A transition issue, as Blue Beetle and his allies wrap up their battle against the sorcerer Arion of Atlantis. It’s been decades since I read him, but I don’t recall him being evil. But thanks to Doctor Fate, Arion will have time to contemplate his misdeeds while serving time in magic detention.

But apparently Arion isn’t the only looking at extended detention. As things returned to “normal,” and the many, many supporting characters settle into a life of PTSD, Jaime Reyes is on the verge of facing a new foe, Ghostfire. In addition, the return of Blue Beetle to the DC Universe has brought questions from it favorite paranoiac – and I only wish I meant the Question. Seems only right; they were both part of the Charlton properties DC took over back in the 1980s.

Honestly, I didn’t really enjoy the issue, other than the first few pages where Giffen and Dematteis touched on some of the super-hero battle self-awareness in an all-too-Joss-Whedon fashion. This was followed by extremely familiar territory: the life of a teenage super-hero, complete with annoying younger sibling, supportive girlfriend, and high school teachers who would never understand how hard it is to be both an A student and a super-hero. Cliché much?

Yeah, we get it. In fact, most of us grew up on it. Spider-man has been beating that drum for about 50 years now. Maybe there’s an obligation to touch on the dynamics of every day life vs. crime fighting. But I expect it to be handled better by the pros like Giffen and Dematteis.