It's the foundation that Claremont built after his run and the consistent quality his run upheld. It's always Wolfman AND Perez.and the last.what? 8 years of Wolfman's run is basically ignored? What is the reason for that? You hear a lot about PAD's Hulk, Claremont's X-Men but not so much Wolfman's Titans. Is it that while Claremont found success with other creators (Paul Smith, Marc Silvestri, Jim Lee) that may not have risen to the level of the Byrne era but was still very well regarded nonetheless, Wolfman never found a collaborator that even approached George Perez? I love Tom Grummit as much as the next 90s kid but that era does not seem to be beloved among fans or am I wrong? Why is Wolfman's run not talked about the way Claremont's run is? Where are the extended threads of analysis of themes? Where is a twitter account that writes mini essays on Wolfman's Titans run the way there is for Claremont's X-Men? Where are the numerous podcasts devoted to analyzing and summarizing Wolfman's 16 year long run? Or is all the stuff after Perez left for good just not good enough to merit that kind of thing? What I was not aware of until just recently was that Wolfman's run was actually nearly as long Claremont's and extended well into the mid-90s?!!?!?!?! Now I vastly prefer the Claremont/Byrne X-Men run, and the Claremont run in general, but again, I admit my bias, and also acknowledge that Wolfman and Perez do some excellent work for those 55ish issues they were teamed up.

Byrne was also a decade defining artist who hit an early peak when paired with inker Terry Austin. Perez's art, especially by the 3rd and 4th years, really evolves into the style he is still known for today and is some of the most dynamic superhero art of the era. The casts, while not really ever being so similar as to survive a one-to-one comparison (Cyborg and Colossus are both metal men but the similarities stop there - Robin is the straight-laced leader like Cyclops but they aren't that similar beyond that either) are both relatively diverse (especially for the time) and focus on young heroes becoming a found family for one another while occasionally saving the world. Both are revitalized and essentially rebooted versions of 1960s teen superhero books. They are often compared with one another and the companies were obviously aware of the franchises similarities when they published a team-up issue in 1982. So I've long been aware that Wolfman and Perez's Teen Titans was seen as an answer and counter-punch to Claremont and Byrne's X-Men. (I should start by saying I'm a Marvel kid first and foremost and my first TPB was a copy of the Dark Phoenix Saga - so I admit to some strong bias here)

The New Teen Titans by Marv Wolfman