Blue Beetle (Ted Kord) vs Prowler

This is a DynaMic Network Podcast. 

Hi, welcome to the Dynamic Duel Podcast, a weekly show where we review superhero films and debate the superiority between Marvel and DC by comparing their characters in stat-based battle simulations. I'm Johnny DC. 

And I'm his twin brother Marvelous Joe, holy shit. 

And as you can tell from the sound of Joseph's voice, he is very sick, so he will be doing as little talking as possible this episode, being a dual episode between Blue Beetle, the Ted Kord incarnation, and Prowler, the Spider-Man villain. He's mostly an ally. Well that's news to me. 

I thought he was a bad guy. Interesting. Alright, well we're gonna find out more about him later on in this episode. Before that, we are not going to break down any comic book movie news from the past week because there hasn't been any really some behind-the-set photos, but I don't know if things are made with AI nowadays. 

So until it's confirmed by the studio, I'm just going to assume everything is fake. Fucking crickets. This is what happens when Joseph can't speak. I have no one to laugh at my jokes. Jokes suck, bro. Your voice sucks, bro. 

As always, we list our segment times in our episode description, so feel free to check out the show notes if you want to skip ahead to a particular topic. Our artificially intelligent dual simulator AJ9K has a quick message for our listeners, so listen up. 

Why hello there. Do you want even more from this podcast? Then become a part of the dynamic dual community on Patreon where you can choose from three tiers. The dynamic 2.0 tier gives you access to our Discord chat server, the fantastic 4.0 tier gives you two bonus episodes each month, and the X-Force tier makes you an executive producer of this show. Lastly, the Dynamite podcast network tier lets you create your own podcast using this Monte Carlo simulator. Johnny and Joe will help you develop your show, provide graphic support and consultation, and get you simulation results. Pitch the twins your ideas via email at dynamicdualpodcast.com. Check it out at patreon.com. 

Thanks AJ9K and thanks to everyone who supports the podcast. Guys be sure to tune into the other shows in the Dynamite podcast network this week, including the console combat podcast, where hosts John and Dean simulate battles between popular video game characters. In yesterday's episode, they speculated on who would win in a dogfight between Fox McLeod from Star Fox piloting his R-Wing against Wedge and Tilly's from Star Wars Rogue Squadron piloting his X-Wing. Over on the Max Destruction podcast, hosts Scotty and Gilly pay your favor action heroes from film and television against each other. This Wednesday, the twins are reviewing the 1988 film Bloodsport. And finally on the Sanjo World podcast, hosts Zachary Hepburn speculates on fights between fan favorite anime and manga characters. On Thursday, Zach is going to reveal who would win between Yaroichi Shihou-Yin from Bleach versus Kizaru from One Piece. 

Visit dynamicpodcasts.com or click the link in our show notes to listen to all of the shows in the Dynamite podcast network. But with that out of the way? Quick to the no prize! A no prize is an award that Marvel used to give out to fans. Our version, the Dynamic Dual No Prize, is a digital award that we post on Instagram for the person we feel gave the best answer to our question of the week. Last week, we asked, what do you think of Crypto the Superdog from the Superman sneak peek? 

And of course, this question was in regards to the extended trailer that we received for the Superman film that came out of CinemaCon. We got four answers, so let's break down this week's three honorable mentions before revealing the no prize winner. Our first honorable mention goes to Christopher Minotti, who said, Hi guys, Christopher Minotti. 

So Crypto, he's a little fluffier than I was expecting, but I'm still hoping that they do a good job with him. I get that he's supposed to be the cute character, the lighthearted, well not lighthearted, he's a dog, so of course. But I'm still hoping that they do a good job with him, and I'm hoping that they have a cool scene with him. The first time I realized Crypto was cool was in Blackest Night, when he saved Martha Kent by ripping up Black Lantern's arm off and then blasting it with Heat Vision. 

Yeah, and the comics Crypto is no joke. He is fiercely loyal and doesn't have the same morality that someone say like Superman has. So he's actually fairly dangerous. This version of the dog is very fluffy, you know, usually he's depicted as a Labrador of some sorts, but here he looks very much like almost like a poodle terrier mutt kind of dog. So they're definitely trying to play up the cute factor with him, which is all right. I guess the cuter the dog is, the more audiences will be happy with it, but we'll see how it goes. As I said in the last episode, I have full confidence in James Gunn's writing, especially when it comes to animal characters, you take a look at Rocker at Coon or something like that. So I think things should be fine. 

Didn't Crypto almost kill Mongol? 

Yeah, actually he straight up bit his throat nearly killing him. Great answer Christopher, our next honorable mention goes to Lee Tapscott, who said, What do I think about Crypto in the Superman trailer? 

Man, I love this. I think dogs can really sense if a person's good or bad. And Crypto just you can just tell he loves Superman. Superman is so good to him. This makes me care about him so much in the energy. And when it comes push to shove, he knows exactly what his master needs, takes him right to the help opens up that door. Smart dog. 

Yeah, like we mentioned in the last episode, people are kind of trashing Crypto's intelligence, but I kind of see it as him being well trained to an extent, right? He's really happy to see his owner. So he's jumping on his owner. But once he realizes something is wrong, he listens to him and takes him straight to the fortress of solitude. One of the secret shortcuts of getting a character to be likable in film is to give them a dog character and have them be nice to a dog. 

I've brought this up before. I don't know if this is what James Gunn is trying to do with Superman, just to make him more endearing to audiences who may not necessarily care for the character. But if he plays his cards right, story wise, I think he could totally pull that off between the characters of Crypto and Superman. 

Because dogs, like Lee Tapscott said, are naturally intuitive. And if you like Superman, general audiences will gather that, oh, this is a trustworthy character. Great answer, Lee. Our final honorable mention goes to Peter, who said, what's up, dynamic dudes? 

It's Peter. My thoughts on Crypto was, I thought it was really funny, honestly. Like when I first saw the trailer, I laughed audibly, thinking that's a cute dog. That's something that my dog would do if I had one, which I don't. But if I did, he would act like that. And especially since they're training him, I think it'd be a fun part to the movie. So that's what I got to say. Thanks, guys. 

Peter Yeah. So every dog I've had, I've rescued from an animal shelter. And they're not the best trained of dogs. When I come home, my dog, Olive, is still super excited. She's a little white chihuahua, and you know, she'll hop on me. It doesn't bother me because she's so small. I'm sure if she was the size of Crypto, I would be more irritated by it. But yeah, I totally related to Crypto jumping on Superman in this extended trailer. 

Again, I didn't love it initially. But once I realized, oh, hey, yeah, this reminds me of my dog, it became much easier to understand what James Gunn was trying to do with this dog, because he said before that Crypto was inspired by his dog that he rescued, who's not necessarily well behaved. And so for him to put that into the movie is a slice of life of sorts. And it's definitely one that I recognized for my own life. And I think a lot of people might 

have an 80 pound German shepherd mix named Bucky. And I got to say if he did to me, what Crypto did to Superman, I'd be pissed. 

I don't know, but there's also something to be said for a big lovable dog that loves you unconditionally and just wants to give you a big hug and kiss when you come home. 

That's true. I love my dog. 

Great answer, Peter. The winner of this week's no prize, however, is Travis Herndon. Who said? 

What's up, Jeremy? Dude's Travis here. Shout out to my even twin. So my answer is I like Crypto and honestly, he doesn't deserve to hate him. Yes, especially from a certain YouTuber saying that like, well, my dog, he ain't dog, he's stuff though, whimpered and whined when I pretend to be hurting stuff. And to that, Crypto is based off of James Gunn's own dog who was a rowdy, rambunctious puppy. So I mean, it wouldn't make sense why he would be acting like that. It's based off his own dog. 

Yeah, I'm not sure which YouTuber Travis is referring to. But like I've said, the inclusion of Crypto was inspired by James Gunn's own dog, who he rescued from a shelter. And you just got to admire that, you know, taking a dog that could have been put down and giving it a new home, giving it a loving family, whether it's behaved or not, you know, it still deserves to have the love of James Gunn and his family. For him to include the character of his dog in the movie, I think is pretty awesome personally. And I have to say, I'm pretty happy that everyone who called in seemed to enjoy Crypto because I was worried that a lot of people weren't, you know, the internet could be a pretty negative place sometimes. But shout out to all of our listeners, especially the ones who have just called in who like Crypto. I think he's going to be a fun addition to the Superman film that comes out this July. 

Yeah, don't be a cynical asshole on the internet like dogs, right? Yeah, what are you, some kind of dog hater? 

YouTube guy. Yeah, whoever you are. Great answer, Travis. You win the Speak to No Prize. If you're the listener want to shout at winning your own no prize, stay tuned to later on in this episode when we'll be asking another question of the week. 

Another that's done. On to the question of the week. 

So as we mentioned, there's no big comic book movie news from this past week. So we're going to ask, but we want to know what's your favorite Marvel or DC comic that you're reading right now and why it's really hard for me to stay up to date with current comics. I feel like all of the comics I read are just to do research for this show. 

And I'm very curious to see what current comics you guys are reading that you just love right now. Pick your number one favorite and record your answer at dynamic dual.com by clicking on the red microphone button in the bottom right hand corner of the screen, which will prompt you to leave us a voicemail. Your message could be up to 30 seconds long. And don't forget to leave your name in case we include you on the podcast. We'll pick our favorite answer and award that person a dynamic dual no prize that we'll post to Instagram. Be sure to answer before April 16th. We're recording our next episode a little bit early because of the Easter weekend. So make sure to get your answer in early. 

DC high volume Batman, the Dark Knight's definitive DC comic stories adapted directly for audio for the very first time. Fear. I have to make them afraid. He's got a motorcycle. Get after him or have you shot? You mean blow up the building from this moment on. None of your safe new episodes every Wednesday, wherever you get your podcasts. 

But now it's time to get onto the main events of this episode, where we find out who would win in a battle between Ted court, the blue beetle and prowler. All right, blue beetle versus prowler. 

Of course, this is the Ted cord version of blue beetle. And the fact that we've waited until year. What is this 10 to get to Ted cord is a travesty of justice. 

It is wrong, but we're going to make it right here today. Because Ted cord is a solid B Lister, if not a Lister of the DC Comics Pantheon, I would say. Prowler. Not so much. He's like a C level Spider-Man villain or I guess a parent ally. I don't know much about him. I do know that both of these characters are very tech based. And I think that's why the executive producers wanted to put them together. I do remember the parlor from the 90s Spider-Man television series, the cartoon. But of course, he was also famously in the into the spider verse film, as well as beyond the spider verse, although that version was Miles Morales spoiler alert. 

Yeah, there have been two prominent prowler characters in the comics over the years. 

You sound like RFK Junior, man. Okay. And one of them obviously is Miles Morales is uncle. Correct. Okay. Now, outside of the cartoons, blue beetle hasn't had too many appearances in the media. He was referenced in the live action blue beetle movie, but we never actually got to see him. Fingers crossed he appears in an eventual sequel. 

We're going to learn more about blue beetle and Prowler here soon. But to explain the methodology behind our duels, let's go to our sentient dual simulator, Alfred Jarvis 9000. AJ and NK tell our listeners how you go about determining a winner in our dual matchups. 

Yes, of course, sir. The way I determine a winner between the contestants is by running 1000 Monte Carlo simulations using the characters statistics. A Monte Carlo simulation is a probabilistic model used to determine outcomes through random sampling. In this case, I randomize the statistics along a normal distribution as a way to simulate the many variables that can occur during battle. 

The stat parameters are based on the official Marvel power grid from which the DC characters statistics are extrapolated. Additional stat categories are included such as range, damage potential, versatility and perception in order to create a more detailed and accurate simulation. The results of the 1000 simulations provide a percentage of wins for each character. The contestant with the higher percentage is declared the victor as they have a higher probability to win any given battle. In an equitable pairing, neither character should win 100% of the matches. The comic book stories have shown that there's even a way for Batman to defeat Superman, so the confidence rate of my method falls in line with the precedents that have been established in the source material. My mathematical simulations are without subjectivity or bias. Feats are not the sole consideration, nor are fan votes tabulated for determination of the winner. 

Thanks, AJ9K. Before we run the simulations, though, we like to break down each character's histories and abilities before improvising a scenario on how we imagine one of the 1000 simulations would play out beat for beat. I believe it's your turn to go first, Joseph, but since you're freaking dying, I will read all about the prowler. Born in the Bronx as the youngest of nine children, Hobart Hobie Brown showed an early talent as an inventor but faced a difficult upbringing. His father, Tiger Brown, left the family when Hobie was a baby and later died during military service in Cambodia. His mother, overwhelmed by their responsibility, became an alcoholic, leaving Hobie and his siblings to raise themselves. After high school, Hobie became a window washer to support himself despite his engineering skills. During a job, he was nearly killed in a battle between Stiltman and Spider-Man. Inspired to make his window washing job safer, Hobie designed pneumatic safety equipment, including air pressure boots to counter high winds, wrist-mounted sprayers, and a safety grappling system. 

You can learn more about Spider-Man and his duel against Blue Beetle, Jaime Reyes, and more about Stiltman and his duel against Kite Man. Hobie's inventive ideas were rejected by his employer, who had only hired him to meet a racial quota. After quitting, Hobie decided to adopt the costumed identity of the prowler, planning to a robbery and return the stolen goods to gain publicity for his inventions. Targeting the Daily Bugle's payroll, he encountered Peter Parker during the heist. In order to change into Spider-Man, Peter faked being thrown out of a window, causing J. Jonah Jameson to believe the prowler had committed murder. Spider-Man subdued Hobie, but realizing his intent was not malicious, let him go with advice to change his path. Hobie took the message to heart and abandoned his criminal plans. Hobie soon impersonated Spider-Man at Peter's request to help protect his identity, wearing the costume in front of Peter's friends while Peter pretended to be ill. 

Believing Spider-Man was responsible for the death of Captain George Stacey, Hobie tried to bring him to justice but failed. Hobie later married his longtime girlfriend, Mindy, and worked in construction. Through the Big Brother program, he met her young man named Manny Lopez, who was later killed in a gang incident. Believing Hector Ayala, the White Tiger, was responsible, Hobie fought him until realizing his mistake. While trying to join the superhero team of the defenders, Hobie was thrown into the harbor by Valkyrie and chose to retire from heroics. 

However, his prowler equipment was stolen and used by a second prowler to commit a murder. Spider-Man recovered the gear and persuaded Hobie to stay uninvolved. Hobie later resumed the prowler identity to help clear Mindy's name after she was framed for financial fraud. He retrieved the evidence from a cellist targeted by the Black Fox and worked with Spider-Man to clear her name. When Spider-Man was framed for robbing a millionaire, Hobie teamed up with several allies including Puma, Rocket Racer, and Sandman. Silver Sable, a mercenary from the Eastern European nation of Simcaria, offered the group further work. Hobie joined Silver Sable's mercenary team called the Outlaws and participated in missions across North America and England, once battling Excalibur and uncovering a rogue Arnim Zola construct. At the time, he trained with his brother Abraham Abe Brown, who was a martial artist and former wielder of White Tiger's Jade Amulets as a member of the Sons of the Tiger. 

You can learn more about Silver Sable and White Tiger in their respective duels against Vigilante and Bronze Tiger. Hobie teamed up with his brother Abe to fight street crime, but was temporarily injured battling Killer Shrike. Though Hobie's wife Mindy left him after discovering his identity, she returned when he was paralyzed in a fall caused by the villain Black Bull. While recovering, his gear was stolen again, this time by a criminal named Rick Lawson, who posed as the prowler until being hospitalized by the vulture. Regaining mobility, Hobie resumed the prowler role and aided Spider-Man during a building fire. He provided Spider-Man with a jet pack used during a period when Peter adopted the Hornet persona. Hobie was arrested during the Superhuman Registration Act conflict, but escaped with the help of Captain America's secret Avengers. Peter Parker later hired Hobie to impersonate Spider-Man again to maintain his cover. 

Hobie then infiltrated new U technologies for Parker Industries and discovered an experiment involving the villain Electro, who severely injured him. He was placed in stasis by the genetic mastermind known as the Jackal and it was cloned. The clone served the Jackal, while the real Hobie remained unconscious in cryosleep. After being recovered, Hobie ended his alliance with Spider-Man and was hired by Tony Stark to lead a crowdfunding firm. When the symbiote god Null invaded Earth, Hobie adopted the identity of Hornet and used hacked Stark Tech to repel the symbiotes. Later, during a gang war conflict, Hobie lent a prowler suit to a man named Aaron Davis to investigate the villain Hobgoblin. 

Hobie warned Davis that he misused the prowler suit, he would take it back and reclaim the identity. Aaron Davis was a former career criminal from an alternate universe called Earth 1610, Marvel's ultimate universe. There, Aaron was the brother of Jefferson Davis, the father of Miles Morales. 

While Jefferson reformed as a criminal and became a police officer after marrying Rio Morales, Aaron continued his criminal life, using stolen tech to become the prowler. At one point, he broke into an abandoned Oz Corp facility and knowingly took a genetically altered spider with him. The spider later bit his nephew Miles Morales, giving him spider powers and making him the new Spider-Man. 

Though Jefferson disapproved of Aaron's influence, Miles maintained a close relationship with his uncle. You can learn more about Miles Morales Spider-Man and his duel against Batwing. Aaron traveled to Mexico City to confront a rival criminal known as the Scorpion, but was arrested and returned to New York. He attempted to manipulate Miles and to help him eliminate the Scorpion, but Miles refused. In a final confrontation, Aaron's gauntlets exploded, killing him. 

Before dying, he cryptically claimed that Miles was just like him. After the universal incursions that led to the collapse and the eventual rebirth of the multiverse, Aaron was restored to life in Morales' primary 616 timeline with no memory of his death. He purchased an iron spider suit off the black market and helped form a new Sinister 6 alongside bombshell, electro, hobgoblin, sandman, and the spot stealing a decommissioned shield helicarrier. 

Miles, who was also brought into the main Marvel timeline, confronted his uncle. And though the Sinister 6 succeeded in their heist, Aaron appeared to die during the ensuing battle, though he was merely injured. Influenced by his nephew, Aaron began distancing A villain who can learn more about his duel against Blockbuster. When Miles was kidnapped by the villain Assessor, Aaron sought help from his estranged brother Jefferson. After commissioning a new prowler suit from a criminal weapons designer, he joined Jefferson in infiltrating the Assessor's facility, rescuing Miles. Later while working for the villain Ultimatum, actually the Earth 616 variant of Miles, Aaron attempted to assassinate a criminal but was stopped by Spider-Man Miles. The botched job resulted in a bounty on Aaron, which forced him into a deal that placed him under Ultimatum's control. Aaron joined his nephew Miles at the hospital for the birth of his sister Billy, and later helped resist Ultimatum's plan to return them to their original universe. During a battle with Ultimatum's forces, including the Green Goblin and his Goblinoids, Aaron sacrificed himself by overloading his suit, sending Ultimatum and the Goblin away. 

Aaron was presumed dead. In reality, Aaron awoke in an alternate dystopian world ruled by Selim, an evil clone of Miles Morales. Selim used Aaron's unique dimensional signature to power a shield around his empire. 

Aaron was imprisoned and used as a living power source for decades. When Miles arrived in the alternate dimension to rescue his uncle, Aaron was freed and recovered enough to fight alongside his nephew. After defeating Selim, Aaron and Miles traveled back to Earth 616. Upon their return was when Hobie Brown recruited Aaron to resume the Prowler identity, tasking him with uncovering the villain Hobgoblin's plans. Aaron went undercover as a villain for hire and joined Hobgoblin's crew, supplying weapons to criminals and clashing with Miles, until his cover was revealed. 

Aaron divulged Hobgoblin's location and joined Miles, Miss Marvel, and others to raid the villain's hideout, fighting alongside them to bring down that criminal empire. And that's Prowler's history. Nobilities-wise, the Prowler has a specialized suit made from a modified military flak jacket that protects him from concussive forces such as explosions or falls from great heights. It comes with a variety of pneumatic or air-based gadgets, including a cape that can expand, allowing him to glide over great distances. His boots are rubber insulated with compressed air technology that allows him to leave multiple stories high and land safely. His specialized gauntlets have steel claws used for fighting and scaling buildings, and they have wrist-mounted compressed air launchers that can fire projectiles such as grappling hooks, gas pellets, steel darts, flares, or compressed air blasts. Prowler's suit also comes with some stealth and infiltration gadgets such as night vision goggles and temperature control to avoid infrared detection. Both Hobbie and Aaron are intellectually gifted, one as an inventor and the other as a thief. They're both experienced fighters and skilled marksmen. So which version will you be going with? 

I figured it could be either or. If you're more of a fan of Hobbie, you can imagine him in this fight or if you're more of a fan of Aaron, who is the modern and current Prowler, then you can imagine him in this fight. 

I didn't realize he had so much compressed air like a tax. 

Yeah, that's his whole thing. So does Blue Beetle. Yeah, they have a lot in common. Interesting, I had no idea. 

Well, to find out how much they have in common, let me get into Blue Beetle Ted Kord's backstory. Now Theodore Ted Kord was born with a gifted intellect, excelling in science, literature and business from a young age. 

While he initially considered joining his father's company, Kord Omni-Versal Research and Development, his life changed course after uncovering a nefarious plot by his uncle Jarvis Kord. Discovering that Jarvis intended to unleash an army of super androids for world domination, Ted sought the help of his archaeology professor, Dan Garrett, who also happened to be the original Blue Beetle. Together they confronted Jarvis on Pago Island, where Dan revealed his heroic identity and used the power of a mystical scarab he had discovered years earlier. 

In the ensuing battle, Dan was mortally wounded. With his dying breath, Dan entrusted Ted with the scarab and the Blue Beetle legacy. Though Ted accepted the mantle, the scarab failed to activate for him, refusing to give up he trained to physical perfection, becoming a skilled hand-to-hand combatant, and constructed a variety of crime-fighting gadgets, including a signature air blast pistol and a beetle-shaped aircraft known as the Bug. 

Operating independently of the scarab, Ted forged his own identity as the second Blue Beetle. Reviving Kord Omni-Versal, he turned the company into a major R &D enterprise, Rivalink Star Labs. From his home base in Chicago, he launched his career as a costumed vigilante, taking on foes such as the Mad Men, Carapax the Indestructible Man, and the villainous cult known as the Men of the Mask. Ted Kord's early career brought him into the orbit of the world's greatest heroes when he was recruited by the Monitor during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. During the multiversal conflict, Ted wielded the Blue Beetle Scarab to destroy shadow demons, but later lost track of it amidst the chaos. With the crisis resolved, Ted joined the newly-reformed Justice League. As a founding member of the Justice League International, Ted served as the league's primary pilot and technician. There he met Booster Gold, who quickly became his closest friend and frequent partner in crime-fighting and mischief. Known collectively as Blue and Gold, the duo balanced comic relief with critical contributions and missions against League villains. 

You can learn more about Booster Gold in our Booster Gold vs. Cable dual episode. While in the league, Ted's confidence in Wasteline began to waver due to long hours spent in the lab. With encouragement from teammates such as General Glory and Guy Gardner, he regained his physical conditioning, though not before suffering severe injuries during battles, including a coma after Doomstay's rampage. Despite these setbacks, Ted remained active in the field, even joining the spin-off team Extreme Justice alongside Booster and Captain Adam, who you can learn more about in his duel against Wonder Man. In time, Ted left the league and reasserted control of Cord Omniversal, eventually making it a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises. During this period, he grew close to Barbara Gordon, aka Oracle, initially as an online acquaintance. The two developed a deep friendship and Ted provided her team, the Birds of Prey, with funding and technology. 

You can learn more about the Birds of Prey in our Birds of Prey vs. A Force Team dual episode. Though he eventually discovered he had a heart condition, Ted continued his heroics, occasionally operating as Blue Beetle in spite of the risk. Ted came back into possession of Dangarit Scarab after it was unearthed by Hawkman, though it once again remained inert in his presence. Around the same time, Ted noticed strange financial movements within Cord Omniversal. Funds were being siphoned and rerouted to mysterious shell companies. 

He began investigating, only to be attacked by a group of thugs known as the Mad Men, severely injuring Booster in the process. Tracing a signal hidden within his damaged equipment, Ted uncovered the location of a secret facility in Switzerland. There he discovered that Maxwell Lord, one of his former League teammates, had taken over the organization Checkmate and intended to use the OMAC project to neutralize the global metahuman population. Lord offered Ted a place at his side. When Ted refused, Max executed him with a gunshot to the head. Ted's death shocked the hero community. 

A statue was erected in his honor, and Barbara Gordon memorialized his contributions. Though the Scarab ultimately passed to a new host, teenager Jaime Reyes, Ted's legacy endured through his inventions, his friendship with Booster Gold, and his example as a hero without powers who stood among gods. In the wake of Ted's death, Booster Gold and a future blue beetle attempted to change history by rescuing him through time travel. When they succeeded in briefly bringing Ted forward in time, the resulting timeline plunged Earth into a dystopia ruled by OMACs, realizing the cost of his survival, Ted returned to his original time to die as he was meant to, thereby restoring the timeline. During the Blackest Night, a Black Lantern ring reanimated Ted's corpse. As a Black Lantern, he attempted to murder Booster, Jaime, and others, but was eventually neutralized using technology Ted himself had designed. 

His remains were taken to a point outside of time known as the Vanishing Point to prevent further resurrection. In post-flashpoint continuity, Ted Corde reemerged, once again depicted as a scientific, genius, and industrialist who had retired from being blue beetle due to health concerns. When Jaime Reyes approached him for help in understanding the mysterious Scarab, Ted became his reluctant mentor and benefactor. Though Jaime initially rejected the superhero lifestyle, Ted saw promise in him and provided guidance, resources, and technological support, constructing a mobile command center and even donning his old blue beetle suit when needed. Ted's investigations into the Scarab brought him into conflict with Dr. Fate, who declared the Scarab to be magical in origin, contrary to Ted's belief it was alien technology. Ted later joined a coalition of heroes including the question Captain Adam, Nightshade, and more, who traveled to Mars to confront Dr. Manhattan for putting Superman into a coma, though Ted and the other heroes were overpowered and scattered. You can learn more about Dr. Manhattan in our Dr. Manhattan vs. 

Molecule Man dual episode. Ted later became a target of Black Mask, who imprisoned him and used illusion-based powers to impersonate him. Under Black Mask's control, Corde Industries funneled resources into illicit operations, including a revamped Suicide Squad. With help from the Justice League and an international team known as the Revolutionaries, the real Ted was freed and helped dismantle Black Mask's scheme. 

You can learn more about Black Mask in his dual against Madame Mask. Ted reunited with Booster Gold to form Blue and Gold Restoration, a private hero for higher business dedicated to helping everyday people. Though he was ousted from Corde Industries for mismanagement, Ted chose to keep working with Booster instead of rejoining the Justice League. 

Their venture faced financial challenges, but they continued their mission, providing aid to those overlooked by larger organizations. Ted was briefly imprisoned by the Batman who laughs on New Apocalypse, where he was killed by a giant beetle during the Dark Multiverse Crisis and resurrected via a Black Lantern Ring. Despite these ordeals, he returned to life once more and continued his crime-fighting career alongside his best friend Booster Gold and protégé Jaime Reyes. Now, powers-wise, Ted Corde possesses no innate superpowers as Blue Beetle, but his genius level intellect places him among the most brilliant minds in the world. He's a master inventor and engineer, creating an array of gadgets and vehicles. His trademark weapon is the BB Gun, capable of emitting blinding flashes or compressed air blasts strong enough to knock back attackers. Though he also carries smoke bombs, acid capsules, grappling launchers, and small beetle-shaped flying surveillance drones known as baby bugs. His greatest engineering feat, however, is the bug. 

An airship that can fly at 600 miles per hour, travel into outer space and underwater, fire electromagnetic beams, electrify its hull, shoot nets and grapples, and more, all from the control of his gloves. Physically, Blue Beetle trained to peak human condition and was an Olympic-level acrobat and martial artist, specializing in Akito and karate, though his weight and physical ability has fluctuated over the years due to his heart condition. Thankfully, Blue Beetle's suit slightly enhances his strength and durability, while also coming equipped with suction pads that allow him to adhere to walls and vision-enhancing goggles. That's Blue Beetle. 

Is he gonna have his bug ship during this fight? Hell yes he does! Let me rephrase that, that wasn't a question. Blue Beetle will not be having his bug ship during the course of this fight, it's just gonna be mono-e-mono. Do you understand? 

I understand that it's something that you do not want. Thank you. 

Alright. Did you see more about how similar they are? Because not only do they have like air-compressed weapons, they can also climb on walls, one with suction cups, one with claws. They both have like light strobes. 

And they both died like several times. Right, exactly. 

But now that we've got their histories and abilities out of the way, let's speculate on how one of the 1000 simulated matches will go. The winner is determined by simulations, not the speculation. But it's fun to imagine how this fight could play out. AJ9K, what are the rules of our speculation? 

Well, I should say there are no rules, other than the characters have no prior knowledge of the other going into the fight. All they are aware of starting out is that the other character is a threat that needs to be eliminated. For the speculation, the contestants will begin approximately 50 meters apart in a nondescript environment that will have no bearing on the match itself, as no environmental statistics are considered in my simulations. The contestants must earn victory on their own merit. 

Alright then, let's get into it. Blue Beetle and a prowler meet on the battlefield. Who goes first? 

I'm gonna say that prowler goes first. He's gonna speed blitz Blue Beetle with his claws, and before Blue Beetle can even say, oh shit this guy is scary fucking fast, he's just gonna get slashed across his face. 

No, prowler's fast but not faster than Blue Beetle can quick draw his BB gun and just flash a strobe right in the guy's face so he's disoriented and seeing spots. So with prowler partially blinded, Blue Beetle's easily gonna leap over his blitz and tag prowler in the back with a compressed air blast that just makes him fall flat on his face. And as he lands, as prowler is getting up from the ground, Blue Beetle sends out a few baby bug drones that scan the area. How big are these drones? I've seen various sizes for these, sometimes they're like the size of a volleyball, but I've also seen them like the size of his palm. 

Okay, prowler notices these drones as he gets to his feet, and he's gonna shoot down a gas capsule that creates a dark cloud of smoke around him and it's gonna hide him from these drones and from Blue Beetle's sight. 

Uh, you know, Blue Beetle's just gonna switch the drone surveillance to infrared so he can see prowler's heat signature with his dope ass goggles. 

Except prowler is invisible to infrared. 

Okay, so I don't know, Blue Beetle switches to night vision to see through the dark smoke and uses drones, shoot down some acid cap. 

You know, because Blue Beetle's night vision is activated, prowler, he shoots out a magnesium flare right then, and it's just gonna light up Blue Beetle's entire view. And that's gonna temporarily blind him. So like, as Blue Beetle's grabbing at his goggles, prowler is gonna shoot the bug drones out of the air with some darts by our term as gauntlets. And then he's gonna leap out of the smoke and just flying kick Blue Beetle right into his beard gut. 

Six pack, my man. Six pack. He's been working out. Six pack of beer. All right, so he takes the kick, lands on his back, but he's gonna back somersault onto his hands and knees before launching himself with his legs back at prowler and rocking him with a spinning back fist. 

He's blind. How did he even see the prowler to hit him? 

I don't know. He's, you know, he peered through the spots in his vision. He's good like that. 

Well, not good enough, because prowler blocks this hit. 

Oh, it's a spinning double back fist. So when prowler blocks one hand, Blue Beetle just spins the opposite direction and clocks him with the other hand. 

What? Okay, prowler gets hit, but he's gonna counter with a spin kick and slashing uppercut combo, followed by this like compressed air blast from his gauntlets that just sends Blue Beetle flying backward and knocking the wind out of him. 

No, no, because in the middle of this combo, suddenly prowler finds himself wrapped in a net all around him. And as he struggles to move, he's hoisted into the air by Blue Beetle's bug ship with a cable that was attached to the net. 

I said, you're making me sick here. I said, you can't use the bug ship. I'm sorry. 

I thought you'd know I just naturally use whatever Blue Beetle uses out in the field. St. Blue Beetle can't have his bug ship is like saying ghost writer can't have his hell cycle or silver surfer can't have his surfboard. 

I doubt that. Regardless, prowler is gonna slash his way out of this net with his claws. And then he's gonna glide down toward Blue Beetle, who's like, Oh, fuck, my cheating ass is about to die. And prowler lands feet first onto Blue Beetle, and he activates his compressed air boots right as he lands, which like a shotgun blast just explodes Blue Beetle into a blue smear on the ground. 

No, this net is made with metal fibers. And before prowler could slash his way out of it, the bug ship just sends an electric current into the net electrocuting prowler and just sizzling him to a crisp. 

Like I said, cheating ass, you can't use the bug ship in this. 

I don't know what to tell you, bro. It happened, except it. 

Okay, we'll go ahead and leave the match there. Either Jonathan cheats and the bug ship captures and electrocutes the prowler, or he plays this like a man and prowler just eviscerates Blue Beetle with his air compressed boots. 

Hey, it takes a real man to admit when he's defeated, Joseph. 

Let's go ahead and find out who wins by inputting the stats, running the simulations and finding out who comes out on top. AJ9K hit it. 

Inputting data, running calculations, processing results, simulations complete. 

Okay, this was an awesome match. These characters are way more similar than I would have thought. And I kind of always love when that happens. We just kind of serendipitously fall into an awesome match that I never even knew I wanted to see. 

Yeah, they had a lot in common, including their invasiveness, their fighting skill, their range, their perception. They had a lot in common. 

Yeah, where Blue Beetle had the edge was versatility. He just has more gadgets and intelligence, but just barely. Blue Beetle did have the edge when I came to movement speed, because yes, I did factor the bug ship into his stats. 

You cheating bastard. Well, we just figured that a majority of the time we see the character, whether it's in the comics or in other media, he has his bug ship. It's a big part of who the character is. It's like seeing Night Owl from Watchmen without his Owl ship. And because of that, Blue Beetle also got the edge when it came to damage level. 

Yeah, the bug ship is such a big part of the lore of the character that it was even incorporated in the Blue Beetle live action movie, even though Hymeria's doesn't use the bug ship. Exactly. So who do you think is winning this one, Jonathan? Is that even a question? 

Blue Beetle all the way. And Instagram agrees with me, because 69% of the people who took the poll voted for Blue Beetle. 

Whoever voted for Blue Beetle in that poll doesn't even know what a 69 is. Let's go ahead and get the results. Hey, you are, sir. The winner of the matchup between Blue Beetle and prowler is, I'm so sick. Can't even say it. Blue Beetle. Yay. Out of the 1000 matches, Blue Beetle won 65.6% of the time. Proller only won 34.4%. 

Okay, so Blue Beetle wins about two-thirds of the time. Not quite. About two-thirds, though. Aren't you glad that you rolled out a bed for this? This is awesome. 

No. No, in fact, this whole day just sucks. 

Well, sorry to add to your misery, but also hashtag, sorry, not sorry. Let's get your ass back in bed so you don't die. That does it for this duel. AJ9K, help close us out. 

In our next episode, we will be reviewing Daredevil born again. I have not finished watching it, but so far, so good. That does it for this episode. We want to give a big thanks to our executive producers, John Sturrosky, Zachary Hepburn, Dustin Belcom, Miggy Mathen-Gian, Brandon Estegard, Nathaniel Wagner, Levi Yatn, Austin Wazelowski, AJ Dunkerly, Nick Obanto, Scott Camacho, Gil Camacho, Adam Spees, Dean Molesky, Devin Davis, Joseph Kirsting, Josh Leiner, Mike Williams, and Oscar Galvez for helping make this podcast possible. We'll talk to you guys next week. Up, up, and away, true believers. 

Fun fact, Blue Beetle's alternate dimension variant is called Dung Beetle, who is a member of the League of Nasty Bastards. Look it up.