Comics

Welcome to the second issue of RazorFine Presents Comic Spotlight as we take a look at comic heroes, villians, and everything in between.  This week we examine a screw-up from the future who stole equipment and knowledge and traveled back in time to the 20th Century to become “the greatest hero the world has never known” – Booster Gold.

Booster Gold

Name: Michale Jon Carter

1st Appearance: Booster Gold issue #1 (Vol. 1, 1986)

Currently apearing: Booster Gold (Vol. 2, ongoing series)

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Created by Dan Jurgens, Booster Gold is about as far from a model hero as you can get.  A self-promoting thief from the future who saves the day to win adulation and glory more than do the right thing has come quite a long way since his first appearance back in 1986.

The Greatest Hero the World Has Never Known

Michael Jon Carter was a famous football star in the 25th Century before being banned for betting on his own games.  Taking up a job as a night watchman in the Metropolis Space Museum he studied the past and with the help of a security robot named Skeets stole a uniform and various super-hero equipment including a Legion of Super-Heroes flight ring and Brainiac 5’s force-field belt.  “Borrowing” Rip Hunter‘s time machine Carter and Skeets journeyed back to the 20th Century where he reinvented himself as the hero “Booster Gold.”

Booster Gold remained in modern day Metropolis, bringing him often into conflict with Superman, and used his celebrity and knowledge of the future to build himself a sizable fortune (though many heroes protested against his commercial deals, merchandising, and celebrity status).  In the late 80’s Booster became a cornerstone of Keith Giffen‘s run of Justice League International.  Booster fit right in with Guy Gardner, Captain Atom, Fire and Ice, and formed a strong friendship with the Blue Beetle (together the two found countless ways to get into trouble including opening a JLI resort on the living island of Kooey Kooey Kooey).

Life after the Justice League, including founding The Conglomerate and a short stint as part of a new team known (or best forgotten) as Extreme Justice, wasn’t too bright for our hero, and at one point he even hung up his costume.

Booster reemerged during Infinite Crisis, and played a key role in DC’s year-long event 52 by saving the newly created DC Multiverse.

 

In his new ongoing series Booster Gold accepts a job from Rip Hunter to maintain his reputation as a super-hero failure in order to use his powers secretly to help Hunter save the Multiverse from potential time anomalies and villains who will prey on them and truly become “the greatest hero the world has never known.”

Booster Gold earned his own episode “The Greatest Story Never Told” on Justice League Unlimited (read the full review). Here’s a scene with Booster and Skeets.  This episode is an almost perfect portrayal of the early Booster Gold as his attempts at acknowledgment and celebrity only lead to dead-ends (and people constantly thanking Green Lantern for his actions).  And when he finally does save the world, of course, no one ever knows.  Classic.

For me Booster Gold was a staple of Giffen’s mad and hilarious run on Justice League and I’m so happy that he’s earned himself a new series to promote his own brand of super-heroing.  For more on our hero check out Justice League: A New Beginning, Formerly Known as the Justice League and I Can’t Believe It’s Not the Justice League

, and all four volumes of 52, all currently available in trade paperback.  You can also check out “The Official Booster Gold Chronology” to find other appearances by our hero.

Geoff Johns does it again!  I’m not sure what exactly Johns has to take a slumping hero and return him to glory, but Johns seems to have an unlimited ability here.  First the JSA, then Hal Jordan, and now Booster Gold gets some of the Johns magic as “The Greatest Hero the world has never known” gets his own monthly title!  For a look into issue #1 check out the Full Diagnosis.

The All-New Booster Gold #1
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From the very beginning you know this is going to be fun.  At the bottom of the title page our writer, Geoff Johns, offers special thanks to Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid, “but definately not Keith Giffen!”  Well, we know Booster Gold is in good hands.

For those of you who don’t know Booster Gold, and there are many, Johns opens with an issue to highlight the hero’s sketchy past and point him in a new direction after his involvement in last year’s 52.  Booster fights the Royal Flush Gang, tries to earn a spot on the Justice League of America, and reminisces about the good times with his pal the Blue Beetle.  Everything changes however as Rip Hunter shows up and offers Booster the greatest and hardest assignment of his career – to save the Multiuniverse.  Of course there’s a catch, in order to be able to perform this necessary assignment Booster must play the fool to the world and let no one know what he’s up to.

It’s nice to see Booster Gold earn his own series and take a look at how the hero has grown up enough to accept an assignment which will earn him no glory and no friends.  The set-up allows the character to play the jerk to the rest of the DCU while still allowing some strong adventures and character development which we the readers are alone privy to.

Once again Johns is up to the challenge and jump starts a series with a bang.  Johns plays on those early Giffen days, but also rounds out the character who has grown up since then.  I look forward to see where the character, and the series, goes from here.