****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Building off the great foundation of the previous collection, Road Trip collects issues 7 through 12 of the new Blue Beetle series. Blue Beetle's origin is fleshed out in flashback, and we get more backstory about the true nature of the scarab that gives him his powers.There's an awful lot of exposition, but it's all cleverly handled so as not to be clunky, and the book's supporting cast really gets a chance to shine. For hard-core DC fans, the book has lots of extra treats -- a recap of the history of the two previous Blue Beetles, an encounter with the New Gods, a Checkmate cameo, and a great moment with Batman that I won't spoil here.There are a number of changes to the creative team during the course of this collection. Keith Giffen and Cully Hamner are gone by the last third of the book. Sadly, Hamner's departure causes the visual consistency to suffer. But John Rogers remains on the title, and his script for Blue Beetle's adventure with Metron and Lonar of the New Gods is bwa-ha-ha funny while still maintaining high stakes and exciting action. Rafael Albuquerque is a great choice to replace Cully Hamner. The title is still in great hands, and I can't wait to see what's next for Jaime and company!
