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Milestone Returns
Icon and Rocket: Season One
The most famous superhero duo of the Milestone Universe returns, reimagined for a new generation!
Long ago, the stranded alien known as Arnus gave up hope of returning to his home planet. Tragically, he'd also realized that his adopted home of Earth was beyond saving. Content with wasting away his long life in a human guise, Arnus was past caring…until the day a young woman named Raquel Ervin crashed into his life. Soon she convinced him to put his incredible power to work again as the heroic Icon…and to transform her into his sidekick, Rocket!
But an innocent question on Rocket's part—"Why can't we do something about the drugs on my corner?"—quickly set a chain of events in motion leading to the pair becoming the most hunted beings on Earth…and they're not just being pursued by Earthlings either!
Writer, director, and producer Reginald Hudlin (Black Panther), co-writer Leon Chills, and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite unleash a tale of power and responsibility that will stretch from the boardrooms of corporate America to the jungles of South America and the depths of deep space! If you've ever thought there were certain things that a superhero story just couldn't do, it might be time to start thinking differently…
This volume collects Milestone Returns: Infinite Edition #0 and Icon & Rocket: Season One #1-6.
Long ago, the stranded alien known as Arnus gave up hope of returning to his home planet. Tragically, he'd also realized that his adopted home of Earth was beyond saving. Content with wasting away his long life in a human guise, Arnus was past caring…until the day a young woman named Raquel Ervin crashed into his life. Soon she convinced him to put his incredible power to work again as the heroic Icon…and to transform her into his sidekick, Rocket!
But an innocent question on Rocket's part—"Why can't we do something about the drugs on my corner?"—quickly set a chain of events in motion leading to the pair becoming the most hunted beings on Earth…and they're not just being pursued by Earthlings either!
Writer, director, and producer Reginald Hudlin (Black Panther), co-writer Leon Chills, and superstar artist Doug Braithwaite unleash a tale of power and responsibility that will stretch from the boardrooms of corporate America to the jungles of South America and the depths of deep space! If you've ever thought there were certain things that a superhero story just couldn't do, it might be time to start thinking differently…
This volume collects Milestone Returns: Infinite Edition #0 and Icon & Rocket: Season One #1-6.
210 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 2, 2022
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61 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
August 15, 2022
Yeah, this run fucking sucks. Reginald Hudlin being put in charge of Milestone is one of the biggest tragedies in recent comic book history. The dude’s a complete fucking hack and I can’t believe this is the guy that gets control of Dwayne McDuffie’s superhero universe. My heart really goes out to Charlotte Fullerton too, because after all that shit Hudlin did to her to secure the Milestone rights, this is what he delivers? The fact Marvel is treating her better is depressing as fuck.
As much as I would though, I’m not here to talk about the questionable foundation this Milestone reboot was founded on, but rather the quality of the new Icon & Rocket reboot that came out of it. And let’s just say, I’m not happy about this on a reread at all. I was EXTREMELY generous in my initial 3-star review. Even now, two stars may be a little too nice, but I do like the art a lot. Doug Braithwaite really deserves a better Milestone book to draw next, and I hope he’s doing something with Brandon Thomas now that they aren’t getting Season Twos for their respective titles.
My main problem is this is less of a character study about Augustus and Raquel like the OG was, and more of a Reginald Hudlin power fantasy. There are also no stakes or tension throughout the whole thing, both leads are extremely mischaracterized, and all of the villains are horrible. The social commentary is also not nearly as good as it is in other Milestone books, Rocket is written horribly, and the whole conclusion feels rushed. The art’s fine, I like some of the future Milestone teases, and Rocket getting a place in the title is nice, but that’s about all I can say I liked about this book, and that was just not enough to justify 3-stars. I must have been in a wonderful mood when I wrote that initial review.
Rocket’s writing in this is probably the most egregious problem, as for some moronic reason she is made to be an oblivious dumbass throughout this. Rocket was a capable and intelligent teen mother who constantly strived to be a better hero in the original run. She was witty, strong-hearted, and could go toe-to-toe with Augustus in any debate, but in this series, she has none of that charm or wit, and can just come across as a bit of a cold airhead. She also can’t even pronounce “Telekinesis” correctly here, like what the fuck? In both this and the original run, Raquel is an avid reader and a striving writer, but now this intelligent woman apparently can’t pronounce Telekinesis. Seriously? Hudlin did Raquel dirty. The fact Greg Weisman writes a better and more consistent Icon & Rocket on Young Justice with basically no screen time says A LOT.
Also, I mentioned being worried about this in my rereview of the Static Season One hardcover, but for some braindead reason the entire Milestone Returns one-shot is just shoved into this hardcover. Like c’mon, why? Why not just include the parts of the one-shot that pertain to Icon and Rocket’s story? I guess you can leave the back half section of it as is since you can’t edit those 8 pages down, but the beginning could’ve easily been cut down to just the Icon stuff. And look I get that they are doing this for new readers of Milestone, but it’s gonna be so fucking grating to see this shitty one-shot getting reprinted in what looks to be all 5 of these initial Milestone Returns hardcovers. It’s just too much.
This is also not even getting a second season since the next series will be some versus mini against Hardware, where they fight over a time machine or some stupid shit. God, what has Milestone under Hudlin become? McDuffie's original was a thought-provoking superhero story that had plenty of political bite, while this is just a power fantasy. It doesn’t help anytime Hudlin tries to interject some of that trademark Milestone social commentary, it sounds like he’s talking down to the reader rather than at them. He’s just not McDuffie. Some stuff is admittedly solid and works for me, but all of it feels extremely hollow and hypocritical coming from fucking Reginald Hudlin. I just couldn’t help but laugh at points.
I mean and don’t get me wrong, it’s fine if you like this. I’m not going to insult people that enjoyed this book and I’m stoked if this introduces readers to Milestone. The problem is this book encapsulates everything wrong with Reginald Hudlin’s approach to Milestone comics. I like the character studies that have something interesting to say about the characters in this world and how it relates to ours, like we saw in OG Milestone minis like Wise Son: The White Wolf or Deathwish. This sadly just reads like a cringey power fantasy that feels like it’s constantly talking down to the reader and has nothing interesting or innovative to say. Skip this run and read McDuffie’s 42 issues masterpiece instead. Or just go spend your money or time on the Milestone Compendium or literally any other Milestone books at that, because this one is just not it at all.
This spiel above was written after rereading the series in the recently released hardcover. The original, spoiler-free 3-star review I wrote after I read the singles can be found down below:
I’m conflicted about how to feel about this book. On one hand, I love that Milestone is back and will be available to more readers than ever before since we are now getting print editions of both original material and hardcovers for the reboots. On the other hand, I feel what Reginald Hudlin did to Black Panther is exactly what he has done to Icon here, and I’m just not a fan, which makes sense since I hated his Black Panther run as well. I was not a fan of his Milestone Returns one-shot either, so I had some worries going into this, and the best comparison I can make is this 100% feels like Icon has been given the New 52 or Zack Snyder treatment.
Instead of trying to be like McDuffie's classic, which followed a 150-year-old conservative African American man with superpowers while asking big questions about what kind of hero Icon was, this just reads like a half-baked power fantasy. Everything here just wants to be “cool” and “badass” and less like it has something interesting to say. There’s pretty much no focus on Augustus’ life as a benevolent lawyer (I counted only 1 page of him in his office lol) in favor of fire tornadoes and threatening the “insignificant” lives of others. l mean these moments are cool, but they just aren’t in line with what Icon was initially meant to be at fucking all.
There’s a moment in issue 2 that I will admit is beyond badass and awesome, but it just isn’t who this character is supposed to be. It’s like what Zack Snyder did to Superman and Batman: Miss the whole fucking point on why people loved these characters in the first place. In this, Icon feels like a guy who would power-dive or laser someone, rather than the speaks-softly-and-carries-the-big-stick type of man that wants to be a role model like Augustus was in the original. It’s like the life of Augustus Freeman is an afterthought to a Hudlin power fantasy. So yeah, that's a bit sad.
The addition of the government backstory also completely negates Icon’s secret identity, which admittedly did annoy me greatly, and the main bad guy of this arc is just nowhere near as compelling as someone like Payback or Oblivion. I guess I could give the writers props for upping the stakes in the last two issues, but it didn’t make the villain any more compelling and I never felt like Icon, Rocket or any of their cohorts were ever in any real danger. I also talked in my review of McDuffie’s original about how comparing Icon to Superman always rubbed me the wrong way, and all this series has done is validate those dumbass comparisons, so that fucking sucks.
This is also 100% biased, but I was super bummed there were no Shadow Cabinet teases just so Hudlin could set up that shitty Love Corps thing he wanted to do back in 2017. Look, this may have potential, but I really don't care about any of these people as of yet and they are barely in this thing. I will say I started to like the story more once Leon Chills came on to help Hudlin write, and the art by Doug Braithwaite is stunning, easily being the strongest aspect of this messy run. So there are some things I liked, but I just wasn’t vibing with a lot of what is in here. Also, Rocket is written like a complete moron in here, which is dumb since she was, y'know, intelligent in the original.
I liked it when I first finished it, but the more I have thought about it the less I enjoy it. Like even now, my main positives are the art, the setup for a returning Milestone villain, and Rocket being added to the title. I also got excited to see my favorite Milestone character play a decent role in the last two issues, but he is written poorly which isn't great but makes sense considering who's writing this. There’s also a cameo by a DC character that's nifty. That shouldn’t be enough to justify a 3-star rating, but I’ll give this a semi-pass since it’ll hopefully introduce people to Milestone, just like the New 52 did with many DC heroes in 2011. Extremely nervous about the future of Milestone if this is what it will be like from now on though. This is not why I fell in love with this universe at all.
Honestly, I'd just say go read McDuffie's original instead, it's a lot better and does more in 3 issues than this did in 6. Go check out the Milestone Compendium if you want to read the first 10 issues, it’s seriously fantastic and still holds up to this day.
As much as I would though, I’m not here to talk about the questionable foundation this Milestone reboot was founded on, but rather the quality of the new Icon & Rocket reboot that came out of it. And let’s just say, I’m not happy about this on a reread at all. I was EXTREMELY generous in my initial 3-star review. Even now, two stars may be a little too nice, but I do like the art a lot. Doug Braithwaite really deserves a better Milestone book to draw next, and I hope he’s doing something with Brandon Thomas now that they aren’t getting Season Twos for their respective titles.
My main problem is this is less of a character study about Augustus and Raquel like the OG was, and more of a Reginald Hudlin power fantasy. There are also no stakes or tension throughout the whole thing, both leads are extremely mischaracterized, and all of the villains are horrible. The social commentary is also not nearly as good as it is in other Milestone books, Rocket is written horribly, and the whole conclusion feels rushed. The art’s fine, I like some of the future Milestone teases, and Rocket getting a place in the title is nice, but that’s about all I can say I liked about this book, and that was just not enough to justify 3-stars. I must have been in a wonderful mood when I wrote that initial review.
Rocket’s writing in this is probably the most egregious problem, as for some moronic reason she is made to be an oblivious dumbass throughout this. Rocket was a capable and intelligent teen mother who constantly strived to be a better hero in the original run. She was witty, strong-hearted, and could go toe-to-toe with Augustus in any debate, but in this series, she has none of that charm or wit, and can just come across as a bit of a cold airhead. She also can’t even pronounce “Telekinesis” correctly here, like what the fuck? In both this and the original run, Raquel is an avid reader and a striving writer, but now this intelligent woman apparently can’t pronounce Telekinesis. Seriously? Hudlin did Raquel dirty. The fact Greg Weisman writes a better and more consistent Icon & Rocket on Young Justice with basically no screen time says A LOT.
Also, I mentioned being worried about this in my rereview of the Static Season One hardcover, but for some braindead reason the entire Milestone Returns one-shot is just shoved into this hardcover. Like c’mon, why? Why not just include the parts of the one-shot that pertain to Icon and Rocket’s story? I guess you can leave the back half section of it as is since you can’t edit those 8 pages down, but the beginning could’ve easily been cut down to just the Icon stuff. And look I get that they are doing this for new readers of Milestone, but it’s gonna be so fucking grating to see this shitty one-shot getting reprinted in what looks to be all 5 of these initial Milestone Returns hardcovers. It’s just too much.
This is also not even getting a second season since the next series will be some versus mini against Hardware, where they fight over a time machine or some stupid shit. God, what has Milestone under Hudlin become? McDuffie's original was a thought-provoking superhero story that had plenty of political bite, while this is just a power fantasy. It doesn’t help anytime Hudlin tries to interject some of that trademark Milestone social commentary, it sounds like he’s talking down to the reader rather than at them. He’s just not McDuffie. Some stuff is admittedly solid and works for me, but all of it feels extremely hollow and hypocritical coming from fucking Reginald Hudlin. I just couldn’t help but laugh at points.
I mean and don’t get me wrong, it’s fine if you like this. I’m not going to insult people that enjoyed this book and I’m stoked if this introduces readers to Milestone. The problem is this book encapsulates everything wrong with Reginald Hudlin’s approach to Milestone comics. I like the character studies that have something interesting to say about the characters in this world and how it relates to ours, like we saw in OG Milestone minis like Wise Son: The White Wolf or Deathwish. This sadly just reads like a cringey power fantasy that feels like it’s constantly talking down to the reader and has nothing interesting or innovative to say. Skip this run and read McDuffie’s 42 issues masterpiece instead. Or just go spend your money or time on the Milestone Compendium or literally any other Milestone books at that, because this one is just not it at all.
This spiel above was written after rereading the series in the recently released hardcover. The original, spoiler-free 3-star review I wrote after I read the singles can be found down below:
I’m conflicted about how to feel about this book. On one hand, I love that Milestone is back and will be available to more readers than ever before since we are now getting print editions of both original material and hardcovers for the reboots. On the other hand, I feel what Reginald Hudlin did to Black Panther is exactly what he has done to Icon here, and I’m just not a fan, which makes sense since I hated his Black Panther run as well. I was not a fan of his Milestone Returns one-shot either, so I had some worries going into this, and the best comparison I can make is this 100% feels like Icon has been given the New 52 or Zack Snyder treatment.
Instead of trying to be like McDuffie's classic, which followed a 150-year-old conservative African American man with superpowers while asking big questions about what kind of hero Icon was, this just reads like a half-baked power fantasy. Everything here just wants to be “cool” and “badass” and less like it has something interesting to say. There’s pretty much no focus on Augustus’ life as a benevolent lawyer (I counted only 1 page of him in his office lol) in favor of fire tornadoes and threatening the “insignificant” lives of others. l mean these moments are cool, but they just aren’t in line with what Icon was initially meant to be at fucking all.
There’s a moment in issue 2 that I will admit is beyond badass and awesome, but it just isn’t who this character is supposed to be. It’s like what Zack Snyder did to Superman and Batman: Miss the whole fucking point on why people loved these characters in the first place. In this, Icon feels like a guy who would power-dive or laser someone, rather than the speaks-softly-and-carries-the-big-stick type of man that wants to be a role model like Augustus was in the original. It’s like the life of Augustus Freeman is an afterthought to a Hudlin power fantasy. So yeah, that's a bit sad.
The addition of the government backstory also completely negates Icon’s secret identity, which admittedly did annoy me greatly, and the main bad guy of this arc is just nowhere near as compelling as someone like Payback or Oblivion. I guess I could give the writers props for upping the stakes in the last two issues, but it didn’t make the villain any more compelling and I never felt like Icon, Rocket or any of their cohorts were ever in any real danger. I also talked in my review of McDuffie’s original about how comparing Icon to Superman always rubbed me the wrong way, and all this series has done is validate those dumbass comparisons, so that fucking sucks.
This is also 100% biased, but I was super bummed there were no Shadow Cabinet teases just so Hudlin could set up that shitty Love Corps thing he wanted to do back in 2017. Look, this may have potential, but I really don't care about any of these people as of yet and they are barely in this thing. I will say I started to like the story more once Leon Chills came on to help Hudlin write, and the art by Doug Braithwaite is stunning, easily being the strongest aspect of this messy run. So there are some things I liked, but I just wasn’t vibing with a lot of what is in here. Also, Rocket is written like a complete moron in here, which is dumb since she was, y'know, intelligent in the original.
I liked it when I first finished it, but the more I have thought about it the less I enjoy it. Like even now, my main positives are the art, the setup for a returning Milestone villain, and Rocket being added to the title. I also got excited to see my favorite Milestone character play a decent role in the last two issues, but he is written poorly which isn't great but makes sense considering who's writing this. There’s also a cameo by a DC character that's nifty. That shouldn’t be enough to justify a 3-star rating, but I’ll give this a semi-pass since it’ll hopefully introduce people to Milestone, just like the New 52 did with many DC heroes in 2011. Extremely nervous about the future of Milestone if this is what it will be like from now on though. This is not why I fell in love with this universe at all.
Honestly, I'd just say go read McDuffie's original instead, it's a lot better and does more in 3 issues than this did in 6. Go check out the Milestone Compendium if you want to read the first 10 issues, it’s seriously fantastic and still holds up to this day.
April 1, 2024
The preview issue at the beginning of the book suffers from terrible art, and the DC Fandome preview at the end of the book suffers from incoherent storytelling. The main part of the book between those two preview issues are fine, but not exceptional.
August 17, 2022
The writing was a bit iffy, and I'm not sure I like the idea of a crossover so soon into the reboot -- you can't give Icon & Rocket a full TPB to themselves before bringing Static back for a crossover in s2?
I did like Mrs Ervin naming all the robots after the original Milestone team, that was a cute touch. And the art was lovely.
I did like Mrs Ervin naming all the robots after the original Milestone team, that was a cute touch. And the art was lovely.
November 22, 2022
Utterly souless reboot of a previously brilliant IP.
The original Icon & Rocket was a brilliantly written comic, with depth of character & something real to say, brilliant artwork & spectacular pacing.
This new version is a shallow, pandering pile of bloivated modern moralising.... The sort that has nothing real to say about anything & no story to say it in. Just another checklist book, written by people who are not talented enough to have written the original they are ripping off, but think themselves brilliant anyway.
There's a whole heap of flying around trying to fix the worlds problems, but all without any sort of actual plot, or even opposition. This leaves a book that is essentially pointless, since there is no reason for the book to exist from a narrative stand point.
If given the choice between this reboot or the original, pick up the original, your brain will thank you.
The original Icon & Rocket was a brilliantly written comic, with depth of character & something real to say, brilliant artwork & spectacular pacing.
This new version is a shallow, pandering pile of bloivated modern moralising.... The sort that has nothing real to say about anything & no story to say it in. Just another checklist book, written by people who are not talented enough to have written the original they are ripping off, but think themselves brilliant anyway.
There's a whole heap of flying around trying to fix the worlds problems, but all without any sort of actual plot, or even opposition. This leaves a book that is essentially pointless, since there is no reason for the book to exist from a narrative stand point.
If given the choice between this reboot or the original, pick up the original, your brain will thank you.
July 29, 2024
This was my introduction to Milestones comics and I loved it!!!! I feel like this was a good introduction to these characters in a general sense. There were some issues I had (inconsistent art, rushed conclusion and romance, dumb character moments, outfits and style felt outdated) but at the core I liked what this was represents: Black superheros for Black people.
Icon is basically a black superman but he arrived on earth in 1839 and ended up being enslaved. IS THAT NOT SUCH A COOL BACKSTORY??!!! Also loved the small superman and technically Martian manhunter mention. Rocket seemed like a cool character but I didn't really get to know her that well, like I don't ever know where her powers come from?
Anyways I'm now obsessed and will be reading the original Icon series. This story touched on interesting issues within the Black community and I heard the original is even better! Also it's the first time I read about superheros being from/ set in Dakota.
Icon is basically a black superman but he arrived on earth in 1839 and ended up being enslaved. IS THAT NOT SUCH A COOL BACKSTORY??!!! Also loved the small superman and technically Martian manhunter mention. Rocket seemed like a cool character but I didn't really get to know her that well, like I don't ever know where her powers come from?
Anyways I'm now obsessed and will be reading the original Icon series. This story touched on interesting issues within the Black community and I heard the original is even better! Also it's the first time I read about superheros being from/ set in Dakota.
March 2, 2024
Icon is an interesting character. He's essentially an alien with black skin. There are some discrepancies with his character. For example, why didn't he end slavery? He showed no problem with ripping the head off a planatation owner in the 19th century. That quibble aside, I enjoyed the dynamic between Icon and Rocket their interplay was fun to read. And even though it deals with heavy themes like racism, drugs, and government corruption, it's still a very fun read. Don't fret, there's plenty of comic book action. Definitely check it out if you like black superheroes or comics in general.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 5, 2024
Icon and Rocket takes to the skies while the title characters ineract. The art does well. That’s it.
I deleted 324 words just to sum up what I think and after reading some reviews I realized most people feel the same way. I’ve never read about Icon or Rocket I’ve only seen them in animation. The same goes for Static. I feel like…someone saw an opportunity and ran with it. An opportunity – not a good idea, or original stories, or well anything with feeling, spirit or soul. I’m not inspired. Or, to be a little less harsh I’m not as inspired as I feel I should be. These characters have potential, they are just not realized here.
The art’s nice, though.
I deleted 324 words just to sum up what I think and after reading some reviews I realized most people feel the same way. I’ve never read about Icon or Rocket I’ve only seen them in animation. The same goes for Static. I feel like…someone saw an opportunity and ran with it. An opportunity – not a good idea, or original stories, or well anything with feeling, spirit or soul. I’m not inspired. Or, to be a little less harsh I’m not as inspired as I feel I should be. These characters have potential, they are just not realized here.
The art’s nice, though.
August 10, 2025
This was great until the last 2 issues. The story started to feel a bit rushed. You really had to suspend your disbelief that Raquel would willingly go with a random new boy at school that she just met, 40 minutes away to a secluded cabin, and then on top of that, drink a drink that the random boy hands to her that she didn't see what he put in it. It was so obvious that he was the shape-shifting villan they've been fighting. And then they randomly introduced a new character in the last part of the book to defeat the villan. Basically, the villan wasn't even defeated by Icon or Rocket, that's kinda lame. But the other 4 issues were good.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Want to read
September 21, 2022***WHO SUCKED ME IN***
BJ KICKS on YouTube in their MY AUGUST OMNIBUS HAUL! | We're Back in the Game!! video published on zondag 11 september 2022
He's very knowledgeable about the Milestone comics and even though he wasn't a big fan of this run, I never heard of these characters so maybe I will enjoy it!
BJ KICKS on YouTube in their MY AUGUST OMNIBUS HAUL! | We're Back in the Game!! video published on zondag 11 september 2022
He's very knowledgeable about the Milestone comics and even though he wasn't a big fan of this run, I never heard of these characters so maybe I will enjoy it!
March 9, 2025
This was much better than I expected and if it wasn't for the inclusion of some extra Milestone characters, it would have been rated even higher. Reginald Hudlin gives a great origin of Icon and Rocket. Their story, and in particular, Icon's history was interesting and I enjoyed it more than I expected to. The dialogue was fresh and the teens sounded like teens. The antagonist was done extremely well. Doug Braithwaite's art was spectacular. Overall, a surprisingly fun read.
December 31, 2022
I really wanted to love this book because I loved the original, but the tone here just feels off. There’s an assumption that the reader is familiar with a number of characters rather than doing much to introduce them and things just kind of happen. It’s not awful, but it doesn’t come close to reaching the heights of the original.
January 19, 2024
Première grosse déception de l’année…
Depuis le temps que je voulais lire ce comics et que je pensais trop aimer Rocket.
Au final les questions raciales sont tellement mal amenées à mon avis même dans le contexte que l’histoire se passe aux États Unis…
Bref au moins les dessins sont beaux mais l’histoire part dans tous les sens et est juste désorganisée.
Bref décevant.
Depuis le temps que je voulais lire ce comics et que je pensais trop aimer Rocket.
Au final les questions raciales sont tellement mal amenées à mon avis même dans le contexte que l’histoire se passe aux États Unis…
Bref au moins les dessins sont beaux mais l’histoire part dans tous les sens et est juste désorganisée.
Bref décevant.
April 6, 2024
This book was very disappointing. While the art was fun, the writing had many issues. Rocket was dumbed down significantly, the societal commentary is elementary and based off a lot emotion from Hudlin. Would give 1 star but gave it 2 for the art. It's a real shame what has happened to these characters being brought to the lowest common denominator. Grade: D
September 14, 2024
The best of all the Milestone reboot series so far. Solid storytelling, solid art—it has a ton of twists that have convincing payoffs that lead to a very sudden yet satisfying conclusion. The series not only makes ties with other Milestone characters but also manages to firmly place the Milestone Universe within the broader DC multiverse.
September 12, 2022
It's ok but nowhere near as good as the original incarnation of the character. It jumps a bit with little explanation for how anyone besides Icon gets their abilities. I wish this took more time to develop the characters and moved at a slower pace
August 3, 2024
Probably my second favorite of the new Milestone lineup. Good art and I think the writing does better with the character interaction and political discussions than it does the superhero fighting throughout the arc, which is kind of funny in itself.
January 18, 2025
So Glad they brought Them Back!
I love love love it!, I was also suprised how they had others who came to the planet killed by the antogonist. (Great Read)
Can't wait to see where this new story line goes, and hopefully one day they bring this to screen live action
I love love love it!, I was also suprised how they had others who came to the planet killed by the antogonist. (Great Read)
Can't wait to see where this new story line goes, and hopefully one day they bring this to screen live action
January 22, 2023
I kept seeing this in the library’s new book section, and with everything going on I didn’t know if I had the time to get a new book that I would have to return in two weeks. But right before New Year’s I picked it up. I know very little about the characters of Icon and Rocket, other than what appears in the animated “Young Justice” series. Like, I uh, didn’t realize that they were originally their own continuity outside of the DC Universe, nor that this revival is ALSO outside the DC Universe (although it’s properly more of an AU of the DCU as Clark Kent DID exist in the backstory according to what the characters say, but it appears that he was killed as an infant by a villain).
This comic has things to say, tackling real-life issues of institutional racism, government corruption, and police violence, and while there are times in which it’s done awkwardly, I don’t think it’s done badly. I think it’s certainly got a much better understanding and discussion of societal problems than comics like “Batman: White Knight” or “Marvel: Civil War” (both of which work under the assumption that systematic corruption is not really a thing). So while I think it doesn’t always work, I give this comic credit for wanting to talk about these things, and making you think about these things, and how different people approach them.
There’s a whole Plot point about how eliminating the global drug trade indirectly cripples several parts of the economy of different countries, making Rocket question if they did the wrong thing. But Icon points out that while there are often unintended consequences to it that they should consider going forward, they definitely did the right thing.
If there’s something I *do* want to take off points for, it’s that this, like many graphic novels, ends without resolving everything, and so much is left hanging. Then again, it does say “Season One” on the cover meaning it is MEANT from the outset to lead to more stories. So I suppose I can’t hold it against the book.
Given Static is a character, and I think he also got his own story with this Milestone revival? That might be worth looking into.
This comic has things to say, tackling real-life issues of institutional racism, government corruption, and police violence, and while there are times in which it’s done awkwardly, I don’t think it’s done badly. I think it’s certainly got a much better understanding and discussion of societal problems than comics like “Batman: White Knight” or “Marvel: Civil War” (both of which work under the assumption that systematic corruption is not really a thing). So while I think it doesn’t always work, I give this comic credit for wanting to talk about these things, and making you think about these things, and how different people approach them.
There’s a whole Plot point about how eliminating the global drug trade indirectly cripples several parts of the economy of different countries, making Rocket question if they did the wrong thing. But Icon points out that while there are often unintended consequences to it that they should consider going forward, they definitely did the right thing.
If there’s something I *do* want to take off points for, it’s that this, like many graphic novels, ends without resolving everything, and so much is left hanging. Then again, it does say “Season One” on the cover meaning it is MEANT from the outset to lead to more stories. So I suppose I can’t hold it against the book.
Given Static is a character, and I think he also got his own story with this Milestone revival? That might be worth looking into.
March 7, 2023
Some interesting and raw takes on what happens if you eliminated some real world problems.
Does a great job showing its an alternative history to our world and a DC Elseworld type universe.
Does a great job showing its an alternative history to our world and a DC Elseworld type universe.
August 11, 2023
A solid reboot, but it's so close to the original version that I question whether a reboot was really needed.
December 30, 2025
Yea this sucked. The first part was good. A good basis. Then it gets boring and it falls apart. Sucks because I really wanted to like this and the Dakotaverse.
December 18, 2024
This works best when it's a social commentary. I like how Icon is trying to teach Rocket about unintended outcomes and cause and effect. He goes along with her plan to rid the world of drugs but then we get to see the repercussions of destroying the world's heroin and cocaine supply pretty much overnight. I with the entire 6 issues could have been just about that because it's something that hasn't been done before and there was plenty more to explore. Unfortunately, the 2nd half of the book just devolved into a punch / smash slugfest.
Rocket's character was very uneven as well. Icon thinks she can lead the world one day, but then she can't even pronounce telekinesis? And she's supposed to be a literary genius? She's never put in a position for this to come across. This has its moments but it doesn't hold a candle to Dwayne McDuffie's original run.
Rocket's character was very uneven as well. Icon thinks she can lead the world one day, but then she can't even pronounce telekinesis? And she's supposed to be a literary genius? She's never put in a position for this to come across. This has its moments but it doesn't hold a candle to Dwayne McDuffie's original run.
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