The other day my nephews were over and I showed one of them an original Static comic starring the character that Static Shock was based on. He loved it. I dug further into the crates and pulled out Icon, Hardware, and a bunch of other greats from the Milestone Universe. You remember them right? A Black owned company of writers, illustrators, and storytellers who put a little more color back into comics in a respectable and responsible way. My nephew asked me where the comics like these are today. I told him they're still around but not all together like they were at Milestone.One of the original creators I've been following is Dwayne McDuffie as he seems to be all over the place behind the scenes in TV animation and still in the comics. Anyway I told my nephew like I tell everyone else, Black Superheroes are out there doing their thing just like Black people in real life. They just don't get the awareness that the others do. They are, after all, a minority.
Imagine my surprise to find out from this recent announcement that the Milestone characters are going to be folded into the DC Comics universe. Static will be joining the Teen Titans! I worry that these characters will suffer the fate of similar DC purchased universes but I remain relatively confident that Dwayne McDuffie will see to it that they are handled properly. Needless to say I am very excited by this prospect, not so much that DC is absorbing these characters but that I will be able to see them in new adventures in print. Time will tell.
2 comments:
i was glad when i heard DC was adding the milestone characters to their universe at the least we may see icon, hardware and static again.
This is a really interesting moment. I'm thinking about the effects of desegregation. While we are allowed to patronize whatever establishments we want now, our ownership and wealth has dropped, as we are now competing with established white businesses and properties. Will Icon be as powerful or meaningful when he is integrated into a white superteam? Will Static be relegated to ethnic teen #6 amongst his peers? This should be really fascinating, actually. Especially if the writing reflects the nuance of integration in all of its shades.
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