The original Blue Beetle was introduced to the world by Fox Comics in 1939. The hero jumped between different publishers before finding a home at DC in 1983. The modern incarnation of Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes, made his debut in 2006. Ted Kord (the previous incarnation) and Jaime have both become fan-favorite characters among comic readers. Because of this, it’s extremely exciting that a live action Blue Beetle film is heading to the big screen. The first trailer dropped, so let’s dive into all the details it has to offer.

Jaime Reyes

Immediately, the trailer opens with telling us which Blue Beetle the film will follow, and it’s Jaime Reyes. They could have gone with Ted Kord, or even Dan Garret who was the very first Blue Beetle, but it makes sense to go with the current version. They do want to sell current and upcoming comics, after all. Jaime Reyes differs from his predecessors by having the scarab that gives him his powers to be of extraterrestrial origin. The scarab also gives him an updated set of powers and super armor.

Family

Like Fast and Furious and Shazam! Fury of the Gods point out, it’s all about family! It looks like Jaime’s family will play a large role in the movie. This matches the source material quite well. In the comics, he feels a sense of responsibility for his family, and his family is what gives him the courage to fight. It’s nice to see that element of the character make its way into this adaptation.

Big Belly Burger

While this isn’t a major detail and almost definitely won’t affect the plot, Big Belly Burger is a fast food restaurant chain that is often used in the DC Comics universe. It’s been used in the comic books since the 80s, has frequently been featured in the CW’s Arrowverse, and has made appearances in Young Justice, Powerless, Batman: Arkham Origins, and many other TV series and video games. Again, it’s not a big deal, but it’s cool to see more comic book nods being used in the film.

The Scarab

The scarab is the source of Jaime Reyes’ high-tech supersuit and powers. It’s grafted onto his spine and does whatever is necessary to protect its host. In the comics, Jaime takes some time to learn how to control the powers granted to him by the scarab, but he eventually learns to assert himself and work with the scarab’s abilities.

Superpowers

Throughout the trailer, we see a taste at some of the powers the scarab grants Jaime. He’s able to fly, including being able to go to space and survive in Earth’s atmosphere. The scarab can produce wings that can be used as a protective shield and even slice through a city bus. The power suit is able to scan people’s faces, which could indicate that it can scan for a variety of details. Whether those details be illnesses, emotions, fingerprints, or something else isn’t clear from the trailer, but this scan ability will likely come in handy in the movie.

One of the coolest powers the suit has, both in the comics and in this trailer, is that it can produce a variety of weapons. The trailer shows off his arm blades, shield, and energy cannons, all of which look incredible.

Villains

There are a couple of quick shots of the antagonists that will appear in the movie. Susan Sarandon is playing Victoria Kord, Ted Kord’s sister. It seems that she and the organization she runs, Kord Industries, is after the scarab. Perhaps she believes it belongs to her late brother. In the comics, Ted Kord passed away and the scarab found its way to Jaime, and it seems like that’s the case here since Ted’s sister will have such a big role. What she and her organization want to do with the scarab may show how villainous they truly are.

There’s also a glimpse at Carapax the Indestructible Man, played by Raoul Max Trujillo. There’s no dialogue from him in the trailer, but it’s a safe bet that he’ll probably be after the scarab as well. Perhaps he’s being hired by Victoria Kord. Only time will tell.

The Bug

The Bug, which is the name of Blue Beetle’s ship, is shown in what looks like a particularly fun scene. Jaime’s parents, including his Uncle Rudy played by George Lopez, are on board and look to be a part of the action. With a beetle-shaped spaceship, how could this not lead to comic book-esque fun?

Beetle Nest and Former Suits

The suits of the former Blue Beetles are seen in the background of the final scene of the trailer. It looks like Jaime and his family stumble across the Beetle Nest, which is essentially the hero’s lair, similar to the Batcave. It’s nice that the legacy of the previous incarnations will still be honored with those suits and that another major element from the comics is being used. This overall looks like a love letter to Blue Beetle which is perfect for his first big screen outing.

Batman Name Drop

While Jaime and his family dig around the Beetle Nest, he makes a joke about it all being “like Batman’s stuff,” to which his uncle replies with “Batman’s a fascist.” This is a funny line, but it also places the movie in the overall DC Universe. How much it actually connects to anything else in the universe has yet to be seen, but it seems that it’s known that other major heroes do in fact exist in this world. It will be interesting to see how this will play into James Gunn’s new DC Universe, if at all.

Visual Effects

It’s honestly quite difficult to imagine the modern version of Blue Beetle being adapted to live action without the use of a lot of CGI. Given how subpar the visual effects are in quite a few other modern superhero flicks, this makes how Blue Beetle would look a bit of a concern. Thankfully, only especially excellent effects were used throughout the entirety of the trailer. If the rest of the movie looks this great, then there’s nothing to worry about. The power suit looks lifelike and every energy blast and weapon looks like they’re actually a part of that world.

Blue Beetle is set to release in theaters on August 18th, 2023.