I recently saw on reddit someone complain that the first volume of Booster Gold was "boring" but that second volume was their "favorite comic of all time." That made me think about how the second volume was different than the first, which one I liked better, and why.

It's true that the style of Booster's first solo series is very much of its era. It's comprised primarily of the straightforward adventures of a flawed dramatic character struggling to better his position in a serious world. There isn't a lot of humor, and as a new character to the DCU, Booster's world often feels smallish. In many ways, it feels like the first season of a new soap opera.

However, the second series is very much of its era as well, with better paper, better art, and a larger universe to interact with than were available decades earlier. The biggest difference between the two volumes is most noticeable in the stories focusing on its character's inner lives. (It's a dirty word some places, but around here we call the sort of character development Booster and his supporting cast had undergone between volumes "continuity.") It is also often much more humorous.

Honestly, of the two, I think I like the first volume the best. I admit it's imperfect, but I like Booster's rougher edges, naivete, and imperfect understanding of contemporary society. On the other hand, I sure do love the deeper dives into DC Universe history that volume 2 makes possible. And I really appreciate Booster's extended family and recurring villains. Hmm. It's a hard choice to pick only one.

But maybe, just maybe, I like Booster's most recent book best. It re-teams him with his comedy duo partner of the 1990s and has even more humor, both in art and story. If DC Comics should decide to launch another Booster Gold series for his upcoming 40th anniversary in 2025, they could do a lot worse than giving us more Blue and Gold.

I guess what I'm saying is that I'm not that picky. I'll take whatever Booster Gold I can get.

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I'll let you in on a little secret: I wasn't always a huge Booster Gold fan.

Which is not to say that I didn't consider myself fortunate to have first met Booster Gold in 1985, when I found his debut appearance in Booster Gold Volume 1 #1 sitting on the magazine rack at my local convenience store.

Even at a young age, I had seen enough Super Friends episodes to recognize that Booster Gold was lampooning traditional superhero ethos and consumer culture in a way I immediately found equally engaging and endearing. At the same time, I was still impressionable enough that if anyone had sold Flakies cereal, I would have begged my parents to buy a box.

I was devastated when his comics were canceled, but it would take another twenty years before I would call Booster Gold my favorite comic book character. The truth is that my first love in comics was Captain Carrot, the cosmic carrot-chewing leader of DC Comics' Amazing Zoo Crew.

The Zoo Crew's adventures were overloaded with smile-inducing puns, and the pop culture references read like a long-form Mad Magazine segments. I read and re-read each issue until its cover fell off. I spent years rebuilding my collection with better copies. I think I currently own the entire series in triplicate.

It's entirely possible that Captain Carrot would still be my favorite comic book character if DC hadn't canceled the Zoo Crew in 1983. Even then it took years before I was willing to let another character take his place at the top of my personal pantheon. After reading a lot of books from a lot of companies, I decided that my second love in comics was a key member appearing in Justice League International. However, that wasn't Booster Gold but Batman.

Specifically, I loved the Batman still more driven detective than deified super hero. I spent summers watching syndicated reruns of Batman's 1960s television series, and I grew up respecting his innate ability to solve riddles and escape deathtraps with nothing more than his honed mind.

As the 80s and 90s progressed, I bought every Batman comic I could afford. I watched Batman grow increasingly grimdark as he relied evermore on his wealth at the expense of his wits. Ironically, this made him more popular than ever with the reading public. Like any jealous lover, I did not appreciate my hero growing away from me. (And yes, I'm aware that my emotional, nostalgic bias for "the Batman I first met" is its own set of problems, but are ex-lovers ever rational?) Which brings us back to Booster.

About the time that I decided that Batman and I should just be friends, Booster Gold was returning to the limelight with a tragic turn in Countdown to Infinite Crisis. Despite never being my favorite hero, I'd been following Booster's adventures for years, even through the wasteland of Extreme Justice and the lean years that followed.

Booster's subsequent rise from the ashes in 52 finally made me realize how truly unique he was. I couldn't name another character who had survived such a long journey from origin to the triumph of saving a multiverse. With that realization, Boosterrific.com was born.

I now gladly call Booster Gold my favorite character, and I'm grateful he was willing to wait for me to come around. I assume that eventually, everyone will eventually realize Michael Jon Carter's greatness. Time has always been on Booster Gold's side.

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Judging by your attachment to Daniel and Michelle, it seems that most of us are attached to Booster and are projecting onto his two most similar cast members, his closest relatives.

Last week's poll question: Which of Booster Gold's supporting cast do you associate with yourself the most? (31 votes)

Most interesting to me is that Rani gets no love at all! This needs exploring further: has DC driven all "innocents" away from comics (or at least Booster Gold comics), or do they just not come here to Boosterrific.com to vote? Or do we all simply disdain the "Mary Sue" character that seemed to have no purpose or resolution? Hmm?

On another down note, it sure looks like Justice League International is being canceled. Not knowing what comes next is a problem for me: I hate the uncertainty. How do you feel about it?

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There were some great suggestions for other titles in last week's comments, and this poll had a large number of voters. Clearly, we're excited about Booster Gold on TV, whatever SyFy decides to call it.

Last week's poll question: What is the best title for the currently untitled Booster Gold television show produced by the SyFy network? (50 votes)

Last week, I watched children pouring out of a matinee showing of The Avengers, most of them pretending to be one of the film's heroes. How did they chose which hero they would role play? Did they innately associate with one of the characters, or did they prefer the role that they filled on the team? There's only one way to answer this question: make it a Boosterrific Poll question!

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This poll wasn't as widely reported as the Iowa Republican caucus, but it was far more important! It seems that character study defeats action/adventure. This must be awards season.

Last week's poll question: ( votes)

What was 2011 missing? Skeets. Let's correct that in 2012.

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