Booster Gold #16

Writer: Dan Jurgens
Artist: Norm Rapmund
Publisher: DC

This month Dan Jurgens favors us with a tidy tale that takes us back to those fun-filled days of World War I, as Booster Gold chases an ancient Egyptian knife through time. Upon arriving in this time period and seeing the barren landscape, Booster at first believes that he has arrived in some post-apocalyptic landscape. The dead bodies littering the field, and the primitive aircraft flying overhead soon alert him to his real whereabouts, as does the presence of Germany's deadly pilot Hans von Hammer - also known as Enemy Ace.

This issue is as much a tale of nobility and honor as it is a superhero yarn. Von Hammer (who graces the cover of this "Faces of Evil" issue) is presented in a very human light, and Jurgens does an admirable job demonstrating the man's intrinsic sense of honor and duty. Younger readers who are not as familiar with the World War One propoganda that saw both sides painting their foes as less than human may not truly appreciate the spotlight on an enemy's honor and sense of duty. Our civilization's opponents in recent wars have too often been idealogues or religious zealots who do not fight for national honor or love of country, but are instead fueled by hatred of our civilization. It is refreshing to see that, as DC's main competitor begins its War of Kings, Jergens ably takes us back to history's last true war of kings.

Rapmund's artwork for this issue perfectly captures the feel and tenor of war, with a special emphasis on the perfectly portrayed quiet dignity of Hans von Hammer. The battlefield scenes are stark and gloomy as a graveyard, befitting any depiction of the No-Man's Land that the Great War left in its wake. All in all, it was a very nice outing for the art team.

Admittedly, Booster Gold is not a comic book that I avidly follow; I buy it every month and read each issue, but that's about as far as my commitment to the series goes. I rarely talk with other fans about this character or this book, and cannot remember ever having recommended that anyone else read it. However, I really liked this issue, and would recommend it to anyone who has room in their budget this week for another book, but has not yet decided upon a particular title to purchase.