This weeks “Did You Know”

Character Profile: Blue Beetle, Booster Gold’s buddy Here we are for the third Back Issue Thursday at Line-Art Comics!

This week, we will be looking at one long standing and almost forgotten super hero: Blue Beetle.

In these character profiles, we try to touch on early super-heroes/characters that may not be at present day forefront, but have definitely shaped the “super hero” scene.

I want to shed some light on who may have been one of the first comic book super-heroes, along side Superman.

The original Dan Garret was created by Charles Nicholas Wojtowski, and started inMystery Men Comics #1 In August 1939 (produced by the Fox Feature Syndicate comic company). This makes Blue Beetle one of the earliest super-heroes ever. The original Blue Beetle was Daniel Garret, however there have been at least five different incarnations of the Dan Garret/Garrett character.

At first, Blue Beetle had no powers. He fought crime dressed in a suit, fedora and mask. He looked very similar to the Green Hornet, in fact, that was the problem. As a result, his look was changed as well as his story. He eventually ended up looking like the Phantom, and the Green Hornet costume was never explained.

Blue Beetle was very popular in the late 1930’s and 40’s. The first Blue Beetle comic lasted sixty issues, not to mention his appearances in Mystery Men Comics. This was very rare for its time and it is still rare for a self-titled super-hero comic book to last that many issues. No other Blue Beetle had a series last that long. He even had his own radio show! It should also be mentioned that Fox Feature Syndicate made Blue Beetle one of the Big 3, which were Blue Beetle, Samson and The Flame. They even had their own comic for a very short time called The Big 3.

Ted Kord Ted Kord as the Blue Beetle. Art by Dick Giordano.

The replacement of Blue Beetle, created by Charlton Comics and later published by Americomics and DC Comics, is Ted Kord, a former student of Dan Garrett, a genius-level inventor and a gifted athlete. Kord and Garrett were investigating Kord’s Uncle Jarvis when they learned Jarvis was working to create an army of androids to take over Earth. Garrett changed into Blue Beetle, but was killed in battle. As he died, he passed on to Kord the responsibility of being Blue Beetle, but was unable to pass on the mystical scarab. Ted had the scarab for some time, but never used it. He carried it during the Crisis on Infinite Earths when he was chosen by the Monitor to protect the multiple Earths, but it only reacted when he was attacked; it did not give him superpowers.

During the Death of Superman saga, Blue Beetle and the other JLA members tried to stop Doomsday’s path of destruction. Doomsday displayed his near-invulnerability, and while brutally defeating the League, put Blue Beetle into a coma. Upon recovery, he continued his tenure with the JLA as well as its offshoot, Extreme Justice.

Blue Beetle discovered a renewed Checkmate organization led by Maxwell Lord, with a database containing information on every meta-human on Earth. He was captured and executed with a single gunshot to the head. Before dying, he had used the scarab in an attempt to contact Captain Marvel, but was forced to leave it with Shazam in the Rock of Eternity when the wizard sent him back to Earth.

Some time later, Booster, along with Jaime, Dan, and the Black Beetle in the guise of a Blue Beetle from the future, travels back in time to rescue Kord moments before his death.

First Appearance: Captain Atom #83 – The Defeats Of Captain Atom! November 1966 (script and art by Steve Ditko)

Jaime Reyes (most modern Blue Beetle)

Jaime Reyes was a teenager who lived in El Paso, Texas, with his father, mother, and little sister. His father owned a garage and his mother was a nurse. Jaime offered to help his father out at the garage, but his father turned him down. He felt Jaime should enjoy his childhood for as long as he can, and should attempt to further his education. He found the scarab in a vacant lot and it fused with him while he slept. After Booster Gold revealed Jaime’s new powers to him, Jaime was swept up in the climactic battle with Brother Eye during Infinite Crisis. He later becomes a member of the Teen Titans, and was good friends with Rose Wilson (Ravager), Robin, Static, and others. In Teen Titans Vol. 3, #83, he took a break from the team to be with his mother.

Jaime had a girlfriend, the young sorceress Traci 13, who got along well with Jaime’s family. His large and loving family was a major source of strength and guidance for Jaime. Both Peacemaker and Doctor Mid-Nite were kind and wise mentors for the young Blue Beetle.

Jaime co-starred along with the rest of the former Justice League International in Justice League: Generation Lost.

Jamie Reyes First Appearance not as Blue Beetle: Infinite Crisis #3 – Divine Intervention

Following DC’s Flashpoint event, Blue Beetle was one of 52 monthly titles launched in September 2011, again starring Jaime Reyes. The series was cancelled after 17 issues in January 2013.

Mystery Men Comics (August 1939) 4 page Blue Beetle story “The Coming of the Blue Beetle”