Exclusive DC Preview: Blue Beetle #1

DC has provided ComicBook.com with an exclusive preview of Blue Beetle #1, the first post-Rebirth issue from writer Keith Giffen and artist Scott Kolins.

The story centers on the Doctor Fate's revelation that the Scarab attached to Jaime Reyes's spine isn't actually alien technology, but a magical artifact. Reyes's self-appointed mentor, Ted Kord, is trying to help Jaime the only way he knows how: by insinuating himself into situations where nobody asked for him.

This is the first time fans have seen Kord operating in a heroic capacity since his pre-Flashpoint death in 2005's Countdown to Infinite Crisis #1. In spite of having a pretty high profile during the Keith Giffen/J.M. DeMatteis Justice League and the Dan Jurgens run that followed it, Ted's profile had sunk throughout the late '80s and early 2000s, until he was considered a good choice to die and kick off a major event.

Once he was killed, however, fans rebelled and spent the better part of the last decade begging for more Ted, even as Jaime was introduced as the new Blue Beetle and was generally well-liked and accepted by audiences -- including most Ted Kord fans.

In Rebirth, the publisher is finally doing what many fans have asked for since 2005: teamed up the two Beetles, with Ted taking on an advisory role so that Jaime (and the Blue Beetle scarab itself) don't go to waste.

You can check out the preview pages in the attached image gallery and the solicitation text below.

Jaime Reyes is back home, but just when he thought he had a grasp on this alter-ego, the Blue Beetle, he discovers everything he believed about his scarab is a lie according to the mysterious Doctor Fate. With dire warnings about the symbiote that is fused to Reyes' spine, Kent Nelson, the original wielder of Doctor Fate's power, seemingly on verge of insanity, has he come to save Jaime as he claims...or will he try to eliminate the Blue Beetle, no matter the cost?