Booster Gold Was Always Right About the DC Universe (And Deserves More Respect For It)

Booster Gold is one of DC Comics’ best characters. The story of Booster Gold has been one of the most intriguing in the history of the comic book industry. Michael Carter was a man from the future, a disgraced athlete, who decided to go back in time to become a superhero using technology from the future. Booster Gold wanted to become rich and famous, and he understood something about the DC Universe that a lot of people don’t really realize — that superheroes are the most important beings in the DC Universe. Booster Gold wanted fame and fortune, but he also put himself in a place where he could make a huge difference. Booster Gold’s understanding of the DC Universe should be obvious to everyone: superheroes are the true celebrities. However, as time went on, he learned the true meaning of that phrase.

Booster Gold came to prominence with the Justice League International, where he witnessed superheroes’ influence on society firsthand. Booster Gold could have gone back in time and bet money on sports and become wealthy and famous; however, he chose to become a superhero, and not just help save the planet, but the multiverse itself. Booster Gold’s history shows just how impactful superheroes have been on the DC Universe, and his success as a superhero is proof of it.

Booster Gold Has Seen Beyond the Facade of Superheroism

Booster Gold came to the present and seemed to be the ultimate shallow superhero: he wanted nothing more than fame. Booster had fallen from grace in his future; he lost his chance at superstardom because he tried to throw a game on purpose, and he wanted to use the power of superheroes to get back what he once had. His tenure with the JLI often revolved around his efforts to elevate his standing in the world. However, what was more important for Booster as a person, and would reveal new facets of what a superhero truly meant, was his relationship with the team itself. Booster Gold found a family unit in the JLI; sure, it was dysfunctional, but it was still a family. Booster fought in the greatest battles of the age, and he saw just what being a superhero was about, from the examples of fellow Justice Leaguers like Superman.

Booster was able to see the side of superheroes that civilians outside of it never get to see. All of this came to a head in the best of the ’00s DC story 52. Booster was pulled into a battle that put no less than the fate of the multiverse on him, and he had to give up all of the fame that he had built to save existence. He did this with no questions asked. He saw beyond the facade of superheroism that he had seen before to the true importance of what being a hero was.

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This event sparked a major change in Booster Gold’s life. He didn’t gain the fame and fortune that he had wanted, but that didn’t matter to him. He was saving the universe, and he didn’t need everyone to know about it. Most of the heroes of the DC Universe see Booster Gold in the same way they always do — as a shallow fame-hound of a person; few of them really understand the change in him. Booster Gold saw that being a superhero was about more than just becoming famous and beloved: it was about sacrificing oneself to make the world a better place. Booster saw what being a hero was really about and how truly important it was.

There are a lot of people who think that Booster Gold’s wedding present to Batman — taking him to an alternate universe where the Waynes had never died — was an example of his vapidity; however, I’ve always seen it a different way. Booster Gold understands the sacrifices that Batman has made, and wanted to show him a world where he didn’t have to do any of that – a world where he could let go of the pain for a moment. Booster has learned the truth about being a superhero: sure, there’s the fame, but there’s also the sacrifice and the rewards of a job well done. Superheroes define the DC Multiverse, and Booster Gold understands that in a way that few others do.

Booster Gold Learned the Lessons That Made Him a Better Hero

Booster Gold is often looked at as a joke, but his recent adventures have shown otherwise. DC All-In #1 saw him explore a new Earth, one that Darkseid had made into his very own Earth. Booster was immediately attacked by the Legion of Darkseid and wasn’t seen until Superman #29, where we learned that he survived for two years by himself before he was finally caught, fighting against a world that Darkseid was truly in charge of. Booster went up against Darkseid and his servants, surviving everything. That’s hero-level work, if there is any. Booster Gold always knew that superheroes were the most important beings in the history of the DC Universe – but he truly didn’t understand why until he became one.

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