{"id":33981,"date":"2025-10-09T08:00:21","date_gmt":"2025-10-09T08:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=33981"},"modified":"2025-10-09T10:11:36","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T10:11:36","slug":"dc-finest-blue-beetle-blue-beetle-challenges-the-red-knight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2025\/10\/09\/dc-finest-blue-beetle-blue-beetle-challenges-the-red-knight\/","title":{"rendered":"DC Finest Blue Beetle – Blue Beetle Challenges The Red Knight"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\nBy Joe Gill<\/strong>, Roy Thomas<\/strong>, Gary Friedrich<\/strong>, Benjamin Smith<\/strong>, Bill Fraccio<\/strong>, Tony Tallarico<\/strong>, Dick Giordano<\/strong>, Steve Ditko<\/strong>, Dan Reed & Bob McLeod<\/strong>, Albert Val<\/strong>, Bill Black<\/strong> & various (DC Comics)
\nISBN: 978-1-79950-248-7 (TPB)<\/p>\n

This book includes Discriminatory Content<\/strong> produced in less enlightened times <\/em><\/p>\n

This absorbing yet inarguably eccentric DC Finest<\/strong> compilation offers some of the rarest material ever aquired by the company and probably owes its existence solely to the screen success of the ever-changing titular star. I honestly never expected to see such seminal material in a modern collection and I hope the dated nature of the material finds an appreciative audience and rewards DC for their boldness…\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

Sadly as ever, it\u2019s not yet available digitally, but we live in hope…<\/em><\/p>\n

The Blue Beetle<\/strong> premiered in Mystery Men Comics<\/strong> #1, released by Fox Comics and cover-dated August 1939. The pulp-inspired star was created by Charles Nicholas and possibly initially scripted by Will Eisner. \u201cCharles Nicholas\u201d was a shared pseudonym used by Chuck Cuidera (Blackhawk<\/strong>), Jack Kirby (everything<\/strong>) and Charles Wojtkowski (Blonde Phantom<\/strong>, Young Allies<\/strong>, Nyoka<\/strong>, Iron Corporal<\/strong>) with the last one generally attributed with actually inventing our remarkably resilient Azure Adventurer.<\/p>\n

A mystery man in every sense of the term, the Cobalt Crimecrusher was inexplicably popular from the start: translating his comics venues into merchandise, a radio show and even a newspaper comic strip. Constantly acquired and traded by numerous publishers, BB<\/strong> survived the extinction of most of them: blithely undergoing many revisions to his origins and powers. By the mid-1950s he had ended up at Charlton Comics, appearing sporadically in a few long-inventoried tales before seemingly fading away. However, that was only until the early 1960s superhero resurgence when Joe Gill, Bill Fraccio, Tony Tallarico and, latterly, neophyte scripter\/devoted Golden Age acolyte Roy Thomas revised and revived the character. It led to a unique 10-issue run spanning June 1964 to March 1966 (technically, two separate 5-issue runs), but you\u2019ll see that it wasn\u2019t quite that simple\u2026<\/p>\n

Pulling together many disparate strands from previous incarnations, former cop and valiant troubleshooter Dan Garrett<\/em> was reshaped into an archaeologist gifted with a mysterious, magical ancient Egyptian scarab. This trinket would transform him into a lightning-throwing, super-sensed flying superman whenever he touched the scarab and uttered trigger phrase \u201cKhaji Dha!\u201d<\/p>\n

After another brief sojourn in comic book limbo, Garrett resurfaced when Steve Ditko took on the concept, tweaking it to construct a fresh retooled hero for the gadget-conscious, superhero-savvy society perfect to continually confront a crimeridden culture.<\/p>\n

Ditko accepted and acknowledged but sagely set aside all that prior history to utterly recreate a hero he could understand. Ted Kord<\/em> is an earnest and proudly decent young scientist with a secret tragedy in his past, which Ditko and scripter Gary Friedrich sagely forbore revealing in deference to intrigue and action. The result was a taut, captivating noir thriller that opened the neopgyte\u2019s azure casebook – which we\u2019ll get to in the fullness of time…<\/p>\n

Here, though, we open with the venerable veteran bursting back onto newstands courtesy of Gill, Fraccio, & Tallarico.<\/p>\n

Cover-dated June 1964 the revival began in Blue Beetle (<\/strong>vol. 1, #1) with the disinterrment of \u2018The Giant Mummy Who Was Not Dead\u2019<\/em> as prominent visitor Dr. Dan Garrett and comely local egyptologist Professor Luri Hoshid<\/em> fall foul of a rapidly changing political crisis whilst excavating an ancient site. The tomb of Kha-Ef-Re<\/em> holds untold discoveries but resident strongman-with-despotic-aspirations – and a private nuclear arsenal – General Amenhotep<\/em> may well end their dig out of sheer spite. Threatened but perservering, the duo unearth vile Kha-Ef-Re\u2019s remains and a fantastic blue scarab that seemingly acts as a means of imprisoning his mummy.<\/p>\n

On touching the gem, Garrett experiences an astounding vision as another ancient Egyptian – \u201cThe Great Pharoah<\/em>\u201d – reveals the scarab is a portal to fantastic power to be used in the service of good…
\n\"\"
\nTransformed, Garrett immediately gets a chance to test it as a nuclear strike by Amenhotep\u2019s forces awakens the mummy which grows to fantastic size and rampages across the nation. Thankfully the powers and abilities of The Blue Beetle are sufficient to defeat and re-entomb the monster and deal with the military maniac who thought to exploit him…<\/p>\n

Relentlessly formulaic but somehow ly kitsch and bizarrely appealing, the stage was set for a succession of the same as BB<\/strong> #2\u2019s \u2018Hot War in the Arctic\u2019<\/em> finds Garrett and sexy accomplice du jour Captain Elaine Norr<\/em> (USAF) investigating peril in the far north. Here they clash with Red Chinese forces building secret airbases as well as cavemen, lost Goths, extinct big beasts and even dinosaurs from the sanctuary of a lost land… until more hastily applied atomics trigger a disaster…<\/p>\n

Alien invasion was the theme of the third adventure as supersonic transport and possibly even the space program were threatened by a man who talked to lightning. \u2018Mr. Thunderbolt and the Superstar\u2019<\/em> led to a sustained war of nerves and powers narrowly won for humanity before a traditional supervillain arrived in the bright green form of \u2018The Praying Mantis-Man\u2019<\/em>. Aided by Mexican entymologist firecracker Juanita Rivera<\/em>, Garrett and his alter ego barely survive the efforts of self-mutating chlorophyl addict Hunter Mann<\/em> to replace humanity with giant bugs. The macabre yarn is supplemented by a pinup of the Cobalt Crusader by Pat Masulli, before #5 finds Gill, Fracchio & Tallarico disclosing how and why \u2018Blue Beetle Challenges the Red Knight\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

This eerie yarn sees Garrett come to the aid of his friend Lewis Coll<\/em> after the astrophysicist returns from a space mission strangely altered. Now obsessive and cruel, Coll shuns his fiancee Regina White <\/em>and transforms himself into a invulnerable crimson armoured tyrant seeking to destroy all aircraft. So tough is his opposition that Blue Beetle must seek aid from the The Great Pharoah himself to end the threat…<\/p>\n

The series went on a brief hiatus and returned with a new numbering system as, cover-dated July 1965, Blue Beetle<\/strong> #50 pitted the hero against \u2018The Scorpion\u2019<\/em> as villainous Mister Crabb<\/em> sought to control the oil industry with thugs and giant robots, whilst in # 51 deranged incel Dr. Jeremiah Clugg<\/em> sought to offset his self-perceived physical flaws and failings with women by placing his personality and mentality inside a super-srobot dubbed \u2018Mentor the Magnificent\u2019.<\/em> Unable to reason, the Beetle had to quell his increasing instability with force…<\/p>\n

Gill & Tallarico handled #52 as \u2018Magno, the Man Who Shakes the World\u2019<\/em> finds disgraced anthropologist Louis Forte targeting Garrett for revenge that escalates into shattering the entire planet as tectonic terrorist Magno-Man, after which Praying Mantis-Man returns to bedevil humanity in \u2018The People Theives\u2019<\/em>, with the mantid maniac snatching humans as lab fodder until the Azure Avenger steps in and stomps him…<\/p>\n

The last hurrah of the old guard saw aspiring junior Roy Thomas script for Fracchio & Tallarico a deft return to Egypt in final foray (Blue Beetle<\/strong> #54 February\/March 1966) as Garrett and Luri Hoshid reunite after her latest find is co-opted by a rival who knows its true power. Sadly even Professor Philipps<\/em> is unaware of the full force and malign sentience of \u2018The Eye of Horus\u2019 <\/em>Soon the ancient device is enslaving and transforming humans in its quest for dominance, but the Great Pharoah has a plan to aid his new agent defeat it. All the hero has to do is visit the gods in the Land of the Dead and return with a certain weapon…<\/p>\n

Despite it being the height of superhero madness in popular culture, Blue Beetle<\/strong> folded then and was left fallow until the end of the year. As stated above, he returned much changed in the back of Captain Atom<\/strong> (#83 November 1966) with Charlton Comics\u2019 biggest gun in the process of his own refit and renewal again courtesy of Ditko.<\/p>\n

The remodelling of the Atomic Ace left room for expansion and experimentation so Ditko plunged right in, introducing an acrobatic, technologically armed swashbuckler taking care of business without any extraneous exposition or explanation… and using one of the oldest names in the business.<\/p>\n

Here \u2018The New Blue Beetle\u2019<\/em> displays his modus operandi by stopping a vicious crime-spree by the Killer Koke Gang<\/em>. The untitled yarn has all classic elements of a Ditko masterpiece: outlandish, intense fight scenes, compact, claustrophobic yet dynamic layouts, innovative gimmickry and a clear-cut battle between Right and Wrong. It\u2019s one of the very best introductory stories of a new hero anywhere in comics – and it\u2019s only 7 pages long\u2026<\/p>\n

With a definite feeling of no safety or status quo, next instalment \u2018Wanted for Murder\u2019<\/em> – scripted by Mike Friedrich with full art from Ditko – pits the new kid against a mysterious Masked Marauder who has invaded ghis own home. However, the real kicker is a bombshell revelation that Homicide Detective<\/em> Fisher<\/em>, investigating the disappearance of Garrett, suspects a possible connection to Kord…<\/p>\n

Next in the imaginatively entitled \u2018Blue Beetle Fights a Submarine\u2019<\/em> the vigour and vitality of the hero is again undeniable as a mid-air hijack is foiled before a spy sub and giant killer octopus are given short shrift by the indomitable rookie crusader. Then CA<\/strong> #86 sees the return of \u2018The Masked Marauder\u2019<\/em> as the cobalt crimebuster confronts a ruthless scientist\/industrial spy he\u2019s convinced he has battled before\u2026
\n\"\"
\nThis is all preamble to the main event as – cover-dated June 1967 – Blue Beetle<\/strong> (volume 2) #1 launched.with lead tale \u2018Blue Beetle Bugs the Squids\u2019<\/em>; an all-Ditko masterpiece (even scripting it as \u201cD.C. Glanzman\u201d) with the hero in astounding action against a deadly gang of bandits. \u2018Blue Beetle\u2026 Bugs the Squids\u2019 <\/em>is crammed with the eccentric vitality that made Amazing Spider-Man<\/strong> such a monster hit, with justice-dispensing joie de vivre<\/em> balanced by the moody, claustrophobic introduction of Ditko\u2019s most challenging mainstream superhero creation. Sadly, you\u2019ll need a different book to meet this version of The Question<\/strong>…<\/p>\n

Another all-Ditko affair, Blue Beetle<\/strong> #2 shows the master at his peak. \u2018The End is a Beginning!\u2019 <\/em>at last reveals the origin of the hero as well as the fate of Dan Garrett, and even advances Kord\u2019s relationship with his long-suffering ever-pining assistant Tracey<\/em>. #3 is another superbly satisfying read, as the troubled warrior routs malevolent, picturesque thugs \u2018The Madmen\u2019 <\/em>in a sharp parable about paranoia and misperception.
\n\"\"
\nBlue Beetle<\/strong> #4 is visually the best of the bunch as Kord follows a somehow-returned Garrett to an Asian backwater in pursuit of lost treasure and a death cult. \u2018The Men of the Mask\u2019 <\/em>is pure strip poetry and bombastic action, cunningly counterbalanced by final outing \u2018Blue Beetle Faces the Destroyer of Heroes\u2019<\/em> (Blue Beetle<\/strong> #5). It remains a decidedly quirky tale featuring a notional team-up of the azure avenger and The Question wherein a frustrated artist defaces heroic and uplifting paintings and statues. Ditko\u2019s committed if reactionary views of youth culture, which so worried Stan Lee, are fully on view in this charged, absorbing tale…<\/p>\n

The Ditko Beetle was sublime but short-lived: an early casualty when the Sixties Superhero boom reversed and horror again ruled the newsstands, Charlton\u2019s \u201cAction Hero\u201d experiment was gone by the close of 1968, preceding a long line of costumed champions into limbo and clearing the decks for a horror renaissance.<\/p>\n

Time passed and reading tastes changed again. After the cosmos-consuming Crisis on Infinite Earths<\/strong> re-sculpted DC\u2019s universes in 1986, a host of stars and even second stringers got floor-up rebuilds to fit them for a tougher, uncompromising, straight-shooting, no-nonsense New American readership of the Reagan era. In the intervening years, DC had pursued an old policy: gobbling up the characters and properties of defunct publishers. A handful of Charlton buy-outs had already appeared in Crisis, and now Captain Atom<\/strong>, The Question<\/strong> and two separate Blue Beetles <\/strong>seamlessly slotted into the new DCU, ahead of the rest of the lost contingent\u2026<\/p>\n

Before that moment though, there was a final flurry of the old guard.<\/p>\n

This collection ends with the rare one-off Charlton Bullseye<\/strong> #1 (June 1981), released as Charlton was finally winding down its business. Written by Bejamin Smith and illustrated by Dan Reed, Albert Val & Bill Black \u2018The Enigma\u2019<\/em> sees Blue Beetle and The Question officially meet for the first time as someone they just don\u2019t know targets them both for vengeance and assassination. He doesn\u2019t succeed this time but does get away and threaten to return…<\/p>\n

With covers by Fraccio, Frank McLaughlin, Vince Colletta, Masulli, Dick Giordano, Tallarico, Ditko, Rocke Mastroserio, Reed & Bob McLeod this a book that is both sublime and ridiculous, but one any lover of Fights \u2018n\u2019 Tights fiction just must have.
\n\u00a9 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1981, 2025 DC Comics. All Rights Reserved.<\/p>\n

Today in 1913 utterly unique UK cartoonist and raconteur Bill Tidy<\/strong> was born. We last bowed before T\u2019 Mastuh with our coverage of The Fosdyke Saga volume 1<\/a><\/strong>. In 1949 Jim Starlin<\/strong> entered this world, and you can check out the bajillions he\u2019s created since by using our search box. Ditto for Matt Wagner<\/strong>, who is so much more than just Grendel<\/strong>, Mage<\/strong>, Batman<\/strong> and Sandman Mystery Theatre<\/strong>. He joined us right about…. NOW! back in 1961.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Joe Gill, Roy Thomas, Gary Friedrich, Benjamin Smith, Bill Fraccio, Tony Tallarico, Dick Giordano, Steve Ditko, Dan Reed & Bob McLeod, Albert Val, Bill Black & various (DC Comics) ISBN: 978-1-79950-248-7 (TPB) This book includes Discriminatory Content produced in less enlightened times This absorbing yet inarguably eccentric DC Finest compilation offers some of the … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “DC Finest Blue Beetle – Blue Beetle Challenges The Red Knight”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[191,110,319,75,76,290,102,225,127,107,169,96],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33981","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventure","category-blue-beetle","category-captain-atom","category-crime-comics","category-dc-superhero","category-dinosaurs","category-fantasy","category-mystery","category-nostalgia","category-science-fiction","category-spy-stories","category-the-question"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-8Q5","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33981","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33981"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33981\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33989,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33981\/revisions\/33989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33981"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33981"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33981"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}