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yodamom's review against another edition
4.0
Loved the illustrations and the fun story. Will be reading more
lilli_w12's review against another edition
3.0
In the middle of reading a book about sci-fi spiders, let’s read a comic about sci-fi beetles!
I watched the movie for this, and it was… not great. But I really liked the main protagonist and the idea of the scarab. So I tried this out.
It was okay, definitely had Spider-Man vibes, since here Jaime is in high school and has a secret identity and everything. The villains were much better in the comic than the movie, the minor ones were pretty neat. The plot is basically the same, people want the scarab, Jaime wants to protect his friends and family, etcetera. He even has a love interest (I think) who’s the niece of the main villain (I’m totally blanking on her name in the movie, here it was Brenda). His family plays less of a part though, and the focus is more on his friends. Thorax was a much better nemesis than Carapace (or whatever his name was, it was pretty stupid) since his creation was directly Jaime’s fault and there was an emotional connection, instead of just some guy. Jaime stabbing Paco was the best scene in both the comic and the movie. I liked Jaime and the scarab’s relationship better here, there was a bit more negotiating. I liked that it took place in El Paso, I live about an hour and thirty minutes from there, so the area’s familiar. The back of the book called Jaime a true hero, but he didn’t really do anything heroic? In my opinion, he was much less likeable than the movie version. He just didn’t have that naive sweet personality. That part at the end, where he defeated Thorax, he acted like a real jerk. This was the New52 version of the character, I’ll go see if the previous incarnation of the character was better.
I watched the movie for this, and it was… not great. But I really liked the main protagonist and the idea of the scarab. So I tried this out.
It was okay, definitely had Spider-Man vibes, since here Jaime is in high school and has a secret identity and everything. The villains were much better in the comic than the movie, the minor ones were pretty neat. The plot is basically the same, people want the scarab, Jaime wants to protect his friends and family, etcetera. He even has a love interest (I think) who’s the niece of the main villain (I’m totally blanking on her name in the movie, here it was Brenda). His family plays less of a part though, and the focus is more on his friends. Thorax was a much better nemesis than Carapace (or whatever his name was, it was pretty stupid) since his creation was directly Jaime’s fault and there was an emotional connection, instead of just some guy. Jaime stabbing Paco was the best scene in both the comic and the movie. I liked Jaime and the scarab’s relationship better here, there was a bit more negotiating. I liked that it took place in El Paso, I live about an hour and thirty minutes from there, so the area’s familiar. The back of the book called Jaime a true hero, but he didn’t really do anything heroic? In my opinion, he was much less likeable than the movie version. He just didn’t have that naive sweet personality. That part at the end, where he defeated Thorax, he acted like a real jerk. This was the New52 version of the character, I’ll go see if the previous incarnation of the character was better.
raul3893's review against another edition
4.0
It was really good book.
It made a great job of setting the stakes of the mission, and showing us the relationships of Jaime with every of the characters.
While also being really fast paced and also not feeling rushed.
I feel really intrigued on what’s going to happen next, and it’s really sad that it only lasted for 16 issues
It made a great job of setting the stakes of the mission, and showing us the relationships of Jaime with every of the characters.
While also being really fast paced and also not feeling rushed.
I feel really intrigued on what’s going to happen next, and it’s really sad that it only lasted for 16 issues
philippmk's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Blood
jessesheppard's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
soapbox_stories_'s review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
theartolater's review
4.0
Blue Beetle is one of those DC characters I know next to nothing about. Truly, I think his existence was only known to me through the four 52 trades, and even then, I may be confusing him a bit with Booster Gold. Either way, I went in blind and came out a fan.
This is sort of DC's answer for Spider-man and, to a point, Iron Man. The Blue Beetle suit is more a parasitic thing from another planet with some relationship thematically to the Lantern system, and the Beetle scarab falls into the hands of a teenager who is both fighting the suit and himself. It's a pretty basic concept, but it's a standard trope because it works.
The trade doesn't spend a lot of time on a big bad overall, instead going for a more introductory tone. Unfortunately, this appears to have only lasted 16 or 17 issues for DC on a whole, so it looks like this will be over before it really gets a chance to start. I'll look forward to the next trade and then, unfortunately, that will be it.
This is sort of DC's answer for Spider-man and, to a point, Iron Man. The Blue Beetle suit is more a parasitic thing from another planet with some relationship thematically to the Lantern system, and the Beetle scarab falls into the hands of a teenager who is both fighting the suit and himself. It's a pretty basic concept, but it's a standard trope because it works.
The trade doesn't spend a lot of time on a big bad overall, instead going for a more introductory tone. Unfortunately, this appears to have only lasted 16 or 17 issues for DC on a whole, so it looks like this will be over before it really gets a chance to start. I'll look forward to the next trade and then, unfortunately, that will be it.