The Teen Titans started off as an innocent group of teenage sidekicks going off on their own to create a superhero team. The original lineup was Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad with Wonder Girl and Speedy joining up not too long afterward. Since then the team was grown and changed, with the likes of Beast Boy, Cyborg, Starfire, and Raven joining during the team's heyday.
Now, the Teen Titans exist as a school for young and aspiring superheroes to attend and train within. However, the team history is rife with drama that still resurfaces regularly, and with drama comes all manners of shocking twists and reveals to blindside the team and readers.
10 Raven Forming A New Teen Titans Team To Fight Her Father, Trigon
The initial return of the Teen Titans was a shocking twist in and of itself. The original Teen Titans was canceled in 1978 with Teen Titans #53 by Bob Rozakis and Juan Ortiz. The return of the Teen Titans was revealed in DC Comics Presents #26 in a story centering on Raven by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. Finally, New Teen Titans #1 reunited the team in 1980 by Wolfman and Perez.
On top of that, the team had characters that weren't just sidekicks this time around. In addition to the likes of Robin, Wonder Girl, and Kid Flash, the team added characters like Cyborg, Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy into the fold. There was also Ravager, aka Grant Wilson, who seemed like a potential new recruit.
9 Grant Wilson Dying While Fighting The Titans And The Vengeance Of Deathstroke
Ravager declared himself and enemy of the New Teen Titans instead. He was given a power upgrade by the villainous H.I.V.E. group with the help of his father, Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke the Terminator. However, these powers were unstable and potentially lethal if Grant pushed himself too hard. Unfortunately for Grant, he did, and Grant Wilson, who was introduced in the first issue of New Teen Titans died in the second.
That made the Teen Titans an immortal enemy in Deathstroke, and the animosity between the two factions continues to this day.
8 The Death And Return Of Joseph Wilson, AKA Jericho
When Deathstroke began making moves against the Titans through the "Judas Contract," Adeline and Joey Wilson warned the Teen Titans of the upcoming threat. Joey later actually joined the Teen Titans as Jericho, and his power allowed him to take control of the bodies of others by transferring his mind to them through eye contact.
Joseph later turned on the Teen Titans after being possessed by the demons of Azareth. He joined up with a villainous group called the Wildebeest Society to battle the Teen Titans. Deathstroke became involved as well, and Jericho begged his father to mercy kill him to free him from the demons. Slade complied, but Jericho would resurface later hiding in his father's own body.
7 The Death Of Donna Troy And Omen On Graduation Day
Graduation Day was a crossover between the Titans and Young Justice which involved a mysterious android known as Indigo. This android is revealed to be Brainiac 8, and she battles the Titans and Young Justice, unleashing a Superman Robot on the teams.
In ensuing battle, longtime Titans Omen and Donna Troy, aka Wonder Girl/Troia, are killed. Donna Troy had been on the Teen Titans since before the New Teen Titans days, so this was a massive blow to the team. Like many heroes, Donna would later return though.
6 The Massacre Of The Teen Titans By Superboy-Prime
Infinite Crisis by Geoff Johns and George Perez would find Superboy-Prime, a young Kal-El from a different and more innocent timeline, went on a rampage with the intent of reshaping the Multiverse into something more like his home Earth. The Teen Titans were among the first to try and stop Superboy-Prime, and he killed several Teen Titans in a matter of minutes, including Pantha and Wildebeest.
Later, Connor Kent, aka the Teen Titan and Young Justice member known as Superboy, would try to stop Superboy-Prime but is beaten to death.
5 Deathstroke Forming His Own Superhero Team With Former Teen Titans
After the events of the "Terminus Agenda," Deathstroke decided to try a new path and formed his own superhero team largely made of former Teen Titans members. His team, called Defiance, consisted of Ravager (his daughter, Rose Wilson), Jericho, Kid Flash (Wallace West), Terra, and Power Girl (Tanya Spears).
The team had a very troubled existence, but Deathstroke seemed to be earnest in his efforts to do some good with these young heroes. However, it collapsed due to Slade's own evasiveness and the seeming suicide of Tanya Spears.
4 Red Arrow Killing Deathstroke After He Broke Free Of Robin's Prison
Later, Damian Wayne's Teen Titans team would capture Deathstroke and lock him up in their own hidden prison alongside the likes of Brother Blood and Black Mask. Naturally, Deathstroke would escape, but this proved to be a mistake on his part.
Emiko Queen, aka Red Arrow, cornered Deathstroke during his attempted escape and shot him in the head with an arrow. By all appearances, Slade was actually dead for a time, but he returned in time to stop an alternate universe counterpart brought to this Earth by Lex Luthor during his Year of the Villain crusade.
3 Wally West Killing Arsenal, Red Devil, Hot Spot And Other Titans At Sanctuary
Former Kid Flash and current Flash Wally West turned himself over to the Sanctuary, a haven for heroes who are experiencing mental health crises. Wally's arose from him losing his wife, Linda Park, and his kids, Jai and Irey, to the alterations to the timestream (later revealed to be the work of Doctor Manhattan). While at Sanctuary, Wally's state worsened, culminating in a blast of Speed Force energy that killed fellow Teen Titans: Arsenal, Red Devil, Hot Spot, Gnarrk, Lagoon Boy, and Solstice among others.
Wally tried to pin the massacre on the two survivors, Booster Gold and Harley Quinn, through time manipulation and using duplicates. However, Wally eventually confessed his sins to the Justice League and turned himself in.
2 The Red X Crossing Over From The Cartoon To The Comic Books
Red X was an alternative identity given to Robin in the Teen Titans cartoon that aired on Cartoon Network. It was an attempt on Robin's part to spy on Slade and learn more about the Teen Titan's archenemy.
Recently, Red X crossed over to the comics through Future State: Teen Titans by Tim Sheridan and Rafa Sandoval. The identity of this Red X has yet to be revealed, but it's not Dick Grayson. The Red X has continued to befuddle the Teen Titans in Teen Titans Academy and Suicide Squad since then.
1 Terra's Betrayal Of The Teen Titans During The Judas Contract
The biggest plot twist in Teen Titans history comes from Tales of the Teen Titans way back in 1984. This was The Judas Contract story arc by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. This is the story in which Adeline and Joey Wilson try to warn the Teen Titans about Deathstroke's plans, and it culminates in the Teen Titan Terra being revealed to be Deathstroke's spy on the Teen Titans.
After everything is revealed and Terra feeling betrayed even by Deathstroke by the end, Terra has a meltdown and ultimately kills herself with her own geomancy powers.