Pioneering Black superheroes' earliest stories return

The original adventures of popular Black heroes from the 1990s are back in print as part of Black History Month for 2022.

Milestone Media, which began publishing in 1993 and was distributed by DC Comics, was the home for characters that included Icon, Static and Hardware.

The Black-owned company created a monthly comics line from 1993-1997. The characters also have appeared in other DC Comics and on TV in animated series.

The first "Milestone Compendium" was released this month, celebrating the 1990s adventures of these characters.

The compendium edition features tales from Dwayne McDuffie and Bob Smith and art from Denys Cowan and M.D. Bright.

Milestone Compendium collects Blood Syndicate #1-12; Hardware #1-12; Icon #1-10; Static #1-8; Xombi #0-11 and Shadow Cabinet #0.

Who are these characters?

Icon, Milestone's super-powered, 8,000-year-old alien hero, on Earth is Augustus Freeman, a conservative Black lawyer. Raquel Ervin, a teen who discovers his secret, becomes his sidekick Rocket.

Hardware is Curtis Metcalf, a brilliant scientist who develops a suit of armor to battle crime and injustice after discovering corruption in the company for which he works.

Static is Virgil Hawkins, an intelligent, fun-loving Black teenager who acquires electric powers. Influenced by the comics he's read, he becomes a costumed hero. Static appeared in the cartoon series “Static Shock!”

The Blood Syndicate is a street gang that gained powers in the same incident that gave Static his powers; the group is feared by drug dealers and the mob, as well as the authorities.

Xombi, aka David Kim, is a scientist made virtually immortal when he’s forced to take a nanite formula of his own invention.

Shadow Cabinet is a secret organization of superhumans featuring many of the Milestone characters.

These characters' stories' beginnings are included in the 1,300-page Milestone Compendium.

But DC's Black History Month celebration goes beyond the one tome. The company also is releasing variant covers featuring Black heroes; a reprint of the debut issues of Black hero Luke Fox in the pages of Batwing, and the first collected editions of the recent "Static: Season One," "Mister Miracle: The Great Escape," and the "Represent!" limited series.

Matthew Price, matthew@matthewlprice.com, has written about the comics industry for more than two decades. He is the co-owner of Speeding Bullet Comics in Norman.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Comics collection "Milestone Compendium" celebrates pioneering Black superheroes