Blue Beetle #5 Preview

[Hypo]

Blue Beetle #5 Preview / Spanish Preview
Writer: Josh Trujillo
Artist: Adrián Gutiérrez

[Thor-Ul]

I am not friendly to the idea of everything becoming magic. It is lazy.

[Frontier]

Victoria looking progressively shadier panel-after-panel. Should we really give her access to so much DC memorabilia?

[GamerSlyRatchet]

I have a feeling there will be a fake-out to Victoria's increased shady behavior, but her dismissal of Jaime's life doesn't help her case.

I like what they're doing with Blood Scarab, between him relying on corpses as hosts and him being Kha-Ef-Re. It makes him stand out more than just being an evil scarab. I also liked how old school the Dan Garrett flashback looked.

And yes, I noticed the nod in Rogers Stadium. Cute.

[protege]

So the original blue beetle, Dan Garrett had super powers?��

[Robotman]

So the original blue beetle, Dan Garrett had super powers?��

Yeah Dan had a lot of powers.

The original Fox Comics version took a serum called Vitamin 2X which gave him super strength. He was gradually given more powers and eventually got the ability to fly and had X-ray vision among a bunch of other powers that changed from issue to issue. Seemingly the writers’ only idea for selling comics was to give Blue Beetle more powers.

When Charlton Comics acquired the rights to Blue Beetle, Dan was given a new backstory. He was no longer a cop but an archaeologists who discovered the mystical scarab in a pyramid. The scarab became the source of his powers and gave him the ability to fly, shoot energy blasts, etc.

[Eskana]

I would like to know how/if they are going to implement "Sparky," Blue Beetle I's sidekick, now that he is in this universe. I just finished reading "Stargirl and the Lost Children" and so I'd love it if they somehow built him in.
Although it would probably make more sense to pair him with Ted than Jaime, since he probably didn't have any powers... maybe Ted could get a sidekick? Or Sparky and Rani could start forming some kind of JLI-Teen Titans lol

[Robotman]

Is it just me or is this one of the worst villain introductions ever? last issue the identity of Blood Scarab is revealed and it’s someone we’ve never heard of or been introduced to. So who cares? Then we get a strange backstory of a new scarab 5 issues in. Apparently there was 2 scarabs in the tomb? Sure what the hell.

It would have been a bit paint by numbers to have Victoria revealed to be the Blood Scarab but it would have been more interesting than what we’ve been given.

It would have made more sense too. Victoria has been making new weapons from Reach technology and she creates her own Beetle suit to take out Ted and Jaime.

[Eskana]

Is it just me or is this one of the worst villain introductions ever? last issue the identity of Blood Scarab is revealed and it’s someone we’ve never heard of or been introduced to. So who cares? Then we get a strange backstory of a new scarab 5 issues in. Apparently there was 2 scarabs in the tomb? Sure what the hell.

It would have been a bit paint by numbers to have Victoria revealed to be the Blood Scarab but it would have been more interesting than what we’ve been given.

It would have made more sense too. Victoria has been making new weapons from Reach technology and she creates her own Beetle suit to take out Ted and Jaime.

I kinda have to agree. I was so ready for Victoria to make a switch (which she probably still will) that I literally forget about Blood Scarab from issue to issue. After introducing Green and Yellow Beetles here, it really didn't help that the basically just made the bad guy yet another Beetle. Sure, he's more powerful and whatnot, but they should have done something more unique. Victoria being the villain, out to protect earth from all this new aggresive alien tech (or claiming to) would have made more sense and flowed better. Not to mention, since apparently we are no longer referencing a lot of El Paso stuff, she could essentially become a variation of La Dama, so we know at least that could work.

I don't want her to just become "Ted's evil sister" and would prefer something nuanced, but this Blood Scarab who is actually a pharaoh just seems basic "back from the dead to raise a curse upon you" bad guy, not really anything special, and he doesn't seem to bring anything that helps Jaime shine.