New 52 Blue Beetle/Ted Kord Concept

New 52 Ted Kord/Blue Beetle:

This is a really quick, few days worth, sketchy picture of my concept for the New 52 Ted Kord Blue Beetle character.

I came up with the concept that he is like the Tony Stark of the New 52 universe. His company Kord Omniversal works for the Government and supplies them with weapons, gadgets, armor, vehicles, etc. he is still the young and goofy guy he was, but in the New 52 some changes had to be made. Batman no longer just wears spandex. Everyone in the New 52 wears armor it seems like, and that got me thinking. If he worked for the Government perhaps he supplied Amanda Waller with the armor that Steve Trevor wears. So I went from their making his suit a modified version of that armor. Then it got me thinking that if he is so smart and was meant to be the new Blue Beetle but couldn't because he lost the scarab maybe he would fool his enemies by playing into their doubts about vigilantes and super beings and aliens and magic. So this is what I came up with. I have plans for more sketches to fully elaborate my concept soon.

Curious though, are the glowing yellow hydrophilics too distracting from the costume?

In the new comic the main character is Ted of coarse, but now he also has a supporting cast, his father, his friend Booster Gold, his love interest Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, sometimes Bruce Wayne/Batman, his evil Uncle, etc. He also has a rogues gallery building up. His Uncle Jarvis, the Madmen gang, etc. The comic would focus on Ted as Blue Beetle but also on Ted as Ted without the costume.

Anyways, here is my story idea for the comic:

Ted Kord was always a brilliant young man. So brilliant he excelled at math, science, history, etc. But had no real direction in his life. When his mother passed away Ted was devastated, as was his father. Ted had to take over Kord Omniversal, his father's company, before it went under or before his Uncle took it. Ted Kord became the youngest CEO at the age of 25. He graduated college at the age of 18. He is considered one of the top 10 smartest men in America. Ranking up there with Earth 2's Terry Sloan and Earth 1 (?)'s Mister Terrific. He is like a young Tony Stark. If Peter Parker had Tony Stark's money, status, and inventing skills and the mind of Reed Richards. Ted is insanely brilliant. He knew Bruce Wayne was Batman but never told anyone. He is sometimes 5 steps ahead of everyone, not always though. His company manufactures weapons and gear for the Government. Ted invented the armor used by Steve Trevor during the Trinity War. His mission is to create the highest tech in non-lethal weaponry. Ted even invests his own money to make this happen, knowing that may investors would shy away from uncertain goals and inventions that may never pan out. Ted likes to be part of as much of everything in his company as much as he can; from R and D, to building, to testing, etc. He is constantly tinkering with a new invention. He has also been in mixed martial arts since he was 12, having been bullied constantly by his classmates. And he keeps up the training today.

Ted Kord is a young, fun loving guy, with a love for cracking jokes. Some might say he is geeky and quirky. One of his best friends is Dan Garret, an archaeologist who is somewhat popular in the science world. Their paths crossed in college, Dan was Ted's teacher, and they have been friends since. One of his business associates and fellow scientists is Ted's Uncle Jarvis Kord. People have warned Ted about his Uncle's shady persona. Meanwhile Ted's father still struggled with the deep depression and loss of his wife. Ted moved in with his father to keep him company, while still maintaining his other house as a lab.

The real story begins. Dan Garret called Ted to tell him about a miraculous find, a Beetle Scarab. Ted set up a meeting as soon as he could. When Dan arrived he revealed that the Scarab actually gave him “super abilities.” It creates a semi suit of armor, he was stronger, the Scarab projected Beetle wings from Dan's back and created a shield around him when he needed protection, like when Dan fell from the sky while trying to figure out the wings. But of coarse he contacted Ted to study it, what if he was contaminated with alien germs or was poisoning Dan's body with radioactive waste. The first time he used it was an accident, this time he had to show Ted. Ted told him something like this is a life time opportunity he couldn't pass up, but not at Kord Industries. At his own personal lab. Little did Ted know that his Uncle was listening in. Jarvis contacted a thug he had used before for breaking and entering and stealing an invention before, but now the guy was a member of the Madmen, a gang of criminals who wore cheap painted Halloween masks and white suits splattered with paint. Their job was to steal the Scarab. At Ted's lab Dan it was revealed that there was no visible negative side effects from the use of the Scarab. Dan told Ted that he wanted to use it to become a force for good, a superhero. They were attacked and while trying to protect Ted from the complete destruction of his lab Dan was killed by the Madmen. Before his death Dan made Ted promise to use the Scarab for the good he was going to do. Ted promised but could never recover the Scarab, the Madmen didn't have it either. But Ted made his friend a promise. Ted used his mind and invention skills and created a suit of armor, weapons, and a vehicle, and became the Blue Beetle. Knowing that he was just a man in a suit he also put glowing hydrophilics on the suit to create the illusion that there was more to him than meets the eye. And they give reference to actual Egyptian mythology and Khepri, the scarab headed Egyptian god of rebirth and the sunrise. He also placed several replicas of the Scarab on the armor, on his belt, his back, and his arms, to make it seem like he was using them as a source of his power. He also created rumors that the Blue Beetle was magic, a demon, an alien, a super power man, and more.

Ted always has several weapons and gear for any situation, a breathing suit/mask for swimming under water. A suit for the cold, etc. He doesn't just wear one Beetle suit or use one gun. Just like with his company Ted uses non-lethal force and weapons to stop his enemies.

One day he was approached by the superhero Booster Gold, his suit and robot SKEETS needed some fixing and he was the man Booster wanted for the job because of his renowned engineering and technological skills. They became fast friends, like Troy and Abed on Community. Occasionally Ted would hack into SKEETS' frequency to get some help or to hear a friendly voice while fighting bad guys.

Kord Omniversal also has gotten him in touch with Bruce Wayne and Wayne Industries. And his vigilante life has gotten him in touch with Batman, they both figured out one another's secret. Ted also met Barbara Gordon, AKA Batgirl, and fell instantly in love. So she is his love interest in the comic, at least in the beginning anyway. They even go on superhero dates as Batgirl and Blue Beetle.

Ted's Uncle always was pushing for the company to move away from non-lethal, saying they could make more profit that way. He would usually get some support there. Ted's Uncle would also occasionally and secretly try to take over the company or sell Ted Technology to the rival companies like STAR Labs, Luthor Corp, or Wayne Tech, but his criminal activities were discovered when he tried to murder Ted's father. (It was also at this time that his Uncle finally found out that Ted was Blue Beetle.)

@artisticneedham: VERY NICE

a little much on the "beetles" but i like the overall design

LOVE IT!

Nice.

Looks good

Great design! I really like the thought you put into it and the back story. The only thing I would suggest is getting rid of some of the smaller symbols on the suit. It's a little distracting from the overall design. But otherwise, this is perfect.

Wheres the link to your DA page?

@artisticneedham: Looks really good! Maybe a few less Beetle symbols though. The main one on his chest and abdomen seems like plenty.

This sketch is so freaking amazing. Great job!

"Curious though, are the glowing yellow hydrophilics too distracting from the costume?": A bit distracting, yeah. I think it'd be good if it were just the (fake) scarab on the back and the one on the abdomen.

*hopes this will become real*

This is amazing! But yeah, as other users have pointed out, less beetles would do wonders.

These are color tests for Ted's New 52 Costume concept I created. I was inspired by the Young Justice cartoon show, I thought Ted should have several different variations on his Blue Beetle suit, including a stealth suit and a snow suit. The Snow suit here is just a color test, the actual snow suit I imagine would have more to it. A face mask or oxygen tanks or maybe some warm fluffy parts. I also played with the hieroglyphics of the suit too (even though I spelled it wrong in the picture.) I tried what they might look like glowing yellow, blue, and what if they didn't glow at all. I heard that some (heh) felt they were distracting from the overall design. Tell me what you think please.

Gallery

I agree. This design looks great, but I think there are a few too many Beetles. I love the way you designed the armor to have Beetle characteristics. Mainly the fore arms and shins.

I like the blue glowing one if they weren't always glow, like if he activated some sort of mode. the blue and the gold looked good, but the blue glowing makes me think blue beetle even more

Thanks everyone for the positive feedback. So do you guys mean less beetles as in the beetle on his stomach/forearms/feet/back, or do you mean less of the glowing hieroglyphics?

I like the blue and yellow and the whole Egyptian scarab concept

Thanks for all the comments, here is some more art to further evolve and round out my concept:

Here is my Blue Beetle Design for the New 52, again, this time drawn in a pose to demonstrate that its not a stiff suit of armor but more flexible allowing for Ted to move like the Blue Beetle is was meant to be. Again, as I stated in previous posts about the New 52 Blue Beetle, Ted is like the DC's Tony Stark (Not Iron Man) in that he is a rich successful weapons manufacturer and inventor, but his designs are all non-lethal. Something he incorporates into his superhero life. These are the masked gang he tangles with a lot, the madmen. They wear colorful costumes and cheap painted Halloween masks to commit their crimes and conceal their identities. they are like the Jokerz from Batman Beyond, I can see Ted joking lots of jokes about them looking like Parrots and rainbows and asking why they chose to stand out rather than blend into the shadows, stuff like that. They are just regular men, but then again so is Ted. No powers, his suit only protects him like Batman in the movies. Not invulnerable and doesn't increase his strength or speed. In my idea for the origin the Madmen are hired by Jarvis Kord to steal the Scarab from Dan Garret, Ted's former teacher and friend, but inadvertently destroy Ted's home and kill Dan instead. In that story I see them being sort of the criminals in Robocop working for the CEO behind it all. But they are more about chaos in the long run and the roster of members can rotate and change all the time, leaving their motives changing too. I went with the glowing blue hieroglyphics for Ted rather than the yellow because I heard they were distracting from the overall design. But the light blue, I was told by many also, works. Again, the hieroglyphics are meant to imply that he has some sort of mystical connection to the Egyptian God Khepri, the Scarab Headed god. And I looked them up and are, I think, actual sayings they would inscribe. I read they would remove the heart and replace it with a scarab with the hieroglyphics reading things like I will dwell in this land and protect it, and you cannot judge me, and you did not die this day. Stuff like that. I also have these ideas that Ted, not too many times, could make jokes like (Booster Gold- his the helmet bullet proof too? Ted- Of coarse, I don't want to get shot in the head now do I? or Ted- I need this like I need a hole in my head.) I still plan to draw more about my idea, like what Ted looks like under the mask, him holding an example of his artillery since he uses a variety of non-lethal weapons and not just one gun anymore, him with Barbara/Batgirl and him with Booster Gold. But I may not get to them any time soon. I also have these vague ideas about his flying Bug and his Bug car and cycle.

This is amazing. I like your designs. I don't know about all those beetles around him..but overall...good drawings.

So this is my concept for What my New 52 Ted Kord looks like under his New 52 Blue Beetle armor. I wanted to give him a more distinctive look than just a guy with brownish reddish hair. And I always thought that Ted is DC's Peter Parker but without the powers. I also thought it would be cool if he sort of looked like Matt Fraction. So I drew this Forbes cover. Its issue 52, bwa ha ha. And Ted refused to dress up for the photoshoot. He is wearing his Booster Gold fan club shit and jean, he didn't even let them do his hair. I also did a colored version, to see which one looks better. The issue also says it covers Ted's new direction he is taking his father's company, and the War between Luthor Corp and Wayne Enterprises as well as an interview with Karen Starr and an in depth article about missing CEO Michael Holt. I wanted him to have a look for when he isn't Blue Beetle because in my concept for the New 52's Blue Beetle, Ted is out of his costume as himself more than he use to be in the old DC days. The comic would not only focus on his superhero life but also his life as Ted Kord and his company and love life, etc.

@artisticneedham: This is some cool stuff.

THIS THREAD!

All kinds of awesome!

@sinestro_gl: @themanintheshoe: WOW thanks. I have ideas, so many ideas. just burning through my skull. heh. I came up with this concept that Ted Originally wanted to call himself Khepri after the Egyptian Scarab god, to further his unstoppable myth but because of his appearance they started calling him Blue Beetle because he looks similar to the other Blue Beetle. Coincidentally they have a connection because of the alien scarabs, but Ted doesn't have it, just a connection. So they are both called Blue Beetle like how there are two Hawkeyes right now. (just an idea), let me know what you guys think of this concept.

While I am working on something else, for my concept, I did this head study and thought I would post it. Its Ted (from my Frobes cover) inside the Blue Beetle helmet. I needed to see how he would look from the front and pin that down. Its rough but good enough for me to use.

One of the ways I think they can make the New 52 Blue Beetle successful would be to build up his rogues gallery. At the moment, in my concept, he has his Uncle Jarvis and a group of thugs called Madmen. So I needed to find more. When I would research Ted in google an image of him fighting these orange guys would pop up. They were a group called the Squid Gang, thieves who were able to climb up walls using suction cups on their hands and feet.

In my New 52 Blue Beetle/Ted Kord concept they are now the Squids, a group of Industrial Saboteurs. Sort of like the Ghost from Iron Man's rogues gallery except a lot more human and military like. They break into companies and labs like Luthor's Cadmus Labs, or Wayne Tech, or Kord Omniversal. They steal the tech, plans, data, blue prints, prototypes, whatever they are hired to steal, and they destroy anything left of that tech so that the company doesn't have it. They get paid but also secretly keep a copy for themselves and use that tech to help them steal.

As you might have guessed that is what gets them in the line of sight of Ted. Ted is so committed to his weapons being non-lethal he can't let them fall into the wrong hands and be made lethal. The Squid's gloves and boots use stolen anti-gravity/magnetic type tech allowing them to cling to any surface.

The drawing I did is a basic concept using the New 52/Earth 2 Batman sketch by Jim Lee (not by me) but I traced over it and redrew it into a Squid and then colored it. What do you think of the colors and design now compared to their older (hardly used) version? Should the darker brown be made the same color as the lighter orange so the costume is all the same color? What about the concept of them being Industrial Saboteurs?

"Uncle" Mitch Wacky/LORD HAVOK

www.comicvine.com/mitch-wacky/…

www.comicvine.com/lord-havok/4…

OK, after I did all this work and all this art I discovered that there actually was an alias for Lord Havok, but here is my idea anyway.

Mitch Wacky is the CEO of Wacky Tech, he is like DC Comics' Steve Jobs. He creates the future. He is a genius inventor and loved by the public. They call him Uncle Mitch. But in reality he is a power hungry man with a fear of death. His entire life's work has actually been to stop death, to transfer his mind into the computer and live forever as a machine. All his inventions and success stem from this fear and goal. As he got older he realized that he was short on time. So he began illegal experiments and even tried experimenting on homeless and the dead or comatose. He created a body for his consciousness to transfer into but so far it is only used as armor (like the Iron Monger) Mitch sits inside and controls the suite with his mind and levers. Ted Kord met Wacky in the CEO world, while Wacky builds for the public Kord's contracts are mostly for the Government. His life as Ted and Blue Beetle come together when Ted investigates the homeless abductions and the missing college students. Mitch's Lord Havok armor is large and bulky but fast and strong.

While looking I discovered that most of Ted's known rogues are sort of connected to the CEO world, or have armor, or ties to technology. So I thought maybe that could be his area of vigilante stuff. Sort of like Iron Man, Ted's foes are usually connected to the CEO world, or tech world, or armored.

I also figured his quest for immortality would be a good motivation for "Uncle" Mitch. And could lead to many stories, for example maybe he kidnaps Cyborg to figure out how to turn himself into that. Maybe Ted and Cyborg end up teaming up. Also, as Lord Havok, Mitch could end up trying to lead a bloody rebellion of mechanical beings versus the human world.

Also, I went to great lengths to try and make Lord Havok similar to his Pre-New 52 cybernetic self. If you google him you could compare and contrast.

This was my attempt to give Ted Kord a Lex Luthor type arch foe. Mitch could be like Lex, smart, never able to pin stuff on him, and I tried giving him a distinctive look. Also in the picture of Blue Beetle V. Lord Havok Ted is using experimental EMP "brass" knuckles. I figured Ted could be sort of like the old Spider-Man comics where he invents weapons if the situation called for that.

Also, full disclosure, I used the panel of Flash v. Darkseid from the New 52 Justice League comic.

A concept, not a drawing because I would just make him look like this:

(also unsure of idea, what do you think?)

Maxwell Lord is an industrialist who has always been shady, but during the Apocalypse Invasion that that Justice League stopped he was abducted. On the verge of being turned into a Parademon he was saved. But not before they experimented on him giving his limited psychic powers. Lord could now control minds. Secretly using this he became even richer. This is where he met his good friend Ted Kord and through Ted Booster Gold. Because of these two men Lord decided to stop using his powers for personal gain and dedicate his life to making things better. But old habits die hard. And Lord went back to what was easier and ultimately this brought him into conflict with Ted and Booster. Like on Smallville the former friends are now bitter enemies. Ted and Booster can't prove any of his illegal activities, Lord is too smart, but they can try to stop his future ones.

Like Sinestro, or Lex on Smallville, his rivalry with Ted and Booster hurts Lord because they were his best friends. Which is why he has promised himself to never use his powers against them. At the same time Ted doesn't trust Lord wont, so he is busy trying to figure out how to cancel Lord's powers, maybe for good.

Lord's motivations are simple. Get the things he wants with as little effort as he can, so he will have more time to enjoy life.

@artisticneedham: Your designs are awesome!!!! Please make more!!!

I liked specially the egyptian symbols.

really cool work here, man

I had this idea of showing Ted teaming up with Barbara. I also wanted to show him using more than one weapon. The idea is that Ted uses a whole arsenal of non-lethal weapons. Top panel he is using his "Pistol Shrimp" gun, a gun that fires such a high pitched sound it makes people around it blind and deaf for a few minutes. This version is large and clunky because its meant to focus the blast rather than radiate it everywhere. In the bottom panel Ted is using his twin taser guns. They fire bolts of electricity like a taser but you don't have to touch the person with the gun or shoot wires at them.

Barbara is also saying a Laurel and Hardy line, I thought it would help describe Ted's sense of humor because he is grinning at her remark.

My thought is that, like in the old pre-52 comics Ted and Barbara met while she was still in her wheel chair. Before her surgery and recover. In fact when she left for her surgery and was gone during her recovery they lost touch, until recently. I like the idea of them dating, and I think it would also help launch the new series having a Batman presence in the beginning. And because of his relationship with Barbara that would mean he would also get visits in his comic from characters like Batman/Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson/Nightwing, and her father Commissioner Gordon.

The joke of the page is also that as I said in another post, Ted is a super genius, but despite all his planning things don't always work the way he thinks they will.

Before I get into the back story and description of my art let me start by saying, since this it the New 52 reboot. I had already almost finished this when I researched and found out about her creepy dark past. The character of Catalina Marie Flores/ Tarantula is wiped clean and starting from zero. So anything that happened in her past comics like her stories with Nightwing never happened. Just as how the New 52 Dr. Light has no ties to his pre-52 creepy self. He is now a good guy, so far. And so is Catalina. None of her past ever happened. But if this still would create a problem she could easily become Catarina Perez AKA the Black Tarantula or something along those lines.

Anyway, on to the good reboot stuff.

I needed a Catwoman/Elektra type character for Ted Kord and looking into the past DC characters I found that Ted didn't have much of a rogues gallery. So again I borrowed from Nightwing.

Here is her back story: Catalina (Catarina) Marie Flores (Perez) lost her parents when she was very young to street violence. When she got older she went into law enforcement and then later the FBI. Her apartment neighbor, Johnathan Law was a best selling Crime Novelist before she was even born. The two hit it off. They started talking about things. She was getting fed up with how useless she felt the law was, he talked about his years going on ride alongs and doing research and finding out the same thing. He always wanted to be one of those street vigilantes he had written about. Together they came up with a plan. She became the (Black) Tarantula, and he became her eyes and ears and tech support. (Like old Bruce Wayne and Terry from Batman Beyond or Finch and Reese on Person of Interest.) He sees through the camera on her helmet, or the one on her chest armor, and through cameras he hacks into. And talks to her through their low tech communication ear buds. But their method of law vigilantism was nothing short of the Punisher's killing criminals. This made her an enemy but sometimes friend of Ted Kord's Blue Beetle. She would also flirt with him, but he was dating Babs so he never flirted back, and her murdering people didn't help. She is like a Deathstroke or Punisher type who should be more of a villain than a hero but not a complete villain. She has no powers, only her extreme fighting skills, and a ton of guns, knives, and swords.

I am turning her from a creepy bad person (throwing out that idea) and making her a good guy vigilante Punisher for DC. And I don't think anyone will be upset or miss that old pre-52 concept. That never happened now.

OK, where to begin? This is Ted Kord's aircraft in my New 52 concept. His "Bug" is his aircraft, Beetle-mobile, and secret headquarters all in one. The Bug's legs rotate and swivel to allow articulation but to also allow them to fold up and back while driving or in top flying speeds. The wheels are like the Bat-Tumbler in the Nolan films. Large, bulky and stirdy, they rotate and fold back when Ted doesn't need them. The two twin engines on the sides of his aircraft rotate to allow the bug to fly up or down, forwards, and backwards. The jets in the back add to the speed. On the bottom, near the wheels, are jets to aid in hovering. The Bug also has two robotic arms like deep sea submarines do, to allow Ted to grab things in needed situations. The bug has a ladder built on the side to the door (both sides) to open the door manually, but the doors also opens by remote. Like in airplanes there are stairs that fold out when the door opens and in when it closes. The doors also has seat belts built in to allow a person to strap on to the door and fire a non-lethal gun, for example. There is also a fire hose reel that can rotate at its hinge on the wall near the door. Ted can use this to lower himself like in the comics or aid in someone's rescue.

Inside the Bug Ted has a small arsenal of non-lethal things he might need including an alternate suit. There is also one restroom, a small kitchen, and a table. There is also a door to the engine room. Of coarse there is "the Bridge" where Ted pilots his Bug. There are also extra seats for others. The Bug can house up to 10 people, if the Justice League need to use it. The second floor is smaller. It is an observation deck. there is the window with a couch built along it to allow people to sit and look out. There is a TV and DVD/DVR player another couch (with a secret arsenal inside it), and three booth tables. Its a sort of lounge. Since it is also Ted's HQ he wanted it to have a relaxation area. There are two ladders that lead up to the lounge/observation deck from the bottom floor. Its about the size of a small two story house. While at the moment it is not completely green, to Ted's specifications, he built it to work with solar energy, gasoline, and electricity. Its a Hybrid, for now. As a hood ornament Ted put another fake Scarab on the grill. This would hopefully make the criminals think that the Scarab is the power source for his vehicle.

Sometimes Ted patches Skeets into his Bug and allows Skeets to aid him in his flights and drivings.

Ted also created various safety fail safes, for example, if an EMP shot his bug out of the sky. strong thick shields lower in front of all the windows, the legs and wheels can pull back, and there are many seat belts, airbags, cushioning foam that fills the bug, and more than 10 parachutes, etc.

*Thumbs up*

very cool

Nice I am just waiting for Foreverevil 7 Now!!!

Why is Blue Beetle dating Batgirl? I don't see the connection between the two personally.

This is most of my New 52 concept Ted Kord's supporting cast.

From Left to Right we have the following:

The Squids, Power Girl/Karen Starr, John Law, Tarantula, Lord Havok, Maxwell Lord, Booster Gold, Skeets, Ted Kord/Blue Beetle, Ted's father (just under Skeets), Ted's Uncle Jarvis in the turtle neck, Amanda Waller of Argus, Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, Bruce Wayne/Batman, the ghost of Dan Garret, Tracy from work, the Madmen, Dr. Teasdale the Vampire Queen, and Jiame Reyes the new Blue Beetle.

Some characters I have already explained, and some are new.

The Squids are industrial saboteurs who rob and destroy corporations and their technology for hire while keeping tech for themselves.

Power Girl/Karen Starr is another CEO who Ted would cross paths with and become friends with seeing as how she too is a heroic person. Who knows, maybe they even start dating at some point.

John Law and Tarantula are a vigilante team who cross paths with Ted. Tarantula is like Ted's Catwoman. She flirts with him but that is all.

Maxwell Lord is a CEO who becomes a friend and foe of Ted and Booster's. Like Ted's Lex Luthor.

Lord Havok is actually CEO Mitch Wacky in a suit of armor.

Booster Gold is Booster.

Skeets I figured would have a larger role too. He can access the Internet, cameras, etc, from all over the world. He and Ted are friends as well, and Ted occasionally patches into him for ride a longs or to help control his Bug vehicle. Ted treats Skeets as more than an AI.

Ted's fatherwas CEO of Kord Omniversal until it became too hard to run after the death of his wife and Ted's mother. He passed it to Ted, and has since fallen into a deep depression.

Ted's Uncle Jarvis is a back stabbing schemer who wants Kord Omniversal for himself.

Amanda Waller is the Nick Fury of the New 52 DCU and Ted is their Tony Stark. He has exclusive deals with Argus and other government agencies and makes everything from non-lethal weapons to green-ish vehicles.

Barbara Gordon/Batgirl and Ted started communicating online while she was paralyzed in a wheelchair. They became good friends and then more but lost touch when she left for her surgery and was gone during her recovery. But now she is back and walking and she and Ted got back in touch and started dating. (I imagine this might not last long, but it brings a Batman connection to his comic that might help sales in the beginning.)

Bruce Wayne is also Batman. Ted knew this almost from the beginning, he figured it out. But told no one. He and Bruce are good friends and like to play Star Trek chess (the kind with several layers). Ted is one of the few who can make Bruce laugh out loud. Bruce also figured out Ted was blue Beetle, they sort of compete with one another in a friendly non-verbal way.

the Ghost of Dan Garret: In the Starman comics by James Robinson Jack would have conversations with the ghost of his dead brother in his dreams. I liked this idea and thought they could bring that into Ted's comic. The idea is that the Scarab makes it possible for Dan's ghost to talk with Ted in his dreams, or maybe its just Ted's imagination. But its not like Ted is loosing his mind thing or Ted talks to a ghost no one can see thing.

Tracy in the original comics was a co-worker Ted started dating. Here, so far, she is just an employee Ted knows. She is shorter, like 5'2 and sort of artsy eclectic engineer. Maybe eventually they start dating.

The Madmen are a street gang who wear store bought masks and painted suits.

Dr. Irwin Teasdale in the old comics was a male scientist who worked for Stagg Enterprises. The New 52 version is Dr. Irene Teasdale who worked for Stagg Enterprises. She and Ted went to school together. He secretly liked her but was too shy and she liked him but was too shy. Ted got her a job at Kord Omniversal but they lost touch after she left for her very lucrative job at Stagg. There she was in charge of their biological weapons and became exposed to a chemical Stagg had her illegally working on. The result turned her into a vampire of sorts, something she would spread by biting others. She was perfectly in control of her faculties however but when those she would bite would become vampires too she gained control over them. Irene became less shy and started acting and dressing the way she always wanted. She is like Ted's Poison Ivy.

And of coarse I included Jaime to show that even though Ted is back and is Blue Beetle, Jaime is still Blue Beetle. Like in Hawkeye, Clint Barton and Kate Bishop are both Hawkeye. Ted and Jaime use the same name. They met and became friends.

Not pictured but in Ted's old comics there was this detective, his Commissioner Gordon, named Fisher. I figured he could be brought in too.

@lvenger: I also don't see it lasting forever, unless fans really like it like Green Arrow and Black Canary. But I imagine it would last maybe a year or more and then they would end it as friends and Ted could date someone else like Tracy from work or Karen Starr/Power Girl or whoever.

Gallery

@blackhawk000111Why? Is he already returning in that issue?

@artisticneedham: Wow, legitimately impressed with that concept art right there.The details and bios are majorly praiseworthy too.

@artisticneedham: Johns mention that he will return in FE 7

Cool design.