Take the plunge
Mar. 19th, 2011 11:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tilly_stratfordYou know, I was thinking about writing an apology for the overload of superhero squee I'm bringing your way these days, but heck, you know how I work by now. Currently it's superheroes that bring me joy, in two months' time it's probably something weirder.
Anyway - got to another one of those plot archs that I've heard about for years and that proved to be just as good as I was expecting - the saga of Kooey Kooey Kooey.
^Possibly the best Adam Hughes cover ever? Cheesecake to the power of infinity! Check out all the great details - Beetle's shorts, (Booster's thong!), Max Lord being restrained by Batman and J'onn in the background, Major Disaster and Big Sir doing their panto villain thing...)
So besides being a great fun Blue-and-Gold adventure (you uh, might have noticed Beetle and Booster have become my favourite superheroes ever), another thing I love about it is how Maxwell Lord is really starting to settle in his role as the JLI'smanager babysitter.
Poor charming long-suffering Max. (And yes, I've read enough Green Lantern comics to know and love Kilowog - though am I the only one who always reads the word "poozer" as some sort of intergalactic gay slur? It always cracks me up)
But speaking of long-suffering, you remember in one of the first posts I wrote when I started reading JLI, I mentioned how Batman and J'onn obviously where the group's daddies?
Well I obviously hit the nail right on the head.
D'aww! The JLI has two daddies! Well, three with Max. Or rather Bats and J'onn are the mothers of the family since they do the day-to-day upbringing and only send Booster, Beetle and/or Guy to Max' office to get yelled at if they've done something particularly naughty. Okay I should probably stop this metaphor before it derails further.
MY SUPERHERO TEAM WORKS LIKE A STEREOTYPICAL FIFTIES FAMILY, WHAT OF IT.
Aaanyway, back to the plot - now that Kilowog's joined the group, Beetle and Booster realize they can use his knack for constructions to finally begin on the super secret plan they've been whispering and giggling about for months -
(don't make dirty joke don't make dirty joke don't make dirty joke)
Step 1: FUCKING STEAL THE JLIs FUNDS AND RUN AWAY.
(Gosh Bats and J'onn you're SO FUCKING HELPFUL)
Step 2: OPEN UP A SWEET-ASS SUPERHERO-THEMED RESORT ON A PACIFIC ISLAND
Step 3: WATCH IT ALL FALL APART BECAUSE YOU'RE SO GODDAMN INCOMPETENT
(Man do I enjoy Adam "cheesecake" Hughes taking over the penciling - look at beautiful pouty Booster in that first panel!)
Not only are they bankrupt at the end of the first day -
- but also the island of Kooey Kooey Kooey is - dunn dunn DUNN - revealed to be more than meets the eye, and I won't spoil it for you. Aquaman pops up to yell at them too, looking Adam Hughesy and pretty:
(Though it did occur to me that if Booster was to remove his cowl they would look practically identical)
And the villain Major Disaster reveals himself, and ONCE AGAIN this book makes me completely fall in love with silly minor villains (the first time was when they had Clue Master sitting on a beach quietly singing Otis Redding songs to himself).
(Striking a pose in the second panel like he's on the cover of Vogue - did I mention I love Adam Hughes yet?)
NO BRAIN DON'T YOU DARE THINK ABOUT HOW THIS DIALOGUE IS BITTERLY IRONIC CONSIDERING WHAT HAPPENED FIFTEEN YEARS LATER. IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE FUNNY, BRAIN. FUNNY. NOT THAT OTHER THING.
Speaking ofthe devil Maxwell Lord - in his rage-fueled pursuit of Booster and Beetle he now finds himself floating in the middle of the Souther Pacific along with Huntress, Ice and Oberon. As you do.
I've noticed how people have been clamouring in the letter columns for some comeuppance for Max ever since he used his mental powers to make Huntress join the JLI against her will, so I think that this might be a plot contrivance to sate those readers:
What's funny is that she takes it so badly that Max is forced to use his powers again to make her forget he ever confessed to her. I'm still really enjoying how ambiguous Max is written at this point - I can never quite tell if he's a generally good guy with some moral lapses or an extremely talented conman. Just mentioning this because I know he won't always stay this ambiguous.
Anyway, everybody's rescued, the resort is pretty much reduced to rubble, and our heroes find themselves back in New York (Unrelated - I've no idea what the deal is with this page layout, it doesn't work).
Booster and Beetle - the only adult superheroes so immature they're punished with menial labour on a regular basis by their manager.
And just on a random note - Dan Jurgens, the original creator of Booster Gold, recently said in an interview that Booster's meant to be perpetually twenty-three years old. I took notice of this because A) Hey that's my age! and B) That doesn't really work for me. One thing I can appreciate about Booster Gold is how he actually gradually matures over the years (heck, even in Dan Jurgen's own comics it's clear that Booster is eighteen or nineteen when he first begins superheroing, and then grows older).
Another case of those "even though you create a character, you can't forever dictate how he's supposed to be read, especially when so many other writers have had a go through the years" things.
As a contrast to that, I also read recently that as far as Fabian Nicieza's concerned, Cable & Deadpool is a bona fide love story. Damn right.
Anyway - got to another one of those plot archs that I've heard about for years and that proved to be just as good as I was expecting - the saga of Kooey Kooey Kooey.
^Possibly the best Adam Hughes cover ever? Cheesecake to the power of infinity! Check out all the great details - Beetle's shorts, (Booster's thong!), Max Lord being restrained by Batman and J'onn in the background, Major Disaster and Big Sir doing their panto villain thing...)
So besides being a great fun Blue-and-Gold adventure (you uh, might have noticed Beetle and Booster have become my favourite superheroes ever), another thing I love about it is how Maxwell Lord is really starting to settle in his role as the JLI's
Poor charming long-suffering Max. (And yes, I've read enough Green Lantern comics to know and love Kilowog - though am I the only one who always reads the word "poozer" as some sort of intergalactic gay slur? It always cracks me up)
But speaking of long-suffering, you remember in one of the first posts I wrote when I started reading JLI, I mentioned how Batman and J'onn obviously where the group's daddies?
Well I obviously hit the nail right on the head.
D'aww! The JLI has two daddies! Well, three with Max. Or rather Bats and J'onn are the mothers of the family since they do the day-to-day upbringing and only send Booster, Beetle and/or Guy to Max' office to get yelled at if they've done something particularly naughty. Okay I should probably stop this metaphor before it derails further.
MY SUPERHERO TEAM WORKS LIKE A STEREOTYPICAL FIFTIES FAMILY, WHAT OF IT.
Aaanyway, back to the plot - now that Kilowog's joined the group, Beetle and Booster realize they can use his knack for constructions to finally begin on the super secret plan they've been whispering and giggling about for months -
(don't make dirty joke don't make dirty joke don't make dirty joke)
Step 1: FUCKING STEAL THE JLIs FUNDS AND RUN AWAY.
(Gosh Bats and J'onn you're SO FUCKING HELPFUL)
Step 2: OPEN UP A SWEET-ASS SUPERHERO-THEMED RESORT ON A PACIFIC ISLAND
Step 3: WATCH IT ALL FALL APART BECAUSE YOU'RE SO GODDAMN INCOMPETENT
(Man do I enjoy Adam "cheesecake" Hughes taking over the penciling - look at beautiful pouty Booster in that first panel!)
Not only are they bankrupt at the end of the first day -
- but also the island of Kooey Kooey Kooey is - dunn dunn DUNN - revealed to be more than meets the eye, and I won't spoil it for you. Aquaman pops up to yell at them too, looking Adam Hughesy and pretty:
And the villain Major Disaster reveals himself, and ONCE AGAIN this book makes me completely fall in love with silly minor villains (the first time was when they had Clue Master sitting on a beach quietly singing Otis Redding songs to himself).
Speaking of
I've noticed how people have been clamouring in the letter columns for some comeuppance for Max ever since he used his mental powers to make Huntress join the JLI against her will, so I think that this might be a plot contrivance to sate those readers:
What's funny is that she takes it so badly that Max is forced to use his powers again to make her forget he ever confessed to her. I'm still really enjoying how ambiguous Max is written at this point - I can never quite tell if he's a generally good guy with some moral lapses or an extremely talented conman. Just mentioning this because I know he won't always stay this ambiguous.
Anyway, everybody's rescued, the resort is pretty much reduced to rubble, and our heroes find themselves back in New York (Unrelated - I've no idea what the deal is with this page layout, it doesn't work).
Booster and Beetle - the only adult superheroes so immature they're punished with menial labour on a regular basis by their manager.
And just on a random note - Dan Jurgens, the original creator of Booster Gold, recently said in an interview that Booster's meant to be perpetually twenty-three years old. I took notice of this because A) Hey that's my age! and B) That doesn't really work for me. One thing I can appreciate about Booster Gold is how he actually gradually matures over the years (heck, even in Dan Jurgen's own comics it's clear that Booster is eighteen or nineteen when he first begins superheroing, and then grows older).
Another case of those "even though you create a character, you can't forever dictate how he's supposed to be read, especially when so many other writers have had a go through the years" things.
As a contrast to that, I also read recently that as far as Fabian Nicieza's concerned, Cable & Deadpool is a bona fide love story. Damn right.
