, and doesn't own a swimsuit, while her mom is a superhero, can fly, and always wears bikinis.

On page 11 she mentions "her mom hasn't liked how I looked since I was twelve. She wears less than a yard of fabric every day, yet somehow, I'm the one who's dressing weird". While I understand people who call this slut-shaming, and I'm inclined to agree, but I think it's a little more nuanced than that. The next page reads, "My friend Lincoln convinced me this is the cultural divide that happens between family generations born in different countries or universes. His parents were born in Vietnam." This tells me that the authors intended to point out the difference in dress more as another difference between Starfire and Mandy, and less as a reason to blatantly slut-shame Starfire. I think there's absolutely a conversation to be had about why the authors decided to use this language instead of conveying the point differently. I also think it speaks to how Starfire has more or less been sexualized from inception, and how people look down upon her character because of that. In the context of this book, though, it's one of Mandy's character flaws that I think fits her both as a character and reflects what I've seen from actual teenage girls. Our society coaches us to view women who dress a certain way as less than women who don't and unlearning that takes time and effort. I don't think this comment about her mom should have been put in there by the authors, but I do think it fits in with the values American society in particular teaches about women.

Page 15, 16, and 17 all point to a far more complicated state of existence than Mandy points out within the first few pages. For one thing, Mandy has to deal with people who love her mother and only want to use her to get information about her mom and the other teen titans. This is shown by the "Titan groupies" who ask her to tell Starfire what they say about her. Another thing she has to deal with is the expectation to be a superhero and have powers like her mom, and the questions about who her dad might be. She gains her first real friend, Lincoln, because he tells the people asking about her parentage that they are assholes.

It is revealed that Mandy has a crush on Claire after she gets assigned a group project with her. Mandy is in denial over the crush. She thinks about the fact she's meeting Mandy at the end of the day throughout the rest of the school day, causing her to explode something in Chemistry Class. I find this to be highly relatable and gives her character a softer side to the edginess she desperately tries to portray herself as.

While talking about the project with Claire, it is revealed that Mandy ran out of her SATs and didn't complete them. While Mandy tries to paint this as a cool badass moment, the way the comic artist portrays the scene makes me think Mandy had an anxiety attack. Mandy didn't run out of her SAT because she's some kind of alternative badass who doesn't need to take them. Mandy ran out because she got overwhelmed by the sounds of people chewing and the pressure of the test. While she frames it differently, it's clear to me that Mandy is avoiding taking the SAT again because she doesn't want that to happen again.

When Claire invites her to hang out with her friends, Mandy gets treated like she isn't there, or as some kind of unwanted outsider. The topics they discuss seem to be specifically made to make Mandy uncomfortable, like mentioning how stretchy jeans are only made for fat people, and asking if aliens don't go to college. Jaded by this, Mandy makes up that aliens actually have to go through this huge blood right and battle to the death, but tells Claire's two friends she was joking before leaving. This tells me that Mandy deflects her pain by using humor to cope and has no issue clowning on people who are trying to belittle her for being an alien.

Starfire tries to bring up going to college after this, and Mandy just flees to her room. She hasn't told her mom she didn't take the SAT yet or that she isn't going to college. She feels distant from her mom, which is explained further through a montage of birthdays where she never got her powers. Her mom expects a lot from her, and Mandy thinks Starfire is disappointed about her lack of powers.

Later, Mandy invites Claire over to her house to complete the project they are working on. The Titans are still there when Claire arrives, but she seems to ignore them, as they leave shortly after. Mandy and Claire bond as they continue the project. Mandy reveals to the reader that she's never had a girlfriend, except for one time at sleep-away camp where she kind of dated a girl for four weeks. She didn't tell her who her mom was because she was tired of living in the shadow of a superhero. But the relationship ended because Mandy had lied about who her mom was, and the girl she was dating didn't understand why she would lie. I think this really shows just how much Mandy actually wants to be a normal girl like everyone else, to the extent that she'd lie about who her mom was. Her edgy demeanor at school and around town where her mom is known to be her mom is a defense mechanism to having lived under the shadow of a superhero her entire life.

When it's revealed that Claire took a photo with the Titans at Mandy's house, Mandy is understandable heartbroken, and furious. She thought she had been making a real connection with Claire, but this photo makes her think she's been used, again. Claire seems genuinely baffled by Mandy's reaction to this, thinking little of it. But to Mandy, it is a breach of trust from someone she thought cared about her. I think her angry reaction to Claire makes sense because of this, even if it might have been disproportionate to the offense.

On top of this, Starfire has discovered that Mandy walked out of the SAT and doesn't plan to go to college. After a heated conversation, she runs away, but her mom finds her. And then Blackfire finds her. Turns out the fake story she told Claire's friends earlier in the story was actually true, even though Mandy didn't know it.

Since Claire actually cares about Mandy, she tracks down Lincoln who explains to her why Mandy reacted badly, and that she should probably apologize for taking the photo. Claire also admits that one of the friends from earlier, Deb, actually dared her to take the photo. Claire is a good person at heart, but this action shows that she can still be influenced to do something that would hurt another person. And while she might not have known it would hurt Mandy, Deb probably did.

Starfire and Blackfire fight since Mandy has no powers, but Starfire gets injured causing Mandy to realize just how much she loves and cares about her mom, even though they don't see eye to eye on most things. This finally unlocks her powers, as she's let go of most of the resentment she's held against her mom. She even gets asked for an autograph by someone in the audience after the battle.

The story ends with Mandy training her powers, studying for the SAT, and reconciling with Claire, sharing a kiss, and becoming girlfriends.

I've seen a lot of discourse that frames Mandy as being "not like other girls". I don't believe this framing actually fits Mandy very well. The only girl Mandy ever says she is not like explicitly is her mom. She is the only woman she compares herself too, and the only person who she seems to have a lot of resentment for, aside from people who use her to get to Starfire. Additionally, Mandy falls for someone who is what a stereotypical, normal popular girl is often portrayed as. She's preppy, wears makeup, gets good grades, has friends, and runs a fairly popular Instagram account. If Mandy was extremely into the "Not like other girls" rhetoric, she would've made fun of Claire for all those things. Instead, she admires her for them. Mandy is fat, has acne/freckles, dresses goth, and wears a nose ring. If this is the reason people are identifying her as a "Not like other girls" girl, then they don't understand that trope. Simply dressing differently from your peers, being fat, and hating your mom does not make her the "not like other girls" trope. It actually makes her like other, real-life girls who dress and act similarly, because that's who they are, not because they somehow think they are better than other women.

I'd also make the argument that, fundamentally, Mandy IS different from other girls on the account of having a superhero mother and potentially a superhero father. Her life is completely altered by Starfire's existence as her mom and is likely only relatable to the children of other superheroes and celebrities. She is not like other girls because of her mom, and that still doesn't make her someone who falls in line with the conception of being "not like other girls".

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and hope others do too. I read Mandy as a flawed character who was trying to figure out how to exist outside the Shadow of her mom- and eventually succeeds, by learning to embrace her mom. I would've preferred if Mandy had a slightly darker skin tone, as her features seem black-coded to me and Starfire is also often black-coded. Otherwise, I do think this was one of the best DC Graphic Novels for Young Adults I've read, alongside Teen Titans: Beast Boy and Teen Titans: Raven.

the wolf should’ve been afraid of me.

Titans 3.04

just under the wire! ... i hope.

like with the previous review, i’m typing this up as i see the episode. here we go!

spoilers ahead.

1. ... well. that was an interesting cold open.

1.25. i don’t know whether to admire this show’s restraint when it comes to gotham and its excesses, particularly arkham asylum. it’d be easy to go hammer and tongs, like suicide squad (2016) did, or any number of bat media did, at a tropey, colourful~~insanity~~ that can be quite damaging, casting mental illness in strangeness and criminality. it definitely shows gotham as... separate from the rest of the country, its own ecosystem of heroes and villains, a sort of rogue state. 

but that ecosystem is still human, with its heroes needing to clip parts of themselves away just to survive, growing old and needing to be recycled, its villains languishing in the same kinds of systems that fail everybody else who needs to be helped. it’s a quieter, tenser sort of wrongness: not strange enough that you can dissociate, but not close enough that you can completely empathise. gotham is its own creature.

1.5. i know that the reasoning behind this is more doylist than anything, but i’m so glad that joker was killed off with little fanfare right at the start of the season. he is the one man in the batverse that’s transcended its confines as this sort of ethereal boogeyman/eternal edgelord and to justify his presence in the series would mean giving him this tired, overblown importance and too much of a stab at colourful, tropey “madness” in this otherwise-subdued series. i wish all batmedia would follow suit and get rid of this fucker.

1.75. so jason is bucking scarecrow’s control! or reminding him of who exactly holds all the cards right now. circling back to what i talked about in the last review, it’s remarkable just how little time it’s been since jason’s “death” and he’s already got ‘minions’ and elaborately set up plans to track, break and kill the titans. just how long has he been planning this? when did he first look at WE weapons prototypes and think that’s something i can use to blow somebody up? and the most unsettling question: did he plan his own death at the hands of the joker just so that he could break batman?

at this point it’s obvious that the scarecrow at least started jason down this path, but it’s frightening just how far he’s travelled already.

1.8. aaagh, less than one minute in! i’ll shut up. 

2. conner washing his hands at the sink reminds me that he was directly in the line of explosion when hank got blown up and he’s probably got atomised hank-bits all over his skin that he’s desperately trying to wash off.

... you’re welcome.

2.25. conner, don’t you speak to gar fucking logan like that, sir, no!

2.3. if anything it’s the lex part of him that gave him the knowhow to recognise the weapon and build a de-activator for it. 

anyway, for that ‘half-breed’ and ‘talking tiger’ comment?

(i wish, tho, that we actually see conner more interested in the superman part of his legacy, like maybe listening to stories from gar, or even better, dick, so we get a better idea of the pressure he’s feeling to live up to that part of him and not the part that’s lex.)

((i talked about conner’s stages of moral development in his introductory episode last season, but i wonder if the next stage of his self-actualisation would be to further integrate the parts of himself and realise that they are only parts and he, conner, is an entirely different person unto himself that can make decisions on how to use what he has and what he knows. his superman abilities can be used to destroy. his lex knowledge can be used to save.))

3. oh dawn :((

3.25. is this the last we see of dawn and hank? i mean, we know donna is coming back; would it be a stretch to think they’ll try to have a go at resurrecting hank as well?

3.5. “deathstroke didn’t make us into killers.” good, because deathstroke didn’t make jason a killer either. there’s a missing step there you need to be looking for, dick. 

3.75. dick did try to break the cycle, step away from gotham, run from the possibility that he could turn into batman. it didn’t help; he couldn’t fully withdraw from his vigilante persona the same time he loathed it, and batman literally haunted him both asleep and awake. but maybe gotham doesn’t have to turn anybody into anything. maybe gotham has nothing to do with it at all. it’s about taking responsibility, realising some sacrifices are pure bullshit, and building an actual family instead of merely a team.

anyway: hugs!

(oh, also? mr “i hate flying”? i mean, there’s perfectly valid reasons to hate flying that’s not related to childhood trauma, but then again, this guy was literally a ‘flying grayson’ once. also also, remember that he also gets sea-sick. must’ve a lot of fun stories to tell.)

4. ooh that gar/kory confrontation was brief but cool!

listen, i have never seen a psychiatrist with that extravagant an office and SIR I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW--

4.5. kory’s so unused to reaching out for help and it’s breaking my heart that HPG likely is some kind of impostor that’s maybe causing her symptoms in the first place. 

kory and dick have mostly been apart this season but it’s remarkable how their journeys have paralleled each other; kory processes her grief, isolation and existential dread into a determination to take care of this new family she has, no matter what it takes; dick does much the same, forging ahead with plans and solutions until he has no fuel left in him and spirals into a massive breakdown.

4.25. listen titans this really is a TERRIBLE continuity error. we aren’t goldfish; we can clearly remember that two minutes ago it was gar’s upper arm that was burned, not his forearm. COME ON.

“sensory deprivation tank” *SNORT*

anyway, gar is the BEST

4.5. i wonder where these visions of experimentation took place. was it on tamaran, or on earth, after she came to hunt down rachel/trigon and before she lost all her memories? is HPG a part of the scientist group that experimented on her? ... god, i hope not. i mean, i think he is, but it would be cool to have some positive therapist representation in media. 

5. you’d think the van transporting a dangerous supervillain that only batman could catch would be more secure but... i’m also not entirely surprised. 

5.15. i love dick gives ZERO shits about hiding himself or even ensuring scarecrow is adequately contained. just turns away after kidnapping him in BROAD DAYLIGHT and says ‘let’s go’. I LOVE THIS DUMBASS

6. lmao gar is having a really really shitty day SOMEONE GIVE THIS MAN A BREAK or just a goddamn story arc of his own

6.5. i’m really confused about the timeline here. so... sometime ago, kory came down to earth to hunt down trigon, yeah? at some further point down the line she and her sister were kidnapped and experimented on. THEN she somehow escapes but... loses her memory? a few months pass and then we see blackfire alive and well and free; she kills faddei, can impersonate other people, and is clearly seeking out kory. but now she’s still in the experiment facility...? what’s going on?

i’m not entirely surprised about the facility being mostly deserted. either the biggest investors in this project gave up on it and it was left to the most fanatic to carry on, or they were deliberately trying to lure kory and get her to free blackfire--expand the environs of the experiment, so to speak.

7. hopefully barbara is going to get something to do other than listen to various men give her Attitude

8. how do you terrorise a terrorist? well:

i love when dick is a scary-competent motherfucker.

8.25. ooooh, the attack on crane at arkham a ploy to get crane to blackgate? nice one dick, i didn’t even think of that. but why though? to protect crane from the titans? to intercept the van to blackgate and “rescue” him? seems likely--red hood was there, except dick got to crane quicker.

9. still reeeallly unclear about the komand’r situation. was komand’r captured after s2? is this all A TRAP?? if so, why are you stepping into the only thing that can contain you, kory????

9.25. so... definite parallels between dick/jason and kory/kom here. i’m just. i’m still. really confused. i’ll shut up now.

10. this may be my favourite dick look yet:

woodsman!dick in a beanie.

10.5. i unironically love how titans has made this bizarrely-devoted-to-his-moniker, toxin-spewing supervillain into a tamer version of hannibal, psychoanalysing his victims into submission. it’s of a piece with how inward looking titans is, the way all of its villains are obsessed with how our protagonists’ minds work, to the point where they would actually spend time inside of them. 

there are no big plots to end the world. no apocalypses or endgames here. these villains collect the titans’ insecurities like infinity stones. the way the titans defeat them is by achieving character growth--literally winning by the power of love. literally “the real superpower is the friends we made along the way”!

10.7. anyway, i’m betting dick is used to this bullshit from crane and is humouring him in the service of getting more information. the story about the wolf? an implicit threat, not to mention dick getting to control what crane knows about him and what methods he would use to manipulate him.

am i giving dick too much credit here? i don’t think so. he’s really impressed me so far this season.

10.75. like. there’s a real unreliable narrator vibe coming off with every person that talks about bruce (much like how the various members of the titans talked about jason’s motivations) and to buy into crane’s talk about bruce being a psychopath is to fall for the same manipulation that jason fell for. dick is the only person who hasn’t really psychoanalysed bruce this season, and i think some part of his detective brain is piecing things together into a bigger picture.

11. i’m glad kory rescued kom but did she have to kill the scientist?

(i mean, yeah, probably - the less people know that kom escaped the less likely they’re going to have the fucking govt on their doorstep, but still.)

11.5. dick’s gonna come back to wayne manor, stare straight at komand’r and go, well which room would you like? because the team might as well adopt ANOTHER person, yeah?

12. oh MAN that red hood/nightwing fight was AMAZING! and he did the thing! the boomerang escrima thing! i’m so delighted!

12.5. the anger and disbelief in dick’s voice when he says you told crane EVERYTHING?! tells me that he knew exactly what he was telling crane himself.

12.75. “everything you are is because of him” - oh that reminds me of halluci!bruce from last season. i hope we see halluci!bruce again--he is so vicious but so entertaining... so much more effective at tearing dick down than crane or jason combined. goes to show that dick’s biggest enemy is own fucking head.

12.8. oh no! dick’s shot! crane is in the wind with red hood! blackfire is now with the titans! i love it!

honestly this season’s pacing is such a big step up from the last couple. gold star, show.

Titans Season 2

So I wouldn't exactly say that Titans season 2 was bad, exactly. But I felt like it kind of meandered through a bunch of different plot points without actually seeming to go anywhere?

And I was thinking about the constant “five years ago” backstory episodes, and I was like “But they make sense”. So it's not like things felt... unnecessary, by any means. However, I felt like the plot kind of zig-zagged around a lot different points, zipped back to a couple different backstory episodes, rerouted back to the present for something completely different, and then... somehow managed to wind up at episode thirteen (the last of the season).

We left off in season one with Rachel's demon father literally being brought to the human world, and all hope seemingly lost.

However, the entire subplot of resolving this barely lasted for five minutes, when all way said and done. Most of the first episode was just these darker timelines in which every one of Rachel's new-found friends and adoptive family sunk into evil ways. But not to worry, because Rachel was able to just talk to them and remind them of how much she means to them.

And then she stopped her father. Somehow. I can't swear that Princess Celestia didn't show up and preach about the power of friendship.

It was such a huge build-up in the first season, and the fact that it was resolved so quickly in the first episode of season two is honestly the first of many let-downs, I felt.

Following this, Dick is adamant that he take the new kids to San Francisco, where, with Bruce's permission, he's going to start up the Titans again.

Back in the day, it was Robin, Hawk and Dove, Wondergirl, and Aqualad. You might remember that we've met all of these characters from the first season... except for Aqualad.

And if you're wondering if he died... bingo. You win a prize of a depressing episode in which we're introduced to his character and his budding romance with Donna Troy... only to have him be murdered by a man named Slade Wilson.

This asshole was the entire reason why the original Titans broke up. See, following Aqualad's murder, Dick got it into his head that he could befriend Slade's son, Jericho. And the others were on board with this, because their friend was killed. But when they actually got to know Jericho, they all felt bad.

Until they find out that Jericho has “body snatching” powers, and can “possess” other people so long as he has initial eye-contact with them. And then suddenly, they tell him everything and even make him an official member of the team.

And that's all fine and dandy, but Slade is upset over this and murders his son. Because reasons.

And all of these memories suddenly being brought to the surface because of Slade's reappearance cause a break in Dick's already fragile psyche and he starts to have intense hallucinations in which Bruce Wayne follows him around and offers advice. It got old after a while.

Eventually, it reached a point with Dick this season that he went out and punched a security guard at the airport just so that he could be locked in jail. And this subplot dragged on forever, and never seemed to actually go anywhere.

But eventually, Dick made nice with the suit maker who seems to supply all of the suits for all of the heroes. Bruce had already designed the Nightwing costume for Dick, although this didn't make an appearance until the final episode.

Kori does have a lot of interesting developments this season, but a lot of them are seemingly being put on the backburner for the next season. She goes off for a while to help Donna do crime-stopping stuff, and ends up getting “kidnapped” by a guard from her homeplanet... Who also is a former lover of hers. He tells her that it's time to go home and rule, but Kori decides to go to California and help Rachel instead.

Eventually, her lover is taken over by her sister, Blackfire's mind-controlling jelly-thing, and Kori ends up needing to kill him in order to help stop her sister.

And then... that's it. Kori's duties are literally never brought up again for the rest of the season. Or the fact that Blackfire killed her entire family and seemingly started some sort of war on the planet. Kori can't even be bothered to tell Blackfire that she would prefer to stay on earth. Just... okay, this is a thing that's happening. BUT TITANS. Ugh.

There is a little teaser of Blackfire taking over some random lady at the very end of the last episode. But, as I said. Season three material.

Hank and Dawn... exist. That's pretty much the only thing that I can say about their characters this season. They simultaniously don't want to do crime-fighting anymore, yet refuse to actually walk away. Hank eventually pushes Dawn away to the point where he suggests that they should break up. And then he goes off the deep-end and starts doing hard-core drugs.

Anything that happened with them this entire season could have literally been cut out, and I doubt that the overall plot would have changed much.

I feel like the same could probably go for Donna as well. Although she had two exciting parts. One with her lover dying. Which... felt weird and forced and I honestly couldn't care either way about Aqualad's relationship with Wondergirl.

And then Donna herself died. Which was just so random and seemingly out of the blue. Especially because they'd just gone done taking down a mind-controlled Superboy (I will get to him in a second), and she had a full-powered fight with him. And then she'd killed by a ferris wheel falling on her.

And then Rachel says that she's going to go with the other ladies and probably learn how to better control her powers for next season. I don't know, and at that point, it all just seemed like characters moving around without having any actual motive.

And then there's Jason Todd. His plot basically revolves around Slade giving Jason PTSD, and then Jason fucking Slade's daughter, Rose.

When the season started, and it became clear that Jason was going to be on the team as the official Robin (leaving Dick to take over the role as Nightwing), I had really hoped for some decent character development from him. But instead, all we get is thirsty asshole with daddy and authority issues. Moving on.

And speaking of Rose... I felt like her character was given the proverbial shaft. She has an interesting character of being the daughter of a villain, but wanting to break away from her father after coming to understand a few things about found family.

She realized that she had healing powers, and told her father. He then trained her, and used her to further his own goals. Meaning to get vengeance on the Titans for using Jericho to get to him. But after having spent some time with Jason, Rose decides not to have anything to do with her father at all.

In the end, Rose and Nightwing team up and take down Slade. Which is something that the original Titans said that they'd struggled with “the first time around”. So how is it that “circus boy” and “girl who can heal herself” can do what actual super-powered Wondergirl, with the help of Robin, Hawk, and Dove failed to do?

All in all, the take down of Slade coupled with the destruction of Rachel's father is leaving a sour taste in my mouth. Don't get all excited over things like the build-up of villains, because the show will probably let you down in this regard.

And then there's Rachel. So much time in the first season was devoted to building up her character and everything, that it was honestly kind of disappointing that she seemed to take a back-seat in the second season. There was too much going on.

On top of a pointless side story where Rachel ran away from Donna and beat up some girl's father. It went nowhere, none of this was explained, and it was almost like the development of Donna, Dawn, and Hank.

Finally, the introduction of Superboy. For those not familiar with DC lore, Superboy is a science experiment to basically make an mpreg baby between Lex Luthor and Superman. He's got all of Superman's powers, and all of Lex's intelligence. However, the thing that comes out from the CADMUS lab is as innocent as a newborn baby... which makes him insanely dangerous.

There was a really long and honestly kind of tedious episode where he escaped from the lab with Krypto the Superdog, and how the project lead came to find him.

And then he went off and saved Jason from falling to his death, thanks to Slade. Only to be shot with kryptonite bullets for his trouble.

When Connor wakes up from this shooting, it's to find that Gar is the only one remaining at Titan's Tower, the others having taken off because of REASONS. However, Gar is certain that teaching Connor how to do proper hero stuff, that it'll make the other Titans want to come back. But circles around to Connor's innocence, he goes off and attacks a bunch of police officers.

This results in CADMUS breaking into Titan's Tower. Once the leader sees what Gar can do, they take him, too.

They then brainwash both of them to follow orders without objection. For Gar, this means transforming into a tiger whenever classical music is played, and killing anybody who is nearby.

This comes to a head after the others have taken down Slade. Gar attacks a street carnival, and Superboy is sent in to “stop” him. However, all of this was a ploy of CADMUS in order to convince people to buy Superboy for millions of dollars.

Rachel is somehow able to un-brainwash Gar simply through THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP. And Dick is able to get to Connor again, using nothing but talking. AND THEN EVERYBODY SANG AND THERE WERE MAGICAL BIRDS AND A UNICORN SHOWED UP. /sarcasm

Overall, this season wasn't bad. It was trying REALLY hard to be good, I felt. But I also felt like it was trying to do too much in just thirteen episodes.

NEW TEEN TITANS #15-19, OMEGA MEN #34-35 DECEMBER 1985 - APRIL 1986 BY MARV WOLFMAN, TODD KLEIN, EDUARDO BARRETO, ROMEO TANGHAL, SHAWN MCMANUS, RON RANDALL, CHUCK PATTON, ADRIENNE ROY, CARL GAFFORD AND STEVE PARKHOUSE.

SYNOPSIS (FROM DC DATABASE AND COMIC VINE)

Arella trails Raven to a Louisiana leper colony, where both are abducted by the cult of Brother Blood.

Meanwhile, on Tamaran, Blackfire proves to be still alive, and to have returned to her homeworld to foment unrest, unknown to the Royal Family, who are currently more concerned with the impending return of their other daughter, Koriand'r. Both Nightwing and Jericho suspect that something is amiss regarding the summons for Koriand'r's return, but Starfire herself is unconvinced. Following a hunt, however, King Myand'r reveals that civil war has ravaged the planet, and that according to the terms of the peace settlement, Koriand'r must marry Captain Karras, the heir of the ruler of the southern states of Kalapatt.

Myand'r looks back on how his mother was sacrificed to the Citadel, like Koriand'r, for peace on Tamaran.

The Omega Men, Starfire, and Jericho come together to take on the combined forces of Auron and Blackfire.

After her climactic battle with her sister (as seen in New Teen Titans Annual #1), Blackfire had escaped drowning, but had been blinded by an explosion. One of her followers, Dor'ion, saved her from her enemies and became her lover, but could not restore her shattered will to fight. One night, she awakened to hear Dor'ion apparently being killed by the hunters who had pursued them. Though still sightless, her fighting instincts returned and she used her starbolts to destroy the attackers, only to find that the attack had been a trick on Dor'ion's part to cure her and that it was he whom she had killed. Auron, having turned Tamaran against the Omega Men, instigates a battle between Titans and Omegans in the Tamaranian court. Jericho, suspecting a ruse, possesses Kalista and uses her power to distract Auron with an illusion of his mother, X'Hal, after which Primus and Starfire are able to defeat him and force him to flee. In the aftermath, Kory and Dick argue over her impending marriage to Karras, she claiming that it will be a mere formality and not make a difference in their relationship and he saying that things can never be the same between them if she does not refuse her father's wishes. After they part company, Kory learns that Karras is actually in love with Taryia and is also participating in the marriage from a sense of duty. At Joe's suggestion, Ryand'r takes him and Dick on a tour of the planet, only to run afoul of Blackfire's massing forces. All three are captured, preventing them from returning to warn the city, as the wedding procession begins.

The Omega Men have their showdown with X'hal and Auron. Harry Hokum ships his four Omega Men with a Gordanian guardian to Slagg, where they are delivered to the local Spider Guild rulers.

Starfire's marriage to Karras proceeds. Jericho and Nightwing return to Earth.

Cyborg and Changeling battle for their lives against Gar's insane father, Mento! Meanwhile, Donna confronts Dick about what happened on Tamaran.

THE ORIGINAL PLAN FOR THE FLASH

Apparently, before someone at DC decided Wally West had to be the next Flash, another plan was already in motion for a new version of the hero.

But it made into issue #19.

This is quite interesting, as Wally West appears as the Flash at the end of this issue. My guess is that he was supposed to be Kid Flash but the art was corrected, or just done after the fact.

REVIEW

The re-readability factor here is a bit low. The Direct Market seems to have spoiled Wolfman. We no longer get enough story per issue, it knows take almost half a year to read one story. This is taking readers for granted. Sure, this title was a best-seller, but the quality has gone down a bit since Wolfman started doing Crisis.

The Omega Men, on the other hand, benefited more with this cross over (and also crossing over to DC Comics Presents, but as I explained before, that one wasn’t as good as this ones).

We also end the Crisis tie-ins for Omega Men and Titans. Even though the Crisis is over at this point, Dick doesn’t learn what happened until this point.

Dick Grayson fighting with Donna makes some sense in ways that are not that clear. Donna has not been a very good leader because she prioritized her marriage. On the other hand, Dick just lost his love because of a marriage, so you can see why he is so pissed off at Donna.

There is another good reason for all of this. After the Crisis, some characters were changed, quite a lot, and while it is still early, Dick Grayson’s journey into Nightwing changed with the Crisis. He no longer passes the mantle to Jason, this is now Bruce’s decision. We won’t see this happen for a couple of years, but the idea was to move Dick Grayson closer to the Bat books (something that just didn’t happen until 1990). This is my guess as to why, all of a sudden, everything changed so much.

It is also the beginning of the end for the Titans. From now one, we will see several iterations of the group marked with tragedy and break ups and reforms.

I give this story a score of 7

Titans: Get to Know Blackfire

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This article contains Titans spoilers.

Titans Episode 4

As the team continues to grow, Titans episode 4, “Blackfire,” re-introduces us to Starfire’s sister. If you’ve watched the previous season of Titans then you’ll remember her as the epically stylish and nefarious Queen of Tamaran. 

While Blackfire (Damaris Lewis) was less of a present threat in season two, now she’s on Earth and, as we learn this week this week, has been behind Starfire’s escalating and ever more violent visions. What she’d actually been experiencing were psychic messages from her sister, who was begging for her help as she had been captured by the US government and imprisoned deep underground. It’s a big surprise as the end of last season saw Blackfire hit Earth with big plans of revenge, but here we see her as a helpless victim and one who has to reach out to the woman she came to conquer for assistance. 

It was an emotional episode for Starfire who has to help the sister she left behind, even though Blackfire killed their parents and usurped their reign. But it’s also a wake up call for the Princess of Tamaran, who has to come to terms with her own role in her sister’s dysfunction and crimes. In the end, Gar and Koriand’r do save Blackfire, which means she’s likely going to become a regular.

So we’re here to give you the lowdown on Blackfire, who’s not only an original New Teen Titans character but a DC stalwart has also starred in a ton of your fave animated adventures. Get ready to get familiar with TV’s newest Titan. 

The Origins of Blackfire

Marv Wolfman and George Pérez already shook up the DC Universe with their New Teen Titans series when they introduced Blackfire in their 22nd issue. Unlike the more grounded and emotionally driven human stories which defined much of what made New Teen Titans so popular, the saga of Blackfire and Starfire threw the Titans into a hard sci-fi adventure that pitted them against the eldest child of Tamaran. 

Princess Komand’r made an indelible imprint when she appeared on the final pages of New Teen Titans #22 with a memorable splash page showcasing the alien queen as she declared, “Her sister shall be her slayer!”

But why does she hate Starfire so deeply? Well, it’s a particularly tragic story and most tragic of all it’s a villain origin that isn’t actually Blackfire’s fault at all. In fact she was as much of a victim as the rest of Tamaran.

In the DC Universe, the Citadel Empire is one of the most feared foes in the galaxy, and they proved why on the day that Komand’r was born. The Empire attacked Tamaran and killed thousands of its citizens and then to make things worse–and to create one of DC’s most powerful villains–they claim to have done it in the name of the newborn princess. While the blame for that obviously does not lay at the feet of a newborn babe, it began a drastically tragic relationship with her home nation that never recovered. 

Read more

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Rejected by her own people after an illness that stopped her gaining the powers of flight and propulsion that Tamaraneans are known for, Blackfire was passed over for her rightful place as the heir to the planet’s throne. Of course, we all know who gained that seat: Koriand’r. 

Blackfire and Starfire

That fateful choice sparked a sibling rivalry that would echo through the galaxy. While Starfire was raised to become the next ruler of Tamaran, Blackfire struggled to come to terms with her new place in the world, ultimately attempting to kill her younger sister during routine training. It was here that she was finally expelled from Tamaran and became a powerful member of the Citadel.

Soon Blackfire led an invasion, successfully taking over her home planet and imprisoning her sister as well as banning her from ever returning to Tamaran. During her imprisonment, Starfire was abused and assaulted, eventually killing one of her attackers. Just as it seemed the end might be near for her as Komand’r planned her execution, the sisters were kidnapped and experimented on by the aliens known as Psions. It was a blessing in disguise, though, as Kori used her new status quo to escape, eventually landing on Earth and teaming up with the heroes who would become the Teen Titans. 

Their story didn’t end there. After she exploded onto the pages of New Teen Titans, Blackfire quickly established herself as a fearsome and canny foe for Starfire. Trapping her in a cosmic prison, she mentally tortured her sister before revealing her true plan: to kill their parents and destroy Tamaran.

The version of Blackfire that we’re meeting in Titans has already achieved that dastardly dream, but in the comics she’s defeated after she and Starfire have a fight to the death on Tamaran. Starfire overpowers her as Blackfire boils herself to death in a waterfall while trying to defeat her younger sister. The epic battle also led to the introduction of their younger brother, Wildfire, who it turns out was on their home planet all along with Koriand’r’s still alive parents. While she wants to stay, they force her to leave as they know the Citadel will attack again soon and she’s safer on Earth with the Titans. 

Blackfire Beyond the New Teen Titans

Shockingly, Blackfire survived her near death experience and continued her role as a would be conqueror. She never forgave the Titans for her defeat and attempted to defeat them by pitting them against each other. Blackfire’s campaign against her sister and for ultimate power has rarely ceased and, though she didn’t have too many appearances in the classic comics over the years, she was redefined in the New 52 era. 

Most recently, Blackfire was the primary antagonist in the second arc of the cosmic Justice League Odyssey series. She battled Darkseid, Starfire, and co., even commanding her army against the unusual allies. However, in Justice League Odyssey #14 Komand’r eventually became an official member of the reconfigured team under the leadership of Jessica Cruz, who Queen Blackfire came to greatly admire in their battle against Darkseid.

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Blackfire in Other Media

One of the most interesting aspects of Blackfire’s history is her prevalence in DC’s animated adaptations. While she’s not the most well known of DC’s rogues, she has had key roles in shows like Teen Titans, Teen Titans Go!, and DC Super Hero Girls. In each of them Komand’r appears as an antagonist to Starfire. There’s something about that sibling rivalry that inspires creators to keep revisiting their relationship. It also helps that she’s a huge rogue for the Titans as a whole and reinforces the more cosmic aspects of their adventures.

In Teen Titans, the elder sister of Starfire appears at first as an ally before revealing herself as an antagonist with a plan to frame Koriand’r for her own sins. During Teen Titans Go!, the more comedic show sets her up as a sometimes ally, most times antagonist, though even her betrayals are played for laughs. DC Super Hero Girls offers up the most kind version of the character, more like an annoying and sometimes cruel elder sister than a true villain. That’s also continued in DC Super Hero Girls: Intergalactic Games, which actually sees Blackfire team up with her sister to help save the day… which we could see in Titans. 

She’s a character so key to Starfire that even when she doesn’t appear she’s still referenced in animated DC movies like Justice League vs. Teen Titans and Teen Titans: The Judas Contract. It’s a testament to how much of a key part of her sister’s lore and background Blackfire is. That’s why her arrival as a main cast member in Titans means Starfire will definitely be taking center stage as we move towards the middle of the new season. 

What’s Next for Blackfire on Titans?

Titans has already proven that it’s a show about family. From the found family setup that it’s built around to the exploration of how our parents define us through the Robins and Batman as well as Gar and his father, the superhero show has a lot of interest in the concept of (Bat)families and what they mean. It’s why Blackfire’s arrival makes so much sense. Not only is she the only surviving member of Starfire’s family in this world, but she’s going to shine a light on the past that Starfire has tried so desperately to forget. 

Like the rest of the series so far, there are layers to both characters, with no clear delineation between good and evil. Instead, we get a Blackfire who was driven to her actions by abuse and neglect, and Starfire has to deal with her complicity in those actions that made her sister feel so isolated and alone.

But there’s hope. The fact we see Starfire go against the US government to save her sister from a fate worse than death means we’ll likely see them attempt to reconnect and rebuild the trust they’ve lost. We may even see them fight alongside each other, but the big overarching question will be whether this is all part of Blackfire’s larger scheme to get vengeance on her sister. If not we could see another unexpected member of the Titans team… and if it is then we’ll likely see a war of intergalactic proportions. 

Titans drops new episodes on HBO Max every Thursday. 

The post Titans: Get to Know Blackfire appeared first on Den of Geek.

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Blackfire’s RP PLOTTING CHEAT-SHEET

Want new-and-exciting plots for your character? Long to reach out to more of your followers, but don’t know where to start? Fear not! Fill out this form and give your RP partners both present and future all the of juicy jumping off points they need to help you get your characters acquainted.

Be sure to tag the players whose characters YOU want more cues to interact with, and repost, don’t reblog! Feel free to add or remove sections as you see fit. Template here.

Mun name: I go by Star or Starfire online. If we’re close, I might give you my real name upon asking - but if I do, please don’t ‘openly’ call me by it for others to see on this site. I’m very hesistant about RL things like that. OOC Contact: IMs and Asks are always open. I also have Discord, and technically still some Skype account somewhere though I never use that anymore. I do have the right to decline giving you those things even if we’re mutuals though. Anything listed here aside from asks is only OOC.

Who the heck is my muse anyway:

Disowned princess of Tamaran, was shunned from her birthright of being ruler because her younger sister was preferred. Ever since, Blackfire has taken on a rule of ‘take what you want when you want it’, which naturally ended up leading her into a criminal career. Every now and then she also comes up with plans to get her sister to suffer for what she did to her.

Points of interest:

Orange-ish skin, purple eyes in both sclera and pupil, though the sclera is only very slightly colored. Always wears armor that covers pretty much the whole body. She can fly, has superhuman strength, can assimilate languages through lip-contact, and use a form of energy commonly called starbolts; her energy is purple. She loves to make use of her body, her beauty, to play with and/or manipulate others. She enjoys to be seen as sexy and attractive, and she doesn’t really hold back on her thoughts unless it might give her an advantage to do so.

What they’ve been up to recently:

Nothing much. Planning her next attack on her sister, travelling to other planets and sometimes to earth, ever so often causing destruction somewhere to have fun, occasionally going to clubs or other places of proper parties.

Where to find them:

Stealing something; dancing in clubs; informing herself about potential competition in regards to stealing and such. She could be all around the universe, she’s often travelling. Not only because she enjoys it, but sometimes also to escape some sort of law-enforcement that’s looking for her. Every now and then, she could also be found in prisons, if she didn’t manage to escape those chasing her.

Current plans:

I don’t really do big storylines much, so nothing really. I had an AU thing once that I had running basically as a sort-of ‘event’ (Blackfire’s Final Trial was how I called it, searching for it will probably show you more info - or you need to ask me), and while similar might happen again if I ever get that spark of an idea again, nothing is really planned at the moment. As for Blackfire’s plans: There may or may not be another plan in the works to get at Starfire (and Wildfire), but nothing actually going on yet.

Desired interactions:

More that try to befriend her, but also more that are enemies. I’d enjoy some sort of deep bonding too, though it’s very hard to get Blackfire as far - come to talk to me and maybe we can find some way to make it happen! Maybe even interactions with ones she stole from before, too! I think I never really had situations where she was... like, put into her place, yet, by someone better than her or maybe a bigger villain or something. That’d be a thing I’d really want. I like my powerless-verse a lot and would love to actually have the chance to explore it with someone. Maybe even the setting up of it - we can alter who helped her if you’d prefer your muse to be the one. I’m open to crossovers or the likes too.

And to name specific character/s I’d really like to interact (more) with: Red X! Like honestly, I want to have them interact so much. All the Red X’s I encounter on here though seem to vanish shortly after we got something going, and I never get the satisfaction of being able to build a proper relationship with them. I think Blackfire and Red X could be a great team (and/or more if it clicks and both muns are interested) and it would just be wonderful to be able to explore their dynamic. I mentioned Mar’i on Star already, so let me just shortly say here that of course I’d love to have Blackfire interact with her too. I can’t really think of more here right now.

Offered interactions:

She’s stealing and destroying things on a frequent basis. Also dancing, drinking (though it doesn’t affect her unless she drinks in masses), flirting and... what flirting leads to.

Current open post/s:

Open Starters and Memes! Both are always open, regardless of if they have already been replied to or if they are old. Please just respond to what you find interesting, I always appreciate new interactions!

Anything else?:

This is a Sideblog to Starfirechan. I’m in Germany, so timezone differences are a thing. And I’m also very shy about making the first step for an interaction. I do have Wire-accounts for my muses, and you can either search for them on my blog or ask me about them, but I don’t know if I could/will ever do any good on those.

Tagging: You! Yes, I mean you! Too late to decide to not do it, you’re already tagged!

Aegon Targaryen, First of His Name

Born in: 27 Before Coronation, at Dragonstone Name Day: 20th day of The Third Moon Royal House: Targaryen Position: Lord of Dragonstone (Prior to Coronation), King of All Westeros, Shield of His People, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, Protector of the Realm, Lord of Dragonstone

Personality Aegon, raised on Dragonstone, has a fascination with the world beyond what he’s already known, particularly The Seven Kingdoms, prompting him to visit new places before even his conquest. Thus, he has a keen talent for geography, prompting him to often want to engage in lengthy discussions about the far-away places he has read about. Living on Dragonstone for as long as he has, Aegon grew up with limited interactions, only ever knowing the servants that his father’s house had accrued, his siblings, and his rumored half-brother Orys, the latter of which was his best friend. Thus, to outsiders, it often seemed like the Targaryen’s heir was a antisocial type who didn’t socialize, even with the child nobles who occasionally visited Dragonstone, failing to make friends with them. However, his limited scope of friends was often thanks to his elder sister Visenya, whose domineering attitude often prevented Aegon from making many connections outside of their home in their earlier years. Naturally charismatic, however, Aegon was often able to convince others to take his side, and come off as likable to those who met him, and likely would have had many friends if not for Visenya. But by his 20th name day, Aegon was seen by many as a hardened commander and warrior, cultivated by his isolation. However, this is primarily a facade used to intimidate his elder sister in their marriage, and in actuality, Aegon is much more kind and gentle in private, particularly with his sister Rhaenys. Faithful, however, once Aegon is married to his sisters, having taken both, Visenya for the sake of duty, and Rhaenys for the sake of passion, he remains staunch in his fidelity, never siring any bastards. This, in tandem with his natural desire for honor, and understanding that loyalty and fealty are qualities more becoming of one than things such as strength, resulted in Aegon not only being fiercely loyal to his allies, but kind to those who would bend the knee to him before causing more bloodshed than due. After all, one doesn’t have as much a need for allies who are only somewhat stronger than the others, but have no regard for the lives of their men, or the oaths they swear, when a man who is somewhat weaker holds all oaths and values life. After all, Aegon had dragons, and had little need for the strength of others, to a point, in his eyes. Aegon’s interest in governing is nominal, at best. He never had a talent for things such as court diplomacy, or the day-to-day affairs of running a kingdom. What Aegon does have a talent for is military strategy, rallying men behind his banner, and striking such an imposing figure that others wouldn’t dare betray him once they were behind the Dragonlord’s banner. But, as a pragmatic man, he understands his weaknesses, and often seeks out allies to help compensate for them. A key difference that makes Aegon distinct from other lords, and later kings, is his care for the smallfolk. Those who do not have power, through either military might, strength of arm, political influence, or even a dragon, are seen as those to be protected under Aegon’s rule, not to be taken advantage of and forgotten. Thus, the king’s justice under Aegon’s rule is always quickly established as fair, and not without rules and rites that allow the accused to defend themselves from potential lies. He instituted practices such as trials, and even trials by combat, allowing smallfolk this option, though later generations would make it a right of the noble.

Appearance Aegon is a man of imposing stature and build, standing above most others, with the same almost unworldly beauty as others of his homeland. With short silver-golden hair, and arcane purple eyes, and a square jaw, some say that Aegon seems like a hero ripped from the pages of old legends. The crown of Aegon Targaryen is a simple Valyrian Steel circlet, inlaid with square-cut rubies. As well, on the battlefield, Aegon will often wear scale-inlaid armor, designed to emulate that of his dragon’s hide, which he often wears in battles that he intends to ride Balerion, as the armor is quite effective for defending from arrow-fire. However,he has often been known to put scales over his plate and mail armors too, wearing these only when the situation called for it. Aegon often also wears his house’s colors on his cloak, as well as some sort of dragonic sigil, if not his house’s actual coat of arms, upon his clothes and armor too.

Biography Aegon Targaryen was as the second child, and first son, to siblings Aerion and Valaeon Targaryen at Dragonstone. Born during the peak of an exceptionally brief, and harsh, Summer, this was taken to be an omen that the fire of the Targaryen line burned furiously in the infant. As a toddler, Aegon often played in Dragonstone with his elder sister Visenya, and Orys Waters, a boy who was often rumored to be the bastard of Aerion Targaryen. However, it was often the case that Aegon would be hurt while at play with Visenya, often as a result of being ordered, or goaded, into doing something foolish. By the age of five, Aegon was tutored in the arts that are commonly expected of a noble child, such as heraldry, swordplay, archery, history, tactics, riding, dragon riding, and the like. Being that the Targaryen house had not much of a penchant for sorcery, or an excess of individuals in the household with a talent for it, it was a small disappointment that Aegon displayed no particular skill in the art of magic either. However, this was assuaged by the fact that Visenya practiced the mysterious arts somewhat, though she lacked a great amount of information to rely on when studying. Aegon often practiced swordplay with his elder sister, though he was often on the losing side, as Visenya was more skilled and experienced than himself, and even going into puberty, the eldest Targaryen won more often than not. Though this bothered Aegon, it prompted him to sharpen his mind as well, often studying the tactics and battle strategies of others from a great many books, and pouring over geographical maps and information on as many places as he could. If Aegon was going to be skilled at commanding, he had to at the very least be able to outfight others strategically, if he couldn’t consistently defeat them with the skill and strength of his own arm. Over the years, many nobles, knights, and the like would visit Dragonstone on diplomatic missions, attempting to navigate and negotiate allegiances, trading deals, and such, affording the boy great opportunity to meet many strangers from far places, hearing of the wondrous lands that lie beyond his home. By the time of his 16th nameday, Aegon had become a strapping man, who was now seen as a suitable heir to the Targaryen name, and a proper master for any dragon of his choosing. As he was considered the primary heir, Visenya was not allowed to select her dragon on her own coming of age, and thus the opportunity was given to Aegon to select the dragon he wished to bond with. Aegon immediately chose Balerion, the great black dragon who was not only the largest and strongest of the creatures, but also the one that Visenya had been eyeing for the previous half-decade. This left Visenya to receive Vhagar, and Rhaenys to Meraxes, though the latter was to wait until her own nameday. Not long following his passage into adulthood, Visenya and Aegon were married to each other, as was the tradition. However, Aegon and Visenya were very familiar with each other, and the young lord held little love for his openly contemptuous and domineering elder sister. Instead of solely taking one wife, Aegon married his younger sister Rhaenys as well, holding a deep passion and love for the girl that was reciprocated. Within the first few months of his marriages, Aegon clearly favored Rhaenys over Visenya, though obligation and duty required Aegon to lay with his older sister more often, until she bore him an heir. As a result, Aegon generally spent about 3 nights with Visenya, for every 1 he did with Rhaenys, and arrangement that he didn’t find the most agreeable at most times, as marriage had done little to improve the two’s dynamic. Though, the comparative scarcity of getting to see his beloved made those magical nights all the grander for the two Targaryens. By the time he was a quarter century old, Aegon was approached by envoys from the free cities of Pentos and Tyrosh, fearing the attacks of the encroaching Volantis. They wished to forge an alliance with the last of the dragonlords, who they believed wielded the power to force back the invading Tigers of Volantis. Flying to Pentos almost immediately, much to the dismay of his sisters, neither of whom wished to have their husband fly off to the East in some foolhardy rescue mission of the foreign fools who couldn’t properly protect themselves. Before he actually reached, Pentos, Aegon elected to take the scenic route to the city, having only seen The Arbor in The Reach, as well as Oldtown’s Citadel, with his elder sister when they had first been bound to their dragons. Visenya had kept Aegon on a short leash during this trip, however, and the young man felt that he hadn’t had the opportunity to really experience these places. Deciding to fly first to Lannisport, as advised by Torus Lannister years before, Aegon dressed in fine enough clothes, but bid Balerion to keep a distance, so as not to oust the young Targaryan’s secret to the smallfolk. As a cloaked young sellsword named Aaron Blackfire, Aegon met many people in the city, and spoke to many of them regarding their feelings of the nobility. While many were largely indifferent to what was going on, beyond the prominent scandals of the time, there were a few who were deeply dissatisfied, feeling that they were servants of whatever nobleman or woman happened to be near, and that they were little better than indentured slaves who relied on these nobles’ good mood to stay alive, and not their own people. Particularly, there was an old blind man by the name of Hendrick who spoke words that would stay with Aegon forever, “People’s lives aren’t a game, we aren’t pawns on a chess board to be compromised and sacrificed in the favor of a small advantage, and the other side’s pawns are no less important.” Feeling the impact of these words, Aegon flew to Pentos, meeting with the city’s prince and magisters. While his potential allies were insistent that Aegon destroy not only the fleet of Volantis, who were ready to invade Lys at any time, but fly to the city itself and burn it to the ground with Balerion’s flame. This was not something that Aegon was willing to budge on, however, and he stayed for nearly three days, fiercely arguing that he’d only use Balerion if absolutely necessary, and not to potentially harm any smallfolk, if he could manage it. Eventually, a compromise was reached, and in exchange for an army that he planned to need for a future military endeavor, Aegon would destroy the entire Volantene fleet before it had an opportunity to attack. It was a brief attack that came in the early hours, with black flames practically engulfing the men of Volantis. After this, Aegon promptly returned to Dragonstone, planning his next course of action. Over the years, Aegon had developed a fascination with Westeros thanks to the books and stories he read of the lands. However, he saw a flaw with the current infrastructure. With it being seven kingdoms, not only were they weaker as singular forces, but they also lacked the ability to care for their people properly as a whole. Kingdoms that had scarcer resources during the Summer suffered during Winter, and were forced to attack those that had more plenty, while those that were weaker in their military might were often subjected to attacks from savage tribes and raiders. Ultimately, this would make for a weaker force in the event that a threat greater than any of them would come. This belief only grew stronger when he had sent an envoy to The Storm King Durrandon to turn down the offer of marrying his daughter, and he received his subject with one hand less. Sending his ravens to the lords of Westeros, after consulting with his councilors and wives, Aegon declared himself the king of all seven kingdoms. With this declaration of intent, Aegon made himself the threat, in order to drive home the point to the rest of the gentry. With this, he had a wooden table commissioned in the shape of Westeros, painted to match the land precisely, but without the lines of the seven kingdoms. Aegon had this detail withheld as a reminder of his goal. Landing at the mouth of The Blackwater, Aegon constructed The Aegonfort, which served as the seat of his command during this war. However, it didn’t prove terribly necessary, as with his army, his three dragons, and his two sisters, Aegon was able to subjugate six of the seven kingdoms within two years. Aegon dates his rule as starting when The High Septon declared him king in Oldtown. Realizing that as a king, he couldn’t do everything, Aegon created stations such as The Small Council, and Hand of The King, to assist him with making decisions and ruling justly, while also having his wives take a hefty portion of the responsibilities that came with governance, something that Aegon had long felt he didn’t have the knack for. The first Hand of The King was Orys, who now had been given dominion over The Storm King’s old lands, and took the noble name Orys Baratheon.