Booster Gold
“The Life and Times of Michael Jon Carter”
Volume 2, Issue 40, March 2011
Released January 12, 2011
Cover Price: $2.99
Estimated Issue Sales: 16,324
Writers: J. M. DeMatteis, Keith Giffen
Penciller: Patrick Olliffe
Inker: Rich Perrotta
Colorist: Hi-Fi Designs
Letterer: Sal Cipriano
Editors: Michael Carlin, Rachel Gluckstern
Cover Artists: Chris Batista, Rich Perrotta
Cover Description: Booster Gold flies with Skeets. This is the first issue of Booster Gold to lack the masthead title, instead using a version of Booster Gold's logo. This style of cover was used on most DC books published during the month of January, 2011.
Brief Synopsis: The origin of Booster Gold's cape.
Booster Gold's role in this story:
Featured (Booster Gold plays a prominent role)
Costume Worn: MARK I power-suit
Issue Notes: This issue is missing the credit line for Dan Jurgens, creator of Booster Gold. When asked, Jurgens attributed the omission to a "simple mistake."
Page 17, panel 3
FASHION ALERT: Booster Gold's cape is seen for the first time in flashback as Booster Gold reminisces with Skeets. Skeets comments that Booster added the cape to his costume to lend himself "super-hero gravitas" after such embarrassments as trying to buy a cup of coffee with 25th-century currency at a Sundollar Coffee in Metropolis. (In this flashback, the franchise is misspelled "Sundollar." For more details on the appropriate spelling of this franchise, see annotations for Booster Gold, Volume 2, #40.) The date is unspecified, but this flashback reveals that the cape must have been added to the Mark I costume sometime between August 22 and October 17, 1985.
Boosterrific Review: There is a lot of information in this issue that long-time Booster Gold fans are going to find contention with. However, Booster's origin is skillfully retold for a new audience in a way that allows for multiple interpretations, bridging multiple incarnations of the character. The highlight of the book is Booster's struggle with his own past and personality. It's a good bit of character development that is unfortunately overshadowed by some rather inexplicable -- and startlingly out-of-character -- behavior by Rip Hunter. The issue is a nice try at sidestepping an actual retcon, but fails to equal the sum of its parts.
Boosterrific Rating: Worth Its Weight In Gold.
Average Fan Rating: (4 votes)
I agree with what the reviewers below has said about this issue. Nothing special, moderately entertaining, and a handful of nitpicks.
The first read through confused me but otherwise nothing really special happened. The semi-origin went on too long to the point I half expected it to be over before we got to Booster. Dr. Desmond: Yes in the first series Rip went with Booster and helped him evade his death punishment for the crime. Jurgens has stayed firm on this in his Booster stories but it's unclear how this team will write it.
Okay, the retelling was good, and I like the plot, but didn't Booster Gold meet Rip Hunter 20 years ago, and go into the future together? Then they created havoc, and Booster got in more trouble. But at least the sister came into the past. I was just confused which crime Booster is going to atone for.
While I appreciate repeating the origin, I thought it was a bit too inconsistent with past accounts. The fight with Hit Point was well done--the end with Rip Hunter better have a good logical explanation. I like the fact that there is a new bad guy, someone else besides the Black Beetle.
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