Warning: this article contains spoilers for Future State: Teen Titans #1!
The Teen Titans have had their fair share of group squabbles, and that’s understandable; after all, it’s not easy dealing with teen angst while fighting crime. But by skipping ahead in time, Future State reveals that one of their biggest inner conflicts was the legacy of Nightwing‘s Red X persona. Sadly, by issue’s end, Dick is ready to resurrect that legacy one more time.
In the beloved Teen Titans animated show, the Red X persona was Nightwing (then Robin)’s attempt to infiltrate the world of Deathstroke, the team’s deadly villain. Future State: Teen Titans #1 from Tim Sheridan and Rafa Sandoval skips into the future, revealing a world where not only has Nightwing created and abandoned the persona, but one where someone else took it up and has since been imprisoned by the team, having caused several deaths during a disastrous loss of faith in the Titans.
In the near future of Future State, the Titans are more divided than ever. Many of the original members are dead. The remaining members hold grudges and resentment towards each other, despite an upcoming mission to stop a potentially world-ending threat. When Nightwing offers up an extreme plan, teammate Starfire shoots it down, and yet as the story progresses, it’s clear Dick intends to do things his way – but having found the Red X mask at the team’s obliterated headquarters, he also makes the decision to free their prisoner for some much-needed back-up, explaining, “You were right about that mask. I wore it to make a point… that the Titans are dead. We’ve tried, so many times, to… reassemble… fix what’s broken… start again… but, in the end, all we ever do is make a bigger mess of it. And Starfire’s about to do it again. The Titans are dead. And I’m tired. And ready to win one, no matter what it takes.”
It’s clear Dick has a complicated relationship with the mask. An early flashback shows he and Starfire reminiscing over his own bad behavior in the persona, and they seem to have fond memories of that hidden time, but later arguments reveal it’s become a symbol of intense tragedy in the interim. Now, with the team only a shadow of what it used to be, Nightwing, its former leader, has decided to resort to extreme measures, adopting the costume of the team’s nemesis Deathstroke and freeing the second Red X, who eagerly pulls on the mask for a shot at redemption.
But for all his confident words and extreme measures, Dick isn’t just playing the hero – he’s going against his team’s wishes, keeping secrets and second-guessing other heroes while metaphorically resurrecting the two people who have hurt the Teen Titans more than anyone else. With much of Red X’s history still shrouded in mystery – not to mention their true identity still unrevealed – it seems that in trying to play the hero, Nightwing is actually making new mistakes on top of old as Future State continues.
