What do the comic book figures Static, Hardware, and Icon all have in common? Black Superheroes, Milestone Comics, and Their Fans gives an answer that goes far beyond “tights and capes,” an answer that lies within the mission Milestone Media, Inc., assumed in comic book culture. Milestone was the brainchild of four young black creators who wanted to part from the mainstream and do their stories their own way. This history of Milestone, a “creator-owned” publishing company, tells how success came to these mavericks in the 1990s and how comics culture was expanded and enriched as fans were captivated by this new genre. Milestone focused on the African American heroes in a town called Dakota. Quite soon these black action comics took a firm position in the controversies of race, gender, and corporate identity in contemporary America. Characters battled supervillains and sometimes even clashed with more widely known superheroes. Front covers of Milestone comics often bore confrontational slogans like “Hardware: A Cog in the Corporate Machine is About to Strip Some Gears.” Milestone's creators aimed for exceptional stories that addressed racial issues without alienating readers. Some competitors, however, accused their comics of not being black enough or of merely marketing Superman in black face. Some felt that the stories were too black, but a large cluster of readers applauded these new superheroes for fostering African American pride and identity. Milestone came to represent an alternative model of black heroism and, for a host of admirers, the ideal of masculinity. Black Superheroes, Milestone Comics, and Their Fans gives details about the founding of Milestone and reports on the secure niche its work and its image achieved in the marketplace. Tracing the company's history and discussing its creators, their works, and the fans, this book gauges Milestone alongside other black comic book publishers, mainstream publishers, and the history of costumed characters.

Super Black places the appearance of black superheroes alongside broad and sweeping cultural trends in American politics and pop culture, which reveals how black superheroes are not disposable pop products, but rather a fascinating racial phenomenon through which futuristic expressions and fantastic visions of black racial identity and symbolic political meaning are presented. Adilifu Nama sees the value—and finds new avenues for exploring racial identity—in black superheroes who are often dismissed as sidekicks, imitators of established white heroes, or are accused of having no role outside of blaxploitation film contexts. Nama examines seminal black comic book superheroes such as Black Panther, Black Lightning, Storm, Luke Cage, Blade, the Falcon, Nubia, and others, some of whom also appear on the small and large screens, as well as how the imaginary black superhero has come to life in the image of President Barack Obama. Super Black explores how black superheroes are a powerful source of racial meaning, narrative, and imagination in American society that express a myriad of racial assumptions, political perspectives, and fantastic (re)imaginings of black identity. The book also demonstrates how these figures overtly represent or implicitly signify social discourse and accepted wisdom concerning notions of racial reciprocity, equality, forgiveness, and ultimately, racial justice.

Long ago, the stranded alien known as Arnus gave up hope of returning to his home planet. Tragically, he’d also realized that his adopted home of Earth was beyond saving. Content to waste away his long life in a human guise, Arnus was past caring…until the day a young woman named Raquel Ervin crashed into his life. Soon she’d convinced him to put his incredible power to work again as the heroic Icon…and to transform her into his sidekick, Rocket! But an innocent question on Rocket’s part-“Why can’t we do something about the drugs on my corner?”-quickly set a chain of events in motion leading to the pair becoming the most hunted beings on Earth…and they’re not just being pursued by Earthlings, either! Writer, director, and producer Reginald Hudlin (Black Panther: Who Is the Black Panther?) and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite unleash a tale of power and responsibility that will stretch from the boardrooms of corporate America to the jungles of South America and the depths of deep space! If you’ve ever thought there were certain things that a superhero story just couldn’t do, it might be time to start thinking different…Long ago, the stranded alien known as Arnus gave up hope of returning to his home planet. Tragically, he’d also realized that his adopted home of Earth was beyond saving. Content to waste away his long life in a human guise, Arnus was past caring…until the day a young woman named Raquel Ervin crashed into his life. Soon she’d convinced him to put his incredible power to work again as the heroic Icon…and to transform her into his sidekick, Rocket! But an innocent question on Rocket’s part-“Why can’t we do something about the drugs on my corner?”-quickly set a chain of events in motion leading to the pair becoming the most hunted beings on Earth…and they’re not just being pursued by Earthlings, either! Writer, director, and producer Reginald Hudlin (Black Panther: Who Is the Black Panther?) and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite unleash a tale of power and responsibility that will stretch from the boardrooms of corporate America to the jungles of South America and the depths of deep space! If you’ve ever thought there were certain things that a superhero story just couldn’t do, it might be time to start thinking different…

At long last - the return of the legendary Milestone Comics imprint has kicked into high gear! This jumping-on point one-shot features twenty-four all-new pages chronicling the events of the Big Bang - the police-brutality protest gone wrong that changed the face of the city of Dakota forever, by unleashing a wave of superpowers across its population! As the world watches, a bullied teenager will become the hero known as STATIC… a framed scientist will go on the run as the superweapon HARDWARE… and a stranded alien will meet an ambitious young woman who will transform his life, and remake the pair as the all-powerful ICON & ROCKET! Also included is the 17-page primer story originally released during the world-famous DC FanDome event, further expanding on our heroes’ origins and where they’re going next… and setting up an entire world of allies, enemies, and surprises! The original Milestone changed the face of superhero comics forever, introducing the industry to a wave of Black talent who still shape the conversation… and the new Milestone intends to raise the bar! Get on board here!

Panthers, Hulks and Ironhearts offers the first comprehensive study of how Marvel has racially diversified its lineup and reimagined what a superhero might look like in the twenty-first century. It examines how they have revitalized older characters like Black Panther, recast legacy heroes like Ms. Marvel, and developed new ones like the Latina Miss America.

As properties of DC comics continue to sprout over the years, narratives that were once kept sacrosanct now spill over into one another, synergizing into one bona fide creative Universe. Intended for both professional pop culture researchers and general interest readers, this collection of essays covers DC Universe multimedia, including graphic novels, video games, movies and TV shows. Each essay is written by a recognized pop culture expert offering a distinct perspective on a wide variety of topics. Even though many of the entries address important social themes like gender and racism, the book is not limited to these topics. Also included are more lighthearted essays for full verisimilitude, including analyses of long forgotten or seemingly marginal aspects of the DC Extended Universe, as well as in-depth and original interpretations of the most beloved characters and their relationships to one another. Highly accessible and approachable, this work provides previously unavailable in-roads that create a richer comprehension of the ever-expanding DC Universe.

Black in America samples the breadth of nonfiction writing on African American experiences in the United States from the eighteenth century to the present. The anthology emphasizes twenty-first-century authors such as Ta-Nehisi Coates, Claudia Rankine, and Roxane Gay, but a substantial selection of important earlier writers—from Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano, through Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass, to James Baldwin and Audre Lorde—is also included. The second edition has been updated to feature notable works that have appeared since the first edition was published in 2018, particularly including works addressing the COVID-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement; the new edition also includes more selections that emphasize the joy and beauty of being Black in America. Selections are arranged by author in rough chronological order and feature headnotes, explanatory notes, and discussion questions to facilitate student engagement. A companion website contains additional readings; alternative tables of contents listing material by thematic subject and by genre and rhetorical style; an additional set of explanatory notes for the benefit of international students and/or non-native speakers of English; and links to further readings and other resources such as speeches, recitations, TED talks, and music videos. A percentage of the revenue from this book’s sales will be donated to two organizations: Equal Justice Initiative and Color of Change.