Warner Bros. has released the documentary A League of One: The Dwayne McDuffie Story that honors the writer, producer and editor's life and work in animation and comic books.McDuffie passed away on Feb. 21, 2011, and has left behind prolific work that's still lauded today. He created the teenage, electricity-wielding Virgil Hawkins/Static and wrote the comic book that subsequently led to the popular animated series, Static Shock. His list of writing credits includes the animated series Justice League and Justice League Unlimited, Ben 10, and numerous comic books, animated series and animated movies throughout the years.
Along with Denys Cowan, Derek T. Dingle and Michael Davis, McDuffie founded Milestone Comics in 1993. The comic book company broke new ground with representation on the page that included characters like Hardware, Icon, Rocket and Xombi. These comics told stories that confronted issues surrounding race, discrimination and sexuality, and tackled subject matter ahead of its time.
McDuffie's work has left a resonating impact in the comic book world as his mission of representation continues to live on. The Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics was established in 2014 and honors creators who have exhibited an exemplary commitment to inclusion on the page and behind the scenes.
Static has appeared in the Young Justice animated series, and a new Static Shock movie is in the works by Black Panther actor Michael B. Jordan. Static is returning to comics in his own upcoming digital miniseries that releases on April 12 as part of the DC's Milestone relaunch.
The relaunch is being overseen by Reginald Hudlin and Denys Cowan and will have a new wave of digital-first miniseries. "Milestone Mondays" is the new digital publishing initiative, which debuts with an extended edition of Milestone Returns #0 on Feb. 26. The duo Icon & Rocket as well as Hardware will also be receiving new series this year.