It's difficult to imagine the Teen Titans without some version of Robin leading them. Though Dick Grayson and Tim Drake have had their difficulties as leaders, no Robin has had more problems leading a team than Damian Wayne. Damian's time leading the Titans has been marked by inconsistent hip, betrayals of trust, and the crossing of more than a few moral lines. While the team has tried to work together and grow, Damian's attempts to kill a villain may have just cost him his team. In Teen Titans #44 the Titans have no choice but to fight Robin.
Robin's biggest arc throughout his time in the Titans has been his desire to end criminal threats permanently. While Damian first attempted to do this without killing by locking villains underneath the Titan's HQ Mercy Hall, that plan backfired when the prisoners rioted. This ended with Deathstroke taunting Damian to kill him and Red Arrow doing it instead. The issue of Damian killing came back recently in the wake of the Damian finds KGBeast, cuts off his hand, and prepares to deliver the killing blow when he's stopped by his own team.
With Robin distracted, Kid Flash rushes KGBeast away from the brawl. The remaining three titans battle their former team leader who argues they lack the conviction to do what's necessary. Reluctant to hurt their friend, the team hesitates, giving Robin enough time to formally end his relationship with the team and flee. They eventually track Robin down to where their troubles started, Mercy Hall. Robin reveals that he's had the team bugged the whole time and that he knows their deepest secrets. Realizing that he never saw them as friends, the Teen Titans subdue Robin. They tell him that the only way to help him is to bring him in. Before they can do that though, they're interrupted by the arrival of Batman, who tells the teenage heroes that the Teen Titans are finished.
The issue, by writer Robbie Thompson and artist Javier Fernandez, feels like a release of all the tension that's been building between Robin and his newest team of Titans ever since they debuted. While the problem of supervillains breaking out of Arkham is very real within the DC Universe, it is clear that Damian has gone too far. Not only have his actions turned the Teen Titans against him, but they have also lead to the Fearsome Five plotting to kill the Titans. But DC's most famous group of teenage heroes may be facing problems bigger than the Fearsome Five.
As it turns out, Batman isn't the only one canceling the Titans. The current run of Teen Titans will end with issue 47, and it appears as though it will end without Damian on the team. It is a shame that DC is canceling the series just as a new era starts. Having the Teen Titans be filled entirely with relatively unknown heroes like Crush and Roundhouse allow the book to be a lot more self-contained than it would be if big names were attached to the team. These characters have great potential and it is a shame to see their story cut short just as they gained independence.
The Teen Titan's battle with Damian in Teen Titans #44 was a long time coming. Hopefully, it won't be the last we hear from the newest group of Titans.
