The Best Of Buds Blue and Gold: The Geek and the Jock part 2

These are two men that simply are secure enough with themselves to be emotional around each other. No matter how fans see it or claims of what kind of bond it is there's no denying that there's a very strong love between them. And thankfully that's intact when we see how Booster sees things. There's not too much mention of them both being looked down at outside the Green Arrow/Hawkman Freedom Fighters scene. 

Booster obviously misses Ted a hell of a lot and not only excuses Teds' faults in return but pretty much goes on to say what a better person he was. Though this is more forgivable as people tend to think better of the dead. Still he seems to remember Ted as being someone who always held him up and always did the right thing. Which is strange when you know whos' idea it was to do a gambling/island resort partnering with a man who he knew had a gambling problem. Just saying that Ted could be pretty thoughtless.

Regardless both men draw strength from each other, especially after Teds' death and after meeting a younger Ted, Booster finds it easier to face the responsibility of defeating Mr. Mind and helping the multiverse come into being. 

To me Ted will always be the good friend that helped Booster adjust to this time while unhelpfully making up customs for pranks. He's the older more experienced hero that's really more wacky and helped (at least in JLI) make Booster more mature by coming out with crazy schemes. Ted may be a genius but he's more than a little naive with how the world works and isn't without his petty moments. Not always a good influence but always there when you need someone.

There's a lot more than Booster than I'll mention here but I think Booster has a bit of a darkness to him given his past and the guilt associated with it. Around most people he pretends he doesn't have any problems bottling up his insecurities (Ted usually tells anyone his own like he once did on a blind date.) More realistic than his facade would let on Booster is more idealistic nowadays than he used to be, perhaps because of Ted? 

Though details like Ted comforting Michael at his sisters' funeral and welcoming him when others shunned him (Boosters' POV) are added there were little clues that they were destined to be great pals. By teaming up Blue and Gold save the day against the Royal Flush Gang making Beetle feel useful for the first time on the league. When Booster wants to flee the league apologize for attacking him and ask him to come back. After turning them down it's Ted telling him to grow up and get over it that finally changes his mind. Although Ted really should have taken his own advice but then I suppose we won't have had all those zany Blue and Gold adventures. 

The Best Of Buds Blue and Gold: The Geek and the Jock part 1

What I find odd about Blue and Gold is how often the personalities seem to be interchangeable with writers. They forget who's supposed to be the straight man (hint: it's Booster), even to have a straight man, and occasionally they don't like each other at all.

Given their backstories you wouldn't think that these two would get along. Ted Kord started off as a mix of the standard silver age hero. He took the mantle of his idol, earned his place in the Blue Beetle legacy by training hard and making devices to help his mission. He was rich, but directionless and had trouble seeing the bigger picture at times. He was too distracted growing up to notice that his family was the only humans living in a alien town. Didn't get why homeless people wanted to live on the streets instead of taking the charity of others. When it came to his love life Ted didn't push his love interests often leaving him alone in the process. (I'm working under the assumption that Tracy, his stable loving girlfriend before DC was retconned.) He's the man that after his company fell to pieces under his fathers' run and his girlfriend almost ran off with another man (but backed out after learning he was married) shrugged it off to run off to the league.

Michael Jon Carter was dirt poor thanks to his dads' gambling loses. Given Michelle and Jons' refeneces to his mother being manipulated/fooled by Mr. Carter we have to wonder if his mothers' side did come from money. Nevertheless Booster is a jock that wants to make it big. While his greed is a big factor so is his concern for the well being of his family. A lot of fans assume that he was horrible at school but he put himself back in college, he made the effort. We never get too clear of a picture of his love life other than statements of him being something of a ladies man. Did he push Trixie away to spare her feelings? He already had a faked affair to promote himself, so how much is an image?

While Ted is older he wasn't always maturer and in some respects Booster understood things that Ted didn't get. When confronted with a 'vampire' it's Booster that pieces together that the lab that hired them has murdered/tested the other creatures and rationalizes that drinking blood isn't actually worse than them eating meat. Throughout the encounter Ted frequently complains that he needs money from this job to get material things while Booster is the one that actually pauses to consider their actions. What's more telling about their point of views is where they differ after they find the body of the creature once it flees in fear. Ted assumes that the vampire slipped and fell in it's panic. Booster has a darker more realistic idea that it was suicide to escape them noting that it had made the area it's home and had to know the lay out. 

We get to see into both of their heads on how they view their situations and each other. In Countdown to Infinite Crisis Ted notes how poorly their seen by their peers. Though he's harder on himself and more awed by the other heroes than in the past Ted knows that the two of them are more than what people see. How he sees Booster is interesting as he notes that Booster isn't a thief which he pointed out that Booster was indeed one when he learned of his friends' origin. It's an outright dismissal of a fault but the point behind it is that Ted doesn't see Booster as a bad person and knows that he wants more than to be known as a sell out hero. He gets that when no one else does.

At his home Ted goes on to elaborate about the rumors about Booster knowing the future. Well he did tell Ted about this in the past although not all his information is accurate due to how long ago the events were. But Beetle sees what the other heroes failed to get, that Boosters' friends are the most important thing to him. From Michael taking the lightening bolt to the chest for his buddy and Booster freaking out about everyone he cares about dying (all of which have returned I believe. Sue counts since she came back as a ghost.)

Blue and Gold: Morals

Around CTIC the Blue and Gold fans pointed out that Ted could have worked within the system if he wanted to expose the truth. A direct comparison to Boosters' past actions in a similar situation was brought up. On the flip side of the argument Ditko fans commented on how the creator of Ted Kord and The Question would never intend for his characters to compromise in such a way. And well, I sort of agree. Ted unknowingly worked with the bad guy once before and it cost Dan Garrett his life. I can't see Ted at any stage of his life having a very good poker face when forced to work with people he usually fights against. He's not like Booster in that sense. Booster is used to lying on a broader scale than the usual Clark Kent/Superman spiel. It's not because Booster is a bad person, a lot of the times he hides the truth as a defense mechanism. 

In his early days of crime fighting Booster pondered killing two people: The Director and Cheshire. I've mentioned this elsewhere but whether he's lying or not it's still something I can't see Ted doing. (#1) . With Booster? I can't really see Booster doing this anymore, not unless it was in the heat of the moment like when he tells Max he's a dead man after Jaime is shot.

Booster:

- Joined the Manhunters to take them down from the inside, losing everything he built in the process.
- Is against using JLI U.N. funds though Ted talks him into it.
-Says no to Teds' idea to rig the games to earn back their money.
- Agrees to play up his money grubbing ways to keep Mr. Mind in the dark.
-Promises to let Lady Chronos go and owe her a favor if she helps him.

When it comes to the bad guys Booster will always be the one more willing to make a deal or work it from the inside. Ted has the classic Silver Age hero mind frame when dealing with these matters. When it comes to the crazy schemes he's more willing to bend the rules because he doesn't see it as crossing that line. Kooey Kooey Kooey was his idea and he thought that he knew what he was doing. No harm was meant. Working with the bad guys on any level takes him out of his element. Out of any type of control he thinks he has on the situation. 

Not so for Booster. Questionable means are part of his origin. He's more comfortable in morally grey area. It's literally part of his job now as he: lied to save Guys' life, got drunk on the job to save Superman, and at times steals to complete missions. Would he go as far as to kill someone? Not willingly, once he came close to doing so but he wasn't in the best of places emotionally. When confronted with Magog he is disgusted with how the demi-god deals with high risk situations. This raises all sorts of questions with how he is and will be dealing with being a Time Master.

Rip has tortured Jason/Rex to get information, Rex even told this to Booster, Michelle and Skeets. In Day Of Death Zatanna says that if Lex Luthor betrays them Rip can kill him which he seems okay with. Booster hasn't said anything about this but then again he doesn't know if any of this is true. Rex isn't the most reliable of guys and we never saw Rip try to kill Luthor. But if Rips' willing to do these things (still unclear on the kill part) then does that mean Booster will do them in the future? 

#1 The closest thing to this was when he let the bad guy believe his virus made him into a killer to scare him into getting the antidote.

DC Books I'm getting after the Reboot

Justice League International: I was already planning on getting this book since the first murmurs came out around the start of JLGL. Not really sure how it will work with the "new" members that are working along the core members. Plus Boosters' job as a Time Master interfering with his potential for leadership. I do like that he's going to be a big focus of the series although I would have preferred to keep his solo. We were 1 issue away from 50 (counting #0 and 1 million) ! 

Red Hood and the Outlaws: I like Jason Todd, Roy Harper and Kory so I was going to get this series regardless but Lobdells' interviews really got me excited. I'm a sucker for redemption stories, have been ever since I saw Star Wars ROTJ. He knows Kory is so happy because she survived the worst and loves being alive and free. How Roy is going to deal with his recovery from his addiction problems. Isn't going to have Jason obsess with his bat past like pretty much every writer has done since he returned. Scott Lobdell is good at character work, I remember getting a lot of X-books from him. Since a lot of us Jason fans want him more of an anti-hero than a bad guy it makes sense that a Marvel writer writes this. Because DC doesn't really do grey area too well. Can't see all of Korys' outfit but I like what I see of these designs save for Roys' hat (is that a cat on it?!)

Blue Beetle: I like Jaime and want to support him since I missed out on his first run. (Not counting his feature in the back of BG or the trade I got.) I would have loved to see him in JLI but I guess I can see the U.N. wanting adults on their team. I do want to see more of him and Booster bonding. Their relationship wasn't really fully formed but it had a special kind of bond I'd like to see explored. Great to see his supporting cast back.

Captain Atom: I'm on the fence about this but I'll get issue one to see if I'll stay on. I loved how Winick wrote Cap in JLGL and I'm curious what happened to him after his deal with Max. I don't really care for his new look (a sentiment I seem to be echoing for most of these redesigns.) Then there's the writer, the man infamous for having Roy fight with a dead cat. Mr. Krul did redeem himself a little in my eyes when briefly Damian joined the Teen Titans. I've read his interview, which seems to imply Cap is back (kinda wanted to see more time travel stories) and I'm not sure if I'll like seeing more stuck up superheroes. Krul phrased it better but having other heroes treating him bad because of what he is? After JLGL? Where we saw his heart, his struggles and how much the team cared about each other?

Not getting but interested in the news I heard about it:

Omac: Max and Checkmate are apparently going to show up. I'd like to see Max in JLGL but it's good to hear he'll be showing up in other places.

Height Difference

Yes, I'm basically writing about every aspect of my hobby. :P But I recently saw something that brought this topic to my attention. Now from what I remember off hand Booster Gold is 6'5", a pretty normal build for a football player. But a lot of artists don't take this into consideration when they draw. One of the reasons for this is because this height makes Booster taller than Batman and Superman. Interesting fact is that Ted and Pre-Crisis Rip were the same height (either 5' 10" or 5' 11") which is a noticeable different between them and Booster. Jurgens came up with Boosters' build (in fact it's on one of the covers of the first BG series.) I never saw Rips' post Crisis height but Jurgens draws him slightly shorter than Booster. During his JLA days he drew Ted noticeably shorter (he might have been shorter than Bea.)

What brought this on? A post I saw listing the "official" weights and heights of the bat family. (Yes I know I'm in a bit of a bat craze lately.) Tell me if something seems off about these:

Bruce Wayne - 6’2”, 210 lbs.

Dick Grayson - 5’10”, 175 lbs.

Jason Todd - 6’0”, 225 lbs.

Tim Drake - 5’5”, 115 lbs.

Damian Wayne - 5’4”, 140 lbs

Barbara Gordon - 5’7”, 126 lbs.

Cassandra Cain - 5’6”, 115 lbs.

Stephanie brown - 5’5”, 129 lbs.

Kate Kane - 5’10”, 142 lbs.

I know acrobats are supposed to have a slighter build but I never saw Dick being this short. In fact I recall reading somewhere else that Jason and him were the same height (two inches shorter than Bruce.) How is Jason heavier than Bruce?! I know art various but I've never seen him look as bulky as his mentor. Damian is one inch shorter than Tim at ten but weighs more? And I laughed far too hard at the image this created with Damian and Tim. 

The Reboot Timeline is confusing

Okay so the JLA was supposed to form 5 years ago in DCU. But what about JLI? Did that happen for a year? Overlapping during a period where another league was around? That doesn't seem possible since Max expanded the league in ways that hadn't been done before. Did JLGL take place three years after JLI? Is it just happening now? If so then how did Booster know Ted? What about JSA if their weren't any real "superheroes" if Batman was just known as a legend for years and the JLA was a big thing? That means that the Titans didn't happen, right? So no Starfire/Nightwing? Were all the titan kids (Robert Long, Lian Harper, etc.) never born? I'd like to ask if the 90s' never happen but I see Liefield is back so...

They said all the important things with Batman (Killing Joke, Death in the Family, etc.) happened. Snyder said that he thinks of Bruce as being 37 but thinks he'll be 33 in the reboot. Lobdell mentioned the Teen Titans being 16. If the batkids still have the same age gap (not counting Damain who they might keep 10) then Dick would be 23, Jason is 18 ( *1), Tim is 16, Steph and Cass are both 17. Of course Jasons' age does make me wonder if their retcon the Talia thing since he'd be 17 at the time. I've heard conflicting stories if Barbara will be deaged but she was older than Dick. 

*1 Originally Jason was 15 when he died (in Lost Years he mentions Bruce training him since he was at least 12) Tim started semi-shortly afterward at 13. To warn Cass that Steph was going down a dangerous path Bruce took her to Jasons' grave on his 18th birthday (Tim was 16 at the time.) But this gets confused, mainly because Loeb had Bruce state that Jason would be Dicks' age in Hush and Jim Lee (for some reason) gave Jason a streak of white hair. Since then people tend to forget that Jason is still a teenager.

Rejected Cover for Time Masters VP #6

Even though Darkseid never shows up in the series outside flashbacks of his encounter with Batman I really like this cover.

Booster Gold still has his mission

Recently Jurgens has confirmed a couple of things.

If Booster will still have his job as the "Greatest Hero you never heard of":

Jurgens: Booster will still regard protecting the time stream as a main aspect of his mission. However, the JLI will take up more of his time at the start. As for any individual plot threads that might carry over, time will tell.

Which means that Rip wasn't erased which makes me happy. I'd still love to have a couple scenes with JLI meeting Boosters' family and a special intro for them meeting Rip. I know he still has to keep his mission a secret but I want his teammates from JLGL plus Guy to meet Rip. Remember how eager Booster was to introduce Ted to him? Booster doesn't know it yet but he's proud of his kid. He did say Rips' pretty cool despite being strict.

The second thing was to address the new costume Booster has:

Jurgens: I like the look! Originally, we weren’t going to change it much, but we ended up with something that ties in very well with the end of our FLASHPOINT story. Jim Lee actually came up with the look, though I suggested a tweak or two.

Yeah, I don't agree because it doesn't say "Booster Gold" to me. The top is too cluttered. I shouldn't be reminded of the unappealing armor he used to wear. Besides, I will miss the golden pants. *sigh*

Why has no one told me of this?!

Rip Hunter was on Batman Brave and the Bold! RIP FREAKING HUNTER! Slight SPOILERS of course. I only saw clips but we have:

• Pretty sure this is the first time Rips' ever shown up in animation. With Booster too.
• Guy trying to hook up with Tora.
• Booster beating Jaime at a board game.
• Rip being a "time traveling team mate" of JLI
• Pirate Batman
• Rip looking far better than his Batman Brave and the Bold comic self.
• And best of all Rips' retort to Booster comment about being a time traveler and not knowing these things. "I'm a Time Master."  
  

I can't really see episodes of this show since I'm always working and the Silver Age silliness never really clicked for me. But this made me feel a little better after the rumors of Booster completely losing his time traveling plots and Rip either being erased or not his son anymore.

Booster Gold #45 and B/R #24

My LCS didn't have BG so I had to order online. 

Batman and Robin #24:

I love it when Winick or any writer actually shows what makes the characters tick. One of the strongest parts of Winicks' Jason Todd is the flashbacks from when he was younger that showcase why he thinks a particular way or what skills he was taught. Here Bruce tells him how to adapt and how to take control of the situation. Something Jason has been doing incredibly well during this arc. Batman and Robin on the other hard aren't fairing as well. While the lesson of adapting is repeated when Dick talks to Damian neither hero is as unpredictable as the Red Hood which seems to hinder their ability to go with the punches. Like when Dick hesitates when he's about to throw knock out gas at Jason. 

The leads don't shine quite as well as their "brother" here. Jason is defiant even when outnumbered, snarky but strangely honorable in regards to Dick and Damian. He could have used their arrival to sneak away for example. Unlike Daniels his re-creator knows that Jason would never let a child get hurt and saves Damian from harm. He's actually pretty nice to the kid and I could sort of see why. Tim directly replaced him, this kid is Talias', and he likes the spunk he sees in him. Damian comes off a lot weaker than last issue and feels very off. I think that this is the weakest of Winicks' Jason stories thus far but I'm not entirely sure why. Yeah the red hair makes it hard for me to see this guy as Jason but there's more to it. I'm guessing it's the Morrison things Winick is trying to mesh with his version.

Booster Gold #45:

I enjoyed this issue more than the last. There were a few surprises like who was controlling Doomsday and the lady he meets. The one that's likely the same woman on the cover of JLI#1. I thought the bit with him literally falling into bed with her was hilarious simply because it's probably the first time we've ever seen him in bed with anyone before. (Seriously he's had like three on panel kisses.) I loved the art in this and how vulnerable Booster looked. He's all by himself and worried, something that translates well and makes it more believable for Alexandra to trust him. Which is one of the things that draws me into Boosters' character: when his guard isn't up he can be so open, friendly, charming and sincere. It's very easy for him to attract people to him, something that's often forgotten or rarely used. Sure he got endorsements because he could sell anything but this is the side of him that Batman saw. This is the hero that can't hide how deeply he cares.

I like Alexandra so far and I'm looking forward to finding out more about her.  She must be a deep sleeper if the fight didn't wake her up until Booster arrived in her room. And yes, I could totally buy her and Booster being in a relationship. I liked the art detail of Booster carrying a backpack just because it makes sense for him to keep his hands free while taking Skeets with him. But the parts I loved the most were the touches Jurgens added to what Booster is capable of. It certainly answered my question on whether or not Booster was lying to Ted about his computer skills in CTIC (although I still believe he traded places just to get hit instead.) Jurgens could be acknowledging that story but I think this is one of the things he's always had in mind for the character. Booster Gold is able to hack into government files by himself without breaking a sweat. He's been taught how to detect temporal shifts through numbers by Rip. That pretty damn impressive. I love that in recent years writers have written Booster intelligently.

Curious to see where the problem started with this timeline and why only certain people remember. I'm not sure if I buy Boosters' thought on Rip not existing because of his own origin depending on Rip being around. Jurgens has been sneaky in interviews so who knows. 

A little Depressed about BG but interested in Red Hood

I'm really bummed out over the lack of Booster Gold news which translates to cancellation. It's more than a little depressing to think that all these characters are just going to disappear. I once heard that the reason Michelle was killed off was because no one was going to use any of the supporting characters in JLI or any other appearance. While Jurgens mentioned her and Skeets it was still rare to hear that he had a sister. Jurgens is the type that usually just tells the story that belongs in the book he's writing rather than drag stories from other books over. The closest I can recall to him using other plots in a different series was when he had an issue in Superman to get Booster into a new costume. I'm annoyed we'll lose Michelle, never got any real story for Rani, with Daniel and Rose remaining in limbo. Most of all I'll miss seeing/reading about Rip Hunter, who I was already fond of but grew to love in this series, the mini series and the Brave & the Bold issue. There's still so much left open and they were so close to issue #50.

I mean what happened? I read that Jurgens had plans for these characters while he was working on the Flashpoint tie ins. He planned to reveal Black Beetles' ID, to use Rani and a lot of other things. At first I wondered if Winick was going to write BG. I'm actually more upset that he's not writing anything JLI related than the fact he's not writing Red Hood and the Outlaws. His Batman and Robin Jason issues are okay but haven't really impressed me as much as his past Red Hood work. Maybe because he's trying to use the Morrison stuff and I think his Damian is a little off. I would obviously prefer to get more Jurgens written Booster Gold and a JLI series but that doesn't seem to be happening. I'm only getting two books for sure after the reboot. I'm considering Captain Atom, Blue Beetle, and maybe Batwoman. (Don't get me started on Steph and Cass going away or Babs reclaiming the role. Gah!) But at present I'm only committed to buying the two books with my favorite characters leading. JLI and Red Hood. 

I love Jason Todd and have no problem stating that. I have hated some stories they did because some writers simply can't write shades of grey. Tony Daniels who gleefully stated he made Jason "beyond redemption", the awful "Jason randomly become a blob tentacle monster" bit in Nightwing, and the weird stuff in Countdown that made the other heroes look like asses for always putting him down. Hopefully that's all retconned in the reboot. I did find Morrisons' confusing redheaded Jason that claims it's too late and Dick is his archenemy more than a little odd. Yeah he may not be thrilled with the guy he was forced to mimic but the whole point was trying to get Bruces' attention. And the redhead bit makes Bruce look more than a little creepy.

I love Roy and Kory, and yes I was a little worried that this was going the Slade Titan route until I read Scott Lobdells' interview. He's really good on the character interactions and wants these guys to help each other recover from their various traumas. That's pretty inspirational and not something I ever expected DC to do. I wonder if Cry for Justice is retconned because of Roys' arm. Hopefully this means Lian will be back. I'd love for her to return and for them to play with the idea of her bonding with Jason. Because Jason learned of her existence with Roy when he was Robin (long before Dick did) and Lian becomes Red Hood in Kingdom Come.

The Golden Rule: No Killing?

Some heroes have very clear lines they refuse to cross. Boosters' wasn't always as clear, mainly because of the way he presented himself. 

Granted I haven't read too much of Extreme Justice so that part wouldn't be mentioned. But it's fascinating to take a look at Boosters' stance on the subject. Back in his first series it came up twice. Both times Booster threatens to kill the villians although he never carries out on it. During his final showdown with the Director he claims that the only reason he won't is because he thinks a prison sentence is worse. While presumably (don't think they found a body) the Director does die it wasn't by Boosters' hand. Later on Booster has a run in with Cheshire that in it's self raises a lot of ideas of what he actually believes in. Cheshire doubted his heroics and her partner assumed Booster could be bought. When he makes the threat Cheshire doesn't buy it. Although she does make a deal to save the misguided hero Hawk for their freedoom.

Booster ended up destroying the same deadly virus Cheshire wanted. He is so enraged with Hawk stupidity in this affair that he makes the hero walk out in the desert with the bad guys. Booster was truly disgusted that they wanted to pay him for a virus that would murder innocent people but did threaten to throw Cheshire in it. I think that Booster played a little looser with the rules back then thinking that since people only knew one side of him they'd believe he'd make good on his promise. In recent years this has come up under a few different writers although his morals have never been explored as in depth as a character like Batman would be.

Jurgens has Booster berate Magog for endangering lives and maiming the guilty. He brings up how sloppy the approach was because Magog didn't search hard enough for the remaining hostages. Giffin and DeMatteis have an odd take by having Booster darkly considering killing Max in the past. Which seems to go against his characterization in JLGL, which Giffin helped co-wrote at the beginning.

A hot topic among fans was Boosters' talk with Captain Atom under Judd Winick when the latter hero considered using lethal force to end Maxs' threat. Winick has Booster taking the same approach as Jurgens on the issue. It's an interesting one because it calls into question not only Maxs' actions but indirecting Wonder Womans' for killing Max. It's a line in the sand they both have crossed but the JLI can't. I don't think Winick was following the line of thought that WW is in the wrong so much as saying it's wrong for the JLI to go that way because it's not who they are. In regards to Booster this comes into play later when Max berates him and others for not "making the hard choices."  Booster impulsively uses those words to motivate him into pushing Max with him off of the flying Checkmate base. But Max knows that if Booster can save a life he will and turns back on his flight abilities.

As individuals past and present members have taken lives. Guy Gardner has done so in Green Lantern Corps and has no problem doing it in the line of duty if there are no other options. Fire has killed as as spy, even noting that a lot of those kills were for the wrong reasons. If you include the retcon of Ice accidently killing with her powers only two members of of the core 6 JLI that we know for sure haven't taken lives. Three if the implications Gavril taking great care not to serious injury or kill are correct. 

The closest I'm aware of Booster coming close to taking a life was in Justice League Quarterly #10. Filled with self loathing Booster puts all his blame on his scandal on the sholders of the man who will start the family run power players behind Boosters' pay out/bookie past. Booster loses control and is stopped by Ted forcing him to own up to his faults. It's pretty interesting to see a hero agreeing with the no-kill rule but still cutting it close when his emotions are high.

Morrison writing the Time Masters

This section in TROBW makes me wince. Well a lot of these guys scenes do because let's face it, Morrisons' work doesn't really mesh well with other writers. He had a bunch of alien beings messing around with Vanishing Point like they were always there and Jurgens had to explain it in TMVP. While Morrison likely had no idea Jurgens meant to have Vanishing Point be Rips' childhood home it's still rather annoying that Rip would be surprised by it's uses. Even in other canon he's been around it since it's first appearance.  

Yeah, I get what Rips' trying to say about this time sphere being advanced but the phrasing doesn't really work given Rips' explorations of time. So yeah I kinda hate the idea that Batman, even by means of being one with an archive machine, being able to one up the freaking Time Master(s). Though I do find this page unintentionally hilarious because Hal isn't offered the job of piloting (or his "you haven't flown with me" pick up line.) And I love how thrilled Rip is to be in control because at heart he's a guy that loves the adventure. 

What does it mean for Booster?

I'm trying to stay cool and collected about this semi-reboot. I figured Booster wouldn't really be touched because he wasn't a Silver Ager. Plus he's one of the few characters that knows what's going on with the timeline. But for some reason they decided to redo his costume. But here's a little known artist tip: don't try to "fix" a look that isn't broken. This current one doesn't scream "Booster Gold." Look at Guy, that's the same look minus the hair that he had from the first JLI. It's iconic. It's like Kyles' mask, you see it and know it's Guy.

But beyond that I am nervous and confused for what this means for Boosters' title. Because certain places are already suggesting a cancellation but why didn't they do so before Flashpoint if that's the case? The title is reaching #50, it shouldn't go back to #1 or end if they made the effort to have it be the sole title to tie in to an event. Jurgens had plans for #50, we were supposed to finally get Black Beetles' ID. What's the point in him keeping Rani if he's never going to use her? If the awful rumors are true and DC are combining the two titles (this was assumed because Booster was prominent on the cover despite him being the leader in JLGL) then how can the Time Masters be featured in a book that already has such a big cast?

The New Justice League International?

SPOILERS BE HERE

Dc finally announced their new books and there were a few surprises. Captain Atom isn't part of the current team but has his own series. Not sure if I like the new look. While that isn't too shocking the news of the writer is. It's not Judd Winick nor the team of Giffin/DeMatteis. It's Dan Jurgens. And like I commented somewhere else recently Jurgens seems to be fond of Guy so he's back as well. A lot of the other members featured are a bit of a surprise for me because I thought they were keeping the six or so members for at least an arc. Besides Cap, Jaime also appears to be missing. Although Jurgens has commented that he likes the idea of Booster being his mentor.

Speaking of Booster...what IS up with his new uniform?! I can understand DCs' desire to connect with the live action tv appearance (goodbye golden pants, you were enjoyed) but what's with the top part? Yeah there aren't that many lines running through it but it reminds me of a tiger. Or NFL Superpro. Get rid of the gold around his neck and headpiece and it's fine. Although I do like that he's front and center on the cover. Wonder if he's still the leader considering his Time Master job and his creator is writing this. (Still annoyed with Vixen for her comments in BG 1 under Johns.)




Sorry Skeets, you should be used to being overshadowed by Booster by now.