Más y Menos

Más y Menos are fictional superhero Twins, around the age of 12, from the Teen Titans animated television series, affiliated with the Titans East team. They are among the few heroes on the series not to have originated in the comic book. Taken out of context, their names translate from Spanish to "More" and "Less," but in their particular context (i.e. the symbols on their chests and their rallying cry), their names mean "Plus and Minus," as both "más" and "menos" can be used as mathematics terms. Más y Menos are both voiced by Freddy Rodriguez.

Fictional character biography

They are a pair of Spanish-speaking twins from Guatemala who can move at super speed, but only when they are in contact with each other. In "Titans East Part 1", Aqualad states that their other power is to talk only in Spanish. Their battle cry is "¡Más y Menos, sí podemos!" which means, "Plus and Minus, yes we can!" in English. It seems that they are partially based on the Maya Hero Twins Hunahpu and Xbalanque depicted in the Popol Vuh chronicles; however, since their incorporation into the mainstream DC Universe, their origins and history have not been dealt with.

The twins make their first appearance in "Titans East Part 1" as Titans East members, a Teen Titans team set up in Steel City for the purpose of hunting down Brother Blood. Cyborg arrives to help the team build their tower, but Brother Blood attacks with his Cyborg-drones and defeats the Titans. Unknowingly to Cyborg, Blood places all the members of the Titans East team under mind control and later forces them to attack Cyborg. The original Titans arrive following Cyborg's S.O.S., and Cyborg battles Blood while Titans West battles Titans East. With Brother Blood's defeat, Titans East is freed. Más y Menos also develop a crush on Starfire when they meet her, and both twins fight for her affection (the only time where they do not cooperate).

In the episode "For Real", Control Freak uses the "Spanish to English" option on his remote control (he does not speak or understand Spanish) to make Más and Menos "talk in English" (for the very first time), which they do throughout the episode. In the Chinese version, however, since they only speak Mandarin, Control Freak stated that they scared themselves during the translation scene. This effect is not permanent, as they speak Spanish when they reappear in "Calling All Titans" in which they battle Johnny Rancid and Cinderblock and are separated when Menos is captured but Más escapes. He seeks Beast Boy for help and demonstrates he can sense where Menos is located and can realize Menos is in pain. However, when Menos is frozen, Más can no longer sense his brother. In the fight in the Brotherhood of Evil's lair during the episode "Titans Together", Más unfreezes Menos and they thaw the remaining captured Titans and freeze the villains.

In Teen Titans Go! - a comic book based on the animated series - the twins raced Kid Flash, a young superhero also gifted with super speed. The race became a re-enactment of the fable of The Tortoise and the Hare. Kid Flash was probably faster, but he wasted time out of over-confidence.

Mainstream DC comics

At the DC Nation panel, current Teen Titans writer Geoff Johns announced that Más y Menos are to appear in the mainstream DC Comics. This is the first time a character from the Teen Titans show will make the transfer to comics.

In Teen Titans #38, Más y Menos joined - and left - the Teen Titans during the missing year after the Infinite Crisis. They are also portrayed as being older than their animated counterparts.

In Final Crisis #1, they team up with Sparx and Empress to battle the Mirror Master and Doctor Light. After a short battle in which the villains win, the two are laid out, impaled with shards of glass.^[1] The Director's Cut states that they survived, albeit in bad condition; they can be seen limping in the foreground to the Hall of Justice in a later panel.

The pair also appears in issue #16 of the Tiny Titans comic book during a race around the world by the main cast.

Más y Menos appear in a pin-up drawn by Brett Booth in Teen Titans #100, the final issue of the series. They are shown in a high-speed water balloon fight with Kid Flash.

Powers and abilities

Más y Menos have metahuman powers that allow them to move at superspeed whenever they are touching each other. A comment by Kid Flash in Teen Titans Go! #34, however, indicates that their powers are based in the Speed Force in this continuity. They can also "cheat" the requirement that they must be touching if they both hold a good conductor (such as holding a row of clothespins). In "Titans East: Part 1," some of their powers are described. Their maximum velocity is stated to be seven times the speed of sound.

Más has shown the ability to sense where his brother is when he is conscious (stated by Más to be a "magnetic connection"). He is also able to vibrate Menos at an extreme rate to cause heat. It is assumed that they both share these powers.

The twins seem to understand English, even though they do not speak it. This is shown when in the TV series Control Freak asks them how they can travel so fast, and they answer the question in Spanish.

References

1. ↑ Final Crisis #1 (2008)

External links

• Official website of Teen Titans animated series at Cartoon Network
• Profile at ToonZone.net