Deathstroke, the Terminator #15

History

The issue was written by Marv Wolfman — the same creator who co-created Deathstroke himself back in New Teen Titans #2 (1980) — with interior art by penciller Art Nichols and inker Will Blyberg, and a cover by Mike Zeck. It was published with an October 1992 cover date as the fourth chapter of 'Total Chaos,' a crossover Wolfman orchestrated across Deathstroke the Terminator, The New Titans, and the freshly launched Team Titans title. The Deathstroke solo series itself had only launched in 1991, a direct result of the character's sustained popularity with readers; issue #15 arrived at the midpoint of that run's creative peak, when Wolfman was threading the series into the wider Titans tapestry he had been building for over a decade. The story continued directly out of Team Titans #1 and flowed into New Teen Titans #91, underscoring how tightly coordinated the multi-title crossover structure was.

Trivia · 9 facts

• First appearance of Rose Wilson, the illegitimate daughter of Slade Wilson (Deathstroke) and Cambodian brothel owner Lili Worth (Sweet Lili), who also makes her first appearance in this issue.
• Rose Wilson would later become Ravager and a member of the Teen Titans, making this issue the origin point of a character with decades of subsequent publishing history.
• Written by Marv Wolfman (co-creator of Deathstroke), with art by Art Nichols and Will Blyberg, and a cover by Mike Zeck; editors Frank Pittarese and Jonathan Peterson.
• Part 4 of the nine-chapter 'Total Chaos' crossover (September–November 1992), which spanned Deathstroke the Terminator #14–16, The New Titans #90–92, and Team Titans #1–3.
• The issue's story title, 'Escape from New York!', is a direct reference to John Carpenter's 1981 film of the same name.
• Deathstroke's near-fatal illness driving the plot traces back to chemical torture depicted in Deathstroke the Terminator #8–9, giving the debut a specific continuity anchor.
• The issue contains a significant character moment between Changeling (Beast Boy/Gar Logan) and Deathstroke, in which Changeling forgives Slade for killing his son Jericho.
• The full 'Total Chaos' storyline, including this issue, was later collected in the trade paperback Titans: Total Chaos (2018), and issues #14–20 of the Deathstroke series were also collected in a standalone volume; the series has additionally been revisited in the Deathstroke the Terminator by Marv Wolfman Omnibus Vol. 1 (2024).
• Rose Wilson has since appeared in live-action as a series regular in Season 2 of the DC Universe/HBO Max series Titans (portrayed by Chelsea Zhang) and in animation in Teen Titans Go! (voiced by Pamela Adlon), among other media adaptations.

Full credits