Best Donna Troy Comics: Where to Start, Key Issues and Reading Order

Donna Troy has worn several identities, Wonder Girl, Donna Troy, then Troia, and her origin has been told in several different ways. That is what makes her bibliography hard to approach, because each story serves a different version of the character. Six stories where she is at the center are ranked here, each with its contribution, its audience, and its reading order.

As always in this guide, we only state verified facts (creators, issue numbers, dates); the analysis is our own, with no reproduction of protected art or dialogue.

Her First Appearance

In mid-1965, The Brave and the Bold #60 publishes "The Astounding Separated Man," written by Bob Haney and drawn by Bruno Premiani. The issue brings together Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad, joined by a young heroine dubbed Wonder Girl. It is the character's first appearance, and the first appearance of the Teen Titans as a team.

At this stage, the young heroine has no civilian name. It takes until Teen Titans #22, cover-dated July-August 1969, for Wonder Girl to be presented as Wonder Woman's younger sister and receive the name Donna Troy. The two issues play different roles for a collector: the first fixes the character's birth date, the second that of her civilian identity.

To place the figure Donna is tied to, read Wonder Woman's first appearance, then her publishing history.

1: The New Teen Titans #38, Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, with Romeo Tanghal (1984)

This issue, The New Teen Titans #38 cover-dated January 1984, is crafted by Marv Wolfman on script and George Pérez on layouts, with Romeo Tanghal on inks; Adrienne Roy and Anthony Tollin provide the colors. In the story, Robin investigates Donna's origins. The single issue looks back at her early adventures, brings in Wonder Woman in flashback, and features her adoptive mother Fay Stacey and her birth mother Dorothy Hinckley.

What the story brings is a past: until then, Donna was a team member whose beginnings remained hazy. Wolfman, who had written a Wonder Girl origin story in 1969, turns it here into a complete tale. John Byrne would take up the same title in 1998 (entry 6).

The read is for the reader who wants to understand who Donna is before moving on to her relaunches. It assumes a minimum of familiarity with Wolfman and Pérez's Titans: see our collecting guide to the series. A trade paperback, The New Teen Titans: Who Is Donna Troy? (2005), collects it with other key chapters.

2: The New Titans #50 to #55, "Who Is Wonder Girl?", Marv Wolfman and George Pérez (1988-1989)

The cycle fills five chapters, from December 1988 to March 1989, written by Marv Wolfman from a plot by Wolfman and Pérez, drawn by George Pérez, with Bob McLeod on inks and then Romeo Tanghal for the last one. The titles: "Home Again," "Secrets Behind the Cosmos," "Trackdown," "Battle Plan!" and "Answers and Questions!" Issue #50 opens with a realization: the memories Donna thought she had, her adoption after a fire, are not the right ones.

The Titans then investigate Wonder Girl's true story. The goddess Phoebe comes to Titans Tower to tell a tale tied to the Titans of mythology; issue #52 takes place during the "Invasion!" crossover; issue #53 sends them to a distant world. Issue #54 wraps up the cycle, with Donna accepting her destiny. In The New Titans #55, cover-dated June 1989 and titled "Transition," she becomes Troia, with a new costume and a new hairstyle.

This entry suits anyone who likes cosmic sagas and myths. It demands patience, because the plot runs across several issues that need to be read together. It is the most direct path to understanding Troia's identity, which this article's title rightly mentions. Our page on Starfire covers another Titan from the same era.

3: Tales of the Teen Titans #50, "We Are Gathered Here Today...", Marv Wolfman and George Pérez (1985)

This 40-page issue, cover-dated February 1985, tells the wedding of Donna Troy and Terry Long. Wolfman writes from a plot by Wolfman and Pérez, Pérez draws, Mike DeCarlo and Dick Giordano ink, Adrienne Roy colors. The action takes place in New York, at the Dayton estate, and on Paradise Island.

The contribution is human: a ceremony rather than a fight, showing Donna out of costume. For the reader, the issue is a reminder that Donna is defined as much by her bonds as by her powers. It's for those who already know Wolfman and Pérez's team and appreciate its more intimate chapters.

The easiest way to find it is through the 2005 trade paperback cited above, which reprints it. As for reading method, we recommend reading it after issue #38 and before the 1988 cycle: that way you follow Donna in publication order.

4: DC Special: The Return of Donna Troy, Phil Jimenez, José Luis García-López, and George Pérez (2005)

This four-issue miniseries, published in 2005, is written by Phil Jimenez. José Luis García-López and George Pérez handle the art, Lee Loughridge the colors, and Ken Lopez the letters. Torn from Earth by the events of Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day, Donna reappears among the Titans of mythology under the name Troia, goddess of the moon, haunted by memories of her earthly life.

The miniseries returns to Donna Troy as the main subject of the story: it's a tale of return, memory, and loyalties. It also brings together two top artists, with George Pérez, whose name remains tied to the character. The trade paperback Teen Titans/Outsiders: The Death and Return of Donna Troy (2006) collects it with Graduation Day.

It's for a reader who knows the Titans of the 2000s and wants to follow what happens next. It works less well as an entry point: read entries 1 and 2 of this list first. For context, see the page on the best Teen Titans runs.

5: Titans Annual 2025, the Titans Annual Issue (2025)

This annual issue, published in 2025, is devoted entirely to Donna Troy, who receives a message there from Lou, her late birth father. The story returns to the origin imagined by Marv Wolfman: an orphan rescued by Wonder Woman and raised by the Amazons on Paradise Island, with a look back at her first adoptive family before her arrival on the island. It also runs through her life, with her marriage and the death of her son.

The contribution is that of a recap: rather than reconciling every rewrite, the annual picks the classic version and owns it. Today's reader finds an accessible entry point here, one that doesn't assume knowledge of forty years of continuity.

It's a good companion for anyone discovering Donna through recent news, and a useful counterpoint to the first entry.

6: Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #134 and #135, John Byrne (1998)

In John Byrne's Wonder Woman series, which he writes and draws, Donna isn't the star: she plays a supporting role. Issues #134, "Who Is Donna Troy?" (June 1998), and #135, "Fragments" (July 1998), are the chapters that bear her name and her origin. Patricia Mulvihill colors, and Paul Kupperberg directs the editing. These issues conclude the Dark Angel arc, which opened in issue #131.

Byrne's version makes Donna a magical copy of the young Diana, which departs from Wolfman's orphan. This version remains a fact of publishing history: read it to gauge how the character was reinvented, less to get attached to it.

It's for the reader curious about continuity and for those who follow Wonder Woman closely. Go to it after the first two entries. For John Byrne, see his creator page.

Where to Start Based on Your Profile

If you're new to Donna, start with The New Teen Titans #38, then the trade paperback Who Is Donna Troy?, which collects the chapters from 1984 to 1989. You'll have the essentials of her construction in a single volume. If you read Wonder Woman, add Wonder Woman #134 and #135 for Byrne's version.

If you prefer a recent approach, open the 2025 Titans Annual: it reads with no preparation. If you're a fan of the original Titans, turn to The Brave and the Bold #60 and Teen Titans #22, which give the starting point. Finally, if you like Wolfman and Pérez's teams, read our page on Raven alongside.

The Key Issues to Know

• The Brave and the Bold #60 (1965): the first appearance of Wonder Girl, by Bob Haney and Bruno Premiani.
• Teen Titans #22 (July-August 1969): the name Donna Troy and her link to Wonder Woman.
• The New Teen Titans #38 (January 1984): "Who Is Donna Troy?"
• Tales of the Teen Titans #50 (February 1985): the wedding to Terry Long.
• The New Titans #50 (December 1988): the start of "Who Is Wonder Girl?"
• The New Titans #55 (June 1989): Donna becomes Troia.
• Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #134 and #135 (1998): Byrne's version.
• DC Special: The Return of Donna Troy #1 (2005): the return.

The buying method is simple. First pin down the exact issue, because Wonder Woman and New Titans each have several series. Next, tell the original single issue apart from the 2005 trade paperback, which reprints several issues. Finally, compare copies in equivalent condition, without relying on the listing title alone.

Frequently Asked Questions