Review by Frank Plowright

With a Blue Beetle film imminent, DC relaunched the character in comics with the six chapter Graduation Day. Over the opening pages Jaime Reyes explains who he is and what he does as he faces a menace with a teleporting cloak. They seem a trivial villain, but serve the purpose of introducing Blue Beetle to a new audience.

However, DC then make the mistake of showing Jaime’s Latin American background by having a page of Spanish dialogue. Were it translated, that would be fine, but it isn’t, so however well intended, it’s alienating. Why should readers who don’t speak Spanish have to retype the dialogue into a translation machine to discover Jaime’s family’s concerned about his absence at the college graduation ceremony? In the Spanish edition is this page in English?

Jaime is powered via an alien scarab fused to his spine. A form of AI, it can instantly transform him into Blue Beetle, but the beings that created it, the Reach, are a planetary threat, and more established superheroes like Batman and Superman feel it’s best if Jaime sits out their imminent return. However, that’s not their choice.

The pages in Spanish apart – yes, there are more of them – Graduation Day achieves out what writer Josh Trujillo intends. He establishes Jaime well as a teenager wanting to do the right thing and occasionally frustrated by the restrictions placed on him, while also a capable and adaptable superhero, if still learning. Furthermore we learn Blue Beetle is a dynasty, and that Jaime has connections in the wider superhero world.

There’s individuality to Adrián Gutiérrez’s art, with people stretched in action, and with some interesting facial expressions. Superman with a mouthful of cake has to be seen to be believed, and he’s also the first artist one can recall drawing Starfire as an alien looking woman rather than an exceptionally attractive human with a great tan. Colourist Wil Quintana contributes greatly to the overall look, opting for almost neon bright streaks, and as colour becomes increasingly important, it’s a bold choice. It also factors into the Blue Beetle’s redesign late on.

In addition to filtering in the background, Trujillo expands on it. The explanation for other coloured scarab-powered characters builds into a new mythology involving the Reach, the throwaway villain at the start is well used later, and everyone in the supporting cast is clearly motivated. There are major threats here, but Trujillo treats everyone as a person no matter how they might first seem, and that humanising process makes for constantly interesting reading.

A whole new world opens up in Graduation Day, yet it’s a re-think that respects the past and sets up the future. That continues in Scarab War.