It's a little early for DC comics September solicitations, but IGN is already reporting that we should expect to see Booster Gold in at least one comic this fall. Too bad he probably won't survive it.

DCEASED: A GOOD DAY TO DIE #1 (One-Shot)
Written by Tom Taylor
Art by Laura Braga, Darick Robertson and others
While the mainstays of the Justice League—Superman, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman—battle the worldwide infection in the pages of DCEASED, a group of other heroes work to stop the impending apocalypse—no matter who they have to kill! Mr. Terrific assembles a motley group of surviving heroes including Mister Miracle, Big Barda, John Constantine, Blue Beetle and Booster Gold as they attempt to fight back against the tide of death. Can this ragtag group save the world where the Justice League has thus far failed?
On sale 9/4/19; 48 pages; $4.99

While I'm no fan of DC's super-bleak alternate universes — there has to be an endpoint to how grim 'n' gritty a comic universe can get, right? — I do have a great deal of respect for writer Tom Taylor's characterization. As a spin off of a video game, Injustice doesn't feel much like a DC story, but Taylor's characters are easily recognizable as the heroes who survived dozens of other Crises. That's considerably more than we got out of the last nine months of Heroes in Crisis.

So although I'm not eager for another zombie invasion, there's always room in my collection for more Elseworlds comics with the "real" Blue and Gold. Even if they will inevitably get their brains eaten.

And hey, at least it's only a one-shot.

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Just in time for the scariest day of the year, Heroes in Crisis #2 arrives in your Local Comic Shop today!

This cover is a surprisingly accurate depiction of events within.

A six-page preview is online at IGN.com.

Before you go out for your candy, put on your costume and head to your LCS where you can buy this issue and make Skeets happy!

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Upon first read, I thought I was okay with Heroes in Crisis #1. Yes, it is heavy on atmosphere and light on story, but after Tom King's criminal misuse of Booster Gold in "The Gift", I decided that this was at least somewhat more respectful of my hero (even as it spits in the eye of the entire DC "Rebirth" initiative).

Then I read what ScreenRant.com and IGN.com and ComicBook.com had to say about it. (Warning: links contains spoilers.)

Now I'm wondering if perhaps my worst fears about this series weren't fearful enough. Since so many people seem to think that writer Tom King is some kind of literary genius — an opinion I have not shared since I read Batman, Volume 4 #1 — might Heroes in Crisis poison Booster Gold for the general public in the same sort of way that Marvel's revelation that Hank Pym was a mentally addled wife beater tarnished that once great character? *Gulp*

But maybe I'm overreacting. Maybe I'm just overprotective of my favorite character. Call me Chicken Little.

Am I alone? Let's find out.

This week's poll question: What is your reaction to Heroes in Crisis #1? Please visit the Boosterrific Polls page to view results for this week's poll.

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I'm sure you've heard by now that printed copies of last week's Batman: Damned marked the first on-panel appearance of Batman's, um, sidekick.

Batman: Damned #1, writer: Brian Azzarello, artist: Lee Bermejo

DC Comics promptly promised to remove, er, "Li'l Wayne" from future printings and all digital copies. IGN.com reported that a DC source justified the company's abrupt about-face by claiming that "it wasn't additive to the story." If that was the case, why was it there in the first place?

The obvious answer is that this was a stunt to sell comic books.

Gratuitous nudity has long been used in comic books and other visual media to increase sales. (Generally speaking, women are the subject of this sort of exploitation far more than men — the target audience for such things is generally male — so in a way, seeing Batman's, ah, primary sexual characteristic is kind of refreshing. Kind of.) But Batman is not an outlier property. He is arguably DC's most valuable property. His name alone in the masthead moves books. If any character shouldn't have to drop trou to get some attention, it's Batman.

Which brings us to the obvious question: who's next?

If they'll do it to Batman, they'll do it to anyone. If DC has reached a point were they are willing to release "mature reader" comic books of their headliners in birthday suits, how long until we get a better look at characters who are somewhat more obscure?

In other words, it seems only a matter of time until we see Booster Gold's penis.

That's a future I don't think I'm prepared for.

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I spent a lot of time in recent weeks worrying about how Booster Gold's unfortunate appearance in Batman might inspire future problems for our hero. According to Meg Downey's recent think piece for IGN.com, Booster's troubles are worse (and more persistent) than I thought.

Like pearls in Crime Alley follow Batman, trauma now follows Booster wherever he goes. Even in alternate universes outside of the main DC continuity like Injustice 2, Booster ends up forced to watch helplessly as Ted was killed yet again. In the splintered timeline of the "Batpoint," Booster winds up teetering on the edge of death, emaciated, mentally broken, even deeply disturbed -- a pretty far cry from his days stealing cookies from Martian Manhunter with his best friend.

Downey makes a good point. Grief has been a central theme in Booster's life since Infinite Crisis, first published nearly thirteen years ago. Even in this modern age of decompressed, made-for-trade storytelling, that's a long time.

You can read Downey's full article, "How Batman's 'Batpoint' Story Highlights the Tragedy of Booster Gold" at IGN.com.

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