Blue Beetle Appreciation 2023!!!

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

I agree. It seems like so many heroes now have villains who are just palette swaps or have very slight differences. Also, I feel like we have already gone through this, too... although maybe I'm just thinking of the Young Justice show, which had two other Beetles, plus the Reach. Not to mention the comics already has Gold Beetle and Black Beetle (whose identity was FINALLY revealed just last year) both of him, if I'm being honest, are kind of odd because they have more in common and are more connected to Blue and Gold than they are to Jaime, who has all this outer space backstory. Adding another Yellow Beetle (not to be confused with Gold Beetle) and another Green Beetle (not to be confused with the one from the show) just seems tired.

Interchangeable mooks tend to uninspired. Superheroic comics are guilty of that and if we are to do more Reach villians, I rather they have a distinct gimmick.

[Vordan]

I’m loving Graduation Day, but if we get a follow up I agree that they need to put the Reach (and Reach related plots) on the backburner for a while.

[the illustrious mr. kenway]

Dan does have a rogues gallery on Wikipedia that they could update.

[Last Son of Krypton]

Some minor comic-book-y related infos (no major spoilers) for the Blue Beetle film from the past test screenings:

spoilers:

They seem to respect the history of these characters. Ted Kord is MIA, but he's very "present" during the film (his sister and daughter are even main characters, lol), his past as superhero is also acknowledged: when Ted Kord's daughter bring Jaime's uncle in Ted's secret HQ, there are both Garret and Kord's costumes in display, the weapons and bugship. She says Ted was a hero, comparing him to younger and contemporary heroes like Flash and Supergirl. Ted's bugship and weapons will be used to help Jaime later. Where is Ted is not revealed, it could be a mystery they are saving for an after credits scene or a potential sequel. The Supergirl's reference sets the film post-The Flash where she is introduced. Events related to Aquaman 2 are supposed to be in the news on TV but it seems some minor stuff very few noticed. Can't say for sure atm. Must be some small reference like the Intergang/Khandaq headline in Peacemaker. Superman is also referenced earlier in the film after Jaime gets his powers and the scarab brings him far away in the sky, he says he can fly like Superman and does a pose reminiscent of the one from Superman #1 (1939). The physical villain is a mix of 2 characters from the comics: Carapax and O.M.A.C. Victoria Kord has a henchman with a cybernetic arm, he has a tech armor like Carapax but it's called O.M.A.C. in the film, lol. Ted Kord being gone, O.M.A.C.,... these sound elements inspired by the era when Jaime was introduced... just swap Max Lord with Victoria Kord. The scarab can also talk with Jaime. Movie gonna be better than Venom for sure.

end of spoilers

[Factor]

I'm really enjoying the current mini! I'm not crazy about the Rainbow beetles, but the story itself has been really engaging, with great characterizations and awesome roles for Ted and Starfire.
And the art is absolutely perfect for a BB book. So energetic!

[Robotman]

Some minor comic-book-y related infos (no major spoilers) for the Blue Beetle film from the past test screenings:

spoilers:

They seem to respect the history of these characters. Ted Kord is MIA, but he's very "present" during the film (his sister and daughter are even main characters, lol), his past as superhero is also acknowledged: when Ted Kord's daughter bring Jaime's uncle in Ted's secret HQ, there are both Garret and Kord's costumes in display, the weapons and bugship. She says Ted was a hero, comparing him to younger and contemporary heroes like Flash and Supergirl. Ted's bugship and weapons will be used to help Jaime later. Where is Ted is not revealed, it could be a mystery they are saving for an after credits scene or a potential sequel. The Supergirl's reference sets the film post-The Flash where she is introduced. Events related to Aquaman 2 are supposed to be in the news on TV but it seems some minor stuff very few noticed. Can't say for sure atm. Must be some small reference like the Intergang/Khandaq headline in Peacemaker. Superman is also referenced earlier in the film after Jaime gets his powers and the scarab brings him far away in the sky, he says he can fly like Superman and does a pose reminiscent of the one from Superman #1 (1939). The physical villain is a mix of 2 characters from the comics: Carapax and O.M.A.C. Victoria Kord has a henchman with a cybernetic arm, he has a tech armor like Carapax but it's called O.M.A.C. in the film, lol. Ted Kord being gone, O.M.A.C.,... these sound elements inspired by the era when Jaime was introduced... just swap Max Lord with Victoria Kord. The scarab can also talk with Jaime. Movie gonna be better than Venom for sure.

end of spoilers

This all sounds really good.

spoilers:

I’m actually glad they’re going with the name OMAC instead of Carapax. It adds a lot of DC lore to the movie and “Blue Beetle vs OMAC!” as a finally battle sounds way more exciting. I hope mentioning Supergirl doesn’t doom this franchise for the reboot.

end of spoilers

[Frontier]

Some minor comic-book-y related infos (no major spoilers) for the Blue Beetle film from the past test screenings:

spoilers:

They seem to respect the history of these characters. Ted Kord is MIA, but he's very "present" during the film (his sister and daughter are even main characters, lol), his past as superhero is also acknowledged: when Ted Kord's daughter bring Jaime's uncle in Ted's secret HQ, there are both Garret and Kord's costumes in display, the weapons and bugship. She says Ted was a hero, comparing him to younger and contemporary heroes like Flash and Supergirl. Ted's bugship and weapons will be used to help Jaime later. Where is Ted is not revealed, it could be a mystery they are saving for an after credits scene or a potential sequel. The Supergirl's reference sets the film post-The Flash where she is introduced. Events related to Aquaman 2 are supposed to be in the news on TV but it seems some minor stuff very few noticed. Can't say for sure atm. Must be some small reference like the Intergang/Khandaq headline in Peacemaker. Superman is also referenced earlier in the film after Jaime gets his powers and the scarab brings him far away in the sky, he says he can fly like Superman and does a pose reminiscent of the one from Superman #1 (1939). The physical villain is a mix of 2 characters from the comics: Carapax and O.M.A.C. Victoria Kord has a henchman with a cybernetic arm, he has a tech armor like Carapax but it's called O.M.A.C. in the film, lol. Ted Kord being gone, O.M.A.C.,... these sound elements inspired by the era when Jaime was introduced... just swap Max Lord with Victoria Kord. The scarab can also talk with Jaime. Movie gonna be better than Venom for sure.

end of spoilers

That sounds pretty good .

spoilers:

OMAC sounds in-name-only though.

end of spoilers

[Last Son of Krypton]

That sounds pretty good .

spoilers:

OMAC sounds in-name-only though.

end of spoilers

Yeah...

This all sounds really good.

spoilers:

I’m actually glad they’re going with the name OMAC instead of Carapax. It adds a lot of DC lore to the movie and “Blue Beetle vs OMAC!” as a finally battle sounds way more exciting. I hope mentioning Supergirl doesn’t doom this franchise for the reboot.

end of spoilers

Current DC boss, Safran, is also producer of BB. If it's successful, I don't think being tied to another continuity will prevent to do a follow up. See Joker and The Batman.

[Robotman]

Despite having a movie on the way it still kinda seems like DC doesn’t care much for Jaime.

Yes, he currently has a mini series but it doesn’t feel like he’s part of their plans for the future. The current series is from a script that was written a while ago and lost in the Round Robin. It was on the shelf and they needed Blue Beetle content before the movie, so they just dusted it off and seemingly reworked it to include some movie synergy.

The Dawn of DC initiative is a pretty big indicator. It’s supposed to be about a renewed positive universe with focus on the next generation of heroes. Jaime would seem like a perfect candidate to be front and center for Dawn of DC but he was overlooked.

Aquaman, Shazam, and Flash all have movies coming out in 2023 and they were featured in the build up along with a lot of “next gen” heroes. But no Jaime.



You’d think they would do a YA book with him or something.

Who knows, maybe when we get the first teaser trailer they’ll start utilizing him more.

[Frontier]

Despite having a movie on the way it still kinda seems like DC doesn’t care much for Jaime.

Yes, he currently has a mini series but it doesn’t feel like he’s part of their plans for the future. The current series is from a script that was written a while ago and lost in the Round Robin. It was on the shelf and they needed Blue Beetle content before the movie, so they just dusted it off and seemingly reworked it to include some movie synergy.

The Dawn of DC initiative is a pretty big indicator. It’s supposed to be about a renewed positive universe with focus on the next generation of heroes. Jaime would seem like a perfect candidate to be front and center for Dawn of DC but he was overlooked.

Aquaman, Shazam, and Flash all have movies coming out in 2023 and they were featured in the build up along with a lot of “next gen” heroes. But no Jaime.



You’d think they would do a YA book with him or something.

Who knows, maybe when we get the first teaser trailer they’ll start utilizing him more.

I wouldn't take his absence on the teaser to mean we won't get more Jaime, at least.

[Last Son of Krypton]

I assume he'll get some more appearances in comics around the movie release. He could also join the new Titans, who knows.

[Eskana]

Despite having a movie on the way it still kinda seems like DC doesn’t care much for Jaime.

Yes, he currently has a mini series but it doesn’t feel like he’s part of their plans for the future. The current series is from a script that was written a while ago and lost in the Round Robin. It was on the shelf and they needed Blue Beetle content before the movie, so they just dusted it off and seemingly reworked it to include some movie synergy.

The Dawn of DC initiative is a pretty big indicator. It’s supposed to be about a renewed positive universe with focus on the next generation of heroes. Jaime would seem like a perfect candidate to be front and center for Dawn of DC but he was overlooked.

Aquaman, Shazam, and Flash all have movies coming out in 2023 and they were featured in the build up along with a lot of “next gen” heroes. But no Jaime.



You’d think they would do a YA book with him or something.

Who knows, maybe when we get the first teaser trailer they’ll start utilizing him more.

I think this is a good point. Yes, Jaime fits the bill of "younger diversity character" and is probably the most prominent Latino character DC has, but especially with DC studios' future up in the air, I bet they're waiting to see how the movie does before commiting any time to Jaime. After all, even if he is young, they will probably want to stick to more recognizable and newer legacy characters.
I've never understood why they didn't spend more time on Jaime though and try to make him more important. He's a likeable character who is actually well-liked, feels organic (not shoe-horned in for diversity points,) and is a legacy character who is completely different from his predecessor. He's been around long enough to have fans and has been featured on at least three shows. I just don't get why they don't include him more.

[El_Gato]

Blue Beetle is officially a part of the new DCU, and we’re getting a Booster Gold show! I wonder if they’ll set that up with a end credit scene

[Robotman]

Blue Beetle is officially a part of the new DCU, and we’re getting a Booster Gold show! I wonder if they’ll set that up with a end credit scene

”…And I think that we've gotten lucky with the next four movies, frankly, because we have 'Shazam!,' which leads into 'Flash,' which resets everything. Which then goes to 'Blue Beetle,' which is totally disconnected, he can totally be a part of the DCU."

I was pretty nervous there for a minute but it sounds like Blue Beetle could continue if the first movie is successful.

[El_Gato]

”…And I think that we've gotten lucky with the next four movies, frankly, because we have 'Shazam!,' which leads into 'Flash,' which resets everything. Which then goes to 'Blue Beetle,' which is totally disconnected, he can totally be a part of the DCU."

I was pretty nervous there for a minute but it sounds like Blue Beetle could continue if the first movie is successful.

Definitely seems that way! So let’s hype up Blue Beetle and make sure it’s a success!