Black Beetle

Not much is known about the man called the Black Beetle. Within the ranks of the Time Stealers he pretended to be a future Blue Beetle from the 27th century that offered Booster Gold a chance to save his friend Ted Kord. Whether the Time Stealers themselves were fooled by him is questionable as Mr. Mind assumed he was a man named Joshua. Whenever Black Beetle shows up deception can be assured as his supposed origin changes during each appearance, sometimes within a few minutes of the last telling. Even his goals are elusive as he mislead Rip Hunter and Booster Gold to gain more power with the mysterious Red Scarab. 

Since then he seems to be searching for more scarabs to make himself a greater force to be reckoned with.

Powers: Since the Black Beetles' origins aren't known whether he actually has a scarab from the Reach like the one Jaime Reyes has isn't clear. In one of the tales he spins he states that he murdered Hector, a former tech support friend of Jaimes' who had taken such a scarab named "Djo Zha." When Hector said that was his name a woman mistakenly referred to him as "Joshua." As Black Beetle was known to Mind by this name it suggest he knows the origin and perhaps has the scarab. So far he's only been shown flying, time traveling and blasting energy. It should be noted that the energy was enough to fry Beatriz da Costa (Fire) in one timeline. Without the Red Scarab he needs to leech constant chronal energy for time travel jumps. With it he claims that he won't have difficulties anymore.     

Identities Black Beetle has claimed: That he was a future Blue Beetle from the 27th century. "Joshua." "Jaime Reyes' greatest enemy" who vowed vengeance after Jaime took her away from him. Hector. Jaime' future self.

Allies: He has used associates he has worked with such as the Time Stealers, T.O. Morrow, Trigon and Lex Luthor to get what he wants. Black Beetle has shown loyalty to no one.

Enemies: Jaime Reyes (Blue Beetle 3) and Booster Gold have fought against him. Neither one faired well as he managed to outmaneuver both of them. Although he blindsided Rip Hunter as well Hunter was the only one who was able to catch Black Beetle by surprise and stopped him from killing his intended victims. 

First Appearance: Booster Gold #4 Vol.2 (In silhouette) and BG #5 Vol. 2 (full view.)

Konstanin Vyronis

Konstanin Vyronis was one of the original twelve chosen to be part of a group of time travelers that would become the Goodfellows' Troupe. When his ambition and greed lead to the death of three of their members he was to be exiled and his only method of travel (his Keystone) broken. Vyronis however escaped his punishment to continue to work on his own plans. He employed Walker Gabriel to acquire various items he needed and in doing so caught the unwanted attention of the Linear Authority. Luckily for him Walker received the blunt of that attention. With his goal of power in sight he found a woman named Fiorella de Ravenna that shared his passions. Together they schemed to make his vision a reality. He told her much of the future promising to take her there once he obtained the power he desired.  

Not caring for morals he tried to appeal to Walkers' selfish nature. But much like his former teammates Vyronis was curious with how Walker could use any of the Goodfellows' Troupes' keystones. His actions proved to be a major motivator for the hero and unintentionally changed the mans' already chaotic life further.  

What Happened to him?: His story does take different twists and turns. One timeline has him receiving ultimate power much to Walkers' regret. Another has the attention he shifted onto Walker with the Linear Authority falling back on him. 

First Appearance: Chronos #1

Mr. Mind

 

The sole survivor of his race of Venus mind-worms Mr. Mind set his sight on Earth. Extremely intelligent the two inch alien usually was able to carry out his nefarious plans through his aptly named origination the Monster Society of Evil. Usually he is underestimated because of his small stature a trait that he capitalizes on. A small electronic device Mind uses makes it possible for his voice to be heard.

Through a series of experiments done by Dr. Sivana Minds' body began to change, a year long process that evolved him into a Hyperfly with the intent to feed off the 52 alternate Earths. Though he was stopped Mind harbored a grudge against those that defeated him forming a new band of allies to fight against his newest foes.

Abilities: Able to spin very fast and strong silk. Controls minds by entering a persons' ear. In his cocoon state he was able to absorb the Phantom Zone. As a Hyperfly he could feed off of time it's self. Can asexually reproduce in both forms. 

Enemies: Formally his greatest rivals were the Marvel Family, and Dr. Sivana. He's fought his fair share of heroes including the JSA. Now he fights against the Time Masters, specially Booster Gold.  

Where is he now?: Let's just say another bug didn't agree with him. Most of his childrens' status is uncertain at present. One of them showed it's self to Lex Luthor while trying to control him, explaining why it is and isn't Mr. Mind.

Per Degaton

Per Degaton has a complex backstory. Yes, I know that it's shocking to hear that a time traveler has a confusing origin so I'm going to attempt to make this as basic as I can. Degaton was an assistant in a group of scientists called the Time Trust during World War 2 that were attempting to find a means for bomb defenses in the future to help the war effort in their time. The Justice Society of America went 500 years into the future and returned with the formula to produce such defenses. Enraged and jealous of the JSA Degaton sabotaged the formula before abandoning the Time Trust. 

Obsessed with time travel Degaton had many run ins with heroes before coming in contact with a robot from the future named Mekanique. She helped him learn more of his passion. During their first five years together her body was crushed leaving only her head. Spending time together the two fell in love. (Don't you love comics?) Professor Malachi Zee, like Degaton a former member of the Time Trust, worked with the two to create a time machine. In one of the many ironic twists in his life Degaton aims to kill Zee unintentionally sending him 40 years into the future in a time machine he intended to use for his own purposes. Mekanique suggested they wait for it to reappear which drove Degaton over the edge to the point where he buried her head. 

The moment that's retconned: Originally Degaton carries on with his dastardly plans living out most of the next 40 years behind bars. Once he's out he reconstructs Mekanique and he battles the Infinity Inc. in the same spot that the Zee time machine disappeared where it soon reappears. A dying Zee comes out along with a Chronal Duplicate of Degaton made when he attempted to stop the time machine from leaving. The old Degaton commits suicide rather than return to jail and Mekanique gets her revenge by killing the double. In the retconned version the duplicate tries to change his fate prior to these events only to return to relive the same moment in a time loop when he is defeated. He recalls all these failures each time he returns to the same moment.

Accepting that on some level that he will never win against the JSA Degaton existed as a non-linear ghost like being that repeatedly watched his enemies dying taking pleasure in witnessing their pain. He lives "between the seconds" as an ageless eternal being thanks to his Time Disk which he sometimes uses to travel. Tachyons like the ones found in Hourmans' hourglass are able to get him out of his intangible state. Degaton has been able to break the pattern of the time loop since aquiring the time disk to watch more of his foes suffering.

Team Ups: The original worked with the Time Trust, and Mekanique. The duplicate has genetically advanced soldiers from the year 2666 called the Red Morgue that he uses as his own personal assassins. He has also teamed up with other time displaced villains to form the Time Stealers.

Enemies: He has an intense hatred for the JSA and his biggest rival in time travel appears to be Rip Hunter who Mr. Mind promised he could personally kill.

A/N: Because of the long history involved I have decided to only write about the Time Stealers that have previous history in time travel, i.e. Mr. Mind and Black Beetle. 

The Time Stealers

To bring about the end of the Time Masters so they can truly command the time line Mr. Mind joined forces with other villains to form a group called the Time Stealers. Taking matters into their own hands they destroy anyone that gets in their way and do anything they can to get Booster Gold to quit his role as Time Master. Mind informed them that their usual method of killing enemies won't work with Gold. The reason for this was never told only that he could not realize his destiny or that of his line.

The members of the Time Stealers are: 

Mr. Mind: (Not Shown) A two inch Venus worm that previous became a Hyperfly only to have his plans for the 52 stopped by Booster Gold, Rip Hunter and Daniel Carter.

Despero: Plucked from time shortly after his first battle with the Justice League, before he mutated.

Supernova 3: Taking the uniform Rip Hunter created from it's newest user (Daniel Carter), Jon Carter the father of Booster Gold became the third Supernova. Acting the part of a villain instead of a hero, Jon a con man through and through,attempted to disillusion his son.   

Maximillon: A vastly upgraded version of Booster Golds' robot buddy Skeets, the self proclaimed enemy of the droid. 

Degaton: A time traveler that fights the Justice Society of America hailing from the 1940s'. 

Ultra-Humanite: taken from his days fighting Infinity Inc. when he was in the form of an ape.

Black Beetle: Not much is known about the Black Beetle. His own tales of his origin change with each telling. Thus far he has claimed to be a Blue Beetle from the 27th century,Hector (a former friend of Blue Beetle 3/Jaime Reyes), Jaimes' greatest enemy and a future version of Jaime Reyes. Needless to say he's not the most trustworthy of guys. 

Jason Goldstein/Rex Hunter:(Not shown)A former member that the rest of the team decided posed too much of a risk once he was captured by Rip Hunter.

Lady Chronos

Jia seemed like the girl of Ryan Chois' dreams but in the end she chose to marry the jock instead of the socially awkward Ryan. Upon hearing that her dead husband Alvin was stalking as a zombie Ryan offered his assistance only to learn that she wasn't as innocent as he assumed. Little did he know that Jia was responsible for him becoming the fourth Atom in a plot to ruin the reputation of Ray Palmer. Forming a partnership with David Clinton she took the name Lady Chronos. The two became lovers though Clinton did have his doubts of her loyalty having seen possible futures with her deception revealed.

In trying to recruit an unaware Ryan into joining her in a possible future where she ruled all of the timeline Jia showed her hand too soon. Her future self sent a message that warned her past self of the threat Ryan posed and Clintons' scheming against her. Jia seemed to know Booster Gold who she called by his real name when he arrived to assist the lost hero. Later the Chronos couple showed up as part of the Starro threat against Time Masters. Having no other option Booster agreed to let her go after she helped him and owe her a favor of her choosing. When the crisis was over Booster who had never met her before (though she was already familiar with him) wanted to know her story. Jia used her wiles again making yet another bold statement that they were lovers in her time. Rip Hunter angrily told her that he would never permit that to happen. She kissed Booster much to Chronos' annoyance saying it was just insurance. How much if any is true has yet to be revealed.

Powers: Lady Chronos has an ability she calls Void Time that freezes the victims body making it impossible for them to move much less defend themselves. How she came by these powers, whether they are natural or a product of her costume has never been stated. She likely can not time travel without the Time Watch both her and David Clinton use though she can open portals through time. 

Her future?: Jia has told many stories of how things will play out. She has said that David Clinton will be/was her husband, that she still cared for Ryan, that Booster and her were together, etc. Not everything is clear with her, like her referring to Dwarfstar, a fake Atom like hero, as her first born. Whether he is in fact her son is questionable at best. What is known is that at some point in time she will gain control over the timeline only to have Booster Gold and an Atom rebel. Her body was found with Ryans' future corpse appearing to have stabbed him while he strangled her.

Chronos 1: David Clinton

David Clinton started off his criminal career in pretty simplistic terms as a thief content with revolving his crimes around time themes. Sundial crossbows, spring weapons, everything focused on his passion. In those early days his only great foe was the second Atom, Ray Palmer. Over the years Clinton even joined many teams such as the Secret Society of Super Villains,  the Crime Champions, the Injustice Gang and others. Desiring to have actual control over time Clinton was one of the many super villains to agree to sell their souls for an exchange from the demon Neron. He gained the ability to time travel at will but failed to realize that the deal wasn't fair. Soon it became apparent that he was rapidly aging and becoming out of sych of reality. Clinton made several attempts to save himself including leeching the youth from fellow travelers. Before he could fade out of existence he becomes a mentor of sort to Walker Gabriel in his endeavors to research and thefts based on his own displacement suit.

After he was legally declared dead more of his personality was shown. The man was a pack rat collector who had the worst luck with women, already having two ex-wives to prove that point. The latter being a trait that would lead him to his partner/lover the woman that would later be referred to as Lady Chronos. For reasons that were never entirely clear Clinton (one version of him at least) returned from his apparent grave to led Ryan Choi to become the fourth Atom when Ray Palmer went missing. To embarrass the legacy of his foe but in a possibly future it is implied that he undermined Lady Chronos to ensure that she was stopped by messing with Ryans' life.

Current Status: Given how often his story changes it's hard to say. He faded away until Lady Chronos came into the picture. In a future where she rules the entire timeline Clinton is a living statue next to her throne. She comments that he cheated death many times "eventually he had to learn that time doesn't heal all wounds." Of course this claim is at odds with her later statement that she "collared" him herself.

Rex Hunter Version 1

When Booster Gold #4 Vol 2. was released the character of Rex Hunter was first introduced claiming to be a former Time Master. This left more than a few readers looking on wikipedia to see if Geoff Johns was putting in an obscure character from the Silver Age. But no, we find out everything there is to know about him from Rip Hunter himself when Booster asks if the two are related. His real name is in fact Jason Goldstein, a man that never thought much of the rules of time travel claiming he could do a better job. Rex was kicked out of the Time Masters after attempting to push a ten year old Lex Luthor onto the railroad tracks. The butterfly effect of the act made certain that billions of lives were later lost since Connor Kent/Superboy wasn't cloned. 

Impatient, Rex isn't one to think of his actions in the greater scheme of things more focused on a short sighted end goal. He doesn't see things that way claiming that Rip isn't nearly as smart as he thinks he is. To enact his revenge Rex got rid of the Time Masters (stating that he killed Bonnie himself) except Rip Hunter whos' true identity he could never discover. Unfortunately for Rex bragging was yet another rule he broke. This would later prove how he overestimated his value to the rest of the Time Stealers once he was captured by Rip. They decided to kill his infant self in his crib to prevent him from talking. The results weren't what they were expecting. 

My take: Personally I liked the addition of Rex to the Time Masters mythos. He shows how important it is that you have the right people in charge of such an important mission. While he doesn't think of himself as a bad guy his stubborn refusal to listen to his teacher feels very true to life. I'm an art student so I've come across (and been a little) like this myself. There are little things about the character that aren't revealed but are hinted at in the story. Jason seemed to be more than a little obsessed with Rip to the point that he chose for his new identity to be as close to his as possible. Rip refers to him as a kid though it's apparent that Rex is an adult. I don't see Rip as the sort to randomly call people kid that aren't as well versed in something as him. This leads me to assume that Rex was a younger age (likely a teen like Corky) when he was a student.

First Appearance: Booster Gold Vol. 2 #4 

Why I started this blog and Hayden Glass

I'm a big Booster Gold fan and I have a fondness for time travel stories. While reading it I was curious about things that turned up in the book. People who are mentioned such as the Linear Men (who I have a vague understanding of) and the original Time Masters who I know from their mini series. But how do they fit? How does the Flash use an exercise machine to travel through time? There weren't many answers to be found when I searched on the web. So I decided to make a guide of sorts to the DC Universes' Time Travel. 

I thought about what to do my first article about. Having Booster Gold or Rip Hunter would be natural choices but I wanted to have do something on a little known series from the 90's called Chronos. The title character Walker Gabriel was part of the new generation of legacy characters much like Kyle Rayner (in fact the Tattoo Man ponders out loud how trendy this is becoming in the book it's self.) Unlike the rest Walkers' a little different neither a villain like his name sake David Clinton nor a hero in a true sense. But more on him later.

The book Chronos was rich with potential. Introducing new concepts, devices, and intriguing characters. Hayden Glass was one of these characters. Glass was a psychotic serial killer known as the Justice League Killer from the 22nd century. He had a disturbing obsession with superheroes that he used in his murders. Walker was unlucky enough to catch him in the middle of one of his killing sprees.

See his first word there? "Don't you know you can't buy a hero? No, a hero never does anything for money." This is the perfectly scary type  of guy to put Booster up against, plus we'd get to see how he'd react  with a real league member. .  

Glass may not be that powerful of a meta, only being able to shape shift his face here, but he's ruthless and persistent. This is the sort of man you don't want getting his hands on a time  machine because you know he would make huge waves if he came to DCU present. When pressed by a desperate Walker to reveal his origins (and to stall for time) Glass makes a claim that's never entirely disputed.   

Cadmus later claims that Glass is a project of theirs that is put into cryogenics for safe keeping.  Walker notes that Glass is so obsessed with the heroes of the league that he will not bother killing them without playing the role. He makes an acceptation later in his life when he seeks revenge on Walker. Hayden Glass has two different fates in Chronos and to the best of my knowledge has not been seen outside the series.

First Appearance: Chronos#1, Chronos 2 linearly first meets Glass in Chronos #7.