It can't be "international"!

I can understand concerns fans have over the name but it's not like it's the first time there have been more Americans on the JLI team. And to be fair it hasn't even started so there's really no point in complaining who's on and who's not yet. But this debate has been popping up a lot recently along with lists of 3-7 other potential members. I can't really agree with this argument for three reasons: 1.) this is a nod to the old series although that was "international" because of their U.N. connections, 2.) I like the current team and don't want to add so many members, 3.) I don't think any of the characters listed even work good with the current members who are much more family like than most teams.

I'm not sure what the new JLI will be like but I hope they play around with Boosters' status affecting the others. With them questioning where he's been, Batman covering up, potential meet ups with with family, etc. While he's not a member of the team (yet?) I want Guy to see Michelle and jump to the conclusion that it's a Gal Gardner situation. I'm shocked that no one has used the Supernova/Booster "rivalry" from 52 for a classic superhero misunderstanding. Rani (Jurgens said he was using her character) might freak out over Bea given the green hair thing. Plus she can hang out with Jaimes' sister. I'm kinda hoping the JLI are set up with U.N. support and have Bruce Wayne as their liaison. That way he'll have an excuse to be there but not be the leader. Plus Gavril and Jaime don't actually know who he really is.

Of course they might have to find Captain Atom since he was the only one not to have a reaction shot to Maxs' speech. I'm thinking that if the current direction of Guys' book doesn't take him away we might get some great potential interaction with Tora and the group. I remember him trying to get leadership twice so it should be interesting at least. Much as I'm hoping for more Gavril/Fire I'm also looking forward to exploring more of her fears (what she confessed to Ice) and learning more about her mother. I'd like to see J'onn show up to visit his kids, I know he has a soft spot for Detroit but I always saw this league as his babies. And they never really followed up on the guilt he showed towards his treatment of Ted and how he couldn't bring himself to confront Booster. I think he basically flew off before he could even talk to Jaime in TT. I'd like to hear his thoughts on the Max situation and his "children."

Justice League Generation Lost #24

More of a overview of the series than a review. I was thinking Max and Boosters' fight would be longer, and given what Power Girl said in her own title I assumed they'd catch him. Yeah I was a little miffed that the ladies didn't do more but rereading it this makes sense. Fire and Ices' powers cancel each other out. OMAC Prime is literally made to kill Wonder Woman so it stands to reason she'd struggle with it but she's one of the few that's hard to knock down. Power Girl stayed away because she would make it too strong (if I understand it's powers right it's "skin" would be hard to destroy.) Gavril kinda knew he was outmatched but stayed to help fend off attacks anyway. I do think it's hilarious that Batman added nothing to the fight. I can't recall the last time that happened, he doesn't even try to lead them during it. So either Power Girl/Atom made him swing there or he just let them deal with it. Considering they were in NY before I'd say the latter.

Although Boosters' power down was questionable because of his Legion Flight ring (someone told me this would still shut the ring off) I liked him pushing Max. Tackling Max is literally how they meet in his first solo title, he was a football player, and it's the sort of impulsive thing he'd do. Max was taunting him for not taking action and he did. I do find Maxs' rant fascinating since he's basically defending his actions to kill when it's needed and scoffing at the team for not. Yet WW killed him and he's always trying to make JLI look good because he thinks their the real deal. Self doubt perhaps? Boosters' also the only member Max hasn't tried to actively kill when he has the chance. He shot Jaime when he was unarmed but reframes from having the ship shoot at Booster. I'd like to think Max has a soft spot for him.

I've seen complaints but other than the Ice retcon I really don't have a problem with things others have. I don't think Booster was a horrible leader because they couldn't get Max. Batman himself lead Max to Wonder Woman. I see leadership as something Booster has to learn along with Maxs' chessmaster thinking. Because Rip is skilled in both and he has to learn that from someone. Winick didn't just make Max a bad guy, yes he was involved in the comic that did that but he's not doing this out of the blue. Max won't be redeemed as long as Teds' death is floating over his head. DC has trouble with shades of grey and at present have no desire to bring Ted back. I've read Ruckas' Max who at best comes off as sexist with Wonder Woman and Johns unfeeling Max that seems to think Booster is an idiot despite being the one who recruited him. This is a huge step up because Max at least has a personality and old Max peeks through.

Jaimes' fake death didn't bother me because you expect that in comics. And really when you have his name sakes' killer brought back and DCs' current favorite whipping boy (Booster) you HAVE to see them toying with the angst. I was surprised they didn't do so during Blackest Night. I smiled not so much for Jaimes' spoken tribute to Ted Kord but the next page that reflected Max shooting Ted because of the irony. Wonder Woman avenged Ted by killing Max and having Jaime take down O.P to save WW got me. There's actually a lot of meta stuff about what it is to be a man and not a monster with Max and Cap. Or how Max turned into his fathers' killers by making Teds' death look like a suicide too. I know there was disappointment that Max wasn't caught and asking what the point was. Well the point was that they never gave up and they did make their number one goal: they made the world remember and got their lives back. Can't wait for more and to see how this works with Boosters' solo title.

Booster Gold #42 and #43

Finally got around to this so this will be a joint review. I didn't hate these issues like previous ones but they honestly confused the hell out of me. Why was the prison retcon even needed when: a.) they never say if he finished the jail time, b.) we never even see what happened to P.M or Booster/Rip/Michelle between issues. How does he survive getting trapped as the sun torches earth?! I thought the whole point of the jail thing was because Giffin hated that Booster never paid for his crimes. So instead of actually having him go through all that they just torture Booster. Great. I'm not even sure why Rip thought this should be done in the first place. He claimed it was to prevent Booster from becoming P.M. but that's total bull. They could have easily prevented it during the time lab fight. It can't be to get Booster to meet Brainy because that never seemed to be an issue. (Jurgens even had a story idea in place.) The only thing I can think of is the age thing they set up but even that raises too many questions! G/D are the ones that aged him up in the first place so they felt they had to freeze that age? Why would he need to stay in jail to meet the P.M? How can P.M even exist since we know Booster fathers Rip and seen him when he's older? Even if she had no family left everyone else died around Rani so why would anyone be looking for her?

Why did they finally show a naked Booster like that?

I did find the whole idea of P.M to be more than a little cliche in time travel stories. I guessed who it was before I even opened the book.

Most of the Legion members were jerks but I was surprised to see Brainy acting so nice towards Booster. I got the impression he had very little patience for 99.9% of people and didn't like anything he views as foolish. Yet he seemed to be almost drawn towards Booster. Yes, he was curious about him having his gear but Brainy could have been meaner. I haven't read their post-crisis meeting in a while but I think he was pretty much "we don't approve of you stealing my stuff but history says it's has to happen so keep it." I enjoyed seeing a peek of their friendship in TMVP but this wasn't what I was expecting. Their so cute. Brainy seems to be more curious about Booster than the whys of the Legion equipment. He sort of defends him and even seems worried when he asks Rip if Booster will survive. But a few more questions. Why can't Rip explain that Daniel and him sort of took theses things from him? Did G/D not read those issues? Booster probably doesn't even know the details. And how does Booster even know their be friends? You'd think Rip would tell him but wouldn't that prove to Booster that he played this entire thing out. Why does Booster or Michelle even trust him after this? Booster basically knew the whole thing was a set up.

None of this fits with either TMVP or JLGL in terms of storytelling and characterizations. Looking forward to Jurgens' return.

Rips' a Fighter

I haven't read everything with Rip--yet--but pretty much every issue of his series had him kicking ass. He'd take on aliens, strange creatures and standard bad guys with his fighting skills more than with his science know how. I love it when he goes back to his old school roots. From Booster Gold vol. 1:



"I'm both!" Believe me Rip, we know.

Cracky Rip and startled Hal

This has to beat the "Rip becomes a Linear Man" as the most cracky appearance by Rip.

How Rips' Drawn

I mostly liked Batsias' art but I hate his rendering of Rip Hunter. He makes the guy seem so much older, not that good looking (certainly doesn't look like he's related to Booster) and a little out of shape. Of course it's not the worst, I detested Giffins' poiny headed Rip. Why do people forget that Rips' a sex symbol? No seriously, his first appearance had him running around topless for most of the adventure.



"I have to strip! Even though this is clearly a plant eater I need some flimy excuse! Now let's get those pants off..."

Post-Crisis Rip Hunter meets Booster

The masses were trying to murder superheroes and Booster was dying. His friends/employees mount a recuse and Goldstar 1 (Trixie) dons the costume for the first time. Jack Soo, Boosters' go to tech guy, happens to know someone that maybe able to help.

Booster gets the Man of Steel back

Since I already showed some superdickery I thought it was only fair to show Booster could be pretty mean too. Now they didn't start off on the best of terms. I'll post that at some point when I track down the issue. They both have their reasons for not liking each other though. Near the end of the first BG series there was a Superman/Booster Gold crossover that was pretty much set up to make up for the editors forcing Jurgens to change the more Superman tied origins he had in mind for Booster. The Superman issue was basically a robot BG attacking Superman and the real deal showing up on the last page. (Although there was a cute moment where Jason Todd meets Superman for the first time early in the issue.)

But timing is everything and Booster is already in a bad place as he hears about his double causing trouble literally after Michelles' funeral. Since the robot copy of himself can only hurt Superman it's not a big deal for him to break it apart.



And sadly no he doesn't get to keep it as Lex Luthor has all the evidence of his involvement removed. (Although semi-recently Booster tried to take some as a "souvenir" until Batman made him drop it.) Another great thing about the BG series was that Jurgens was setting Booster up to be a rival for Lex in the business field. If you think what Booster does to Supes is mean it's nothing compared to what he does to Lex at the mans' party.

Post-Crisis Rip Hunter meets Superman

Booster and Rips' first on panel meeting was in the first Booster Gold series. Rip helped save Booster and bring Michelle back to the past but while there he learned some bad things were coming before the 25th century. Nuclear wars to be exact, and that knowledge haunted him. Rip made a desperate attempt to stop such a disaster from taking place. Knowing he needed help Rip asked Booster to inform the superhero community. Some weren't sure how to help, some questioned whether time travel should be messed with, etc. Booster even helped rounding up someone he really didn't get along with at the time--Superman.



So to recap: Superman basically mocks Rips' plea for help. He doesn't even ask to look at this proof Rip says he has and tells him to call the league instead (the same league the guy that told him--Booster--is currently on.) Superman never offers any help throughout the rest of the first Time Masters mini series (Hal even helps out) and only showed up to say he's not helping. This is one of the reasons I laughed so hard when Rip puts Superman in his place in TMVP. Because believe me, Superman deserves it when it comes to the Carters.

Ray Palmers' Opinion of Rip

I thought it was interesting that Rips' reputation is good with certain heroes and not so great with others. So far the Johns' Rip Hunter has positive remarks from : Zantanna (who met him before), Ollie (AU Ollie but he wasn't going to question someone with such a great rep), Waverider in 52 (ironic considering TMVP), Chronos 2 (Walker Gabriel), and Red Robin.

Of course he also has people that aren't thrilled with him like the Linear Men. Superman (who dislikes time travelers in general), and I honestly can't tell if Hal didn't like him since he was more concerned with messing with Booster. But when Johns was writing JSA he started shaping time travel and the character. When the first Hourman goes to Ray Palmer of all people for help and this is what he has to say:



Just to clarify: Ray's archenemy uses time travel, Ray uses a time machine called the time pool, yet he doesn't understand time travel himself. He admits this and yet he dismisses a guy that's called a freaking "time master" as unqualified? Oh yeah, and guess who shows up in like 6 issues to save the JSA because they ended up screwing up the mission and nearly getting themselves erased? Just like dad, no one gives the Carters any respect.

Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #8

I got this issue at my bookstore since my LCS is too far away. The lady that worked the resister noticed my selection and perked up at the Green Latern title. I mentioned the movie coming out, thinking that's where she heard it from. She said she read it in the 60's prompting a male co-worker of hers to echo "the 60s"?! "Yes, the 60s. 1960s not 1860s!" I told her Guy was my favorite and she said that's because I have taste. :D

I thought the Green House was one of the GL housing structures? Guy comments on the stupid name and wouldn't you know it, Hal named it. Hee hee. The boys talk, Hal is annoyed because he's not in the loop for every GL dicussion. And considering who he hangs out with he sure is being high and mighty. (Although it's really helpful of both of them to give each other visual aids.)

I'm still trying to understand Hal's character so I'm not sure if he's actually dense enough not to get what Guy refers to or he's just itching for an excuse to fight. One thing that I love about Guy is how he cuts all the crap to say what needs to be said. I'm a big redemption fan, I love seeing issues that deal with the theme but I found Hals' story to be lacking. Whether he's responsible or not, the level of acceptance people give him rings false to me. Yes, GL members have called him on his past but it sort of faded away. I don't get why the heroes of earth (except Bats) pretty much forgot about all of this once he returned. Doesn't seem fair given the crap Guys' gotten when he had braindamage and (to the best of my knowledge) never killed anyone during that period.

Kinda wish Guy did win but it sure looked like he was winning before they called a truce. At least he came off pretty cool. Loved the book.

BTW, nothing to do with the issue but I was peeved to learn that tasteless "Hal Jordon, Lady Blackhawk and Huntress" threesome in Cry for Justice was done because Robinsons' actual threesome choice was shot down. Can you guess who the ladies were in his version? I'll give you a hint: one was the love of Guys' life and the other's her best friend. The only reason it was vetoed was because Guy was dating the former when CFJ was being written. Got a red ring handy?

Ted Kord, not always the greatest friend

Looking over Giffin and DeMatties' work I gotta comment on their version of Ted Kord. I don't think anyone has ever written him as such a jerk. Don't get me wrong, I like seeing character faults but they could really make him unlikable. I'll even make this statement bolder by saying that I don't think Guy at his worst was as bad as their Ted. Which makes Geoff Johns "Ted always carried Booster" bit all the more head scratching.

When Booster revealed the truth about his origins to Ted, the latter calls him on being a thief. Now while this retelling of his origin was written by Jurgens it has Booster telling his bud how gambling destroyed his life in the 25th century. How gambling was considered as big a sin as being a murderer in his house. After learning this information what does Ted do? He gets Booster to help him steal U.N funds and start a gambling resort on Kooey Kooey Kooey. Think about that for a second. Then the guy that called him a crook wants to rig the machines to get their money back. Booster is quick to tell him that heroes don't steal and while the next line makes light of it his face reflects horror at the idea.

Afterward Booster is honestly upset that he's being treated as a joke and in his eyes not getting respect from his teammates. No one takes him seriously until he quits and instead of thinking about how this is affecting his best friend Ted makes it about himself. Because if Booster believes he's being treated like a joke then it HAS to be a reflection on him. Booster ponders his issues, Ted doesn't, he basically waits for an apology never giving one of his own. What makes this worse is that G/D just had Booster travel back to talk to Ted during this period. Ted knows from talking with the future version of his friend how mature he can be and that their argument won't be serious. Which means that Ted made sure it was Booster that says he's sorry (although he had no problem talking to Future Booster) and it makes his later complaints about Booster knowing too much seem more than a little cruel.

Speaking of cruel I honestly can not read the FKATJL/ICBINTJL without cringing. Part of that is because of Teds' treatment of Booster. It reads like an abusive relationship IMHO. And the last Ted story they wrote had him dragging his friends along for a job, abandoning them for a queen, lying to her, using her for sex, and blaming Booster for what's happened even though by staying to save Ted he earned the rage of his would be attacker. Ted, you seriously suck at being a good friend. Still I can't help being somewhat amused that this is the guy Booster has grieved for. Yeah, I like Ted but when he's like this I have to question why their friends. Because seriously, too many forget that Ted was the bad influence.

Boosters' Age

A lot of people have been talking about this so I thought I'd weigh in. No, he's not as old as Giffin/DeMatteis suggested, and mind that was without taking in time travel into account. If Booster was 35 then Lian Harper would have been a teenager when she died. My theory was that Booster was 25/26 because everyone tends to forget how young he was when he came back in time. He's NOT as old as Ted, Guy or any of the Silver Age heroes. I think because he hung out with Ted people assumed that. Booster was said to be 20 when he arrived, at least a year younger than Dick Grayson was. BUT there are also other things to take into account. In BG #1 VOL #2 Booster reveals his birthday is December 29 2442, his family was hounded by Broderick for months and he returns to the future around Christmas in 2462. Which means he was actually 19 when he went into the past and made a name for himself.

The time machine they used also miscalculated and put them a few months later than they planned. He skipped a head in 52, wore a suit that stopped his aging, etc. So while some thought that Dan Jurgens' age for Booster (23) was B.S. it works for me. For one thing Giffin and DeMatteis date everything making Max much older than he's supposed to be. Yes Jurgens' age for him was younger than I expected but he jumps ahead of time so it's not as big of a deal as it would be with other heroes. Jurgens already hinted at this in the Day of Death arc when Cyborg told Booster that he didn't look much older than Donna Troy, who I believe was 19 at the time since that's how old she was when she married Terry Long.

It's also the only answer that makes sense in regards to the "Michelle is clueless on how much she missed out on" plot. I refuse to believe Booster is more than a few years older than the last time Michelle saw him. Michelle isn't stupid enough to not notice that her brother aged 15 years since she saw him last. Which really annoyed me further since apparently this was obvious to every JLI member outside Max during G/D run. His teammates didn't even know him that well at that early stage of the league and this is his twin sister that he grew up with! She'd notice it before them!

And if you can believe Dick Grayson is still under 30 despite how long he's been around, and that Bruce Wayne is STILL in his 30s then it's really not that big of a stretch.

Who is Black Beetle?

Nothing Black Beetle says can be taken seriously, so let's throw all of that out. The only time we get any real insight from him is when he loses it when Supernova stops him from taking Waveriders' body. He says that it won't matter what he messes up in the time line because he's going to change something big once he's able to secure a means to safely travel further back.

The hints we were given are little things I noticed. Day of Death had the most focus on him but curiously it more or less compared him to Rip through out the arc. It starts with BB shadowing Rip as he searches Vanishing Point asking who he really is. Rips' panel next to BB even got some wondering if it was Rip. I don't think so because Black Beetle is not as skilled at time travel as him. He had to leech power from T.O. Morrow to be able to do jumps until he got the red scarab and is still looking for more powerful ways to travel.

But I think there's something interesting about how BB comments on Rip hiding his identity so well and then Rip later admitting that neither of them knows anything about the other. It seems like an intentional detail but I'm not sure if it's just a red herring or to show the parallel to hint at something deeper. After finding Black Beetles' system tap at Vanishing Point Rip wonders who is intelligent enough to even set that up.

When Skeets scans Black Beetle he says "impossible" apparently stunned. For some reason Skeets won't tell Rip that he was able to get something from his scan of Black Beetle. Skeets expresses doubts about Rip following up on it and once he finds Jaime he asks for his impression of Black Beetle. Jaime basically says he's either the craziest guy ever or the smartest as he's able to keep you off your game by saying the wildest things. Skeets seems to ponder this. Black Beetle only appears to have two scarabs at present, but wouldn't he have three if he was Jaime? That would be the blue one (Jaimes') the black one Booster picked up in one million and the red one.

If he's an old character I have no idea who it could be that makes sense. Perhaps someone from the multiverse. He seems to have a connection to the Beetles and someone Booster would know in the Origins and Omens reveal. If it was a new character then he'd have to at least look like someone Booster knows for him to be that shocked when he's unmasked. I do not think it's Rip because: a.) he doesn't know how to time travel without stealing objects, b.) he tried to kill Rip, c.) Skeets scanned Black Beetle and although G/D made a joke about Skeets scanning Rip a couple issues ago Skeets has never shown that he knows who Rip really is. d.) doubt he'd really think Booster is a moron and try to kill "Daniel" before he had a kid if he was.

Well why doesn't Skeets tell him? Looking back (not count Giffin and DeMatteis run) Skeets has always been trusting of Rip and often told Booster they should listen to him. There's only one time where he didn't: When Booster wanted to save Ted. Right when the Beetles come to recruit Booster our Time Master tries desperately to make him see this isn't going to work. He even uses Skeets trashed body to claim the robot needs him more than the newcomers. Instead of agreeing Skeets tells Booster to save Ted. Later on he asks that Rip consider how Boosters' heart is in the right place and asks if there's nothing else they can do to save Boosters' friend. I think it's possible that if Skeets found something connected to Ted Kord it would make him hesitate on informing Rip or Booster. But also notice that he had to ask Jaime because even with his scan he isn't certain and likely didn't get all the information.

Maybe this isn't so much a clue as Jurgens didn't write it but in 52 I noticed that Mr. Mind had to use Daniel to get into the bunker claiming that his DNA was close enough to Boosters' to fool the sensors. While I really doubt Rips' tech would be fooled unless he wanted it to be (especially by DNA that was seperated from Boosters' for so many generations) I do think current tech could be. If true that means that someone related to either Booster or Ted could enter the Beetle Cave. Matthew Struges of Blue Beetle claims the villain is a new character and while he had Black Beetle claim to be Jaime he was never unmasked. The only theory I can come up with is that he really is a new character with a strong connection to the Blue Beetle legacy. Jurgens focused a lot of attention on the similiarities between Rip and him during Day of Death making him seem more like Rips' equal. Why?

When you get down to it why did he go for a ride with Ted in a time sphere? Why drop his scarab for Booster to pick up? My theory? (Which will likely be very wrong.) That Black Beetle is a legacy in a respect because the only ID I can think of that makes sense with the clues we're given is Teds' son. This would haunt Booster, give a reason for Jaime to battle him and give Rip an ironic match up. It would explain why Skeets didn't tell anyone but also why he wasn't sure: he only read part of the DNA structure. Yes, he didn't save Ted and taunted Jaime with the idea that Dead Ted was coming. But it could all be part of the plan...or maybe he grew up hating Ted. Jurgens says he'll reveal it and has something in mind for #50 but this is all I can come up with.

Justice League Generation Lost #23

Yes, I got Booster Gold too but I just can't find it interesting enough to read at present. Happily Jurgens comes back next issue and we'll have Flashpoint (no idea if I'll read the main title) then hopefully the 50th issue where we might finally get Black Beetles' ID!


SPOILERS BE HERE


What's great about this issue is that both sides make awesome moves and huge mistakes. Batman of all people also underestimates Max only to figure out too late that Max was using them to find Wonder Woman. (Take that people who claimed Batman made a better leader than Booster because he wouldn't be used.) I don't know why but I love the little note of Batman grabbing Booster arm to pull him along to find cover. Yes he grabs WW too but something about him manhandling Booster to protect him is cute. He's not the one that needs to be protected yet Bats seems to feel protective of him. Of course it makes the next panel look odd with Booster suddenly between the two and Batman not touching either of them.

Yet another artist flub with Ices' uniform: suddenly she has a jacket and different colored boots/gloves. If this ever becomes an ongoing they need to commit to a design. This has happened far too often.

Max, I find your ideas to be both creepy and hilarious. Omac Prime is a sentient OMAC that has Maxs' voice and sense of humor. I think it was partly to freak them out and partly to make it seem like he's personally killing WW. It succeeds in freaking out poor Skeets (yes Winick writes Skeets better than G/D. While a little more human he remembers that Skeets isn't L-Ron.) Booster has a spur of the moment idea that surprises Skeets as he decides to take on Max himself. Which of course is cut off before the actual fight. And the closest we got to Max fighting has been that thing with Jaime a few issues back.

But there was a reason Max wanted them all there to fight his pet project. Omac Prime takes all of their powers on. All in all it feels like a short read and I can't wait to see the double sized issue.

Best Man and Godparents

I can't wait until Wednesday to get the new comics and I hope I get over this freaking cold by then. Anyway, there was the topic I remember going over in another fandom when it was asked which characters would be the best man if certain characters got married. Now I know everyone will say Ted Kord will be Boosters' but what if he can't be? For one reason or another Ted can't time travel to the event or he remains dead...who would the best man be? At this point it's hard to say because I honestly can't think of anyone he's that close to, although I think it would be cracktacular if Rip ends up being the best man at his parents wedding.

The next one is a little different because to some the role of godparents mean that if something should happen to the parents the people they chose will raise their child/children. The most obvious choice would be Michelle and if she marries her husband. She's already in the family business so to speak so she could help Rip. Or perhaps someone on the future Mrs. Carters' side. If not blood relatives there are some other options. I considered Bruce since Booster would know he'd do everything in his power to protect the kid and take care of him. But Bruce isn't really someone I think of as father of the year. If Booster was closer to Dick Grayson he'd fit nicely since he's doing a wonderful job with Damian.

If Tora and Guy ever got married I'd think they'd be perfect. Booster might have misgivings about Guy given their history (did he ever find out that Guy acted like he did in JLI because of brain damage?) but he'd know they would take good care of him. And while he's not techinally old enough yet I think Jaime would make a good godfather. Of course Rip likely won't be born for a while and hey time travel, so his current age doesn't really matter. Jaime is already a great big brother and knows how to deal with current problem child Damian Wayne.

Of course the thing that I find sad about the little Rip stories is that the family is on the run and can't have Rip grow up with Boosters' old crew. Make you wonder if he ever sees them growing up outside of missions.

Fandom, Why?

Message boards can either be highly entertaining or really annoying. I've seen people suggesting icky things on who Rips' mother is (both Michelle, his aunt, and Rose--his extremely great-grandmother!) made the list for some insane reason. I mean some fanboys are against slash but a-okay with incest? Gah! Of course I've also seen fangirls say Rani is Rip despite the fact we--you know--saw him as a little boy in his flashbacks. Plus I doubt DC would make a Silver Age character have a sex change. Yes, the fandom is odd, and that's not even getting into the m-preg theories on male characters they think are Rips' "mom." And yes, one of them is shown in the image below.




The page that spawned many of wrong fanfics. I honesty don't know if Judd Winick or the artist meant the subtext but yeah, I can see it.

Rips' new look

Yes, it's canon that Rips' still a blond. I'm just shocked it took someone so long to notice it. He changed his hair and eye color at least seven times before settling for this. Jurgens says it's so someone won't see Booster, Daniel and him together and think "hey are you guys related?"

Of Bats and Booster

I love that Batman--both of them--know the truth about Booster. It's touching to see Bruce being in his corner given their history (I will never stop harping on the fact Booster got him to smile in JL #4) and something about Dick knowing feels right. I suppose it's because Dick operates differently than Bruce and like Superman is a rallying force for the good guys that everyone trusts. He also has a lot in common with Boosters' upbeat personality and nice rear. (Yeah I had to throw that out there.) I even like to think that in the future Damian will continue the secret keeper mission and be a friend to Rip. But there is one thing that bugs me that I want to be dealt with:

Barbara Gordon and Booster discussing his role in it all.

It's annoying that Bruce and Dick both know how Booster tried to save Babs but not the woman herself. I can understand reluctance on the writers' part to do so as that subject could quickly turn ugly. Would Babs become more bitter over her fate being destined? Would she blame Booster? He does walk in on a horrible moment as the Joker starts taking pictures of her (although Jurgens has her top covered up in the panel.) I've seen it argued that Booster should tell her but why would he? Not only would he be revealing his secret mission but he'd be acknowledging a failure to the person he feels he let down. Given the snippets we're shown of the two they don't appear to be that close. He knows about her role as Oracle enough to call her, she was very close to Ted Kord (Booster refers to her as someone Ted loved) but the few times he talks to her it seems like he only knows her from secondhand information. It's an odd situation to be certain, neither Bruce nor Dick can tell Babs without betraying Boosters' trust but at the same time their keeping information from Barbara. That much has to royally piss her off.

I did a timeline to compare BG #5 VOL.2 with the Killing Joke timeline during a debate that broke out after the infamous issue came out. The main question was if Barbara Gordon, the woman with a photographic memory, would know about Booster being there in the first place. She already told her father that she remembers every detail about that night. Johns/Katz were careful about this, Barbara is already on the floor with the Joker looming over her while Booster is still at the doorway. Boosters' doesn't say anything too loud while in the room. While the Joker orders his men to take "him" out it's still vague. When he reentered he's on the floor as he weakly tosses the Joker down the stairs. Everything else (from this version of his attempt) is away from Barbara. Although it's likely his blood wouldn't be on file back then he did leave some behind after the Joker beats him up. So while she may not have seen/heard much it would still be possible for her to find out.

If she does know then why is she keeping quiet?

The One Time Black Beetle totally Failed

In the spirit of the day I thought it would be fun to show the one time Boosters' villain was totally owned. Sure Rip managed to get the upper hand before but he didn't humiliate the guy like this. Apparently Black Beetle wanted to take the easy route for once instead of playing mind games to achieve his goals. Probably gave him time to come up with more fake origins too. So he went the unusual way of going to a super villain auction to get his prize. Only for a Mighty Crusader member to cause chaos.



Beetle sure is lucky neither Booster or Jaime ever got word of this.