The Justice League are gone, but chaos still threatens humanity. It’s up to the next generation of heroes to step up to the mark and defend the world.
It’s the Dawn of DC, and the Titans are the premier superhero team. And Amanda Waller is about to put them to the test in a very big, very furry way.
Table of Contents
What is Titans: Beast World?
Titans: Beast World is the third major event in the Dawn of DC, following on from the fun but slightly inconsequential Knight Terrors and later the controversial Batman/Catwoman: Gotham War.
The event stars Dick Grayson and his team of Titans (Donna Troy, Starfire, Cyborg, The Flash and Beast Boy) leading the global community of superheroes as the Necrostar, an ancient threat that plagued the people of Tamaran, closes in on Earth. Add to that the simmering machinations of Amanda Waller and her anti-metahuman agenda, and the Titans might have bitten off more than they can chew in their first outing as DC’s premier team.
The main saga of Titans: Beast World takes place over six issues, but the storyline is supported by various “Beast World Tour” anthology issues in addition to multiple tie-in issues of DC’s usual ongoing series.
Is Titans: Beast World Part of the Dawn of DC? Is it Essential Reading?
In many ways, Titans: Beast World is the capstone to the first year of the Dawn of DC. It pays off many of the plotlines the initiative builds, including the dissolution of the Justice League and the rise of the Titans, Amanda Waller’s theft of the Helm of Chaos during Knight Terrors and Nightwing’s increasing prevalence as the heir to the DCU.
Whereas Knight Terrors provided an enjoyable romp that could otherwise be skipped in the Dawn of DC’s overarching narrative, Titans: Beast World is far more crucial. Without spoiling things, the event has large ramifications not just for the ongoing Titans series (also written by Titans: Beast World scribe Tom Taylor) but across the DC universe.
Titans: Beast World Reading Order
The main thrust of the series is contained within the pages Titans: Beast World #1-6. As such, if you just wanted the essentials, then those are the only issues you need to read.
They will also be collected in trade paperback format, releasing 20th August 2024.
However, if you want the complete experience, then the following is a comprehensive Titans: Beast World reading order:
Prelude: Titans #1-5
Outside of titles like Knight Terrors (mentioned above), the crucial piece of prelude can be found in Tom Taylor and Nicola Scott’s Titans series.
Titans: Beast World is, for all intents and purposes, the second arc of this book. The initial arc “Out of the Shadows” directly sets up the events of this book. A new direction for classic Titans villain Brother Blood is established here, which is majorly important, as well as Tempest’s role in things.
Prelude: Tales of the Titans #4 & Titans: Beast World Evolution #1
These issues are far less critical, but provided some much appreciated context for one of the key players in Titans: Beast World: Beast Boy!
After the events of Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, Beast Boy is left in a tenuous status quo. This is picked up on in the pages of Titans, but some deeper character work occurs in Beast Boy’s issue of Tales of the Titans #4.
Additionally, for those somewhat unfamiliar with the mischievous green Titan, DC also published Titans: Beast World Evolution #1. It repackages and collects some key issues from Beast Boy’s history, in particular: Teen Titans #5, Tales of the New Teen Titans #3, and a back-up story from Action Comics #1051. This is arguably less crucial than the aforementioned Tales of the Titans #4, but worth a read for those new to the characters.
Main Event: Titans: Beast World (and tie-ins)
The core storyline of Titans: Beast World takes place over the course of Titans: Beast World #1-6 as well as multiple Titans: Beast World Tour issues.
Despite what the official reading order recommends, I’m laying things out in a slightly different order. Multiple tie-in issues released early in the publication of the event, but their stories are meant to take place later in the series. For example, the Power Girl story in Titans: Beast World Tour: Metropolis #1 stipulates that it occurs after Titans: Beast World #3, yet it was published between issues #1 and #2. This reading order takes those discrepancies into consideration:
- Titans: Beast World #1
- Titans: Beast World – Waller Rising #1
- Nightwing #109 (Damian Wayne back-up story)
- This is listed as a prologue to Titans: Beast World in all solicits, but due to the events within must take place during.
- Titans: Beast World #2
- Titans: Beast World #3
- Action Comics #1060 (Dreamer / Suicide Squad backup story)
- Titans: Beast World Tour: Metropolis #1
- Titans: Beast World Tour: Gotham #1
- Titans: Beast World Tour: Central City #1
- Titans: Beast World Tour: Atlantis #1
- Titans #6
- Titans #7
- Titans: Beast World #4
- Nightwing #110
- Titans: Beast World #5
- Titans: Beast World #6
It should be noted that while the events of the core title seem to take place over the course of a few hours, the tie-ins indicate that days pass while the overarching threat affects Earth.
Reconciling this is difficult, but the simplest solution seems to be to assume that Titans: Beast World #1-6 take place over a longer period of time than the text otherwise implies, and that the superhero community is responding to threats across the globe for days as a result, not hours.
Epilogue: Titans #8 & Green Arrow #9
Naturally, the issues of Titans following on from Titans: Beast World will deal with the fallout of the event, and how it directly affects the team.
However, Green Arrow #9 also charts the ramifications of the series. In particular, it looks at Amanda Waller’s next move, and how Oliver Queen figures into things, given what we discover about her designs on the Arrow family in Green Arrow #8.
With that, you have the complete reading order for Titans: Beast World.
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