Posted in: TV | Tagged: booster gold, dan jurgens, dc studios, dcu, james gunn, peter safran, preview

Dan Jurgens Believes Booster Gold "More Relevant Now" Than Ever

Comic book writer & artist Dan Jurgens appreciates the reaction the Booster Gold series is getting and shared how he pitched the character.

Earlier this week, legendary comic book writer & artist Dan Jurgens, the creator of Booster Gold, shared some thoughts after the news hit that a series take on the character was part of the first wave of DCU content on the way from DC Studios co-heads James Gunn & Peter Safran. Now, Jurgens has taken to Twitter to tell Booster's real-life "origin story" and how a character like Booster is "more relevant now than when issue #1 appeared in 1985."

Here's a look at the first of Jurgens's five tweets, sharing how he pitched Booster to DC Comics Artist & Editor Dick Giordano and how Giordano had faith in his pitch to help him bring the character to life:

Really appreciate the reaction to the Booster Gold HBO Max news. Seems like just yesterday that I sat down with Dick Giordano (1984) to explain the idea of a time-traveling hero who played the celeb/media game, trying to make up for the crimes and mistakes he'd made.

Also went through the humorous aspects, explaining that unlike the rest of the DCU (where all the heroes were bland and perfect), that Booster would try to do the right thing along the way. But, if he happened to make a few bucks in the process…what's wrong with that?

And, while Booster would generally solve the problem, it'd be awkward. Superman catches a crashing plane and lands it at the airport. Booster clips a few buildings along the way, damaging them and the plane and puts it the middle of town, creating a three day traffic jam.

Everyone survives, but the results aren't perfect. It's the way things go for most of us, sometimes often, in our own lives, which is part of BG's charm. With the way social media and celebrity culture have grown, he's more relevant now than when issue #1 appeared in 1985.

I didn't have anything written up. Not even a sketch. Just a vision, and Dick went for it on the spot. Said, "Give me something on paper for legal so we can get contracts started," and with a handshake, told me I could start working.

Great man and glad he saw the potential!

And here's a look back at Jurgens' tweet from earlier this week, expressing his support for seeing Booster Gold make the leap from the pages of the comic book to the small screen:

A Look Back at DC Studios' DCU Series Announcements

We're looking at the animated Creature Commandos, the Amanda Waller (Viola Davis)-focused Waller, the Green Lantern series Lanterns, the Wonder Woman prequel series Paradise Lost, and a Booster Gold series. But we also learned that the second season of the John Cena-starring Peacemaker is on hold and that Greg Berlanti's "Green Lantern" series is no longer moving forward. Here's a look at the details that were released:

"Creature Commandos": Currently in production, the animated series was the first project greenlit by the duo. Based on the 1980's Creature Commando comic book series that focused on Frankenstein's monster teaming with a werewolf, a vampire, and a gorgon to fight Nazis in World War II, the series looks to take the same approach, with Weasel (from The Suicide Squad) as one of the commandos, serving with Rick Flag Sr. Note: Gunn confirmed that the voice cast will play their characters in a live-action version later on down the line (with Gunn penning the animated series)

"Waller": With Peacemaker Season 2 on hold while Gunn works on Superman: Legacy, the Viola Davis-starring series will include the "Peacemaker team" and serve as a "continuation" of the HBO Max series. The series will be executive produced & penned by Jeremy Carver (Doom Patrol) and DCU writers' room writer Christal Henry.

"Lanterns": Being compared to "a huge HBO-quality event" along the lines of "True Detective," the series will focus on Hal Jordan and John Stewart, who investigate a mystery that Safran said "plays a really big role leading us into the main story that we're telling across our film and television. So this is a very important show for us." This series will replace Greg Berlanti's previous take on a "Green Lantern" series.

"Paradise Lost": Set before the birth of Diana (Wonder Woman) and set on the island of Themyscira, Safran & Gunn see the series as a "Game of Thrones" -like take on Wonder Woman's origins ("It's really about the political intrigue behind a society of all women": Safran). Comic fans may recognize the title from Phil Jimenez & George Pérez's Paradise Island Lost comics series. "How did that come about? What's the origin of an island of all women? What are the beautiful truths and the ugly truths behind all of that? And what's the scheming like between the different power players in that society?" were the rhetorical question that Gunn asked when explaining the series' themes.

"Booster Gold": Seen as the DCU's deep dive into comedy, Safran describes Mike Carter/Booster Gold as "a loser from the future who uses basic future technology to come back to today and pretend to be a superhero." From a series perspective, we're looking at a possible 25th-century setting, where Mike is a disgraced former football star who uses a time machine on display in the Metropolis Space Museum to gain fame and fortune… and maybe the desire to be a real superhero (if the sponsorship is right?). "Basically, "Booster Gold" is imposter syndrome as a superhero," Gunn added.

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