Booster Gold returns to the pages of Speed Force in this week's issue #5!

I learned years ago that nothing makes me feel out of touch with pop culture as quickly as the American music industry. (Seriously. Skip a year of watching the Grammys then tune in next year and see if you have any idea what they're talking about anymore.) Couple that with the instant gratification era of smart phone apps, as the plot of Speed Force does, and I feel like such a dinosaur trying to make sense of these panels.

I have no idea what a "rap-avi" is. I'll just have to trust that Booster Gold knows what he's talking about. Because if you can't trust Booster Gold, who can you trust?

Buy this issue and make Skeets happy.

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Let me just turn today's post over to Jake, who emails:

I don't keep up with this series (nor was I, in truth, completely aware of its existence), but I am now. Speed Force #3 has Booster Gold back in business, as pictured. I want that cup!

You say you haven't been reading this series, Jake, so you may not be aware that the price of "that cup" is probably your autonomy, as the evil backers of the Symphonee music app are planning to take over the minds of the gullible youths who listen to their music.

(Incidentally, this is exactly the plot of the 2001 Josie and the Pussycats movie, which I can whole-heartedly recommend.)

Is Booster Gold unaware of Symphonee's evil plans? Has our hero been mind-controlled like some of the Teen Titans, or is he simply being an opportunistic shill hoping to ride the coattails of whatever the popular app of the moment is (not unlike how celebrity influencers promoted NFTs in 2021)?

Given that Booster's cup is the McGuffin that motivates Roundhouse to attend Symphonee's upcoming music festival, will we be seeing more Booster in future issues of this mini-series? Let's hope so.

In the meantime, buy Speed Force #3 and make Skeets happy.

Thanks for the pic, Jake.

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The life of any comic book hero would be a lonely one if not for the many characters who have made up their supporting cast. Just as Superman has Lois Lane and Batman has Alfred, Booster Gold has also shared his adventures with quite a few people over the years. Today we look at one of those, Mister Twister.

Who is Mister Twister, you ask? Here's the man himself, from his first (and so far only) confrontation with Booster Gold in 1987's Booster Gold #5:

That Mister Twister was a "bizarre lunatic" with a giant bomb who attempted to hold the Metropolis Mammoths ice hockey team and its arena full of fans hostage for $3,000,000.

But was he really "The one, the only"? It's hard to tell.

As it happens, the very first person to use the alias Mister Twister was a novelist named Dan Judd who took to a life of crime and bedeviled Superman... in 1946 on Earth-2!

Judd was only as criminal as was necessary to get material for his book, and hung up his alter ego when his manuscript was published. For more details on this bit of alternate-Earth history, track down a copy of Action Comics #96!

Many years later, someone more significant — and much more malignant — would adopt the name Mister Twister. His story began when the government of a typical American community called Hatton Corners declined to respect a contract made by their founders.

The Brave and the Bold #54, 1964

When Hatton Corners didn't make good its debt, Bromwell "Brom" Stikk did what any wronged landowner would do: he used mysticism to control the weather and enslave the town's teenagers!

Unfortunately for Stikk, Hattons Corners' teenagers had friends in the teenaged sidekicks of the Justice League. Mister Twister ultimately proved no match for Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad. The teens' teamwork in saving Hatton Corners paved the way for the formation of the Teen Titans, but the horrible Mister Twister was arrested by the authorities and would not be seen again for some time, at least not as Bromwell Stikk.

When Twister finally reappeared in the months after the Crisis on Infinite Earths re-wrote the entire DC Universe in 1985, his mystical powers had been replaced by technology. Twister's face and powers may have changed, but his methodology hadn't. His goal was still holding young men and women hostage for money. And he was still no match for sidekicks.

Was this mad bomber calling himself "Mister Twister" the post-Crisis incarnation of Bromwell Stikk? It's possible. It certainly wouldn't be the craziest twist in Stikk's story.

Years after the Metroplex bombing attempt, the Teen Titans would learn (in Secret Origins Annual #3, 1989) that their longtime foe Gargoyle was actually Stikk disguised and empowered by a cosmic entity called the Antithesis. Stikk would finally free himself from the Antithesis' control and beg Roy Harper for forgiveness for his past wickedness (in Justice League of America #16, 2008).

As so often happens in the DCU, past wickedness would not be forgotten, and Mister Twister was reborn again in the wake of Convergence as a literal demon — and the explanation for why the New 52 Titans hadn't remembered their past adventures together.

Titans Hunt #8, 2016

Even as a demon, Mister Twister was defeated by a team of former sidekicks. Some things *never* change.

Are you interested in meeting other "People in his Neighborhood"? Follow these links to get to know Mrs. Carter, Daniel Carter, Michelle Carter, Trixie Collins, Nurse Devlin, Dirk Davis, Rani, Skeets, Jack Soo, Mackenzie Garrison, Rip Hunter, Monica Lake, Doctor Shocker, and Blackguard.

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Readers of Blue and Gold #3 may be unaware that Booster's old secretary, Theresa Collins, has previous history of providing office space to superheroes.

It didn't go well.

Teen Titans #17 (1998), written and drawn by Dan Jurgens, saw the Teen Titans reforming under the leadership of former Justice Leaguer Atom who had been de-aged to a teenager by Extant in Zero Hour.

To attract attention, the team chose the "hottest hangout in Metropolis" for its new headquarters:

Teen Titans #17 additional art by Phil Jimenez, Gregory Wright, Comicraft

The Stain was a combination nightclub/arcade. In Teen Titans #18, its manager was — you guessed it — Trixie Collins.

Teen Titans #18 additional art by Phil Jimenez, Gregory Wright, Comicraft, Digital Chameleon

"Lazer Booster 2000"? A Booster Gold Easter egg!

Mercifully, this dysfunctional incarnation of the Titans was canceled eight issues after it started, but the Stain didn't last even that long. It was blown up by longtime team nemesis Deathstroke The Terminator in issue #22.

It's been two decades since the Stain was removed. I sure hope Trixie learned her lesson and has supervillain insurance for her new building.

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The cover of Blue and Gold #3 teases "the million-dollar debut of Buggles," but the real guest of honor in this issue is...

It has been too long, girl! For those who don't remember, Trixie was Booster's first secretary at Goldstar, Inc. (as seen in the immortal Booster Gold #1 in 1985). Trixie was also the first to wear the Goldstar uniform. She and Booster made a great team back in the day.

When Booster joined the JLI full time, he and Trixie drifted apart. In fact, we haven't seen her since Chase #4 (in 1998!) while she was landlord to the Teen Titans. As you might expect from two former friends who couldn't make the time to maintain their relationship, their relationship was a bit frosty at the time.

It's good to see they've both grown past that.

In one of his long-lost-to-the-web "Gold Exchange" columns — presumably one that will be reprinted in his upcoming book — Russ Burlingame once reported that Dan Jurgens had plans to revisit Trixie in Booster Gold Volume 2, but the title was canceled before it ever happened. Thanks to DC for giving Jurgens another opportunity to bring Trixie back.

For more about Booster Gold's original secretary (and second sidekick), see my Character Spotlight on Trixie Collins.

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