DCU Comic Book Reviews

BLUE BEETLE #23

EndGame, Part Two:  World Tour

March 2008

Written by John Rogers

Pencils by Rafael Albuquerque

Inks by Rafael Albuquerque

Cover by Rafael Albuquerque

Synopsis

Jaime Reyes (aka Blue Beetle), along with Paco and Brenda, discuss plans on how to battle the Reach.  Jaime realizes that his best bet is to toss a monkey wrench into the Reach’s plans, but that means he will have to do it alone.  Jaime’s plan is to enter the Bleed and use that to appear on Earth almost-simultaneously in three different spots to remove the Reach’s World Rippers hidden inside the planet.  The Reach then transmit energy from the hidden mothership to protect themselves.  However, Hector and Nadia are able to locate the mothership from the burst of energy, allowing Jaime to directly attack the ship.  The plan seems to be working until the Negotiator targets Jaime’s family with a bomb.  Jaime calls Paco and tells him to get his family from safely, but in the moment of stress worrying about his family, the Negotiator is able to disable the Scarab.  He then removes it completely from Jaime’s spine.  Jaime is Blue Beetle no more.

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

I loved this issue.  I loved the way Rogers plotted the story.  From the opening pages featuring Jaime with his family and friends, to his successful attack on the Reach, and to the final moment when victory was literally ripped away from him everything just clicked into place perfectly.  I loved the way Jaime explained his reason for attacking, both to his friends and family and I loved the way they all argued with him before finally agreeing to his choice.  And I loved the plan Jaime concocts both in terms of how he used the scarab’s abilities as well as using his own smarts, and a little help for Nadia and Hector.  Even the ending was perfect.  As I was reading I couldn’t believe how easy Jaime was dismantling the Reach, so I wasn’t surprised at the ending, but I did like how the Negotiator was able to outthink Jaime to defeat him. 

The reason the issue works is because of the first part.  Rogers makes sure to show Jaime’s relationship with his family, to show how much they mean to him, so that when the Negotiator threatens his family, we understand and accept Jaime’s reaction and decision.  I should also mention that the issue works because Rogers has taken the time in previous issues to establish the relationships in the book.  So when the negotiator threatens Jaime’s family and Jaime responds, the emotion of the moment is earned and has an impact on us, rather than feeling like it was forced into the plot by the writer. 

On the first page:  WWTKD.  What Would Ted Kord Do?

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