I know that the Dan Jurgens interview at CBR was linked in the forum last week (if you haven't read it, you can find it here), but I'd like to revisit it a bit for one key fact: Booster's age.
Since arriving in the 20th century, Booster Gold has founded and lost a major business conglomerate and spent considerable time in the Justice League. He has cultivated a deep friendship and business partnership with Ted Kord, who has now been dead for some time. He has developed from an outsider to a laughingstock to a true hero to a leader. All this in less time than it takes to earn a college degree?
It's one thing for a character like Superman or Batman, paragons of their archetype with little need for character growth, to have accomplished a near infinite number of adventures in a relatively short span of time. But it strains credibility to imagine that Booster has matured so drastically in such a short period.
I'm not arguing that Booster should be 40 years old, but 23 is probably a little too young for such an accomplished hero.
Jesse posted on Mar. 14, 2011 at 12:39 PM
Many people can accomplish a lot in a short period of time, and those people have no knowledge from the future. I agree 23 is a bit too young, I'd think 27 or 28 after the prison term (depending on how long that actually is). Ted has been dead no more than a year in DC time.
As for the maturation of Booster, look at it this way, he's been through a heck of a lot in a short period of time and that always speeds up the maturation process no matter who you are. Time in comics is always fuzzy, otherwise one character could not be in multiple books and on multiple teams unless they had super-speed or access to time travel. We also don't know what effects time travel might have on the body or since Booster's armor protects him from chronal energy it may decrease the effects of time itself on him.
Erin posted on Mar. 14, 2011 at 2:23 PM
I don't take those things Giffin and DeMatteis say too seriously. Giffin for example has written and said that Booster was a janitor and not a night watchman. Jurgens said that their versions of the characters are exaggerated. Even in the issue where they stated he was 35 it was iffy because of the gaps the henchmen were filling in with their own guess work. Technically I think Booster was 19 when he started. I know it said 20 but he's supposed to be born December 29th 2442. He went back to be cured around Christmas of 2462, the same year of the scandal. Michelle and his mother were hounded by Broderick for months meaning he'd have to leave the 25th century some time before his 20th birthday.
I don't think there was ever evidence that he earned any degrees. But the rest of the DCU has compressed timescales too. Barry Allen apparently appeared 10 years ago (I think this was mentioned during the Reality Lost arc.) Johns had Hal Jordan get his ring 8 years ago, and Superman is already in action during that time.
I said 25/26 since he arrived at a time he was roughly younger than Dick Grayson. But hey, time travel. Rucka/Johns hinted at Booster having easy access to time machines during OMAC project/IC and he's skipped ahead a few months before. Not too big a deal when you think how long Dick Graysons' been around or how long Franklin Richards was 4/5.
Boosterrific [Official Comment] posted on Mar. 14, 2011 at 3:14 PM
Ok, let's look at it this way:
1.) Booster arrived in the 20th century (in 1985 according to canon, but I'm willing to allow that date to slide because timelines have been readjusted in-universe several times since). According to BOOSTER GOLD v.1 at least 1 year passed between issues 1 and 25 (though Booster did spend part of that time in the 25th century). +1 year
2) Booster spent enough time in the Justice League America to meet 2 different United States presidents. +1 year minimum
3) Booster lost an arm and was trapped in a life-supporting suit for some period of months. +? months minimum
4) Booster traveled to the future following OMAC PROJECT for an undisclosed period of time. +?
5) Ted has to have been dead for over a year: Booster spent a year after Ted's death defending the multiverse from Mister Mind. DC itself called the events immediately post-Infinite Crisis "1 Year Later." (It can be argued that Booster was not active for the entire year, as he could time travel backward and forward, but at that time he was simultaneously active as two superheroes, which has to keep a person busy.) +1 year
6) Since gaining his own series, Booster has been on a number of adventures outside of his "natural" time. This means that he is aging quicker than other non time-traveling heroes. +?
7) He is apparently in the process of serving a 5 year prison sentence. +5 years
By my count, that's 7 years of adventures, bare minimum. This would make Booster 26 years old even if he was only 19 when he returned to the 20th century.
Like Barry Allen, Booster can have many more adventures over a given chronological period than other heroes. That makes Booster older, not younger. While it is possible that Booster looks 23, or ages slower than the rest of DC's heroes because of future technology or universe revisions (i.e. ZERO HOUR) or whatnot, he has still had too many adventures within the DCU to allow him to be 23. Booster should be treated as though he were in his mid- to late-20s: young enough to be brash and old enough to have matured some character and wisdom.
Erin posted on Mar. 14, 2011 at 4:06 PM
True but they also state things like Bruce Wayne doing all that training for so many years, Dicks' age when he was Robin, etc. Things that get retconned to make Bruce stay young years later. I think Dick used to be 8 at the start then they changed it to 12.
Franklin Richards is supposed to be 8/9 but the Marvel verse has gone through several presidents since then. Counting at least two that ran for the office within 5 years of each other (our time). If we counted all the presidents all the writers in a ‘verse used all the heroes would be near retirement.
Boosters' also used the Supernova suit that stops aging and jumped ahead in 52 (can't buy them being on the run for months with Mr. Mind chasing them and Booster having no clue what he really is.) Not to mention the biggest game changer DC put into effect to explain most of their big changes Superboy Prime. But if I can believe Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent are STILL in their 30s’ despite Bruces’ mastery of near everything, etc. then I don’t have much of a problem believing a time traveler is younger than he’d normally be.
Boosterrific [Official Comment] posted on Mar. 14, 2011 at 5:40 PM
First things first: I do not believe that we should take the passage of time in the Marvel Universe as indicative of any change in time in the DC Universe. Both publishers would agree that their internal universes differ, so the passage of time for Franklin Richards and the passage of time for Booster Gold are apples and oranges.
But none of that concerns me as much as the insertion of those damn symbols everywhere that you typed an apostrophe, Erin. Can you please tell me what web browser you are using so that I can adjust the script to solve that problem? If you'd rather not post it, please send me an email at webmaster at Boosterrific dot com.
Harry posted on Mar. 14, 2011 at 6:04 PM
I didn't take Dan literally. He said Booster is "like" 23. I think Dan likes leaving the actual age nebulous and DC probably doesn't want it nailed down either. Though, to me, in physical age, I think BG should be roughly 30. Maybe Russ can ask Dan about it?
Eyz posted on Mar. 16, 2011 at 6:15 AM
Wasn't he talking about Booster as a DC character since creation, with a sligh error, I know.
Age-wise, Booster always seemed and was presented currently to be in his 30s IMO...
