Sins of Youth: The Secret & Deadboy #1

"Looking for Trouble ..."

Todd Dezago wrote it!
Michael Avon Oeming drew it!
Jason Baumgartner inked it!
Bill Oakley lettered it!
Pat Garrahy colored it!
Digital Chameleon separated it!
Maureen McTigue associated it!
Eddie Berganza eddied it!

Cover by Mike Wieringo & Terry Austin. Colors by Tanya & Richard Horie.

I really like the design of Deadboy. There's something really creepy about a bald, pale kid. But then you see the lower case d on his chest, and you start to laugh. The adult Secret also looks pretty good. She is showing off her belly now, but no cleavage, which is a good thing.

Our story begins with Secret and Deadboy tracking Klarion ... bum, bum, BUM ... the Witch Boy by following the trail of chaos he's left in his wake. And even though these two heroes are literally able to see a green trail in the air, they really don't need that, since lots of weird things are happening everywhere Klarion was, such as inanimate objects coming to life and walking around. But when Deadboy sees a bully picking on some kids, he insists on stepping in and putting the bully in his place. Secret gets annoyed by Deadboy's impulsive behavior, even saying that he's just like Impulse. But then she wonders if all kids are like this, including herself, and she only now notices since she's an adult.

Eventually, she manages to get Deadboy focused on the task at hand, and she begins to live up to the responsibility of being an adult in charge. They follow Klarion's path to a circus, and Secret gets them there through a type of teleportation she calls "smoke jumping." (I've never seen her use this ability before, so it might be a new skill acquired from becoming an adult.) Klarion has brought all his regressed villains to the circus — Amazo, Captain Cold, Sphinx, Black Adam, Maxima, Penguin and Black Manta. But the young villains don't do anything other than enjoy the circus.

Secret and Deadboy engage Klarion and Teekl in a silent, invisible battle. Secret sucks Klarion into the abyss (a process she also calls "smoke jumping") but Klarion easily escapes, saying he's already been there. Eventually, Secret and Deadboy realize they can't beat Klarion, so they decide to kidnap Teekl. Deadboy possesses the cat, jumps into Secret's arms and they "smoke jump" away. And this causes the Witch Boy to freak out.

CDTV News Top Story

This is Ace Atchison reporting for CDTV News, bringing you the latest coverage on the current "Sins of Youth."

We've tracked down the individual behind the chaos: Klarion the Witch Boy.

KLARION: Excuse, Ace. That's Klarion ... bum, bum, BUM ... the Witch Boy. You understand, it grants importance to the title that I'm due.

ACE: Sure. So, tell me, Klarion ... uh ... bum, bum, BUM ... the Witch Boy, how are you responsible for what's happening in America today?

KLARION: Magic, Ace. I've made the adult heroes young, the older heroes younger, and have even sought out their enemies and done the same.

ACE: But you had help, sorta. Doiby Dickles from Old Justice used a gun that turned back some of the effects of your magic. That's why the teen heroes became adults too, right?

KLARION: Any help I receive is from my fabulous feline, Teekl. I do not know what I would do without her.


So that interview obviously took place before the end of this issue. And I'm really surprised, disappointed even, that Klarion didn't turn Ace Atchison into a kid. Oh well, let's talk about this issue, written by the creator of Secret, Todd Dezago. Unfortunately, Dezago hasn't done much with Secret since her creation, and I kind of think Peter David took the character in a slightly different direction. For example, Dezago spent some time diving into Secret's memories and fears, but he didn't say one word about her brother, Harm, who killed her. Dezago also spent a lot of time on this new "smoke jump" power, which he may have always wanted Secret to have. But the problem is we've never seen her do this before, and I think it makes her too powerful, anyway. Why does she need to add teleportation to her already large skill set?

The art for this issue was, quite frankly, insane. Very loose and wild and flat-out weird. It did work at some parts of the story, like when Klarion's chaos magic was causing ordinary objects to become alive and weird. But for the most part, I think this issue would have benefitted from more restrained, consistent art.

Next time, we finally end this epic event. The big wrap-up!!! Young villains, young and old heroes, and a berserk Superboy, Sr.! Young Justice: Sins of Youth #2.

But before we get to that, let's provide a brief recap of what everyone's been doing the past 11 issues.

Part 1: Young Justice reconciles with Old Justice, who realize they were being manipulated the whole time. But the Contessa's alliance with Klarion turned a would-be superhero rally into a scene of chaos, swapping everyone's ages.

Part 2: Superboy confront Match and helps reclaim Cadmus from Agenda's control. Superboy is turned into an adult, but his girlfriend is killed by Agenda.

Part 3: The Titans attempt to search for a cure with S.T.A.R. Labs, but the Contessa keeps them busy by sending out hordes of Wildebeests to attack various cities throughout the country. Mary Marvel and Captain Marvel Jr. track Klarion to a museum, but just miss him, instead battling the younger Captain Nazi.

Part 4: The adult Anarky helps the teenage JLA escape Agenda and get to the Watchtower. The heroes briefly visit Shazam, who can't help them, then meet up with the JSA and Young Justice at the ruins of the Young Justice cave. They all decide to split up and approach the problem from as many angles as possible.

Part 5: Aquaman retrieves a mystical staff that could restore everyone's ages, but its evil powers would corrupt whoever wielded it, so he destroys the staff.

Part 6: Batman and Robin visit Zatanna to allegedly ask her to help them find Klarion. But when they find her, she just tries and fails to restore their ages, and neither of them ask her to try to locate the Witch Boy.

Part 7: Impulse and Flash attempt to improve the media's portrayal of superheroes by giving as many interviews as possible. Unfortunately, the speedsters miss most of the interviews due to interference from Agenda, several random super villains and a handful of natural disasters.

Part 8: The JSA and Doiby Dickles successfully retrieve another age-changing gun from the planet Myrg.

Part 9: The young Superman is injured in a fight against the Point Men and Match. Since the adult Superboy doesn't want any civilians to be caught in the crossfire, he agrees to surrender to Agenda if they give Superman the help he needs.

Part 10: Wonder Woman and Wonder Girl come close to completing a deal with the god Apollo to restore their ages, but when they learn that Superboy has been captured by Agenda, they also decide to surrender to them, hoping to be able to rescue their teammate.

Part 11: Secret and Deadman locate Klarion and separate him from his precious cat and familiar, Teekl.

Got all that? Good.