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245c2.21 0 4-2.79 4-5s-1.79-4-4-4-4 1.79-4 4 1.79 5 4 5z" fill="#FFF"/></g></svg> 246</a> 247 </div> 248 <div class="gh-article-meta-wrapper"> 249 <h4 class="gh-article-author-name"><a href="/author/slwalker/">SLWalker</a></h4> 250 <div class="gh-article-meta-content"> 251 <time class="gh-article-meta-date" datetime="2025-09-02">02 Sep 2025</time> 252 <span class="gh-article-meta-length"><span class="bull">â</span> 17 min read</span> 253 </div> 254 </div> 255 </div> 256 257 <figure class="gh-article-image"> 258 <img 259 srcset="/content/images/size/w320/2025/09/7fd8e3c1-8f4f-49bf-a216-183e0137e89f_976x1500.jpg 320w, 260 /content/images/size/w600/2025/09/7fd8e3c1-8f4f-49bf-a216-183e0137e89f_976x1500.jpg 600w, 261 /content/images/size/w960/2025/09/7fd8e3c1-8f4f-49bf-a216-183e0137e89f_976x1500.jpg 960w, 262 /content/images/size/w1200/2025/09/7fd8e3c1-8f4f-49bf-a216-183e0137e89f_976x1500.jpg 1200w, 263 /content/images/size/w2000/2025/09/7fd8e3c1-8f4f-49bf-a216-183e0137e89f_976x1500.jpg 2000w" 264 sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1120px" 265 src="/content/images/size/w1200/2025/09/7fd8e3c1-8f4f-49bf-a216-183e0137e89f_976x1500.jpg" 266 alt="Superman (2023) #29" 267 > 268 </figure> 269 270 </header> 271 272 <section class="gh-content gh-canvas is-body"> 273 274 <h3 id="what%E2%80%99s-got-me-thinking">Whatâs Got Me Thinking</h3><p>I normally donât really like to formally review books as they come out. Part of thatâs because I find itâs usually a good idea to let them sit for awhile and see how it all looks from the other side of it. And sure, sometimes that ends up biting me very hard in the ass[[1]]â </p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!ztkX!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ffd94e222-2aeb-429f-9705-c0c8bfa1823d_1034x308.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1034" height="308"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">ð¤¬ð¤¬ð¤¬</span></figcaption></figure><p>âbut sometimes, you end up appreciating the overall arc of something much better for some time percolating on it. Or letting tempers cool. Whichever the case may be. I mean, Infinite Crisis was one of those; I was furious about Ted being killed, but despite being very glad to have him back now, I canât deny that in the long run, that arc starting there and going all the way up to Flashpoint had some of the best writing either he <em>or</em> Booster had gotten in years.</p><p>Another part is because I genuinely like drawing attention to older stories that might get overlooked by newer fans, and Iâve found new appreciations for them as I go back over them myself. Sometimes itâs just reaffirming something I loved before, but sometimes itâs also recognizing things I might not have the first â or second, or even third â time around, if not about the text itself, then about my relationship to said text.</p><p>That being said, my compatriot Walter (I hope you donât mind if I call you that, fella, should you read this) over on Boosterrific <a href="https://www.boosterrific.com/news/2025/08/27/New-Release-Superman-29?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">wrote something a few days ago</a> when this issue that came out which stuck with me. Not so much because the words themselves were anything all that surprising (understandably), but because they resonated with me.</p><p>Iâm one of those comics fans that takes long breaks from it. New52, for example, disappointed me so damn badly that I was gone for <em>years</em> after. You couldnât have paid me to read DC in that era, let alone had me pay <em>them</em> to. I only started drifting back post-Rebirth, and even then, pretty casually. (Though I was definitely hy
274ped about Rebirth Wonder Woman, the first twenty-five issues of which remain one of my favorite runs of all time.)</p><p>So, you can probably imagine my annoyance when most of the team that Iâd loved starting way back 2003, haunting Blue Devil Comics for every back issue I could afford to get my hands on, were <em>still</em> being basically ignored. We had Ted, which was a hell of a nice thing after so many years where he was dead, and we had Guy (and his Red Lantern run was one of the best things to ever come out of New52, I discovered in retrospect), but the rest of the core JLI was basically off the radar. Or maybe still inexplicably evil[[2]].</p><p>Without a ton of reasons to read, I remained only casually and peripherally aware of the goings on of the DCU, which is probably how I ended up missing <em>The Gift</em>[[3]], which is how I ended up <em>not</em> missing that other steaming pile referenced above[[4]], but Iâm digressing.</p><p>Anyway, back to Walter. Beyond the fact heâs the webmaster of the single most comprehensive source of Booster Gold material on the entire internet â no joke, I think the only thing I never saw him mention is the JLA prose novel <em>Exterminators</em> by Christopher Golden, published in 2004, which has Booster as the narrative center of two scenes[[5]] â heâs also entertaining to read himself and a pretty good sport, <em>and</em> heâs gotta be Boosterâs most consistently faithful fan.</p><p>So, when the expert in the fannish field is distressed by something, itâs very notable. I thought I might examine why and a little about how Iâm feeling myself.</p><h3 id="the-issue-itself">The Issue Itself</h3><p>Just as a disclaimer, besides that this has spoilers â if you havenât read it yet â Iâm not actually interested in about 90% of this issue. (Sorry, Legion fans.) As anyone who knows me decently well knows, I have my flags planted upon certain hills, and upon those hills Iâll live or die, metaphorically speaking. Whatever else is happening on various hills around mine are a peripheral concern at best.</p><p>My Justice League is the JLI, my Green Lantern is Guy Gardner and my favorite regular-human heroes are Blue Beetle (Ted Kord variation) and Booster Gold.</p><p>That being said, I had a feeling when I pre-ordered this issue (digitally, because my nearest LCS is now well out of my way) that Booster was going to finally make an appearance again, which was why I <em>did</em> bother to pre-order it. Weâve only seen him a couple of times since he went missing after the <em>All-In Special</em>, but the set-up was pretty clear.</p><p>I will say that despite my reading being almost solely for Booster, I <em>did</em> laugh at Superboy Primeâs monologuing. Especially this bitâ</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Ag6v!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F97e6482b-be87-477e-ab49-cdc31516e2ce_502x370.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="502" height="370"></figure><p>âbecause âsome lame Batman rip-offâ might be one of the best ways Iâve ever seen The Batman Who Laughs described. I remember having interestingly mixed feelings about Prime being given a redemption arc back then, considering Infinite Crisis, but ultimately feeling that it was well done, too. But as Prime himself says:</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!LoAf!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F87b386c5-dc0e-43b9-8915-942af4d9fdb2_938x711.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="938" height="711"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">I meanâ the boy has a point. 𤣠Sure, it doesnât erase the in-universe </span><i><em class="italic" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">trauma</em></i><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">, but the meta commentary on how DC basically treats death and rebooting is pretty good, ngl.</span></figcaption></figure><p>Admittedly, Iâm not actually a fan of fourth-wall breaking characters most of the time. I get why some people like them, but they really kind of annoy me; when Iâm reading a story, itâs to escape into said story. Itâs to get absorbed into it and all the interesting facets of it â provided it has those â and so getting taken out of itâs a vague kind of irritating.</p><p>That being said, it made for an interesting juxtaposition here; this is set up as being a deathly serious story. An entire (beloved) team of superheroes has been either co-opted or, as we find out later in the issue, murdered in various iterations. The future looks to be in dire shape. So, when Williamson (presumably with the permission of DC Editorial) decided to go off on a Superboy Prime fueled meta commentary, it sort ofâ I dunno. Put a pin in the metaphorical balloon, I guess?</p><p>As to whether you feel like thatâs a good thing or a bad thing, thatâs up to you to decide. Iâm largely neutral on it myself because, like I said, Iâm reading this particular issue of this particular book for one single reason, which is Booster.</p><p>That makes the first name-check of him particularly interesting, in part because itâs defying everything DCâs done with Booster since his <em>last solo</em>, which ended all the way back in 2011.</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!FEYG!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fdc5d6973-3494-464f-8c1d-622a67f65a82_576x666.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="576" height="666"></figure><p>I donât honestly know how to feel about Prime saying Boosterâs one of the greatest superheroes of all time. Not because I donât love Booster â I mean, sheesh, look around this place, how I feel about that guy is pretty self-evident â but because I think what makes Booster such a brilliant character is just how very human and relatable he is. What makes him great to <em>me</em>, as a character, is that heâs flawed and mortal and several shades of <em>Wow This Man is Not Okayâ¢</em>, but he still pulls on his boots and takes beating after beating.</p><p>Dan Jurgens maintained from the start that Booster wanted to be a hero, that he was a legitimate hero, but what makes Booster that for me is that heâs just wholly, fundamentally human. Heâs extraordinary precisely because heâs ordinary. He screws up sometimes, and missteps, heâs a walking example of all kinds of emotional damage and how that can manifest in some painful ways, but he still chooses to pick himself up and wipe the blood off of his mouth and go back to fighting the genuinely good fight anyway.</p><p>For all the guy catches shit because either fans or writers have forgotten just how much heâs already bled on the battlefield since his creation, heâs still gone full villain 100% fewer times than Hal Jordan. For an example. And at the end of the day, Booster hasnât gotten any fame or fortune heâs gotten to keep, but he <em>still</em> keeps going out there and being a hero anyway.</p><p>Thereâs danger in putting a character like him on a pedestal <em>or</em> under it.</p><p>In fairness, that <em>might</em> actually be what young Clark here means, because even if Superboy Prime is a super-powered possible menace now, he was once just a regular human kid who had to live a human life, one where it didnât take a red sun to make him bleed. He, too, knows what itâs like to wipe the blood off of his mouth and stand back up. I could see where he might harbor a liking for another flawed mortal.</p><p>Problem isâ I wish I could honestly say I was giving DC credit for being that deep, but after <em>years</em> of how theyâve written Booster (and Ted, and Max, and Bea, andâ), I have a suspicion that Prime is more referring to the Time Master stuff, which I always had a very mixed relationship with anyway.</p><p>I donât tend to get my hopes up because I just donât have a whole lot of faith in most of DCâs current crop of writers to think that deeply about it. I started from the <em>All-In Special</em> feeling like they were jettisoning a few important things, from just how long Booster was in the League (a decade!), to Supermanâs very notable beef with Boosterâ</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!xDbl!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F71b46938-faaa-495f-90f1-aef51ce91bdc_1040x710.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1040" height="710"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">My man, that is </span><i><em class="italic" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">emphatically</em></i><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> not how that shit went down. ð¤£</span></figcaption></figure><p>âwhich seems entirely unnecessary?</p><p>Listen, listen. If youâre going to have Superman decide he <em>likes</em> Booster, you cannot â <em>cannot</em> â just ignore the fact that for most of Boosterâs existence, he really didnât. Clarkâs incredibly selective memory ofâ pretty much their entire relationship through the late 80s and most of the 90s slapped me out of the story so hard that I face-faulted[[6]]. It would have been a hell of a lot more realistic and less ridiculous to say Superman softened up after Booster proved himself. Whichâ he did. Repeatedly.</p><p>It feels a little like trying to take a narrative shortcut thatâs unearned when a single line could have been rewritten to keep it in line with what we all <em>know</em> happened. Another thing that threw me was any speculation on his part about going back to his own time; even if we assume his Maâs alive again, re: Action Comics, he didnât exactly have much there beyond her and maybe his sister. I canât imagine a night watchmanâs job at the Space Museum was callinâ to him here, yâknow?</p><p>That, too, felt like a weak narrative shortcut. Just recently in <em>Blue Beetle (2023)</em>, itâs shown that Booster and the JLI still consider themselves a team, one who <em>will</em> come back together when something bad happens, so itâs not like he doesnât have reasons to stay and people who care about him to stay for. If not the whole JLI, then absolutely Ted Kord still does, but Iâm inclined to hope the whole team would by now.</p><p>However, despite these annoyances, I tried to be forgiving because I kind of desperately wanted DC to treat Booster like he was a serious character again after years of character assassination by King and those who followed King. Because anyone whoâs really paid attention to Booster knows he spends the <em>majority</em> of his existence as a more serious character; even when the humor happens â because it does! â itâs nearly always a product of the situation or the fact that the manâs human, not because heâs somehow actually just a (badly written) joke himself.</p><p>So, I went into this all feeling at least decently optimistic that <em>maybe</em> Booster was going to get treated like he was something more than a moron â which heâd never been during those times heâs best remembered for â and maybe, just <em>maybe</em>, heâd get a chance to win for once. Not even win big, justâ gain a triumph, maybe. Hell, even a small triumph.</p><p>Or even just maybe a momentâs <em>kindness</em>.</p><p><em>Not</em> to spend basically every minute tied in some fashion to the DC Universeâs emotional whipping post. Again.</p><p>
274You know what they say. Be careful what you wish for.</p><p>After getting lost into the future and forgotten about by everyone, the next time we see the poor guy, heâs hanging on a wall in the <em>Summer of Superman Special</em>. I was absolutely thrilled to see his monologue-box styling again, because I missed the hell out of him, and again, it was nice seeing him being treated a hell of a lot more like he had been pre-Flashpoint: As a serious character with some kind of narrative weight behind him.</p><p>Admittedly, I was a <em>little</em> concerned because our boy was once again tied up, but not even in any particularly fun ways this time.[[7]]</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!0-St!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fffb3973f-cc3b-49b7-b1bf-23f8b4772db0_1040x1600.jpeg" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="1040" height="1600"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Donât worry, I have absolutely been wanting nothing more since this than to likeâ wrap him in blankets. So if that was what DC wanted me to feel, bravo, but in fairness, thatâs basically been the state of how Iâve felt since </span><i><em class="italic" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Countdown to Infinite Crisis</em></i><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">, with rare reprieves, soâ</span></figcaption></figure><p>The problem Iâm running into here is about the same one that Walter seems to be running into: This isnât exactly looking like a step <em>up. </em>Or a step anywhere, really.</p><p>Likeâ what are we (meaning fans of Booster) supposed to be reading <em>for?</em></p><p>Iâve got to allow for the fact that I havenât seen it all play out, but just in the past little while, as in the past <em>day,</em> Iâve already heard that the new initiative â DC K.O. â is supposed to be in line with Metal and Death Metal (which I already admittedly knew), and that itâs going to cater to power scalers (which oh my <em>god)</em>, and that mostly itâs gonna focus on who can be the nastiest in the pursuit of power â¨for the greater good⨠and that this shit is going to go on until <em>2027. </em>That this whole K.O. business is only the middle of this arc.</p><p>âwhat am I supposed to be looking forward to, here? And for how long?</p><p>Beyond the fact that no one at DC Editorial has apparently bothered to really consider how much they want to use the word <em>omega</em>[[8]] in a world where Archive of Our Own (AO3) is the #1 website in the world for Books & Literature and the #130 website in the world <em>over all</em>[[9]][[10]], all of this just sounds like the <em>most</em> straight white dude bait that Iâve ever heard.</p><p>Before anyone decides to get all up in arms for me saying thatâ no, you know, Iâm not gonna disclaim it by saying, <em>but not all straight white dudes.</em> Yes, I know. So does everyone else. If youâre not offended by this, then clearly Iâm not talking to you. If you <em>are</em> offended by it, tough shit.</p><p>Iâm a queer woman. Iâm very used to living in a world that caters to straight white dudes and, because Iâm living in that world, I get to navigate life where most media and entertainment either outright gives them what they want or at least apologizes anytime they deviate from the script and throw the rest of us a bone. <em>Especially</em> in comics. Over on Reddit, <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/MatrixKent/?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">/u/MatrixKent</a> posted <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/DCcomics/comments/1n44na2/women_in_dc_in_september_2025/?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><strong>Women in DC in September 2025</strong></a><strong> </strong>recently, and every single time one of these lists comes out, it drives home exactly what the state of affairs are in that regard.</p><p>Anyway, though, Iâm digressing again. Back to the issue.</p><p>Or, rather, back to my issues with the issue.</p><p>As I had been saying, I was sort of desperately hoping DC was going to course-correct and give Booster back some of his narrative weight. Which they might have done, but only to possibly go too far the <em>other</em> way.</p><p>More selfishly, though, I was also hoping theyâd give the man a <em>break</em>. <em>All-In</em> looked like it was trying to go in that direction, insofar as it was letting Booster be a more street-level hero again â which people forget he spent most of his existence as! â and finally doing away with the whole <em>âhe has to get emotionally abused by the entire DCU for the sake of the time streamâ</em> bullshit that made for great angst, but an increasingly distressing read back towards the end of his 2007 run.</p><p>Iâve got a lot of opinions about how DC keeps missing the boat on several characters by latching onto the wrong things with them. But it feels like thatâs the direction theyâre going in again.</p><p>The thing isâ he was actually perfectly in-character in Superman #29.</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!vC3u!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F2ca7a0dd-c07c-42ab-9504-8079099ea423_316x564.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="316" height="564"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Sâokay, Boost, I donât </span><i><em class="italic" style="white-space: pre-wrap;">actually</em></i><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"> need my heart.</span></figcaption></figure><p>As heartbreaking as it is, thatâs actually very much what the man would think, particularly after spending <em>years</em> without rescue. A whole lot of Boosterâs bravado has always been some form of shield; itâs part of what makes him so interesting to read about. At his most earnest and sincere, heâs a pretty normal, if damaged, guy who isnât particularly altruistic in the most straight-forward ways (ie, being a hero, but tying that to his
274self-worth and to making a living, which is an entire psychological discussion better saved for other days and issues[[11]]) but who is, at heart, still genuinely <em>good. </em>Because you donât bleed and suffer the way he has, putting your life on the line for others, if you <em>arenât</em>.</p><p>Beyond that, though, if he thought the people who did claim to care about him just abandoned him, that would do one hell of a number on him psychologically.</p><p>And see, he doesnât <em>stop</em> being in character, either:</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!TGvs!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff9db2f0c-0f37-4c93-8bce-67c27041b62f_576x812.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="576" height="812"></figure><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card kg-card-hascaption"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!ASxy!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F5dac2b2b-e82b-4a0e-801e-3f505491813b_966x349.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="966" height="349"><figcaption><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">That first panel of Booster is adorable, ngl. I might make that one my user iconâ everywhere. And if that isnât Rani in that last flashback panel, then I believe every single fan of his 2007 run should be allowed to gnaw one (1) table into toothpicks for the amazing missed opportunity.</span></figcaption></figure><p>Itâs also 100% a Booster thing to do to be unable to stay on the sidelines regardless of risk, and to put his life on the line trying to help people. Because he did for <em>years</em> as a member of the Justice League, and during a period of time where it wasnât really gaining him anything except eventually a wrecked suit, a missing arm and a year trapped in armor for life support. Hell, even after being turned into an actual zombie, when told he was going to kick it permanently if they took out the Overmasterâs equipment, his answer was:</p><figure class="kg-card kg-image-card"><img src="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!Xw81!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F678074aa-835f-45ae-8534-4f948a1f4359_539x311.png" class="kg-image" alt="" loading="lazy" width="539" height="311"></figure><p>So, ultimately, my feelings about this issue arenât really about Boosterâs characterization. Because whatever else, I think both of those things â his wrenchingly sad belief that he didnât matter enough to rescue <em>and</em> his frank courage in trying to fight on the side of good â are perfectly in keeping with said characterization. Certainly itâs more in character than most <em>other</em> stuff from this era.</p><p>Where I think Iâm more in concurrence with Walter is, again, back to the question ofâ what is there to look forward to from here?</p><p>Iâm not a power scaler. Iâm not even that big into cosmic-sized stories, which is probably why I didnât love the whole Time Masters stuff, though I <em>did</em> love that book regardless. I donât actually care how many people get slaughtered only to be resurrected later, yet again, for whatâ the third time now?</p><p>What I am into is character-pieces. <em>Human</em> stories. Even when a story is about the plot, even when itâs got great fight scenes and cosmic implications, Iâd rather read about what in it still resonates with a human heart. Regardless of who the main character is, though this particular main character is a big favorite for those, if only because he really isnât larger than life. Justâ a very well-rendered example of it.</p><p>And everything it seems Snyder, Williamson and DC are setting up points to this being something geared to the exact <em>opposite</em> of that.</p><p>I had maintained some optimism. Back in January, while I was trying to hold onto that in the face of months of Booster being MIA, Walter said, âYour continued optimism is appreciated, Steff.â</p><p>Man, fella, I wish I could say I had more to cling to, butâ I donât think I really do. I think you called this one.</p><p>Thereâs really only so much I want to read about the Next Big Crisis Or Whatever. And I sometimes feel that them using a character poorly is worse than them not using a character at all. I certainly could have done without several choices theyâve made with Booster (and the whole JLI) over the past fourteen years, truthfully.</p><p>It may well be that this is something I look back on like I did Infinite Crisis: As something best appreciated on the other side, with some time to let it percolate or for tempers to cool. That it actually leads into something great. I donât <em>think</em> it will, but I have to always allow I might be wrong; in fact, whatever else, I genuinely want to be proven so.</p><p>But Iâm done getting my hopes up, I think. If they want my money again, theyâll just have to go back to earning it.</p><p>In the meantime, stick around if you want to read more of my reviews on much older books, or maybe whatever other giant labor of love dissertations/essays/what-have-you come to mind.</p><p>Thanks for reading.</p><div class="kg-card kg-signup-card kg-width-regular " data-lexical-signup-form="" style="background-color: #000000; display: none;"> 275 276 <div class="kg-signup-card-content"> 277 278 <div class="kg-signup-card-text "> 279 <h2 class="kg-signup-card-heading" style="color: #FFFFFF;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Sign up for Boldly Reading</span></h2> 280 <p class="kg-signup-card-subheading" style="color: #FFFFFF;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Comics, Queerness and Literary Analysis</span></p> 281 282 <form class="kg-signup-card-form" data-members-form="signup"> 283 284 <div class="kg-signup-card-fields"> 285 <input class="kg-signup-card-input" id="email" data-members-email="" type="email" required="true" placeholder="Your email"> 286 <button class="kg-signup-card-button kg-style-accent" style="color: #FFFFFF;" type="submit">
287 <span class="kg-signup-card-button-default">Subscribe</span> 288 <span class="kg-signup-card-button-loading"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" height="24" width="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24"> 289 <g stroke-linecap="round" stroke-width="2" fill="currentColor" stroke="none" stroke-linejoin="round" class="nc-icon-wrapper"> 290 <g class="nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o"> 291 <circle cx="4" cy="12" r="3"></circle> 292 <circle cx="12" cy="12" r="3"></circle> 293 <circle cx="20" cy="12" r="3"></circle> 294 </g> 295 <style data-cap="butt"> 296 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o{--animation-duration:0.8s} 297 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o *{opacity:.4;transform:scale(.75);animation:nc-loop-dots-4-anim var(--animation-duration) infinite} 298 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o :nth-child(1){transform-origin:4px 12px;animation-delay:-.3s;animation-delay:calc(var(--animation-duration)/-2.666)} 299 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o :nth-child(2){transform-origin:12px 12px;animation-delay:-.15s;animation-delay:calc(var(--animation-duration)/-5.333)} 300 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o :nth-child(3){transform-origin:20px 12px} 301 @keyframes nc-loop-dots-4-anim{0%,100%{opacity:.4;transform:scale(.75)}50%{opacity:1;transform:scale(1)}} 302 </style> 303 </g> 304 </svg></span> 305 </button> 306 </div> 307 <div class="kg-signup-card-success" style="color: #FFFFFF;"> 308 Email sent! Check your inbox to complete your signup. 309 </div> 310 <div class="kg-signup-card-error" style="color: #FFFFFF;" data-members-error=""></div> 311 </form> 312 313 <p class="kg-signup-card-disclaimer" style="color: #FFFFFF;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.</span></p> 314 </div> 315 </div> 316 </div><p></p><p>[[1]]: Listen, I <em>still</em> donât know how anyone can take a banger premise like âBooster Gold absolutely should be in therapyâ and wreck it this badly, but as someone who clearly has more fun than should be legal psychoanalyzing fictional characters, I <em>am</em> going to hold a grudge forever. The fact his characterization hasnât yet recovered from it â at least until now, maybe?? â is all the more reason to stay salty. And write fix-its.</p><p>[[2]]: Sorry Max. :(</p><p>[[3]]: The name is only ironic because it <em>isnât</em> referring to it being the comic book equivalent of dog shit in a brown paper bag, lit on fire on someoneâs doorstep.</p><p>[[4]]: If you want my full, uncensored thoughts on those storylines in particular, youâll have to either bribe me or wait until I feel the desperate need to thrash around and spew pea soup while speaking in tongues.</p><p>[[5]]: The characterizationâs pretty so-so, but thatâs not a surprise for the era it came out in. But itâs Booster and Ted, anyway.</p><p>[[6]]:<strong> TV Tropes</strong>: <em>Face Fault</em> - <a href="https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FaceFault?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FaceFault</a> - <em>âSometimes a character is so shocked or surprised by an absurdity, non sequitur, or incredibly stupid remark from another character that the listener actually faints. The remark is so startling that it, quite literally, <strong>floors them</strong>.â</em></p><p>[[7]]: If youâre not a regular here, you should know that I have a running tally on my reviews of Boosterâs books that is âBooster in Bondageâ. The number is currently only 2, but considering the latest issue Iâd reviewed is only <em>#4</em>, you can see why that tally is on there.</p><p>[[8]]:<strong> Fanlore</strong>: <em>Alpha/Beta/Omega</em> - <a href="https://fanlore.org/wiki/Alpha/Beta/Omega?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://fanlore.org/wiki/Alpha/Beta/Omega</a> - You should definitely think twice, thrice, more before clicking on that link if youâve never heard of this. ð¤£ð¤£ Because I have been laughing about it from the minute Dark!Imra said Booster was filled with omega energy, but I canât guarantee your mileage wonât vary drastically.</p><p>[[9]]:<strong> AO3âs ranking</strong>: <a href="https://www.similarweb.com/website/archiveofourown.org/?ref=boldlyreading.com#overview" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">https://www.similarweb.com/website/archiveofourown.org/#overview</a></p><p>[[10]]: I know for a fact that not only are there fanficcers writing for DC, but there is also no less than one Boostle shipper up there, so Iâm sure someone up there <em>is</em> aware. But if I were them, I would have both hands over my mouth while I laughed myself to tears and I would never warn a soul.</p><p>
316[[11]]: If youâre genuinely interested, though, in how Boosterâs self-valuation is entirely <em>messed up</em>, you can find it <a href="https://boldlyreading.substack.com/p/booster-gold-1986-3?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><strong>here in my review of Issue 3</strong></a> of his 1986 series and <a href="https://boldlyreading.substack.com/i/166060936/isolation-and-exploitation?ref=boldlyreading.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><strong>here</strong></a> in Pt. I: Ch. 1 of <em>The Queer Reading of Booster Gold</em>. And since itâs a topic that interests me like whoa, youâll doubtless see more of it if you stick around.</p> 317 </section> 318 319 </article> 320 321 <div class="gh-comments gh-canvas"> 322 323
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323 324 325 </div> 326 327</main> 328 329 330 <section class="gh-container is-grid gh-outer"> 331 <div class="gh-container-inner gh-inner"> 332 <h2 class="gh-container-title">Read more</h2> 333 <div class="gh-feed"> 334 <article class="gh-card post"> 335 <a class="gh-card-link" href="/the-reaction-to-superman-30/"> 336 <figure class="gh-card-image"> 337 <img 338 srcset="/content/images/size/w160/format/webp/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg 160w, 339 /content/images/size/w320/format/webp/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg 320w, 340 /content/images/size/w600/format/webp/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg 600w, 341 /content/images/size/w960/format/webp/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg 960w, 342 /content/images/size/w1200/format/webp/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg 1200w, 343 /content/images/size/w2000/format/webp/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg 2000w" 344 sizes="320px" 345 src="/content/images/size/w600/2025/09/RCO001_1758723846.jpg" 346 alt="The Reaction to Superman #30" 347 loading="lazy" 348 > 349 </figure> 350 <div class="gh-card-wrapper"> 351 <h3 class="gh-card-title is-title">The Reaction to Superman #30</h3> 352 <p class="gh-card-excerpt is-body">Iâm mostly posting this in case weâre proven right or maybe â mercifully â proven wrong, so we can point to it later. 353 354â 355 356DaraOakwise â 10:10 AM 357Looks like just reestablishing everything pre New 52. So â¦. Is Ted dead or not dead? Because he wasnât dead a bit ago.</p> 358 <footer class="gh-card-meta"> 359<!-- 360 --> 361 <span class="gh-card-author">By SLWalker, Dara Parker</span> 362 <time class="gh-card-date" datetime="2025-09-25">25 Sep 2025</time> 363 <!-- 364 --></footer> 365 </div> 366 </a> 367</article> 368 <article class="gh-card post featured"> 369 <a class="gh-card-link" href="/the-queer-reading-of-booster-gold/"> 370 <figure class="gh-card-image"> 371 <img 372 srcset="/content/images/size/w160/format/webp/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png 160w, 373 /content/images/size/w320/format/webp/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png 320w, 374 /content/images/size/w600/format/webp/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png 600w, 375 /content/images/size/w960/format/webp/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png 960w, 376 /content/images/size/w1200/format/webp/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png 1200w, 377 /content/images/size/w2000/format/webp/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png 2000w" 378 sizes="320px" 379 src="/content/images/size/w600/2025/09/73da605f-61aa-4ac7-b977-21419d8de045_828x1008.png" 380 alt="The Queer Reading of Booster Gold: Part I, Chapter 1" 381 loading="lazy" 382 > 383 </figure> 384 <div class="gh-card-wrapper"> 385 <h3 class="gh-card-title is-title">The Queer Reading of Booster Gold: Part I, Chapter 1</h3> 386 <p class="gh-card-excerpt is-body">That boy can be read as explicitly bent from his inception and now I'm gonna talk about why.ð³ï¸âð</p> 387 <footer class="gh-card-meta"> 388<!-- 389 --> 390 <span class="gh-card-author">By SLWalker</span> 391 <time class="gh-card-date" datetime="2025-08-20">20 Aug 2025</time> 392 <!-- 393 --></footer> 394 </div> 395 </a> 396</article> 397 <article class="gh-card post"> 398 <a class="gh-card-link" href="/booster-gold-1986-4/"> 399 <figure class="gh-card-image"> 400 <img 401 srcset="/content/images/size/w160/format/webp/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg 160w, 402 /content/images/size/w320/format/webp/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg 320w, 403 /content/images/size/w600/format/webp/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg 600w, 404 /content/images/size/w960/format/webp/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg 960w, 405 /content/images/size/w1200/format/webp/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg 1200w, 406 /content/images/size/w2000/format/webp/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg 2000w" 407 sizes="320px" 408 src="/content/images/size/w600/2025/09/73c3605d-1721-4989-8844-fa330328c688_1049x1600-jpeg.jpg" 409 alt="Booster Gold (1986) #4" 410 loading="lazy" 411 > 412 </figure> 413 <div class="gh-card-wrapper"> 414 <h3 class="gh-card-title is-title">Booster Gold (1986) #4</h3> 415 <p class="gh-card-excerpt is-body">A little bondage here, a few bodies draped there--</p> 416 <footer class="gh-card-meta"> 417<!-- 418 -->
419 <span class="gh-card-author">By SLWalker</span> 420 <time class="gh-card-date" datetime="2025-06-07">07 Jun 2025</time> 421 <!-- 422 --></footer> 423 </div> 424 </a> 425</article> 426 <article class="gh-card post"> 427 <a class="gh-card-link" href="/bonus-review-justice-league-quarterly/"> 428 <figure class="gh-card-image"> 429 <img 430 srcset="/content/images/size/w160/format/webp/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png 160w, 431 /content/images/size/w320/format/webp/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png 320w, 432 /content/images/size/w600/format/webp/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png 600w, 433 /content/images/size/w960/format/webp/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png 960w, 434 /content/images/size/w1200/format/webp/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png 1200w, 435 /content/images/size/w2000/format/webp/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png 2000w" 436 sizes="320px" 437 src="/content/images/size/w600/2025/09/e61eab93-8665-473e-8602-43395a106d8f_945x1398.png" 438 alt="Bonus Review: Justice League Quarterly #7" 439 loading="lazy" 440 > 441 </figure> 442 <div class="gh-card-wrapper"> 443 <h3 class="gh-card-title is-title">Bonus Review: Justice League Quarterly #7</h3> 444 <p class="gh-card-excerpt is-body">Klaarsh Reunion! AKA: Ted, did you really need to talk Tora and Bea into being your beards?</p> 445 <footer class="gh-card-meta"> 446<!-- 447 --> 448 <span class="gh-card-author">By SLWalker</span> 449 <time class="gh-card-date" datetime="2025-05-26">26 May 2025</time> 450 <!-- 451 --></footer> 452 </div> 453 </a> 454</article> 455 </div> 456 </div> 457 </section> 458 459 460 <footer class="gh-footer has-accent-color gh-outer"> 461 <div class="gh-footer-inner gh-inner"> 462 463 <div class="gh-footer-bar"> 464 <span class="gh-footer-logo is-title"> 465 Boldly Reading 466 </span> 467 <nav class="gh-footer-menu"> 468 <ul class="nav"> 469 <li class="nav-sign-up"><a href="#/portal/">Sign up</a></li> 470</ul> 471 472 </nav> 473 <div class="gh-footer-copyright"> 474 Powered by <a href="https://ghost.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ghost</a> 475 </div> 476 </div> 477 478 <section class="gh-footer-signup"> 479 <h2 class="gh-footer-signup-header is-title"> 480 Comics, Queerness and Literary Analysis 481 </h2> 482 <p class="gh-footer-signup-subhead is-body"> 483 Now that's some service! 484 </p> 485 <form class="gh-form" data-members-form> 486 <input class="gh-form-input" id="footer-email" name="email" type="email" placeholder="[email protected]" required data-members-email> 487 <button class="gh-button" type="submit" aria-label="Subscribe"> 488 <span><span>Subscribe</span> <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="32" height="32" fill="currentColor" viewBox="0 0 256 256"><path d="M224.49,136.49l-72,72a12,12,0,0,1-17-17L187,140H40a12,12,0,0,1,0-24H187L135.51,64.48a12,12,0,0,1,17-17l72,72A12,12,0,0,1,224.49,136.49Z"></path></svg></span> 489 <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" height="24" width="24" viewBox="0 0 24 24"> 490 <g stroke-linecap="round" stroke-width="2" fill="currentColor" stroke="none" stroke-linejoin="round" class="nc-icon-wrapper"> 491 <g class="nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o"> 492 <circle cx="4" cy="12" r="3"></circle> 493 <circle cx="12" cy="12" r="3"></circle> 494 <circle cx="20" cy="12" r="3"></circle> 495 </g> 496 <style data-cap="butt"> 497 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o{--animation-duration:0.8s} 498 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o *{opacity:.4;transform:scale(.75);animation:nc-loop-dots-4-anim var(--animation-duration) infinite} 499 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o :nth-child(1){transform-origin:4px 12px;animation-delay:-.3s;animation-delay:calc(var(--animation-duration)/-2.666)} 500 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o :nth-child(2){transform-origin:12px 12px;animation-delay:-.15s;animation-delay:calc(var(--animation-duration)/-5.333)} 501 .nc-loop-dots-4-24-icon-o :nth-child(3){transform-origin:20px 12px} 502 @keyframes nc-loop-dots-4-anim{0%,100%{opacity:.4;transform:scale(.75)}50%{opacity:1;transform:scale(1)}} 503 </style> 504 </g> 505</svg> <svg class="checkmark" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 52 52"> 506 <path class="checkmark__check" fill="none" d="M14.1 27.2l7.1 7.2 16.7-16.8"/> 507 <style> 508 .checkmark { 509 width: 40px; 510 height: 40px; 511 display: block; 512 stroke-width: 2.5; 513 stroke: currentColor; 514 stroke-miterlimit: 10; 515 } 516 517 .checkmark__check { 518 transform-origin: 50% 50%; 519 stroke-dasharray: 48; 520 stroke-dashoffset: 48; 521 animation: stroke .3s cubic-bezier(0.650, 0.000, 0.450, 1.000) forwards; 522 } 523 524 @keyframes stroke { 525 100% { stroke-dashoffset: 0; } 526 } 527 </style> 528</svg> </button> 529 <p data-members-error></p> 530</form> </section> 531 532 </div> 533</footer> 534</div> 535 536 <div class="pswp" tabindex="-1" role="dialog" aria-hidden="true"> 537 <div class="pswp__bg"></div> 538 539 <div class="pswp__scroll-wrap"> 540 <div class="pswp__container"> 541 <div class="pswp__item"></div> 542 <div class="pswp__item"></div> 543 <div class="pswp__item"></div> 544 </div> 545 546 <div class="pswp__ui pswp__ui--hidden"> 547 <div class="pswp__top-bar"> 548 <div class="pswp__counter"></div> 549 550 <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--close" title="Close (Esc)"></button> 551 <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--share" title="Share"></button> 552 <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--fs" title="Toggle fullscreen"></button> 553 <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--zoom" title="Zoom in/out"></button> 554 555 <div class="pswp__preloader"> 556 <div class="pswp__preloader__icn"> 557 <div class="pswp__preloader__cut"> 558 <div class="pswp__preloader__donut"></div> 559 </div> 560 </div> 561 </div> 562 </div> 563 564 <div class="pswp__share-modal pswp__share-modal--hidden pswp__single-tap"> 565 <div class="pswp__share-tooltip"></div> 566 </div> 567 568 <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--arrow--left" title="Previous (arrow left)"></button> 569 <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--arrow--right" title="Next (arrow right)"></button> 570 571 <div class="pswp__caption"> 572 <div class="pswp__caption__center"></div> 573 </div> 574 </div> 575 </div> 576</div>
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