Blue Beetle #23

Well, boy howdy, the shit has hit the fan, and the ante has been upped. Jaime has figured out what the Reach are REALLY up too, and it is nothing less than world conquest. The problem is that they are such sneaky little buggers...they've covered their tracks so well, and their timeline is so long, that Jaime doesn't really have any evidence to present to the JLA or anybody.

We open with a charming view of Jaime standing at his desk, and staring at the various pieces of paper and pictures oh his bulletin board. Tacked along the top, is a sign that says "W.W.T.K.D.?" Or, "What Would Ted Kord Do?" I tell you, I just...melted.

Paco wants him to go to the JLA, but he says he doens't have enough evidence, and Brenda agrees with him, which leads to the usual hilarious exchange between Paco and Brenda. However, Jaime, who has indeed been studying up on what Ted would do, does have a plan of sorts.



It has finally dawned on the Reach guys, that perhaps Jaime is turning into something of a problem. I get the distinct impression that the head Reach guy is starting to panic...just a tiny little bit. He's definitely letting Jaime get to him, and that can only be a good thing for Earth. Anyway, they are beginning to take some preventive measures.

Meanwhile, Jaime has gone to tell his family what it is that he has to do. Naturally, being his parents, they don't want him to be hurt. But Jaime is a hero, they raised him right, and he's trying to do the right thing. Milagro points out that this is his job...that he's the GOOD GUY, and its his job to save people.



*sniff*

Nobody is happy about what he has to do, but at least they understand that he has to do it. And thanks to his studying Ted's books and notes, he has an interesting plan, to say the least. Somehow, he's appearing simultaneously out of the bleed, and confusing the monitors on the Reach's ship. In other words, he's using the Bleed's Time Dilation to cheat Causality! I don't really know what that all means, but it sure sounds cool! And the reason that he used three versions of himself, was to somehow create triangulation, so that he could find the Reach ship, and attack it.

He and the Scarab are actually doing pretty well. He defeats all the little fighter ships and comes blasting right into the main ship. In retaliation, the Reach decides to blow up his family. Fortunately, Jaime anticipated a move like this, and manages to ring up Paco's cell-phone and warn him to get them all out. Then there is a big WHAKA-KHOOOM! and the Reyes house goes up in flames.

Jaime is terrified, and the Reach somehow uses his emotions to shut down the Scarab, then the Reach guy reaches in and rips it out of Jaime's spine. THAT had to hurt. The Reach taunts him, saying that the Scarab is..."...shut down. Dormant or dead. Not sure which. Not sure I CARE at this point." He then cackles a bit about how powerless Jaime is, and that his family is surely dead...and that "...You are the Blue Beetle no more!"

Whoa! Heck of a cliffhanger!

Of course, the Reach has failed to take into consideration quite a number of things. For one thing, I don't for a minute believe that Jaime's family and friends are dead. The did lose their house however, so I hope they have good insurance. For another thing, dismissing the scarab so cavalierly is a very stupid move on the part of the Reach...but one that is also quite believable. As I understand it, the Reach treats the Scarabs as nothing more than slaves, so I can see why they would underestimate the bond that Jaime has formed with the Scarab. Finally, Jaime has been reading all the books that Guy gave him, along with Ted's notes and such. I also think that he's been getting information from Dani Garrett and anybody else that he can think of. Jaime is a smart kid...much smarter than he's been given credit for.

I can't begin to explain how very much I love this book. It is everything that Spider-Man could be, but better. Here is a young and rather bewildered hero, who has attained vast powers that he only vaguely understands. He tries to do his best, but the thing that really seals the deal for me, is that he has a warm and loving family to back him up. He has friends who help him with his new powers and responsibilities. He doesn't whine, he doesn't angst, he doesn't try to keep secrets. I'm pretty sure that half of El Paso has a pretty good idea who he is. He has one of the best supporting casts in all of comicbookdom...and I LOVE it.