Blue Beetle's Bug

Blue Beetle's Bug is a vehicle that features in DC Comics.

History

Charlton

Blue Beetle's Bug was a vehicle that had been created by Ted Kord.

After the original Blue Beetle Dan Garrett had died fighting his villainous brother, Jarvis Kord, and left the responsibility and his secret laboratory to his former student, Ted. Jarvis Kord used an army of androids to attack the Kord Research facility and capture Ted. Ted escaped, discovering Dan's crime-fighting equipment, but found he could not make the mystical scarab work. He instead designed his own persona and used his vast intellect and an array of gadgets, including the powerful Bug vehicle, to fight crime. The Bug was a sophisticated, scarab-shaped craft that functioned as both an aircraft and an underwater vessel. Ted used the Bug to engage Jarvis Kord's forces, leveraging its technological capabilities to disrupt and defeat the android army and rescue his mentor's former colleague, a Doctor Franz, ultimately bringing his uncle's criminal operation to an end. Ted then decided to continue as the Blue Beetle, using the Bug and other inventions to fight evil. (Captain Atom v1 #83) By this point, Ted's new assistant became suspicious of his activities and the recent events surrounding Pago Island, where Dan Garrett had died. Ted used the Bug to chase off a masked intruder who was attempting to get information about the situation. The Bug's auto-hover function and speed were showcased during the pursuit. After the intruder escaped, revealing himself to be Count Von Steuben, Detective Fisher arrived at the lab, not because of the break-in, but with pointed questions for Ted Kord regarding Dan Garrett's disappearance. The Bug was not damaged and was stored safely in its hidden hangar at the end of the issue, ready for future use. (Captain Atom v1 #84) The vehicle was used by Ted Kord to prevent a high-stakes skyjacking and track enemy agents. The adventure began as Ted, still under pressure from Detective Fisher regarding Dan Garrett's death, changed into his Blue Beetle persona and piloted the Bug to intercept a passenger plane that had been hijacked by a foreign spy. He managed to board the plane and defeat the spy, but not before the spy jumped out of the plane with a scuba tank. The Bug then demonstrated its versatility by seamlessly transitioning to its underwater function, as the spy was picked up by a waiting enemy submarine. Ted, in his vehicle, pursued the submarine deep underwater. A confrontation ensued, during which the Bug's capabilities were tested further; it fought off a giant octopus with an electric charge and engaged the submarine, ultimately leading to the defeat and capture of the enemy agents. (Captain Atom v1 #85)

DC

Following the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events. The Bug was an aerial vehicle designed by Ted Kord designed who built it when he was the president of Kord Omniversal Research and Development. It was originally constructed from failed experiments and old parts of automobiles and later improved with Ted's new inventions. (Blue Beetle v6 #1)

As the Blue Beetle, Ted Kord had the Bug's sensors detect for any activity in the city where it registered a townhouse blaze. He then responded to the scene where he attempted to help what seemed to be a firefighter trapped in the flames but this turned out to be a supervillain named Firefist. The villain came to escape but the Blue Beetle managed to save one person who had been trapped in the building. (Blue Beetle v6 #1)

Kord later used the Bug to attend the gathering of the Justice League after the superhero team was officially formed. The heroes boarded the Bug as they responded to their first emergency which was a terrorist attack on the U.N. General Assembly. (Justice League v1 #1)

Blue Beetle on the Bug was among many heroes that were called by the Justice League to fight the threat of AMAZO. (JLA v1 #27)

During an investigation, an unknown party began to target Ted Kord with this resulting in the destruction of the Bug. Undaunted by this, Ted decided to continue looking into the matter even when he received no support from the ret of the superhero community. This saw him taking the Mark I Bug of storage where the trail took him to Checkmate headquarters and discovering Maxwell Lord's involvement in the matter. (Countdown to Infinite Crisis v1 #1)

Post-Flashpoint

Following the Flashpoint, a new version of reality was created with a different history of events.

Kord later brought out the Bug to help his friend Booster Gold who was attempting to stop an alien warship from kidnapping the Justice League. During the battle, the Bug was destroyed though Blue Beetle and Booster Gold succeeded in freeing the heroes. (Blue & Gold v1 #1) Afterwards, Ted Kord was removed from the board of Kord Industries which meant he lacked the funds needed to re-build the Bug and had to create the Buggy as an alternative mode of transportation. (Blue & Gold v1 #3)

Overview

In appearance, the Bug was a distinctively scarab-shaped craft that possessed a sleek, blue metallic body that reflected the hero's persona. It was designed to be multi-functional, operating as both an aerial and a sub-aquatic vehicle capable of impressive speeds in flight. The cockpit was enclosed, and the overall impression was of a highly advanced, technologically ingenious machine. (Captain Atom v1 #83)

The Bug could convert into submarine mode allowing it to travel underwater. (Blue Beetle v6 #1)

It had sensors that allowed it to detect fires in a city. (Blue Beetle v6 #1)

The bottom had a compartment that could open and a skywire that a person could use to reach the ground whilst the ship was hovering high in the air. An automatic safety lock was installed to prevent someone from falling though this could be disabled. (Blue Beetle v6 #1)

Users

• Ted Kord :
• Danni Garrett :

Notes

• Blue Beetle's Bug was created by Steve Ditko where it made its first appearance in Captain Atom v1 #86 (June, 1967).

In other media

Television

• In Batman: The Brave and the Bold, the Bug appeared in the setting of the animated television series. Originally built by Ted Kord, it served as his primary vehicle, capable of flight, water travel, and equipped with blasters, magnetic manipulators, grasping "claws," and defense shields. During one of Ted's missions with Batman, a Bug was wrecked in a jailbreak on Hub Island Penitentiary while they were fighting the Madniks, forcing Kord to activate a spare. Years later, after Ted's death, the spare Bug was reactivated by the new Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes, who scanned its travel logs in an attempt to locate Kord. The Bug then became essential for escape when Science Island, the location of his confrontation with Jarvis Kord, faced a reactor overload. Subsequently, Jaime continued to use the Bug on his own missions, demonstrating its space travel capabilities when he transported the villain Evil Star to the planet Oa for imprisonment, showcasing its enduring utility across different users and environments.

Films

• In Blue Beetle, the Bug appeared in the setting of the live-action film. The Bug was an advanced, custom-built aircraft created by Ted Kord during his tenure as the gadget-based superhero Blue Beetle, a period that occurred off-screen prior to the main narrative of the film. Kord, unable to unlock the full potential of the alien Scarab, instead relied on his intellect and the resources of Kord Omniversal Research and Development to build the vehicle and other crime-fighting technology, storing the Bug in a secret underground lab beneath his mansion. The ship remained in this hidden "Bug Lair" for years after Kord's mysterious disappearance, effectively becoming a relic of his past activities. Its primary actions within the film's timeline began when Jenny Kord and the Reyes family, specifically Jaime's Uncle Rudy, accessed the secret lab using Ted's smartwatch. With Jaime captured by Victoria Kord's forces, the Bug was activated and piloted by Rudy, who, despite some initial comedic fumbling, capably flew the ship to the enemy's island fortress near Cuba. The Bug's systems were instrumental in the rescue mission; its defensive shields and offensive weapons were employed to bypass the island's defenses and engage the enemy forces, allowing the team to reach the lab where Jaime was being held. Ultimately, the Bug facilitated the family's escape and played a vital role in the final confrontation against Victoria Kord and the super-soldier Carapax.

Appearances

• Captain Atom v1: (1967)
• Legends v1;
• Blue Beetle v6:
• Justice League v1:
• Blue & Gold v1: (2021)

External Links

• DC Database Entry

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