Other than the previously discussed action figure rumor, I didn't notice any Booster Gold comic book news coming out of NYCC this past weekend, and that's okay. I suspect Booster could use a break from the nonstop series of DCU "event" stories. I know I sure could.

Perusing DC's NYCC announcements about upcoming stories for Batman and Superman that feel recycled piecemeal from stories of yesteryear, it's actually nice to be reminded that Booster Gold isn't a priority tentpole character for the company. Batman and Superman can never change, at least not for long. But because Booster Gold's lower popularity makes him less valuable to a multibillion-dollar media company, Booster can grow.

I don't mean to attack publishers here. Prior to the Bronze Age of comics, publishers knew readers aged out of reading the funny pages, so recycling stories about familiar characters using "super" powers was the best way to maximize profit. That's not so different from modern times where DC makes money by leveraging their intellectual property for mass consumer consumption, their most identifiable tentpole characters being too valuable to risk change. Stable, profitable companies are inherently risk averse.

Booster Gold came along at the perfect time. The late 70s/early 80s were a turbulent time when a combination of market instability and artists and readers who grew up on comics drove an explosion in creativity and possibilities. It was into this environment that Booster Gold was "born" as a charming but flawed hero with a silly name trying to steal his way to fame and fortune. His early unpopularity kept him largely outside the eye of the mainstream audience, providing room and time for a much deeper characterization than the constant resets required for more marketable heroes. Booster has also benefitted from his modern dual identity; his highly-visible (and fun) day job as silly social media influencer allows real character growth behind the scenes as a truly selfless time warrior. Longtime Booster Gold fans have been treated to some great long-form storytelling.

So take heart, Booster boosters. No news is sometimes great news.

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There's been a lot of talk online lately about who will act as or write for Booster Gold in James Gunn's proposed television show. Those choices will certainly be important to the show we ultimately get (assuming that we actually do get a show; remember that credible announcements by credible producers have been made periodically since 2011 with nothing yet having reached your television set), but the central question remains: What kind of Booster Gold will we see?

James Gunn has called Booster Gold a hero with “Imposter Syndrome,” and to a degree that's always been true. Booster's single greatest driving personality trait, his Shakespearean tragic flaw, has always been his unfulfillable desire to be loved. Abandoned by his (no-good) father as a child, most of Booster's greatest tragedies have resulted from his quest for external validation. It doesn’t matter how much good Booster does, nothing can fill the bottomless hole in his psyche's metaphorical heart.

Booster's successes, on the other hand, have generally been selfless acts. For example, very few inhabitants of the DCU are aware that he has saved the universe multiple times for no publicity or personal gain. Granted, he is often reluctant to get involved, and his solutions are not always perfect, but unlike his idol Superman, Booster is only a human doing the best he can to make difficult situations better. Obviously, his need to do the right thing supersedes his craving for recognition.

Booster Gold #31

The biggest pitfall when characterizing Booster is to portray him as an idiot. It's not lack of intelligence but poor judgment, usually driven by youthful brash arrogance, that leads to most of Booster's trademark misadventures (like establishing a casino on a living island or sponsoring a mind-influencing music app). Booster's need for the limelight makes his missteps extra visible compared to the likes of Batman, who operates in the shadows where no one ever sees him trip over his own cape, but Booster's intelligence and dedication to righteousness always see him through to saving the day.

To respect the character of Booster Gold, it will be important that any television series portray all sides of the hero who is, yes, cocky, impatient, and in need of constant adoration, but also intelligent, hard-working, and always well-intentioned.

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