Of course, you have to register to post at Newsarama. And although I probably don’t need to say this, please remember to maintain a polite and professional tone. If enough of us speak up, it may make a difference by letting DC know Milestones fans are out there.

The deadline to submit a question for this week is Thursday, SEPTEMBER 24 at 12:00 midnight (there’s a typo in the posting that mistakenly has Sept, 14).
Remember, if we don’t speak up, no one will.

Here’s the link:

http://www.newsarama.com/comics/0909…questions.html

[the DC universe is “crowded enough.. complicated enough”… okay, so why the heck are the Red Circle characters getting a major push?]

Great point.

DC has supported the Red Circle heroes with previews in their top-selling titles as well as one-shots for the characters. I’m betting that any sucessful one-shot will lead to a monthly series.

By contrast, DC is relutant to revive Static’s monthly despite his high profile outside comics thanks to a hit cartoon. NONE of the Red Circle heroes have a hit cartoon under his belt.

Clearly, DC is putting its ideology (racism?) ahead of being smart capitalists.

It’s not about politicizing…it’s about serving the needs of ALL of your audience and having good business sense. I’ve been reading comics for well over 40 years now and I’m tired of spending an ever-increasing amount of money for stories that don’t include anyone who looks like me. And, I definitely don’t want my son, a 6 yo AfroFanBoy, to have only white heroes.

Now, by 2025 whites will be a minority in this country. Will most of the heroes still be white? Do they really think that will be a viable business model in the mid-21st century?If DC, Marvel and other comic companies don’t start creating and supporting non-white heroes now and marketing them to the soon-to-be majority audience (ie. going beyond Wizard and promoting their comics, writers and artists in Ebony, Hispanic, etc.) then Wednesdays at comic book stores will look like the classical music section of Barnes & Noble…mostly empty except for the occasional old white person.

That being said, DC probably contracted for the entire Milestone line just to get their grubby hands on Static long term. It was probably cheaper long term to get full exclusive and unhindered use of the character as opposed to constantly renewing a limited license.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if they saw the real value in the character and wanted to make sure that McDuffie didn’t get any ideas about going independent with the character, and maybe even a reboot of Milestone. Especially with the coming of webcomics and the growing independent industry and the growing online comic community. This is probably the perfect time to bring back Milestone, but DC has its hands full with competing with Marvel and Image and other independents, so why lose a character that’s been affiliated with DC to a probable competitor.

I tend to disagree. I think any book with any character has the potential to sell. It’s all in the execution and positioning. Granted, neither of those are guarantees, but you’d think a company with DC’s vast resources as part of the Time/Warner media conglomerate could work at least some kind of magic.

Maybe.

Still, all characters are obscure when they first appear.

the DC universe is “crowded enough.. complicated enough”… okay, so why the heck are the Red Circle characters getting a major push?

McDuffie’s only sin is being frank when everyone else is expected to just shut up to get along.. people say they hate political correctness, but being honest when you feel disrespected is “whining”– whatever–

I wonder how long will it be before we see on the message boards, fandudes carping “bleh, I never liked/always hated Milestone/ never saw what the big deal was—‘whoo, we’ve got black heroes! They hit white villains!’ how about just creating quality heroes, not PC clones of other heroes, or stories where it’s just throwing race in people’s face?” Internet flameage continues..