Bad Bwah Ha Ha Ha
"Bwah Ha Ha Ha" returns to the DC Universe with the new Blue Beetle ongoing.
Only this bwah ha ha ha is BAD, as it is the laughter at the following first look at the new Blue Beetle's costume.
Well, maybe it will be good anyways.
Only this bwah ha ha ha is BAD, as it is the laughter at the following first look at the new Blue Beetle's costume.
Well, maybe it will be good anyways.
posted by Brian Cronin at 12/07/2005 08:21:00 PM
24 Comments:
I'll bite: other than the goofy spiky things sticking out of his back which serve no readily apparent purpose (but then again, neither do Martian Manhunter's suspenders, Wolverine's doofy hair-fitting mask, or capes, for that matter), what's so bad about it?
You know what? That costume actually doesn't look that bad to me. I think the mask looks too much like the mask of that Extant villain from Zero Hour.
Anyway, let me get this straight: DC purchases the rights to Blue Beetle, a serious character, and then turns him into a comedic one. Then DC decides to kill him because he's now too comedic. They replace him with a newly serious Blue Beetle. Then hire the guy who made the last Blue Beetle too comedic to be allowed to live to write this new serious one?
They are just a bizarre bunch. Couldn't they just have returned Ted Kord to his serious Ditko roots and give him a new costume instead of shooting him in the head?
This certainly does not pass the Ron Frenz test.
I think it looks ludicrously over-the-top. "Hey, can we add more insect armory-bits?" "Sure!"
Looks a bit too Darth Maul-y.
Does he actually have a big blue beetle clinging to his back? Creepy!
Nah. I totally get this.
Criminals are a superstitious and cowardly lot.
I am neither superstitious nor cowardly, but I'd probably wet myself if I saw a dude with what looks like a giant metal bug biting him in the back.
DUDE! You Got a Damn Giant Metal Bug Biting You in the Back! Fuck, Man! That's gotta HURT! I'm Outta Here Before I hafta watch it lay eggs in your ears or something.
Minus the giant metal but, it kind of looks like the love-child of Azreal and Mister Miracle, minus the cape... Which is the best part of both.
Hey, we need T'omm. Isn't he part of this blog?
Although the bug thing is creepy, it's the fingertips that strike me as most odd. I imagine they're probably a cling-to-walls thingy, but the way they're lit up makes me think that the new Blue Beetle is actually the Ten-Eyed Man.
I am cool. Aaaaaaaah! Get it off me.
well, this is what you get when you decide to combine the Scarab elements into the current "Blue" Beetle design. Go back and check the Vertigo Scarab series and you see where this is all coming from. a stupid idea? Maybe. But at least there's a reason behind it.
the spiky chitinous bits look like hardened blue versions of the old Ditko Creeper's red boa/shag/whatever. Which sorta works, since it's a harden version of another old Ditko character.
Don't just credit (or fault, depends on your viewpoint), Ditko and DC for the costume. Wizard pointed out some time ago that Alex Ross based his 'Kingdom' design for Blue Beetle (which this bears some resemblance to) on Yoshiki Takaya's manga 'The Guyver'. Which, yes, was made into a crummy movie featuring the guy from Star Wars. I was always a fan and figured I ought to point this out. Look at the 'insect-armory bits'. It's derived from Ross who was derived from Takaya, to me anyways.
I don't think it's quite as bad as some people are saying - it could have been simplified a touch and I'll wait for an explanation of The Giant Back Beetle (GBB), assuming there is one, before passing judgement. With a few tweaks, it could be pretty swell. I guess the biggest problem I have is with the mask - that thing gives me severe 90's flashbacks.
The mind shudders to think about what that giant metal beetle is doing to Not-Ted-Kord's back...
I don't think it's that bad either. The mask being the biggest "Look, he's kewl"-thing about him (or her, man-suits are the new thing after all)
I think a lot of the negative reaction is not so much to the costume itself as to characters the costume reminds us of. But when you think back on those characters - those kind of blandly edgy, "in your face" Imagey types - the costumes were really the least objectionable part of the package.
Here's what I think. I think the new Blue Beetle will be Ray Palmer, formerly the Atom and the picture shown is taken out of scale. The beetle thingy on his back is actually Blue' Beetle's Scarab and the guy is actually tiny so the back thing looks big. Makes some sort of sense as beetles are small so why not have a guy that can be the size of a beetle?
Well that is a bit much isn't it. And apparently he lives in a sauna or there's a skunk behind him (or her).
Although I like Cheeseburger's assesment. Very creative.
Yeah, the "angry" mask and all the spikey bits just look like they're trying go for an EXTREME!!! look, because after all, the 90's are cool again. Allegedly.
Now as Lungfish points out, it's just the look that's EXTREME!!!, and an optimist might say that the industry has grown beyond a reliance on EXTREME!!! visuals and no good content.
But I'm no optimist.
So is this the Blue Beetle after he dies and makes a deal with the devil to return as his earthly hellspawn?
I thought these types of costumes had died out after the 90's were over.
Why can't we just have a retro Beetle based on the Golden Age character?
Yuck. There are so many things that scream "kewl" about this costume.
The spikes.
The tattoo pattern, no-mouth mask.
All the metal plating.
The glowing fingertips.
Not to mention the smoke coming off of him, for no apparent reason.
But, hey, there's always the possibility that it could be one of the best books on the market. I mean, look at Aztek's goofy costume.
You know, Newsarama showed some of the style sheets for the costume here and I gotta admit, it looks damn cool. Especially if those two antenna behind the neck end up having a purpose (i.e. the handles of two swords or something).
What, like the guy from Wanted? Does that mean that the new Beetle (not to be confused with the New Beetle) is going to turn to the camera on the last page of his book and call the reader a wanker?
What T. said (is T. my counterpart from a right-wing universe or something?). I think the sketches of the new Beetle make the character look very cool - he's very expressive, and nicely gadgety without looking "EXTEEEM!"
Well, that was... unexpected.
I'd guessed from the moment Ted was shot in the head that BB was going to experience a comeback thanks to the interest generated but I had predicted it would be a woman in the classic BB costume, not this Image-wannabe.
Maybe it's Azrael? This looks like the sort of thing he'd wear.
Post a Comment
<< Home