Review: Blue Beetle #1

Written by Eric Tremblay

The mantle of the Blue Beetle has always been an interesting one, and for many stories it was passed down from billionaire philanthropist, Ted Kord to the young teenager, Jaime Reyes. Blue Beetle #1 opens up with a mildly established Jaime, still grasping his powers. However one of the bigger twists this time around is that he is not only Ted’s successor, but also his pupil. I think this provides an interesting new dynamic as Jaime will not only be dealing with his scarab’s opinion, but that of his mentor as well.

The introduction of Dr. Fate in the series is a welcomed one, as there is an instant connection to Jaime’s dreams in ancient Egypt of his scarab, and that of the mythos behind Dr. Fate. Giffen also throws another curveball to the mix which the fact that Jaime’s friends are in the know for his superhero persona, which allows for more interesting storylines. Giffen in fact threw that cliché down the Nile.

The real drawback of this comic is that I feel that there are so many moving parts to the story that some plots are not explained to their full potential, leaving the reader a little confused to what exactly is going on. The dialogue does not do much to convey the story as it mostly focuses on everyone fighting. None of the characters generally seem to enjoy each other’s company. Even Jaime’s friends only seem to tolerate each other. I’m interested to see where a lot of the dynamics develop but as of right now I am worried that any real growth may be stunted.

In terms of artwork, I believe that Kolins really does give a nice new fresh look to the Blue Beetle costume while still keeping with the overall feel of how an alien scarab superhero should look like. His attention to detail in background is also welcomed, along with his crisp line work, showing a completed feel.

I do wish the story was a little more explanatory of what exactly is going on as it really does throw the reader right into the story, hopefully there will be some more background of how Jaime and Ted ultimately met, as well as what is going on with their “investigation?”