On Wednesday, DC gave a sneak peek of its December solicitations via DCComics.com. Blue and Gold was not mentioned, but there is another new title that sounds suspiciously like it.

And for fans looking to laugh, or just looking for a bargain, it's ONE-STAR SQUADRON.

From Harvey, Ringo and Eisner nominee Mark Russell (WONDER TWINS, EXIT STAGE LEFT: THE SNAGGLEPUSS CHRONICLES) and Eisner and Ringo winner Steve Lieber (SUPERMAN'S PAL JIMMY OLSEN), comes a one-of-a-kind six-issue limited series that promises Superman-Level Service at Bizarro Prices!

ONE-STAR SQUADRON is DC's Super Hero team, where heroism meets capitalism. This ragtag group of heroes led by Red Tornado is here to provide service with a smile. All you have to do is send a request via their on-demand hero app and they'll answer any call. Whether it's a children's birthday party or an alien invasion, no job is too small or too big in this story about the Super Heroes without a billion dollar fortune or Fortress of Solitude to fall back on... heroes like Red Tornado, Power Girl, Gangbuster, and Minute Man. Follow these working stiffs as they work for a living while trying to parse one of the great mysteries of the world--just who's signing those checks and why?

Poor Power Girl and Red Tornado. They used to be Justice Leaguers. My, how the mighty have fallen.

Hey, wait a second! "One of a kind"? Former Leaguers Blue Beetle and Booster Gold announced their own on-demand super-hero service only last week in Blue and Gold #2!

It won't surprise any readers of this site that I've always loved the old, comedic Hero Hotline concept. I'm also a big, big fan of Mark Russell's sharply satirical point-of-view. So I expect great things from this new mini-series.

But in the long run, I'm hoping that Blue and Gold Restoration will be Coke to One-Star Squadron's Pepsi.

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Sorry, low content mode today as I'm still busy re-reading Blue and Gold #2 — now available at fine comic stores near you! Have you bought yours yet?

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At long last, Blue and Gold #2 is finally available at your Local Comic Shop.

If you're the sort that needs a preview, you'll find one on AIPTComics.com.

And if you're the sort that thinks Blue Beetle's "all-new, bombastic, bodacious" Buggy is cool...

...let me remind you that it is no Boostermobile.

Booster Gold #5

Buy this issue and make Skeets happy.

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This time next week, we should have a copy of Blue and Gold #2 in our hands. (Fingers crossed!) In the meantime, let's take a look back at the earliest adventure of Blue and Gold.

Any wiki site can tell you that the very first time Blue Beetle and Booster Gold both appeared in the same panel (much less in the pages of the same book) was 1987's Justice League #3.

But despite working together as a team for the first time in the following issue, the pair wouldn't really become a pair for a few months more, not until they paid a visit to Paris in Justice League International #8, by Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, Kevin Maguire, et al.

(Don't let the "International" in the name fool you. This was a continuation of the same series. "International" was added to the title starting in issue 7, and would remain there until issue 26, when the book returned to it's "America" roots for the duration of its 113 issue run.)

If you're keeping track, this was Booster's second visit to Paris that year. He had already been with Black Canary in the pages of Justice League Annual #1 (as we saw here). Booster didn't have a lot of luck romancing Canary, and his bad luck with women would continue into the International era.

Thus the template was set for Blue and Gold's enduring (and endearing) 34-year-and-counting comedic bromance. Perfect from the beginning!

If you want to impress your friends, take note of the "Bwah-ha-ha" Beetle unleashes in Black Canary's presence (page 14 of the original story). That's the first appearance of what would become the pair's signature laugh!

And that's how comic book legends are made: one panel at a time.

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Congratulations to Blue and Gold artist Ryan Sook for finally giving me reason to sign up for an Instagram account with this very inventive announcement over the weekend on instagram.com/rsookart:

rsookart: So, yeah, this is my own personal gag about supply chain issues. But really, next issue will be there Sept. , 7! Support your LCS, retailers, publishers, and the titles you love during the snafus because even superheroes have set backs from time to time. And Booster and Beetle will be back in action ASAP!! #blueandgold #dccomics #dcuniverse #boostergold #bluebeetle #superheroes #newcomicbookday

Well, that makes it almost worth the delay, Ryan. Thank you. (Additional thanks to Rob Snow for calling this unusual Boosterrific comic strip to our attention.)

Click any of the above images to visit Sook's Instagram to see the comic in its native, one-panel-at-a-time format.

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