If you change Booster Gold to make him popular, isn't the newly popular character no longer Booster Gold? At least, that's what decades of tween-friendly Disney movies have been preaching to me.

Last week's poll question: Would you rather that Booster Gold remain an obscure character with his current personality and powers intact, or that Booster Gold gain more mass appeal even if it meant changing the character? (41 votes)

As webmaster here at Boosterrific.com, I'm of the opinion that there are three main camps of Booster Gold fans. The first group is most loyal to the work of character creator Dan Jurgens. Jurgens' work tends towards the serious, if somewhat routine and unspectacular aspects of heroics. His characters and adventures are believable and grounded, using naturalism to create the belief that his heroes could be living in a real world.

The second group came to the character as fans of the original Justice League International, and therefore are attached to the outlandish situational humor of Keith Giffen. Alongside his partner J.M. DeMatteis -- who provided the dialogue to Giffen's adventures -- Giffen built Booster Gold from a competent solo hero to a team leader. Not surprisingly, fans in this group tend to be vocally supportive of Booster's partner in crime, Ted Kord.

And the third major group of Booster fans were brought in as disciples of Geoff Johns. Johns' dialogue is witty and his tendency towards melodrama is perfectly suited for writing adventure stories full of heroics and sacrifice. Johns' stories and characters are larger than life, and his heroes are legendary myths.

Comments (9) | Add a Comment | Tags: dan jurgens geoff johns keith giffen polls writers

Advance solicitations indicate that this issue will introduce a "surprise new team member!" Since Batwing appears on the cover of the issue which also blatantly states that he will be joining (preview available on Maxim.com), it would only be a surprise if he's not the new member. The real surprise might be in who is leaving the team to make room for him; although since the team was officially disbanded last issue, it's more a question of who wouldn't rejoin than who would leave, isn't it?

Buy this issue and make Skeets happy. (Our little buddy has to show up sooner or later!)

Comments (3) | Add a Comment | Tags: batwing maxim.com new releases

A bunch of my fellow DC fan bloggers have decided to celebrate their various obsessions' television shows today. It's true that our Corporate Crusader has never had his own show, but in the true spirit of Booster Gold, I plan to crash this party! Introducing "Booster Gold: The Animated Series":

Obviously, this show intro has been remixed by YouTube poster VladGLX primarily from the Justice League Unlimited episode "The Greatest Story Never Told." But isn't it great to imagine what could be?

To see some licensed animated show intros, visit these other fine bloggers.

Aquaman at The Aquaman Shrine
Atom at Power of the Atom
Doctor Fate at Tower of Fate
Firestorm at Firestorm Fan
Flash at Speed Force
Green Lantern at The Indigo Tribe
Hawkman at Being Carter Hall
Martian Manhunter at The Idol-Head of Diabolu
Supergirl at Supergirl Comic Box Commentary
Superman at Fortress of Baileytude
Swamp Thing at The BLOG from the BOG
Vixen at Justice League Detroit
Wonder Woman at Diana Prince
Miscellaneous others at DC Bloodlines

Comments (4) | Add a Comment | Tags: blog crossover vladglx youtube.com

Some of you may have noticed that the site went down for most of Sunday. That Sunday was April Fool's Day was a mere coincidence. The server administrators decided to take this action on Saturday, or I would have warned about it last week. If you are reading this, Boosterrific.com is now back on line!

And if you're not reading this, please be patient. The site will be back as soon as possible.

There's nothing to worry about; the server simply had to come down temporarily to clean up some old data that was taking up too much room. (You can only sweep the old dirt under the rug for so long, it turns out.) As always, we apologize for any inconvenience.

UPDATE 04/02/12: I'm sure that the server is up and strong now. So as my way of making up for the content-light post above, let me suggest that instead of wasting time here, you check out the preview of Justice League International #8 hosted by Maxim.com. (Maxim has more scantily clad girls than Boosterrific.com, if that's your thing.)

Comments (0) | Add a Comment | Tags: countdown to infinite crisis justice league international maxim.com previews website update

DC Co-Publisher Dan Didio has called it "probably my favorite comic of all things published in the last ten years." Comic book blogger Robby Reed has called it "staggeringly awful." Your response probably lies somewhere in between, depending on how much you care for DC continuity or the Blue Beetle.

This divisive comic book is Countdown to Infinite Crisis #1. Released 7 years ago today, this one-shot issue, officially titled DC Countdown in the legal indicia, kicked off the 4 separate mini-series leading to Infinite Crisis. It is more famous for re-introducing Justice League International supporting-character Maxwell Lord as a villain. And, of course, the related fate of Ted Kord.

While I still find this book to be an enjoyable read, I also believe that DC was short-sighted in choosing Ted Kord to be the sacrificial lamb to promote high sales of the Infinite Crisis crossover. The friendship of Booster Gold and Blue Beetle was unique in the DC pantheon: genuine but irreverent, lighthearted but sincere. Even when their misadventures strained plausibility, it was always worth going along for the ride just to bask in the reflected glow of their effervescent joy at being together. Simply put, their adventures were fun.

Booster Gold has enjoyed a career renaissance since the death of his best friend and business partner. However, the DC Universe is a smaller place without Ted Kord, and we have DC Countdown to Infinite Crisis to thank for it.

Comments (0) | Add a Comment | Tags: blue beetle comicbookresources.com countdown to infinite crisis dan didio dialbforblog.com history reviews robbie reed