Booster Gold

ARTISTS

Writers: J. M. DeMatteis, Keith Giffen
Pencillers: Chris Batista, Patrick Olliffe
Inkers: Patrick Olliffe, Rich Perrotta
Colorist: Hi-Fi Designs
Letterer: Sal Cipriano
Editors: Michael Carlin, Michael Siglain
Cover Artist: Kevin Maguire

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CHARACTERS & SETTINGS

heroes: Big Barda, Blue Beetle II, Booster Gold, Darkstar, Darkstar Phil, Mister Miracle
villaines: Hieronymous, P'Upik
supportinges: Queen Artemis, Skeets II

Setting: 20th-century Unknown Planet, DCU

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ISSUE SUMMARY

Cover Description: Clockwise from left, Blue Beetle, Big Barda, Mister Miracle, and Booster Gold struggle with several tentacles.

Brief Synopsis: Trying to free an enslaved planet, the Justice League may have doomed it instead.

Costume Worn: MARK I.v2 power-suit

Story Notes: The title of this story is a quote from the 1974 movie Young Frankenstein.

This story has been reprinted in the following issue:
Booster Gold: Past Imperfect (2011)

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ISSUE ANNOTATIONS

Page 2, panel 1
Booster Gold, Blue Beetle, Mister Miracle, and Skeets stand aside as Big Barda single-handedly decimates the army of Hieronymous the Underachiever.

Page 7, panel 2
FIRST APPEARANCE: First appearance of the Darkstar Phil. His partner, unnamed in this issue, is introduced on the following page. Phil is speaking to a surly alien named K'Raamdyn, clearly an allusion to the character Ralph Kramden as played by Jackie Gleason on the 1955 television series The Honeymooners.

Page 8, panel 1
The Sorg's Donuts sign is a reference to the famous giant doughnut atop Randy's Donuts in Los Angeles, California.

Page 9, panel 4
HAIR CLUB FOR HEROES: Blue Beetle stops playing the fool just long enough to reveal that he knows that Booster Gold isn't the Booster Gold that he's pretending to be. This is a rare concession in comic books, which often play up adventures having taken place over time without actually admitting that the characters themselves age. In this case, Beetle confirms that Booster has matured both mentally, via a change in demeanor, and physically, via the thinning of his hair (first mentioned 2 issues earlier in Booster Gold #32).

Page 13, panel 5
While chasing P'Upik and the copy of the Book of Destiny, Booster and Skeets debate their predicament and their potential damage to history. In this case, Booster has a better grasp of the effects of time travel in the DC Universe than Skeets does. It is worth noting that the pair are discussing the effect of a using a powerful book of magic which is capable of far more devastating acts than simply modifying future history.

Page 15, panel 1
POWER UP: Skeets now has not one but two arms, allowing him to grasp and carry objects. After two decades with no appendages, Skeets has developing quickly in recent years!

Page 16, panel 1
Booster Gold finally comes face-to-face with Hieronymous the Underachiever and his captive, Queen Artemis.

Page 19, panel 1
Mister Miracle is correct in his first word balloon: in their original Justice League International adventures, it was indeed generally Blue Beetle's fault. Mister Miracle does not fare so well in his second balloon: Traditional rules of grammar would suggest that the lettered list items spoken by Mister Miracle be fully enclosed in parentheses. While the single parenthesis method employed here is casual and common enough, the parenthesis in Sal Cipriano's font is easily confused with the letter "J". This turns "A)" into "AJ", making for a confusing read on the first pass. Letterers rarely get any attention at all unless they have done something poorly, and sadly this is one of those cases.

Page 19, panel 2
The previously mentioned dialogue's difficulty with grammar probably could have been avoided altogether: Booster Gold, Mister Miracle, and Big Barda are now in space, where even the signature sound of an opening Boom Tube is silenced. Just how are these characters communicating in a vacuum, anyway?

Page 21, panel 1
Booster Gold has his first meeting with Darkstar Phil and his as-yet-unnamed, blue-skinned partner.

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ISSUE REVIEW

Boosterrific Review: Giffen and DeMatteis know their formula: humor + character development + action = enjoyable read. While some may still feel that there is too much "silly," the only flaw in this issue was the nagging sensation that much of this issue's plot was recycled from Giffen and DeMatteis' 2005 Defenders mini-series for Marvel Comics. After the misstep with the art in the previous issue, it is worth noting that artist Chris Batista's work is well suited for the fantasy-setting in the bulk of the issue, while Pat Olliffe's art works great for the panels in space. Overall a lot of fun.

Boosterrific Rating:

• Currently 4.0/5 Stars.

Average Fan Rating:

• Currently 3.5/5 Stars.

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