After a lengthy absence, the Milestone Universe that gave birth to characters like Static is finally set to return, with both new stories and newly available collections of classic material. While the Milestone publishing line was filled with diverse types of heroes and villains, one character who stood out within the universe, for a variety of reasons, was Icon.
Introduced in Dwayne McDuffie and M.D. Bright's Icon #1 in 1993, Icon's gaudy costume and immense powers made him Milestone's equivalent to Superman, but his political leanings were just as surprising as his costume. This political aspect of the character made him a fan favorite of a prominent Black politician, which in turned made Icon's creator hesitant in continuing to write the character.
Icon was a standout in both the Milestone Universe and arguably comic books in general for being such a staunch conservative. This was compounded by his conservatism seemingly clashing with his racial background, with many other Black people considering him a sellout within his series. Even in a shared universe meant to give better representation towards traditionally underrepresented groups, Icon's political and ideological beliefs made him a minority within a minority. As Milestone co-creator Derek Dingle told ComicBook in 2017, he wanted Icon to be a Republican to showcase true diversity among the publisher's heroes. This move gained Icon a fan in one of the most unlikely of places.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is perhaps most notable for his conservative political views, which have historically made him a something of a pariah within the traditionally more liberal Black political spectrum. He was also an avid fan of comic books growing up, and Milestone's Icon book caught his eye as an adult. Upon learning about this, McDuffie himself was taken aback, due to his drastically different political views, as Reginald Hudlin shared with CBR in 2015.
Given that Thomas was known afterward to actually quote Icon's sometimes pedantic dialogue, McDuffie found himself stricken with moral writer's block, noting in a 2000 blog post that he feared that something from his comics writing could be used to advance a political cause he disagreed with. . Derek Dingle, on the other hand, was generally pleased that they had been able to accurately portray a Black character of this particular mindset, especially upon being invited to Thomas' Supreme Court Chambers to discuss the character.
With his own political leanings clearly indicative in his writing, it's no wonder that McDuffie had such a problem with Icon -- a hero whose ideology he disagreed with -- being heralded in such a fashion. This rings especially true since Icon was ostensibly taught lessons by his more liberal, street-wise partner, Rocket.
Although Icon's series ended with the rest of the Milestone Universe initially folded in 1997, Thomas was known to still quote Milestone's most powerful hero years after Milestone Media stopped publishing comics, owing to the continued legacy and importance of these now-classic characters. After a brief dalliance in the DC Universe proper in the 2010s, the Milestone Universe will live on with the upcoming Milestone Returns line of digital comics, which will introduce the line's diverse heroes -- and their equally diverse voices -- to a new generation of readers.