New Teen Titans: Who is Donna Troy? [Paperback]

Marv Wolfman (Author), George Perez (Author), Phil Jimenez (Author)

Book Description

Series: New Teen Titans | Publication Date: July 1, 2005

One of the most popular and enduring characters of the Titans family, Donna Troy has led many lives and many personas: as Wonder Girl, Darkstar and Troia. With the help of fellow Titan Dick Grayson, Donna learns of a key moment in her pastjust in time for her wedding. But will her newfound history prove to be just a lie, when the Titans of Myth come to turn her world upside-down? This collection features the most-demanded stories focusing on Donna Troy, delving into her past, while laying the foundation for her future in the DC Universe!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 10 Up–Compiled to provide background for a new series that brings the title character back from the dead, these stories inadvertently show readers more about the artificial business of keeping a serial exciting than making a connection with the eponymous heroine. The first chapter chronicles the meticulous detective work of Batman's former protégé, Robin, as he tries to uncover the missing pieces of the early life of Donna Troy, his teammate in the Teen Titans under the alias of Wonder Girl. The story, while dense, is captivating, with complex, elegant page layouts. As it continues with Wonder Girl's marriage to the ordinary Terry Long, the high caliber of art and the subtle, adult relationships are maintained. It is therefore a great pity that the quality established at the beginning is discarded for a bizarre revamp that mixes loosely adapted Greek mythology and science fiction. Though still fashioned by the same authors, this revision has none of the grounded pathos of the original. The conclusion, an elegy to Donna as friends and family, superhuman and mundane, gather for her wake, recaptures the humanity of the character by showing the ordinary mourning of the people left behind.–Benjamin Russell, The Derryfield School, Manchester, NH
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Marv Wolfman is the former Editor-In-Chief of Marvel Comics. He is a longtime comic writer who had long runs on Tomb of Dracula for Marvel, which is where Blade the Vampire Hunter made his first appearance and New Teen Titans for DC Comics. Blade was later adapted to film form with Wesley Snipes in the starring role. Wrote the landmark DC Comic series Crisis on Infinite Earths. Created the character 'Bullseye' for Daredevil comics. Created the current iteration of Robin (Robin III/Tim Drake) for DC comics. The character has remained popular for nearly twenty years and has its own self-titled long-running series

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: DC Comics (July 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401207243
• ISBN-13: 978-1401207243
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.5 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #296,573 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars DC Should Compile More "Character-Centered" Collections Like This One!, August 15, 2005

By 

Edmund Lau Kok Ming (Malaysia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: New Teen Titans: Who is Donna Troy? (Paperback)

Just got this book from a friend and read it in one sitting. Donna Troy (aka Wonder Girl, Troia, Darkstar) is a DC Comics character with one of the most convoluted history ever. This volume collects her various origin stories in one volume for new readers (like me) who are trying to catch up on her stories - especially with the currently published miniseries "The Return of Donna Troy" that leads into "Infinite Crisis".

The first story is the justly classic "Who Is Donna Troy?" from New Teen Titans #38. This is Marv Wolfman and George Perez at the top of their game in the early 1980s. The highlight of the story is Dick Grayson using his detective skills to investigate the background of Donna Troy. It's essentially a "character-piece" and both Dick and Donna shines here. (The next issue begins "The Judas Contract", probably the beginning of the darkness that overcame the series...)

The second story came immediately after the aforementioned "Judas Contract" in Teen Titans #50, and is a ray of light after the doom and gloom of that particular tale. It's also a reward for longtime fans who'd invested time and money following the "soap-opera" parts of the series. It's the wedding of Donna Troy and Terry Long. Lots of wonderful vignettes from this one as nearly everyone who is anyone turned up for the wedding (including Marv Wolfman and George Perez, see if you can spot them!).

The next arc collected is the five-part story from the second New Titans series that redefined Donna Troy's life after the events of "Crisis On Infinite Earths". This arc introduces us to the Titans of Myth and how Donna was "kidnapped" by them as a baby. Marv Wolfman and George Perez reunites on this tale. Alas, the plotting is no longer as tight as their early 1980s work - and neither was the art. Perez's art, while still pretty impressive, had none of the super-tight, super-detailed, 15-panel-a-page magic of his earlier work on the title. All in all, it's a cool cosmic tale and I like it quite a lot.

The final story in the book is from the Titans/Outsiders Secret Files comic. It's a eulogy for the recently deceased Donna Troy (from the "Graduation Day" storyline). This is rather adequate as the next collection coming soon will most likely be "The Return of Donna Troy" so this two books should make a nice pair.

Interestingly, none of the John Byrne revisions are included in this volume (only mentioned in-passing on one page). Those are the stories that affected Donna the most and link her once more to the post-Crisis Wonder Woman and the Amazons.

All in all, this is a very good collection and I think DC should do more of these "character-spotlight" collections. I personally would like to have one volume books like this one to pass to people who are interested in certain less well known characters (e.g. Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter, Guy Gardner, Zatanna, etc.)

Recommended for fans of Greek mythology, Wonder Woman, Donna Troy, Nightwing (he's featured a lot!), Titans, Outsiders, Marv Wolfman, George Perez, Phil Jimenez, or just fine comic art in general.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Two great stories, one rather tiresome one, July 9, 2009

By 

Kid Kyoto (United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: New Teen Titans: Who is Donna Troy? (Paperback)

Donna Troy was originally Wonder Woman's adopted younger sister, given similar powers by advanced Amazon science. She's been around in one form or another since the 60s but never really had the spotlight until now.

This volume collects several prominent stories about her from the 80s, 90s and 2000s. The first two are from the classic Marv Wolfman/George Perez run on the Teen Titans. 'Who is Donna Troy' is an excellent detective story where Robin helps track down Wonder Girl's birth parents. The art showcases Perez at the top of his game. In just one or two panels he can make ordinary characters come to life, give them personalities and textures and make them seem real.

There's an old Japanese saying that the easiest thing to draw is demons, since no one knows what they look like, but the hardest is dogs, since everyone knows what they look like. Perez's skill at capturing ordinary life is also on show with the second story covering Donna's wedding, one of the best superhero wedding stories ever and refreshingly free of the usual super villain attacks.

But the rest of the book is a letdown. First we have Perez's return to the character in the 90s, it's a rather mediocre science fiction story designed to create a new history for Donna Troy. Perez's art takes a hit and the story is rather uninspired. Finally there's a eulogy from the 2000s after Donna died in a forgettable crossover event (she got better).

So you get two classic stores and two that are not bad, but are certainly disappointing. I felt it was worth buying since I really wanted the two 80s stories but your mileage may vary.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Donna Troy: always special, constantly changing, January 30, 2006

By 

Walter L. Luffman (Savannah, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: New Teen Titans: Who is Donna Troy? (Paperback)

Over her roughly 40 years as a DC Comics character, Donna Troy has gone through a lot of changes. Originally created (as Wonder Girl) just to keep the original Teen Titans from being an all-boys club, Donna has had her super-identity -- and indeed, the very circumstances of her existence -- revised more than once. The cover of "Who Is Donna Troy" depicts the five different stages of Donna Troy's frequently-changing life. And as I write this, I understand she is due to change again during the "Infinite Crisis" event.

Through it all, this character who started out as little more than an afterthought has become one of DC's most beloved super-beings. "New Teen Titans: Who Is Donna Troy" takes the reader through the major events in Donna's life, and is recommended reading for anyone is reading (or planning to read) the "Infinite Crisis" series. If you already know Donna as Wonder Girl, or Troia, or perhaps Darkstar, this is your chance to learn more about her. If you don't know Donna very well, you're welcome to go along as she seeks the truth of who she really is.