Here’s a lot of recent comic book material of mine currently in stores!
There’s the BLACK PANTHER by Reginald Hudlin, which is an Omnibus Edition with all my Black Panther work collected into one big beautiful book!
Doggone right it’s influential! First appearance of Shuri, my creation, his marriage to Storm, Panther on missions with Blade and Luke Cage…so much feel good kick ass action!
Black superhero love. I deliver.
Next is the first ever ICON action figure by McFarlane Toys, which also offers a Platinum edition alternate costume version! I love Icon, which is why I wrote the books when we relaunched Milestone Media.
Here’s a page of him after he destroyed the Confederate White House and walked out with the head of Jefferson Davis. Seems relevant to recent events.
Here’s Icon in the modern day, threatening the life of a NSA agent who thinks she’s in charge of him. As I have said, Icon and Superman have similar powers, but Icon goes harder than Superman would ever do!
Also, the Fourth MILESTONE COMPENDIUM of the collected issues of the original Milestone run! Also, we have compact paperback of the first season of STATIC SHOCK, featuring the brilliant anime inspired art of Nikolas Draper-Ivey! I love making comics as much as I do making movies, TV shows, live concerts and everything else I do!
This all good stuff for summertime reading, birthday or holiday gifts, so go to your local comic book shop or go online and get you some!
Here’s a highlight reel of this year’s NAACP Image Awards! We had so much fun celebrating special honorees Dave Chappelle, Kamala Harris, and the Wayans family, as well as the amazing actors and storytellers nominated for their wonderful work. Thank you Deon Cole for being an exceptional host, as well as the NAACP, BET and CBS.
With Halloween putting Marvel fans of all ages into Black Panther costumes around the world, one writer has explained that was actually a major reason for his creation of Shuri, sister of King T’Challa, and the female Black Panther of Marvel’s Universe.
Co-creator of Shuri, Reginald Hudlin, shared insight into the Character’s purpose, after seeing a reference to the character on Abbott Elementary. During the Halloween episode of the show, “Costume Contest,” teacher Janine Teagues (Quinta Brunson) reacts to one of her white students dressing as a Black Panther, prompting Hudlin to cite a similar surprise he found after creating Shuri:
When I wrote Black Panther I created Shuri so both my son and daughter could dress as the character for Halloween. After the movie debuted, a third of the kids at their elementary school, of all races, came as Black Panther or Shuri. https://t.co/AQqyQkGMoE
Shuri’s Creator Explains Wanted His Son & Daughter To Both Be Black Panther
Intended to Inspire His Children, Winds Up Inspiring Several Worldwide
Shuri made her debut in 2005, specifically in Black Panther #2 by Reginald Hudlin and John Romita Jr., with this story establishing early on that Shuri always wanted to become the Black Panther, having planned to fight her uncle for the throne had her brother, T’Challa, not beaten her to the punch. Establishing this early on seems to suggest that Hudlin had plans to anoint Shuri as the Black Panther from the very beginning. Hudlin’s foreshadowing would pay off four years later once Shuri officially gains the cowl in Black Panther #1 by Reginald Hudlin and J. Scott Campbell.
The foreshadowing adds additional context to Hudlin’s claim that he created Shuri so that both his son and daughter could dress up as the Black Panther for Halloween. The movies that would follow from the Marvel Cinematic Universe would launch the character into an entirely new stratosphere of popularity. Hudlin saw it unfold firsthand in a scenario not unlike that seen in the Abbott Elementary episode, where children of all races dress up as the Black Panther. It showcases the enduring impact that pop culture can have on audiences, even beyond that of the comics.
The Impact of Pop Culture on Black Panther (and Shuri’s) Legacy
Reginald Hudlin’s Dream Fully Realized
The impact of any body of work can be impossible to predict and that is no more true than with the MCU release of the first Black Panther movie. The Black Panther namesake was beloved in its own right, but no one could have imagined it would have amounted to a billion-dollar franchise. The adoration of the movies and the comics has allowed fans to celebrate it in ways that are personal to each and every one of them.
It means a lot for children to see themselves reflected in media they admire, so for Black Panther to do that for both boys and girls brings Hudlin’s dream to fruition in even more ways than he could have expected.
I’ve been producing the NAACP Image Awards for 12 years, and every year it’s a really satisfying experience. Having the whole Black entertainment community come together in a big family reunion, celebrating each other’s successes, and looking good while we do it!
There’s a lot going into the show, like this year figuring out the right way to promote voting in a crucial election year. I knew I wanted VP Kamala Harris involved, and I wanted to do it in a way that was fun for the audience. The producers huddled with our amazing writing team and brainstormed some great ideas. We pitched them to Latifah, who made them better, and off we went.
It’s so gratifying to see the quality of Black films and television shows elevate over the years with the rise of more Black producers, writers and directors, and the actors making the most of the increase in quality of material with incredible performances. It’s very satisfying to help make a document of evolution of Black Excellence in the entertainment business over the years.
Because we honor film, television, music, sports and political figures (elected and otherwise) we feature a wider range of Black achievement than anywhere else on an annual basis.
Here’s a quick interview on the Red Carpet before the show started.
I’m grateful to the NAACP for trusting me to produce the show every year, grateful to my production partners Phil Gurin and Byron Phillips. And I’m grateful to all the talented people we get the honor of celebrating every year.
