10 Embarrassing Comic Book Moments Writers Had To Explain
3. Blue Beetle's Goofiness In Justice League International
Justice League International was always meant as a more comedic book, and Ted Kord has always had a sort of sly wit and goofiness to him, especially when teamed up with his best buddy, Booster Gold, who is impossible to be serious around.
This is not the problem here. The problem is that the comedy with Blue Beetle was often completely at odds with his character, and a lot of that had to do with the writers of the book just not taking Kord seriously on a fundamental level.
Now on a standalone issue basis, this is not necessarily a problem, such as the hilarious issue where Ted and Booster learn the hard way just how addicted Martian Manhunter is to Chocos (the Oreos of the DCU). But overall there was just a sense that Ted wasn't taking his hero duties as seriously as his peers.
Well, a few years later they explained what was going on. Turns out his company had been falling apart for years up to that point, with Ted's personal life not doing much better, and his goofier attitude was how he coped with the stress.