Convergence: Blue Beetle #2 (July 2015)

Tags

Andromeda, Apparition, Blue Beagle, Blue Beetle, Brainiac 5, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Catspaw, Chameleon, Chip Kidd, Colossal Boy, Computo, Cosmic Boy, Dave McCaig, Dick Giordano, Element Lad, Ferro, George Pérez, Inferno, Invisible Kid, Karate Kid, Kid Quantum, Leviathan, Live Wire, Saida Temofonte, Saturn Girl, Scott Lobdell, Sensor, Spark, Star Boy, The Question, Timber Wolf, Ultra Boy, Wildfire, Yishan Li

“Legion of Doom!”

• Writer:  Scott Lobdell
• Pencils & Inks:  Yishan Li
• Colors:  Dave McCaig
• Letters:  Saida Temofonte
• Cover Artists:  Chip Kidd, George Pérez, Dick Giordano

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(You’ve been warned.)

So this is the exciting conclusion to the Earth-4 heroes’ Convergence adventure.  It was better that Cap’s last “battle” in Convergence: Justice League International #2.  This time around he was a little more than just a punching bag.  And I really like the dynamic between Blue Beetle, the Question, and Captain Atom.  I would totally read an Earth-4 series with these three as the primary characters.

This issue opens with a quick reintroduction of the characters.  And I immediately have something to pick at.

Captain Atom is identified as “Nathaniel Adams.” Now, the Charlton Captain Atom’s name was Allen Adam, but I didn’t so much mind the retconning of him to Nathaniel.  After all, the Nathaniel Adam version of the character was my favorite.  But “Adams?”  It was revealed in the last issue that his last name was “Adam!”  See the panel below from Convergence: Blue Beetle #1:

I would love to be DC Comics’ “Captain Atom Fact Checker.”  Heck, I’d do it for free.  I enjoyed this issue and would really like to see more, but that was a little sloppy.  I know it could be worse.  These things happen.  The superhero Breach was once referred to as “Major Adams” (he was originally conceived as a reboot of Captain Atom).

On a downtown Hub City rooftop, the Legion of Super-Heroes descends from the sky to meet with Blue Beetle, the Question, and Captain Atom.  The three Hub City heroes climb atop Beetle’s Bug to meet with them.  The Legionnaires do not come out swinging though.  Cosmic Boy introduces them politely and asks which of the three is their leader.

After naming himself leader, Blue Beetle demands that the Legion surrender.  Cosmic Boy declines, saying he has no fear that the three Hub City heroes can take the Legionnaires.

Beetle electrifies the hull of the Bug to slow down the Legion while he, Cap and the Question jump inside.  Onboard, Tracy reveals that she has hacked into the Legion’s flight rings and has gathered tons of data on them.  Cap says he’s uncomfortable with a civilian like Ted Kord having this kind of tech but the Question shuts him up.

The Bug lurches, knocking them all off their feet.  Colossal Boy has grown to the size of one of the neighboring buildings and is shaking the ship.  Andromeda tries to stop him, but the Bug vanishes from Colossal Boy’s hands, teleporting about a mile away to another rooftop.  Their arrival is observed by a stray dog.

I’m wondering, did Blue Beetle always have this advanced tech?  I know he’s supposed to be super smart, but I don’t recall his ship teleporting. And if he had the technology to teleport objects, why did he even need the Bug?

Beetle tells his partners to keep the Legionnaires of his back for six minutes while he cooks something up.

The Legionnaires continue to search Hub City for its three heroes.  They seem split on the task at hand.  No one really wants a fight, but Telos has warned them that the losers’ cities will be destroyed and to not fight is to lose.  Brainiac 5 is confident the Legion can take on the other heroes.  He says only Captain Atom has real “powers,” and he is essentially raw energy.  Of course, Brainiac is wrong, and soon learns it when Cap blinds the Legion with some sort of light blast (new power?) and plows into them.

Cap blasts Cosmic Boy with a burst of energy.  Andromeda goes after Cap, but is knocked back by Chameleon (who seems to be bouncing off buildings for some reason).  Invisible Kid takes Cap from behind and grabs him as Ferro and Star Boy swoop in.

Back on the Bug, Beetle is reading up on a group of Legionnaires, hoping he has found the right ones for his plan.  Tracy tries to shoo away the stray dog (who has now boarded the ship), but Beetle decides to adopt him.

The Question takes on Brainiac 5 (no longer blinded) and seems to defeat him with a riddle.  Karate Kid asks the Question what he’s done to Brainiac.  I wonder, am I the only one who sees a missed opportunity here?  Karate Kid ends up fighting Earth-4 Charlton characters, but Judomaster is not among them?  How coold would that have been?  I mean, it seems like a no-brainer to me.

And just what the heck did the Question do to Brainiac 5?

Saturn Girl, Sensor, and Computo board the Bug.  Their Legion flight rings led them to Beetle’s hiding place.  Beetle tells them he needs the three of them for his plan.  They say it is crazy, but is it crazy enough to work?

Outside, Cap is facing off against Cosmic Boy, Andromeda, and Colossal Boy.  It looks as if this battle will soon be over for Captain Atom.

Just then, Hub City is hit by an earthquake.  In a matter of seconds the city is decimated.  All the heroes are seriously bummed out by this unexpected turn of events.

The Hub City heroes and the Legionnaires board the Bug, where they make a shocking discovery.  Looking outside the Bug’s windows, Hub City appears standing tall and suffering no damage.  Beetle reveals that he, Saturn Girl, Sensor, and Computo used their powers to make Hub City appear destroyed to the outside world.  This way Telos thinks he got his winner and the heroes can focus on teaming up to defeat him.

I really enjoyed this comic.  After the let-down of Convergence: Justice League International #2, I was not expecting much from this issue.  I was pleasantly surprised.  Not only did Captain Atom have a nice juicy role, but Blue Beetle got to show off his brains.  And the Question was there.

Okay, so the Question didn’t do much, but I like seeing him in action with Cap and Beetle.

I liked this story. It was clever and cute (particularly Blue Beagle).  And I really like Yishan Li’s style.  I wish this was an ongoing series.  I give this issue an A.

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off this blog.)

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Convergence #8 (July 2015)

Tags

Andy Kubert, Barbara Gordon, Batman, Blue Beetle, Brad Anderson, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Carlo Pagulayan, Dick Grayson, Dr. Fate, Eduardo Pansica, Ethan Van Sciver, Green Lantern (Alan Scott), Green Lantern (Guy Gardner), Green Lantern (John Stewart), Jason Paz, Jeff King, Jill Thompson, John Romita Jr., John Starr, Judomaster, Nightshade, Peacemaker, Peter Steigerwald, Scott Hanna, Scott Lobdell, Stephen Segovia, Supergirl, Superman, The Flash, The Question, Tomeu Morey, Tony S. Daniel, Travis Lanham

“Last Stand”

• Writers:  Jeff King, Scott Lobdell
• Pencils:  Stephen Segovia, Carlo Pagulayan,Eduardo Pansica, Ethan Van Sciver
• Inks:  Jason Paz, Scott Hanna, Trevor Scott,Stephen Segovia, Ethan Van Sciver
• Colors:  John Starr, Peter Steigerwald
• Letters:  Travis Lanham
• Cover Artists:  Andy Kubert, Brad Anderson, Tony S. Daniel, Tomeu Morey, Jill Thompson, John Romita, Jr.

Going into Convergence, I said I was going to wait until it was over to review it.  As Captain Atom’s role in the actual mini-series was limited, I decided not to.  Besides, as a kid I was always told if I couldn’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.  And I’ve found very little “nice” to say about this series.  I understand what DC Comics was doing here but I didn’t like it.  From 1935 – 1985, the DC Universe was never “rebooted.”  Since 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths, we’ve had Zero Hour, Final Crisis, Flashpoint, and now Convergence.  Why are they so trigger-happy with that reset button?  I’ve decided I’m done with DC for a while.  If they bring back Captain Atom or Firestorm, I’ll buy them.  But that might not ever happen (however, if the Legends of Tomorrow TV series is a success, Firestorm may be back in a big way, and the door was left open on The Flash for a season 2 Captain Atom appearance).

The Bronze Age Captain Atom appears in the background four times in this issue, although his costume coloring is slightly wrong.

That last panel seems to indicate that the original Charlton heroes do indeed “evolve” into their Multiversity counterparts.  This means we already know their fates and Captain Atom is dead once again.

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off this blog.)

Convergence #7 (July 2015)

Tags

Aaron Lopresti, Amanda Conner, Brett Booth, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Carlo Pagulayan, Green Arrow, Jason Paz, Jeff King, Mark Morales, Paul Mounts, Peter Steigerwald, Scott Lobdell, Supergirl, Telos, Tomeu Morey, Tony S. Daniel, Travis Lanham, Ultra Boy

“Showdown”

• Writers:  Jeff King & Scott Lobdell
• Pencils:  Aaron Lopresti
• Inks:  Mark Morales
• Colors:  Peter Steigerwald
• Letters:  Travis Lanham
• Cover Artists:  Carlo Pagulayan, Jason Paz, Peter Steigerwald, Tony S. Daniel, Tomeu Morey, Amanda Conner, Paul Mounts, Brett Booth

Not only did the Bronze Age/Earth-4 Captain Atom make one of the covers (the direct sales cover, that is), but he actually saw some action.  This kind of makes up for last week’s Convergence: Justice League International #2.  He’s still basically in the background, but at least he’s doing something other than having his metal plated butt handed to him.  I’m still not reviewing these issues, but I’m sure glad to see Cap is still around.

Here he is about to straight up kill Green Arrow (spoiler: he doesn’t):

Here he is having a moment of dialogue with Supergirl and Ultra Boy:

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off this blog.)

Convergence: Justice League International #2 & Convergence #6 (July 2015)

Tags

Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Bret Blevins, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Captain Marvel (Shazam), Chip Kidd, Creeper, Fire, Huntress, Ice, Jade, Joe Rubinstein, Ken Branch, Kevin Conrad, Mark Campos, Martian Manhunter, Mike Manley, Modern Age Captain Atom, Nightstar, Obsidian, Paul Renaud, Red Tornado, Ron Marz, Sotocolor, Tom Napolitano, Wonder Woman

“Punchline”

• Writer:  Ron Marz
• Pencils:  Mike Manley
• Inks:  Joe Rubinstein, Mike Manley, and Bret Blevins
• Colors:  Sotocolor
• Letters:  Tom Napolitano
• Cover Artists:  Paul Renaud, Chip Kidd, Mark Campos, Ken Branch, and Kevin Conrad

>>>SPOILERS<<<

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(You’ve been warned.)

Okay, a couple of things that bug me right off the bat.  First, no mention is made of Ted’s broken arm from the previous issue, and second is the title.  If the prior issue was called “It Only Hurts When I Laugh, Part 1,” shouldn’t this one be titled “It Only Hurts When I Laugh, Part 2?”

I was super excited about Convergence and was really digging it at first.  Now, not so much.  While this issue had a few good moments, overall I felt it fell flat.  And Captain Atom was really under-used.

Picking up where the last issue left off, Shazam is counseling Wonder Woman atop the Daily Planet building..  He asks if there is really a need to fight the other heroes.  Wonder Woman says she doubts the other heroes will simply surrender, as it is something they would not do themselves.  She jumps off the roof.

On a nearby rooftop, Blue Beetle and Martian Manhunter are having a similar discussion.  Beetle says he has to try and talk some sense into the other heroes, and swings down to the street to talk to Wonder Woman.

Wonder Woman assures Beetle that she is not the Diana he knows and that it is her intention to fight as Telos wants.  She will not entertain the notion of anything other than fighting, and warns him that her team will win.  Beetle says he won’t put Metropolis in danger and says if they have to fight, they’ll do so outside the city in the wasteland.  Wonder Woman leaves, telling Beetle to meet her when he is ready.

Later, the two teams face off outside of Metropolis.

And it is ON.

Martian Manhunter takes on Shazam (which makes sense, as I think they are pretty evenly matched), and Captain Atom takes on Jade and the elder Blue Beetle (which makes no sense – sure, Jade and her constructs can give him a run for his money, but an old man in beetle armor?).

Young Beetle manages to get his hands on Wonder Woman’s sword, but she grabs him by the throat and flings him against a boulder some distance away.  There, he meets old Beetle, who says he walked away from the fight because he believed there had to be a better way.

The two are immediately set upon by a squad of Telos robots.  Young Beetle makes a joke which chagrins old Beetle.

The two trade jokes as they combat robots, but an earthquake (telosquake?) drops a boulder on top of old Beetle, pinning him down.  Young Beetle uses robot parts as a lever to pry the boulder off his older self and the two limp back to the battlefield.  There, they discover the JLI has been defeated.

Wonder Woman says she did what Telos wanted: defeated the other heroes.  She never intended to kill them.  Somehow, I think this goes against the spirit of what Telos said (but – as revealed in the pages of Convergence itself – Telos may have switched his loyalties and perhaps no longer gives a damn about the cities).

The JLI returns to their HQ battered and bruised, but alive.

Ted goes off to “think things through” (again with the offer from Fire to keep him company).  He’s upset no one remembered that this was his birthday, but also realizes that might not be a high priority for his super buddies.  Entering his room, he is doused by a bucket of water and finds his room decorated by the one super hero buddy who’d never forget his birthday: Booster Gold.

So the story ends.  Very little Captain Atom (he had no lines, did most of his combat off-page, and was easily defeated).  This series should have been titled Convergence: Blue Beetle.  It wasn’t bad.  I liked the interaction between the old Blue Beetle and the young Blue Beetle.  I liked the acknowledgement of how close Beetle and Booster were.  But, overall, I’m unhappy with Convergence.  It seems as if all this buildup was for nothing.  I loved the artwork of this issue and give it an A but the story limps along with a C.  Overall, I’d say this is a B book.

Also, the Bronze Age Captain Atom had a cameo in Convergence #6:

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off this blog.)

Convergence: Blue Beetle #1 (June 2015)

Tags

Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Chip Kidd, David McCaig, Dick Giordano, Doctor Spectro, George Pérez, Nightshade, Saida Temofonte, Scott Lobdell, The Ghost, The Madmen, The Question, Yishan Li

“Convergence”

• Writer:  Scott Lobdell
• Pencils & Inks:  Yishan Li
• Colors: David McCaig
• Letters: Saida Temofonte
• Cover Artists:  George Perez, Dick Giordano, Chip Kidd

>>>SPOILERS<<< >>>SPOILERS<<< >>>SPOILERS<<< >>>SPOILERS<<< >>>SPOILERS<<< >>>SPOILERS<<<

(You’ve been warned.)

This is what I’ve been waiting for.  The Bronze Age (and “original”) Captain Atom returns in this Convergence tie-in.  Cameos aside, this version of Cap hasn’t seen this much action since Americomics Special: Sentinels of Justice #1 in 1983 (yes, Cap was a prominent character in Multiversity: Pax Americana #1, but he was not sporting the white hair, red tights, and silver arms designed by Steve Ditko in 1967).  And even this Captain Atom isn’t exactly the Bronze Age Cap (but close enough).  While I thoroughly enjoyed his return to the printed page, I’m wondering why this issue was a Blue Beetle and not called something else (Sentinels of Justice, perhaps).  Blue Beetle isn’t really the focus of the book.  There’s as much Captain Atom and the Question in this as there is Blue Beetle.  But that minor complaint does not make me enjoy this issue any less.  I was happy with it from start to finish and am extremely pleased to see Captain Atom in any form.

The issue opens with WHUB News reporter Vic Sage (aka the Question) reporting on a terrorist attack on the already-besieged Hub City.  One of the many cities domed and cut off by Telos, Hub City is at the mercy of the Madmen.  The Madmen – armed to the teeth – are facing off against the National Guard (led by Captain Nathaniel Adam).

Okay, so Irritating Minutia Point #1: This version of Captain Atom’s real name is Allen Atom, not Nathaniel Adam.  But they are essentially the same dude so I’ll let that one slide.

The Madmen open fire so Captain Adam’s men retaliate in kind.  However, they’ve brought some more heavy weapons than the Madmen.

Vic sends his crew to upload the story and approaches Captain Adam in the aftermath of the destruction.  The Madmen appear to have all been killed.  Donning his Question mask, Vic says he’s not pleased with Adam’s handling of the Madmen situation, but that isn’t what he wants to talk about.  He tells Adam that Ted Kord requires his help.  The two part ways, with Adam not very thrilled at the prospect of hanging out with Ted.

Later, in the rooftop lab of Ted Kord at the top of Kord Industries headquarters, Ted’s assistant Tracy questions Ted about his latest “nothing burger” invention and his need to put a door in the roof of the building.  Captain Adam enters (with his side-arm drawn!?!?!?) and Ted accosts him at once about the attack on the Madmen.

Ted reveals his new invention may free Hub City from the dome and wants Nate’s approval to try.  Thinking back on the pile of dead Madmen, Nate says he has no objection.  Ted pulls a lever and the machine fires a pink blast at the dome.  It appears to not even scratch the surface.  Ted collapses, sure he’s failed, but Tracy tells him to take a look at Nate.

Captain Atom has returned to full power.  As the two heroes bicker over whether or not Ted should be allowed to suit up as Blue Beetle, Cap notices a bunch of swirly colors in the sky.  Figuring he knows what this means, Captain Atom flies off to investigate.

Irritating Minutia Point #2:  There is clearly a door in the ceiling of the room they’re in.  Tracy questioned Ted about it earlier and Ted shot a pink ray at the dome through it.  Why did Cap burst through a wall to exit the room?  Is he just being an ass?  I do like that Yishan Li drew the little sparkles around Cap, though.  Haven’t seen those in a while.

Above the streets of Hub City, Cap finds Dr. Spectro blasting the dome with his colorful rays.  Cap automatically (and wrongly, of course) assumes Spectro is behind the dome and demands answers.  The two are interrupted by the bizarre appearance out of thin air of a costumed individual neither of them recognize.

It is Booster Gold, who does not exist in the Hub City Earth (Earth-4 for those of you keeping score).  Cap assumes Booster is in league with Spectro and gives him an atomic blast.  Blue Beetle, now in costume, hurries to the fight and arrives just as Booster fades away.  This scene has played out before.  We saw it from Booster’s perspective in Booster Gold: Futures End #1 in November 2014.

As soon as Booster vanishes, Cap loses his powers.  He drops from the sky and Blue Beetle scrambles to catch him.  Neither of them are concerned about Dr. Spectro, who also loses his powers and drops out of the sky.  The Question appears on the rooftop with them, but neither Blue Beetle or Captain Adam are interested in what he has to say.

Thinking Hub City is falling victim to an earthquake, the three heroes jump off the roof onto Beetle’s Bug (piloted by Tracy).  The building they were on transforms into Telo, who tells them they must fight the heroes of the other captive cities.  The dome drops, resulting in Captain Atom’s powers returning again.

The dome drops and the heroes brace themselves for what comes next (in Convergence: Blue Beetle #2).  To be continued.

We are treated with a brief history of the Charlton characters of Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, and the Question.

Yishan Li is a capable artist, perhaps not my favorite but by no means bad.  I give his art an A.  Scott Lobdell, I feel, did the best he could with what he had (basically this is just setting up the big fight with the Legionnaires next issue) so I give this issue an A for writing as well.

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off these characters or images.)

Convergence #3 (June 2015)

Tags

Ivan Reis, Jason Paz, Jeff King, Monarch, Per Degaton, Peter Steigerwald, Shakira, Stephen Segovia, Travis Lanham

“Time Bomb”

• Writer:  Jeff King
• Pencils:  Stephen Segovia
• Inks:  Jason Paz
• Colors:  Peter Steigerwald
• Letters:  Travis Lanham
• Cover Artists:  Stephen Segovia, Peter Steigerwald, Ivan Reis

I’m still not reviewing this ongoing series (although I am reviewing the individual tie-in issues that feature versions of Captain Atom).  I’m not digging it as much as I was at first, but it is still pretty good.  This particular issue seemed a little too “hero-versus-hero” (although the same could be said for the entire series) but had at least one amazing (and kind of sad) moment.  You’ll have to read it (and if you already have, I’m sure you know the moment I’m referring to).  I was surprised by this particular cameo (although, I really shouldn’t have been – DC is dusting off a lot of characters for this one):

Yes, that is Monarch popping up again in the DCU.  But which Monarch is it?  One Monarch is Hank Hall (Hawk), but the most-used Monarch is a version of Nathaniel Adam that I really haven’t tackled much on this blog yet.  Honestly, he gives me a headache.  But he is Nathaniel Adam and is as much a version of Captain Atom as the Legion Lost character “Captain Adym.”  So there you have it.  A quick Monarch cameo in Convergence.  Hank Hall or Nathaniel Adam? Not sure.  But Monarch will forever be a part of Captain Atom.

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off these characters or images.)

Convergence: Justice League International #1 (June 2015)

Tags

Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, Chip Kidd, Creeper, Fire, Huntress, Ice, Jade, Ken Branch, Kevin Conrad, Mark Campos, Martian Manhunter, Metallo, Mike Manley, Modern Age Captain Atom, Nightstar, Obsidian, Paul Renaud, Red Tornado, Ron Marz, Shazam, Sotocolor, Tom Napolitano, Wonder Woman

“It Only Hurts When I Laugh, Part 1”

• Writer:  Ron Marz
• Pencils & Inks:  Mike Manley
• Colors:  Sotocolor
• Letters:  Tom Napolitano
• Cover Artists:  Paul Renaud, Chip Kidd, Mark Campos, Ken Branch, Kevin Conrad

>>>SPOILERS<<<

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(You’ve been warned.)

The Convergence continues and after a four-year absence from the DCU, the Modern Age Captain Atom returns (along with his JLI team-mates).  And Cap is front and center on the cover.

The story opens in pre-Zero Hour Metropolis.  Ted Kord (Blue Beetle) is still alive (and having a fling with Fire) and Captain Atom is still in the Justice League.  Metropolis is one of the cities being terrorized by Telos and is surrounded by a power-dampening dome.  Metallo shows up with an army of metallic men and announces he is seizing control of the city.

He doesn’t wreak havoc for long before the Justice League turns up.  Led by Blue Beetle, the only member who has powers is Red Tornado (his android body uses technology, not super powers, and he feels no effect from the dome).  The citizens of Metropolis are used to being saved by Superman, but the man of steel is not around.

Unable to use their powers, Fire, Ice, Martian Manhunter, and Captain Atom rely on their strength, fighting skills, and weapons to take out the metallic army.

Beetle tries to keep the mood light by being funny (but not quite as funny as he was in the Keith Giffen/J.M. DeMatteis era of the Justice League) even as he is ripped out of the bug (receiving a broken arm in the process).  Beetle takes out Metallo using an undetermined gadget of his own design, which results in all the metallic men shutting down.

A local shop owner accosts Blue Beetle, wanting to know who is going to repair the damage to his store.  He makes a snarky comment about there being no “real heroes” left in the world.  The team returns to their Metropolis headquarters to assess their damages.

Aside from the Bug being severely damaged and Beetle’s broken arm, the team is fine.  Metallo was sent to Dr. Emil Hamilton, who can keep him contained.

The team calls it a day.  Ice volunteers for monitor duty.  Blue Beetle and Martian Manhunter head for the workshop where Beetle begins repairs on the Bug.  He complains that there isn’t time anymore to fix things.  They mention an unsuccessful attempt to break the dome a year before and Beetle says things would be easier if Booster Gold were around.  He says he never really wanted the leadership position and offers it to Martian Manhunter (who declines).  They are both troubled by their need to fight while at the same time having no one to fight.

Ice rushes into the workshop and tells them to get to the roof.  Telos is addressing the city.  He announces that he is bringing down the domes and the various cities must fight each other to establish dominance.

Telos warns that if any of the heroes attempt to circumvent his will, the citizens of the cities will “pay the price.”  As soon as the dome is gone, everyone feels their powers returning.

Blue Beetle says he doesn’t like feeling manipulated.  He doesn’t want to fight other heroes, he wants to fight Telos.  Martian Manhunter points out that this may be the only chance they have to save Metropolis and they need to embrace it.

The sky darkens and a group of super-beings drop to the roof of the Daily Planet building.  The group, led by Wonder Wonder, consists of Earth-22’s Shazam, Obsidian, Nightstar, Jade, Huntress, Creeper, and Blue Beetle.   They are ready to fight whoever they can to establish dominance and save their world.

I have been a fan of Ron Marz since his excellent Green Lantern run in the mid-to-late 1990s.  This is no exception.  I love seeing the human side of super-heroes (Blue Beetle’s self-doubt, for example) and that seems to be something Marz excels at.  Mike Manley’s art is clean and crisp (I particularly like the menacing look he gave the newly-repowered Captain Atom).  I’d say this book is an A.  I can’t wait for the conclusion.  Blue Beetle versus Blue Beetle is the sort of comic book battle I love.

Until this issue came out, I had no idea how much I missed Ted Kord.  But, did his broken arm really heal that quickly?

Convergence #1 (June 2015)

Tags

Blue Beetle, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Carlo Pagulayan, Ivan Reis, Jason Paz, Jeff King, Joe Prado, John Starr, Peter Steigerwald, Scott Lobdell, The Question, Travis Lanham

“Domesday”

• Writers:  Jeff King & Scott Lobdell
• Pencils:  Carlo Pagulayan
• Inks:  Jason Paz
• Colors:  John Starr & Peter Steigerwald
• Letters:  Travis Lanham
• Cover Artists:  Ivan Reis, Joe Prado, Peter Steigerwald

As this is an ongoing title, I’m not going to spoil it here just yet.  I’ll just say it is a huge endeavor and it will have repercussions felt throughout the DC multiverse.  Multiple versions of Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, etc. will appear as will characters from little-seen-or-heard-from-Earths.  Like Earth-4 (the “Charlton” Earth).  It is kind of like this generation’s Crisis on Infinite Earths.  Captain Atom (the Bronze Age Charlton Cap, that is) will be featured and has a cameo in issue #1 (see below) along with the Question and Blue Beetle (all Ditko creations).  I’m not reviewing the series at this time but will say that so far I’m pretty pleased.

Booster Gold: Futures End #1 (November 2014)

Tags

Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, Brett Booth, Bronze Age Captain Atom, Captain Atom, Dan Jurgens, Doctor Spectro, John Kalisz, Mark Irwin, Moritat, Ron Frenz, Scott Hanna, Stephen Thompson, Steve Lightle, Taylor Esposito, Will Conrad

Well, this was a nice surprise.  The Bronze Age Captain Atom had a brief cameo (along with Dr. Spectro and Blue Beetle) in Booster Gold: Futures End #1.

This issue was written by Dan Jurgens (naturally) with art by Jurgens, Moritat, Will Conrad, Steve Lightle, Stephen Thompson, Mark Irwin, Ron Frenz, Scott Hanna, and Brett Booth.  Colors were by John Kalisz and the letterer was Taylor Esposito.

It was good to see Cap back in the red tights again.

(All characters and images belong to DC Comics and I am not making any profit off these characters or images.)