The cliffhanger story from Justice League International #9 is continued in today's The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #9. Bombers are on the rampage in Paris! Firestorm has transmuted the Eiffel Tower into rose petals! New Firestorms appear on every page! With so much going on, how does DC tease the issue in their solicitation text?

Don't miss this crossover with JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #9!

Oooh, Doesn't that sound exciting! At least it doesn't give much away since the JLI is on the cover and all. Certainly, it sounds better than "we care so little about Firestorm that we're going to promote it with a tie-in to a book we've already canceled."

For those of you interested in the events of this issue despite the fact that it will have Firestorm in it, you can read a 4-page preview at IGN.com. You gotta admit, Ethan Van Sciver's Yildiray Cinar's Booster Gold looks pretty darn good. (My fault. Van Sciver is only drawing the cover. Cinar handles interior art.)

Buy this book and... well, just buy it. There's no consoling Skeets right now.

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Word on the street is that next month Firehawk will be joining the cast of Justice League International. This situation could set up an intriguing love triangle as Booster Gold reignites his old flame with Firehawk despite the jealousy of a hot-headed Godiva. But DC's solicitations for today's The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #8 throw some cold water on that smoldering scenario:

Introducing the all-new Firehawk, France's own atomic defender, and Hurricane, Great Britain's officially sanctioned Nuclear Man! Meanwhile, out of the ashes of last issue's shocking climax, Ronnie Raymond and the Russian Firestorm, Pozhar, begin a long, mutual descent toward the dark underbelly of the Firestorm Protocols.

Oh, never mind. Good-bye American Lorraine Reilly, hello unknown French girl. Thanks, Flashpoint. I hated character development anyway.

Doesn't this seem a bit sudden? Every other member of the DCnU Justice League International had appeared in at least 2 other comics somewhere before joining the team's roster. Are the Firestorms of the DCnU such jerks that their supporting cast hates to stick around? Or could it be that Firestorm has no need for a woman in his own book after (*ahem*) "last issue's shocking climax" with Pozhar? Maybe Firehawk would just be in the way as Firestorm and Pozhar (*cough*) "begin a long, mutual descent toward the dark underbelly of the Firestorm Protocols"? (Not that there is anything wrong with that.)

The best way to find the answers to these and many other burning questions is to pick up The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #8.

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As most fans know by now, DC Comics has just canceled Hawk and Dove again. The pair has a terrible track record at maintaining a series, in no small part due to the fact that they have never had a first-tier writer. Their stories tend to be hackneyed and dull, typically accompanied by lackluster art.

DC was no doubt acutely aware of the pair's limitations when they launched the third Hawk and Dove series in 1989. To ensure a good launch, the series included several higher profile guest stars in an extended Invasion! flashback. Naturally, this flashback was designed to make Hawk and Dove -- and not their guest stars -- look good.

Always smooth with the ladies, Booster. (At least Firestorm couldn't have done any better, right Shag?) Two years earlier, Booster had saved Hawk's life in the Mexican desert in Booster Gold #17. Booster was quite rude at the time, though Hawk had been unwittingly assisting in a madman's genocidal plot. Perhaps catching a falling Booster is Hawk's way of returning the favor.

Outside the character pieces presented in the flashbacks, the rest of the book is really quite dull. Hawk and Dove pal around with some friends that are not introduced to the reader, then the heroes make a mess of stopping a run-of-the-mill supervillain who is naturally using his advanced, lifelike robots to rob jewelry stores. This issue is costumed comic books at their most droll, a time-capsule of late-1980s mainstream storytelling given a golden lining with the inclusion of Booster Gold.

Perhaps this very lack of a signature adventuring style is the reason that the pair have had so much trouble maintaining their own series over the years. Maybe they need a home in a more forgiving ensemble environment. I hear the JLI is hiring.

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With appearances in Secret Six #36 and Titans #38, Booster Gold has shown up in a couple of series finales other than his own. In both of those issues, Booster's been on his own, his sidekick nowhere to be seen. So where has Skeets been? Having adventures of his own, apparently.

This picture was seen in the final issue of Batgirl #24 as part of a prolonged drug-induced hallucination. Unfortunately there is no evidence that Skeets -- who so rarely gets to leave Booster's shadow -- has actually been traveling through time with the three Batgirls and having grand adventures with the Blackhawks in World War II. But just because we don't have any record of it doesn't mean it didn't really happen. Skeets does have the ability to erase memories, after all.

Issue writer Bryan Q. Miller clarified the page's meaning on his director's cut of the issue posted on the Tumblr blog DC Women Kicking Ass:

PAGE 15 - Steph [Stephanie Brown] never did get to have an adventure with Cass [Cassandra Cain] during the pages of the book - this adventure/vision finds Batgirl Steph and Skeets on an adventure through time to find a wayward Booster, joined by Batgirls Babs [Barbara Gordon] and Cass.

Thanks to Morgenstern in the Boosterrific Forums for pointing out this panel.

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Gone are the days of "Blue and Gold," but that doesn't mean that Booster Gold is destined to be a loner forever. Remember that although Blue Beetle may have been Booster Gold's familiar partner, he wasn't the only one. For a while in the late 1990s, "Blue and Gold" was replaced with "Red and Gold" as Booster Gold joined forces with Firehawk!

Originally, Firehawk was the partner of Firestorm. Even before her metagene was activated by a villainous science experiment, red-headed Lorraine Reilly had spent most of her time pursuing Firestorm romantically. Once she became Firehawk, Lorraine pulled out all the stops and joined her boyfriend in the never-ending battle against evil. Their relationship, like the Firestorm Matrix itself, ultimately proved unstable, and the pair grew apart.

Like Firehawk, Booster Gold found himself working solo after the dissolution of his Justice League. Blue Beetle had semi-retired from costumed crime-fighting, focusing his energy on inventing and managing a number of corporate enterprises, including Blue and Gold Software and Blue and Gold Express. With Beetle spending all of his time in the lab and Skeets' AI incorporated into his latest Power Suit, Booster was looking for a new partner to add fuel to his smoldering career.

Destiny played its hand at a Teen Titans promotional event in a Metropolis toy store. Firehawk attended in the hopes of joining the reassembled Teen Titans. Booster Gold was crashing the party to promote his own line of "Action Toys." Sparks flew when the pair met, and a partnership was formed.

During the hectic events of the alien "Invasion!", the pair had worked together in Superman's strike-force against the alien's Australian stronghold. Booster no doubt remembered Firehawk's radiant beauty and grace under fire. Certainly Booster has always liked hot chicks, yet it is possible that Booster had even less pure motives when he suggested a partnership.

In their days together as teammates of Extreme Justice, Booster Gold and Firestorm had a difficult relationship. At the time Ronnie Raymond was the sole component of the Firestorm Matrix. Raymond's alcoholism resulted in immature, boorish behavior that was openly antagonistic toward Booster, who felt old and trapped in a life-supporting armor. Years later, Booster may have seen a partnership with Firehawk as a good way to get back at his former teammate by stealing Firestorm's old flame.

Given the nickname "Red and Gold" by the mainstream press (despite the fact that Firehawk's wings were now blue, not the red of original costume), Firehawk and Booster Gold were a hot topic of their day. The pair was linked romantically almost as soon as the partnership was formed. Both were coy about the nature of their relationship in public, but friends and family -- including Blue Beetle, who remained Booster's best friend despite the change in their professional relationship -- were aware that the pair had become more than just business partners.

Getting used to a new partnership is difficult with the firmest foundations; it couldn't have helped that Booster Gold and Firehawk were known for wearing their emotions openly. It should be no surprise that the partnership between Booster Gold and Firehawk pair blew hot and cold from the start. Break-ups and make-ups were commonplace between public appearances. As is common for the adrenaline junkies of the super heroic set, happiness eluded the couple as familiarity set in. Over time, the flame of their relationship dimmed and expired.

Exact details are unknown, but Booster had entered semi-retirement by the time of Identity Crisis and Firehawk would soon follow, officially extinguishing their partnership permanently. Both would eventually re-enter public life, but on separate paths. The pair have crossed paths since, but only in large group settings such as the memorial for Conner Kent and the battle against Superman-Prime. It is clear that there will be no rekindling of the old flame between the two. Booster Gold has moved onwards and upwards, leaving his days of playing with Firehawk behind him.

Read more about the disastrous relationship between Firehawk and Booster Gold over at Firestorm Fan.

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