Here’s the complete history of the characters that have called themselves Blue Beetle

With DC’s Blue Beetle set to arrive in theaters on August 18, audiences will be introduced to teenage Jaime Reyes as the titular hero. Reyes headlines as the current iteration of the hero in the comics, but as we’ve seen in the trailers, he’s not the only one, nor the first, to wear the mantle. In one scene, two Blue Beetle costumes are seen on mannequins, which suggests that in the film, just as in the comics, Jaime will headline as a legacy hero to those that came before him.

Who exactly are the two names that fought as Blue Beetle before Jaime? We’ve got you covered as we break down the comics history of all three individuals to have donned the mantle of Blue Beetle in DC Comics.

Dan Garrett (Blue Beetle I)

DC Comics

The original Blue Beetle, who served as an alias for Dan Garrett, debuted back in 1939 through Fox Comics, just a few months after Batman made his debut and a year after Superman made his. Contrary to the latest iteration of the superhero, Garrett was simply a vigilante with no powers. He fought criminals at night as a means of avenging the murder of his father, who was a police officer that was murdered.

Eventually, Garrett received an upgrade in his comics backstory, as he received a bulletproof suit and took vitamins to grant him super strength. He had a girlfriend that quickly mirrored the likes of Lois Lane while he fought alongside a kid sidekick named Sparky, which served as his version of Robin. Though not the most intriguing superhero in history, his comic series ran for 11 years and had 60 issues.

In the mid-60s, they brought back Garrett and reimagined his origin story a bit, which sounds much more familiar to fans of the hero today. As an archaeologist, he discovered an ancient scarab in an old Egyptian tomb, granting him his superpowers.

Tim Kord (Blue Beetle II)

DC Comics

In 1966 the Blue Beetle got another refresh in the form of a new secret identity, costume, and a new origin story. Ted Kord, a student of Dan Garrett’s, headlined as a genius inventor and athlete, and when he discovered his uncle was criminally planning to take over the world, he partnered with Garrett to stop him.

After Garrett died, he passed on the scarab to Kord, who donned the mantle as the second Blue Beetle.

Kord became a mainstay of the DC Comics Universe following the Crisis on Infinite Earths event, from which he went on to team up with Booster Gold, a cult favorite of DC fans. Interestingly enough, Booster Gold is getting its series, as announced by James Gunn and Peter Safran, so whether he could eventually crossover with Blue Beetle on screen remains to be seen.

Jaime Reyes

DC Comics

When Ted Kord died in the DC Comics event Infinite Crisis, the scarab eventually found its way to Jaime Reyes, who unwittingly bonded with it while sleeping. Interestingly enough, Booster Gold had come to Jaime’s house to retrieve the scarab, but since he was too late before the two bonded, Booster ended up recruiting Jaime to aid him in his missions.

Based on the footage we’ve seen in trailers, it seems that the 2023 film adaptation will morph Jaime’s origin story from the comics just slightly, in that he goes into Kord Industries for a job and unintentionally comes into contact with the scarab. Aside from the brief costume easter eggs, there has been no confirmation that the story will feature cameos from Dan Garrett or Ted Kord in person.