Blue Beetle Scarab: Origin, Powers, and Users

The release of the upcoming Blue Beetle movie trailer has allowed fans to talk more about Jaime Reyes and his character. Of course, the trailer shows that he bonded with the mysterious Blue Beetle Scarab, ultimately giving him the powers he eventually used to become a superhero. But while Blue Beetle may be a promising superhero in the world of live-action superhero moves, not many people know what the Scarab is.

Called Khaji Da, the Scarab is a powerful weapon that allows Jaime to have powers and abilities that he uses to fight villains. Still, the Scarab remains a mystery to some fans who haven’t read the comics. So, with that said, we are here to talk about the Blue Beetle Scarab and most of the things you need to know about it to understand what the upcoming Blue Beetle movie is about.

Blue Beetle Scarab Origins

One of the things that we know about Jaime Reyes and his transformation into the Blue Beetle superhero is that he relies on the Scarab attached to his body. But the truth is that this Scarab is a piece of technology that comes from an alien civilization with tech that’s far more advanced than any kind of technology Earth has in the DC universe.

This Scarab comes from an alien civilization called the Reach, which takes over planets and conquers different civilizations for profit. However, thousands of years ago, they came into conflict with the Green Lantern Corps, which was able to fight the Reach to a standstill.

As such, the two forces signed a treaty that prohibited the Reach from taking over more worlds through war. But that didn’t prevent them from trying to conquer any more worlds. They ended up developing a method that didn’t involve warfare but still allowed the Reach to take over the planet before it could even react.

That was when the Reach developed the Scarabs, a hive-mind composed of individual Scarabs. All the Scarabs are living weapons that the Reach engineered to be obedient to them. The goal of the Reach was to leave the Scarab in an inhabited world and allow it to take over a host once the planet had reached a certain technological milestone.

The Scarab was supposed to take over the mind and personality of its host and allow it to gain access to the many different high-tech weapons at its disposal. In a sense, this host is meant to weaken the planetary defenses of a certain planet and eventually allow the Reach to take over the planet without going to war. And the Blue Beetle Scarab, called Khaji Da, is one of the Scarabs that the Reach left on Earth centuries ago.

At one point in time, the Scarab was used by an ancient Egyptian pharaoh. However, the Scarab was eventually buried along with the pharaoh and was never used until modern times when an archeologist dug it up and bonded with it. Because the Scarab had become infused with magical properties thousands of years after the Reach left it on Earth, it no longer took over the mind of its host but still gave the host its powers and abilities.

Blue Beetle Scarab Powers & Abilities

The Blue Beetle Scarab, because it was developed by a highly advanced civilization with technology that far surpasses what humans are capable of, is an incredibly powerful weapon that bonds with a host and allows it to don the armor of the Blue Beetle.

Of course, the Blue Beetle grants its host superhuman strength, durability, and speed, and it also allows the host to have the capability to fly. On top of that, the host is also given the ability to shoot energy blasts that change depending on the host. But because the Blue Beetle Scarab has changed since humans first used it, its modern version is a lot different from its older versions.

The modern Scarab is sentient and has artificial intelligence, which can communicate with its host or even override some of the functions and decisions of the host. But in most cases, the Scarab defers to the decision of its host.

Like Cyborg, the Scarab has become a more tech-focused weapon because the Blue Beetle host can use many technological tools. This allows the host to use tracking and communication systems in a manner that is similar to what Cyborg can do.

But the best part about the Blue Beetle Scarab is that the armor it allows its host to wear can manifest a lot of different weapons and abilities that depend on the user’s thoughts. This is why the armor can create guns and bladed weapons powered by the Scarab’s ability to manipulate energy. The same energy that the Scarab stores also allows the host to create energy shields, blasts, and constructs similar but weaker to the energy constructs created by the Green Lanterns.

Speaking, the Blue Beetle Scarab is a versatile weapon that is only limited by the imagination of its host. That is why the Reach trusted it to be capable enough to take over an entire world on its own.

Blue Beetle Scarab Users

Kha-Ef-Re

Legends say that the first person to use the power of the Blue Beetle Scarab was an ancient pharaoh named Kha-Ef-Re, who used its power to protect and rule his people. Not many things are known about him and how he used the power of the Scarab. But the Scarab was buried with him in his sarcophagus and was left unused for thousands of years. During that time, the Scarab accumulated magical powers that overrode its ability to take over the mind of its host.

Dan Garrett

Centuries after the pharaoh’s death, Dan Garrett heard about the stories of Kha-Ef-Re and the Scarab that was buried with him. That was when he sought out the pharaoh’s tomb and became the first person in thousands of years to reach the sarcophagus.

Dan Garret obtained the Scarab and acquired the powers of the Blue Beetle upon touching it. And because the magical energies infused with the Scarab overrode its programming, Dan retained control over his mind and body and used the power of the Scarab to defeat villains and monsters.

Ted Kord

Dan eventually hung up his Blue Beetle boots when a student of his, Ted Kord, asked him to stop his uncle from taking over the world. During that battle with Ted’s uncle, Dan was killed, as Ted retrieved the Scarab and became the new Blue Beetle.

Ted Kord sought to continue Dan’s legacy but initially struggled to use the power of the Scarab. That was when he decided to become the Blue Beetle without using the Scarab’s powers.

Jaime Reyes

Jaime Reyes is the current Blue Beetle and used the power of the Scarab after finding it half-buried in a vacant lot. He took the Scarab home, and Jaime went to sleep without knowing what this thing truly was. The Scarab bonded with Jaime and grafted itself to his spine to turn him into its new host. This time, however, the Scarab had become separated from the database of the hive mind and could no longer overrate Jaime’s mind and personality.