Three things today:

Thing 1: Although I don't normally watch movie trailers — they lie! — I made an exception for the upcoming Blue Beetle, which for legal reasons isn't titled Blue Spider-Man. I was thinking to myself, "This isn't for me," when the trailer gave me this:

The Bug! That is definitely for me. I still doubt we'll be seeing Booster Gold onscreen in that movie, but the trailer now makes me think we'll definitely be some Booster Gold Easter Eggs. We'll find out more in August.

Thing 2: This is only tangentially related to Booster Gold, but Mark Russell, writer of Booster Gold / The Flintstones Special team-up, has launched a Kickstarter to sell his own book of cartoons, Bunkbed Mishaps. One of the reward tiers includes a signed copy of The Flintstones: The Deluxe Edition collection with reprints the aforementioned team-up.

Full disclosure: I'm a big fan of all of Russell's writing (everything from God Is Disappointed in You to My Bad), so of course I'll be buying Bunkbed Mishaps. If you're interested in learning more about his latest project (or getting your hands on a signed Booster Gold comic), you'll find info at Kickstarter.com.

Thing 3: While we're on the subject of things I will be buying on Kickstarter, I might as well go ahead and throw my public support behind Karl Kesel's latest Impossible Jones comic book. Maybe you know Kesel as the creator of the Connor Kent incarnation of Superboy, but Booster boosters should always remember that he inked the fantastic story "When Titans Date" in Justice League Quarterly #10 (where Booster Gold and his fellow leaguers spy on Ted Kord's dinner date).

In addition to being a lot of fun to read, Kesel's Impossible Jones character raises similar ethical questions about what it means to steal your way to being a "hero" as a certain Michael "Booster" Carter. You can read more about her latest adventure, Impossible Jones and American A.N.G.E.L., on Kickstarter.com.

Okay, that's enough shilling for today. You may now resume your regularly scheduled ad-free Internet browsing.

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DC released September solicitations last week to give readers this tease for Blue and Gold issue 3:

BLUE AND GOLD #3
story by DAN JURGENS
art & cover by RYAN SOOK
ON SALE September 21 · $3.99 US

The million-dollar debut of Buggles! Booster Gold and Blue Beetle go...broke?! Ted Kord's secret is out: the heir to the Kord Industries fortune has been cut off and cut out of his family's company! Now the duo needs all the help they can get to fight off the Omnizon's attack and set up their new business. Who can possibly save the guys from themselves? Meet the newest member of Blue & Gold...BUGGLES!

So who is this "Buggles"? Judging from the art, it sure looks like Ted is building his own robotic sidekick. Finally, a playmate for Skeets!

But that name.... Sure, the Blue Beetle has always had his Bug, but....

All children of a certain generation will remember that The Buggles were the rock group featured in the first video ever played on MTV. It was a fitting choice, as the video's song, "Video Killed the Radio Star," is about the inescapable march of progress as the future eats the past. I'd say that's a fitting theme for any Booster Gold story. Dan Jurgens has always had a keen instinct for pop-culture references. I wouldn't put such a sly wink past him.

Am I reaching? I'm sure we'll find out more in September. In the meanwhile, you can see the original solicitation at GamesRadar.com/Newsarama.

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For the first time since Rebirth restored Ted Kord as Blue Beetle, he and Booster Gold are front and center in action again!

Art by Brett Booth, Norm Rapmund, Andrew Dalhouse

Okay, maybe they're not "in" action, but they're close enough. Ted isn't much of a hero these days, not since the heart attack that sidelined him into mentoring Jaime Reyes. But he can still don his old costume for special occasions, such as when the real Flash — Wally West! — races S.T.A.R. Labs founder* Speed Buggy for charity as seen in this week's Flash/Speed Buggy Special.

*No, really. Things developed pretty quickly in that comic. There's also a Reverse Speed Buggy now.

Thanks to Logan for pointing out our favorite heroes in the crowd. (Say, does anyone recognize the kid in the yellow shirt between Igoo and Chunk? Or the character below Grape Ape with the purple stripe down his front? Or the kid in the white jacket behind Robin? They're all probably either Flash or Hanna-Barbera characters. Any guesses?)

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Maybe you've heard that the newest Batman video game, Batman Arkham Knight, has had a rough launch. Chock full of bugs, it is reportedly all but unplayable on PCs and can lock-up PS4s.

The game doesn't get everything wrong, though:

That screenshot, taken from the 11:24 minute mark of the Youtube video "Batman Arkham Knight - Justice League Easter Eggs" by Scerebro, shows that (a picture of) Booster Gold is in the game. If you look close, you'll see Skeets is there, too!

I should also mention that Blaze Comics signs can be seen throughout the city:

via "BATMAN: ARKHAM KNIGHT-Blaze Comics Easter Egg" by Jamie Styles on youtube.com

Now we have a reason to play. Assuming we could get our hands on a playable version.

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Ambush Bug of Ain't It Cool News interviewed Dan Jurgens on Monday. There's not a lot of new information in the interview, but there is at least one key bit of awesomeness:

BUG: This is Ain't It Cool News. What can you tell us that you haven't told any of the other news sites about what's coming up for JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL?

DJ: The Booster Cave! We alluded to it in issue #2 and we'll reveal it in issue #7, if all goes as planned. And it's not what you think!

Looks like in March 2012 we'll be touring a cave! I've already got my official Cave Carson L'iL Spelunker's Hard Hatâ„¢ on!

Jurgens was also recently interviewed for the inaugural column in the "On the Five" series at It's A Dan's World:

IADW: As a defining creator for characters like Booster Gold, do you still find yourself maternal over what those characters do in the hands of others?

DJ: ...yes, I think any creator remains a bit paternal in regard to character's he's created. There's always going to be that sense of vested interest in a character that lasts over the years. Sometimes you'll see a later writer do something cool, other times one wonders what the hell they were thinking because it's so out of character.

Sure, we already knew it, but it's good to be reminded that Dan still cares about about the child of his imagination, Booster Gold. Note that Jurgens is specifically referring to "a character that lasts over the years." Does that mean that Jurgens no longer cares for Booster's long-forgotten first arch-nemesis, the Director? Abandoned by his father, no wonder he turned to evil!

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