While we are getting the umpteenth version of Superman and Batman, there are still oh so many more or less popular characters out there that are still waiting impatiently for their Heroclix debut.
Today I will be talking about the man who passed the Scarab to Ted Kord... Blue Beetle!

We unofficially continue Blue and Gold week with a special UNCLIXED about Ted Kord's predecessor!

Dan Garrett was an archeologist who stumbled upon an ancient (and later it turned out, alien) Scarab that granted him great powers. He found he could fly, was super-strong, and could shoot bolts of energy.

Eventually, he died while helping his student Ted Kord defeat Ted's evil uncle. Ted vowed to continue the fight againt evil as the new Blue Beetle.

This wasn't the first Blue Beetle though! He was in fact a reboot of the Golden Age version who was much different... but that will have to wait for another day and another UNCLIXED. This Blue Beetle's adventures were a bit more tongue-in-cheek than either his Golden Age precursor or Ted Kord, who immediately followed him.

Why clix him?
He's a legacy character we've never seen in clix! While this version of the Blue Beetle wasn't around long, he's important to Ted's history.

Who would he play with?
Dan didn't really mix with other characters-- he wasn't around long enough, and Charlton Comics hadn't been acquired by DC yet, so he wasn't part of a big universe. Still, it would be fun to team him with other Silver Age characters.

He would also fit on a team of mystically-power characters, or on an all-Blue Beetle team!

Likely keywords: Past, Scientist (since there's no Archaeologist keyword!)

What would his dial look like?
I had to go for help on this one (thanks Miraclo!)

Into action!(Running Shot)
Take that! (Charge)
Mystic Energy of the Scarab (Psychic Blast)
Strength of the Scarab (Super Strength)
Try again! (Toughness)

He might have an activation click, as he would say a magic word to activate the scarab.

He also had vision powers, so a trait or power that lets him ignore stealth is in order.

I would not give him a TA, but you could make a case for Mystics.

What would your Blue Beetle dial look like? Share it here!

And then join me in ONE WEEK when I showcase an Unclixed MARVEL character as part of Dr Morbius' guest writer series!

Ha! You're more than welcome. You did all the real work.

At least when Charlton resurrected the character name and general look in '64 they added that extra "t", making it "Garrett," since that archeologist/mystically-derived power set made him so different from the earlier versions.

Were I to work the mystical transformation onto the dial, preceding it by a very human click. It would be "Kaji Dha!," I'd have it on the second click and have it be one of those SPs that stops the dial from turning when it's first revealed while taking damage.

That way a first, Earthbound click where he might have Willpower ("Tireless Explorer") and maybe Perplex ("Trained Scientist") would really get a chance to be used without fear that he'd just be blasted past his power clicks. In true comics fashion, if he ran into sudden danger, he could say the magic words.

One he powers up I'd likely revert to an old standby for Spider-man dials and give him some late/end-of-dial Outwit ("Think! Think, man!") to possibly allow him to find a way out of a particularly knotty problem against a surprising adversary.

Interesting choice, and a terrific one for this week's theme!

Oh! Kane and Ditko art inserts were fine choices, btw.

I loooooove Kane and Ditko both. I'm not a Spider-Man and Green Lantern fan for nothing!

Wow. I had a thread a few weeks back about this and just chaging the sculpt on the new blue beetle. I was torn between this version and the pre charlton one.

Someone pointed out that with the pre charlton one pretty much anything goes power wise, because they were very loose with things.


Gil Kane and Steve Ditko in the same article... Awesome!

(Ninja'd)

The earlier versions were pretty much a more gimmick-laden Batman type, while the extra "t" and the magical scarab gave that later version flight, which the earlier sci-tech ones lacked.

Honestly, I can't say I got to read this short-lived version of the character from that '64-'65 run of appearances, but it had to have a different tone if for no other reason than gaining one's powers from a magical find is so different from a Batman-like tragic loss of a parent leading to training and the addition of tech to specifically become a crime-fighter. The earlier versions were a mix of Batman and Hourman, given the "Vitamin 2-X" that he'd take to get super strength.

Thanks. He is really one that needs to be made.

Very cool choice 'Mouse! DC has so much of a rich past due to those various Quality/Charlton/Fawcett, etc characters that they've barely mined.

I do have a couple comics from the Dan Garrett era, including the death/transition to Ted Kord (in a CPT Atom issue IIRC). I could see a click or two of Invuln on Dan since heck, even a riot shield can give you this now , but he looks overall solid. Maybe in the 90-110 pt range?
Anyway, thanks again! I'd love to team Dan up with a repainted CPT Atom and Nightshade, a Peacemaker modded from a Punisher, an Ozymandias/Peter Cannon, and one of the outstanding vic Sage Questions. I did play the Crisis BB with CPT Atom, Nightshade, vicQuestion, and the Sarge Steel pog.
Judomaster would be a relatively mod from any of a number of martial artist figures. Time for somebody to make that whole team and post some pictures!

Ahh well, a guy can dream.

Awesome choice! I think the dial for the 10th Anniversary Blue Beetle is actually a better choice for Dan Garrett than Jamie Reyes, with the mystical keyword and Mystics TA. You could team him up with Captain Atom since he did appear in Cap's book in the Charlton era.

Hope we see an article on the Golden Age Blue Beetle soon. Policeman Dan Garret donned a bulletproof chain mail costume and took a dose Vitamin 2-X to gain super strength! His dial practically writes itself, with the police keyword and TA, toughness and super strength.

Great choice.

I just have to say that a Dan Blue Beetle would be awesome. Giving me motivation to try and get my game up for Worlds next year, as I will more than likely be going to GenCon.

Yeah, I'd love to see him clixed. With the current mind set at DC I think it's a serious longshot.

We just got a golden age Luthor...

Probably because he's tied to Superman. Luthor isn't really a strong case for characters like these getting made.

After listening to the radio show, found here if you are interested http://www.oldradioworld.com/shows/Blue_Beetle.php

He has this scientist that helps him and in one of the episodes he able to turn invisible. But overall your take is correct.

You can find the original comics at the digital comic museum in my signature if you are interested in reading any. It is public domain and free