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.