Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool

Writers: Dwayne McDuffie & Robert L. Washington III; Pencils: John Paul Leon & Denys Cowan; Inks: Steve Mitchell, Shawn C. Martinbrough, Jimmy Palmiotti & John Paul Leon

Rating 3.5 out of 5 stars

Milestone Media was originally active in the early 1990s. It was conceived as a line of superhero titles featuring a multi-ethnic cast. The majority of the creators involved were, I believe, African American.

At the time, I was a white middle class kid growing up in the suburbs. So my life experience was limited, and my tastes were not, shall we say, quite as refined or diverse. The comic books I read were most of the Marvel books, Superman and Batman from DC, and some of the Image stuff.

I did read the first five or six issues of Hardware, one of the Milestone titles. I thought it was okay, but nothing special. And I felt the story had too much of an "angry black man" vibe to it. So I just ended up neglecting the rest of Milestone, and aside from an issue of Heroes I got from inker Rey Garcia, I paid no attention.

Then about a decade later, the animated series Static Shock, based on the Milestone title Static, came on the air. And I liked it. Static Shock was fun and exciting. I began to regret that I hadn't read more of Milestone's books in the past.

Fast forward to 2009, and DC Comics, is reprinting a number of Milestone titles in trade paperback form. One of these is Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool, which contains the first four issues of Static from 1993, and the four issue miniseries that came out in 2001 to tie in with the animated series.

Written by Dwayne McDuffie, with Robert L. Washington III co-plotting the original series, Static is a fun book. I wish I'd read it back in the 1990s, as I think it would have appealed to my teenage sensibilities.

At the same time, I can imagine Static resonating with a black readership. Bullied by a classmate, teenage Virgil Hawkins is pressured by a friend to obtain a gun and shoot his high school enemy. That sadly mirrors too much of urban reality. In the book, it leads Virgil to follow the bully to Paris Island, where there is a gathering of street gangs. Virgil comes to his senses and dumps his gun in the water. But then the police arrive to break up the gang assembly. The cops use experimental riot gas that ends up giving superpowers to the majority of the crowd. They become known as "Bang Babies."

Virgil gains the ability to control electricity. So, gliding around on an electrified garbage can lid, clad in a homemade costume, Virgil adopts the identity of Static. His colorful personality is given full blossom, and he becomes a wisecracking crimefighter in the city of Dakota.

At one point, Static is tempted by Holocaust, a very angry superpowered vigilante. Holocaust feels the injustices heaped upon African Americans in the past justify stealing and, indeed, killing white crime bosses. Virgil initially goes along with this. But, just as he could not bring himself to shoot the school bully, likewise Static cannot embrace Holocaust's ruthless mindset.

In a certain respect, I wish the second half of the TPB reprinted Static #s 5-8, as I was curious to see what happened next. At the same time, the Static Shock miniseries contains more mature writing from McDuffie, and a refined art style from artist John Paul Leon.

Set several months later, Virgil is now jaded, ready to retire his Static identity after seeing a fellow superhero die in action. But he is drawn back in by his crimefighting peers after learning that a large number of Bang Babies are being abducted by a mysterious armed strikeforce.

The artwork in the miniseries brings the character of Static more line with his animated appearance. I definitely understand the commercial considerations behind that decision and, truthfully, I prefer the costume Static wore on television to his original comic book look. John Paul Leon manages to successfully combine to two looks, giving Static an outfit that resembles his animated look, while still retaining a lot of his original appearance. It's an effective compromise.

One problem with the Static Shiock arc is there is a large cast of characters. I didn't know the majority of them. Hardware I knew, as well as Iota and Blitzen from Heroes. But everyone else was a bit of a mystery.

Still, that said, the story was enjoyable. The final resolution of the crisis did fell somewhat out of left field. But the dramatic double page splash by Leon of the heroes lining up against their opponent made it more or less worthwhile. I suppose I can live with an off-page plot twist or deus ex machina once in a while if it is part of an entertaining, quality story. It just would have worked better if McDuffie had managed to foreshadow it earlier on. Russian playwright Anton Chekov noted that if you are going to fire a gun in the third act of a play, you need to introduce it in the first act. Or visa versa, i.e. do not introduce a gun in the first act unless you plan on having someone fire it in the third.

In any case, McDuffie's ear for entertaining and humorous dialogue is present throughout. He is a very talented writer, and you can see his development by comparing the first half of the TPB to the second. I wish DC Comics had more of an appreciation for his authorship. From the rumors I've heard, DC's editorial pretty much torpedoed McDuffie's run on the Justice League of America title, even though the Justice League animated series he helped spearhead was brilliant.

But you can read McDuffie's work, unadulterated, in Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool. It isn't perfect, but it is very entertaining, and a far sight better than most of the material out there.

As for the art, John Paul Leon's work is definitely unique and striking. It may be due to his talent & technique developing over the seven year time span between the initial issues and the miniseries. Or perhaps it is the fact that he is inking his own work on the later. But Leon's art on in the second half of the book has an abstract, shadowy quality to it that definitely makes it stand out. And I definitely liked his brad new cover artwork for the collected edition.

So, while not perfect, Static Shock: Rebirth of the Cool is worth picking up, as it deviates from the standard superhero status quo and mindset to offer a memorable alternate point of view. And it's great to see some of the Milestone material finally back in print. Hopefully DC will continue to re-package the Milestone stories in future TPBs for new readers.