NEW TEEN TITANS "Plague!" Conclusion

We Have Already Seen...

...The Teen Titans (minus Robin) assist The Protector in trying to shut down a drug dealing operation.

While interacting with tweens/teens, one of the heroes, Speedy, reveals he had been an addict, but managed, with great difficulty, to kick the habit.
But the kids' parents are still confused and disturbed...

It's not a pat ending, but it is a hopeful one!

Co-creators Marv Wolfman (writer) and George Perez (penciler) of the NEW Teen Titans ensemble* did a superb job creating a story that gets the point across without being overly "preachy", even going into establish DC canon about Speedy's drug addiction!
(*The Teen Titans were created in 1964, originally made up of adult superhero/heroines' sidekicks and had a couple of different runs ending in 1975,
In 1980, DC, following the example of Marvel's "All-New, All-Different X-Men" revamp, did a similar thing with Titans, combining already-existing characters with several new Wolfman-Perez creations, Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire)

NEW TEEN TITANS "Plague!" Part 1

If You're Any Sort of Comic Book Fan, You Know this Team...

...except for the guy in the middle yelling at us!
Don't worry, we'll clear that matter up as we go along...













To Be Continued...Next Friday

Unlike a number of other "revelations" about super-heroes in public-service comics, like Captain America revealing he had asthma as a kid, Speedy's confession about being a drug addict didn't come out of nowhere!
It was already part of official DC canon, first shown over a decade earlier in DC's Green Lantern/Green Arrow #85 (1971)...

...written by Denny O'Neil, penciled by Neal Adams, and inked by Dick Giordano (who also inked this story).
Note: when this Titans story was published in 1983, the GL/GA story was out of print, so that's why there's no footnote about it in the tale above.
The entire GL/GA storyline from the early 1970s was reprinted in a mini series the next year.
As to who The Protector is...
Because Robin was part of the Batman licensing program which was promoting Nabisco cookies at that point in time, he couldn't be used in the Keebler cookie-sponsored comic!
The Protector ended up as the Robin-replacement in all three public service drug issues, even the ones not sponsored by Keebler!
But, DC apparently made him an official part of DC continuity with an entry in Who's Who Update '87 #4...

...and even including him on the wraparound cover (in the center on the far-left of the back)...

He's cameoed in several stories over the years, always in the background.
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Green Lantern/Green Arrow: Hard-Travelling Heroes  Omnibus
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IRON MAN AND THE HABIT HEROES "City Under Siege!" Conclusion

We Have Already Seen...

...when faced with an imminent alien threat against the city, Tony Stark finds he can't summon the energy to battle it!

But it's not due to a defect in his Iron Man armor!

It's what he's fueling his body with!

The Habit Heroes advise him about healthier food choices and...

Well, unlike the Captain America/Asthma Monster comic, there was never a sequel!

The rest of the comic features a couple of game pages as well as these full-page splash panels featuring the Habit Heroes and their adult supervisor.

I suspect they were also provided to medical offices as 11x17" (or larger) posters!

Next Week: DC's Medical Tie-In Comics are Coming!

IRON MAN AND THE HABIT HEROES "City Under Siege!" Part 1

Who Are the "Habit Heroes"...

...and what is Tony Stark/The Invincible Iron Man's connection to them?
This never-reprinted giveaway from Marvel and Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield has the answer!

To Be Concluded Next Friday!

Various comic publishers have licensed their characters to organizations and corporations for health-related causes!

Our recent multi-post focus on a Marvel comic revealing Steve Rogers/Captain America had asthma as a kid was one such example!
Other comics covered diseases like cancer, the amazing contributions to public safety by nurses and EMTs during the Covid epidemic, and health-related situations like teen pregnancy and smoking!

You'll be seeing more of them in the future.