Static: Shadows of Dakota #1 – Heroes and Myths

The skies aren’t so clear over Dakota City.

A few months have passed since Static and his friends rescued the Bang Babies kidnapped by the federal government and in that time Static has begun to grow into his own as a superhero and as a member of his community. Nikolas Draper-Ivey and Vita Ayala share the writing duties of the book this time around as they tell a good story of injustice and responsibility as Static has to balance both aspects of his life while also implementing the lessons that his family has taught him throughout his life. It ends up making for a compelling set up for this story as the writing duo also set up his polar opposite in the form of Ebon, making his comic debut in this book. 

This book succeeds on both fronts as the book starts off with a very heroic outing for Static as Virgil not only gives food to one of the unhoused residents of the city, but also defends her from the police trying to push her out of her space. This soon transitions into Static having to stop a small band of mercenaries from capturing the Bang Babies that he was organizing a meeting for. Both of these instances showcase that Static is about more than punching bad guys, but also making an effort to make his people feel safe and welcome, something a lot of heroes fail to find the time to do in their private lives – but it also does shy away from the former aspect either, showing that Static has also achieved a greater sense of control over his powers in the past few months.

I enjoyed this and the latter half of the book as Static makes short work of the villains and still finds time to act as a mentor to a young science student in some sort of Big Brothers program. At the same time, the book makes sure to build up the actual threat of this season in the form of Ebon, who lurks in the darkness, hunting for information about his missing brother. Ebon was one of the more terrifying and dangerous villains that Static fought in the cartoon where he was created and it’s awesome to see him represented in this book. In stark contrast to Static, he only cares about himself and his brother, committing crimes to enrich himself and appease his own ego – and much like Holocaust, has been known to recruit Bang Babies to amass his own power.

Draper-Ivey’s art and colors bring this book to life as they maintain the same style and quality from the last volume. From his amazing establishing shots to action and facial expressions, everything is drawn with intent and a sense of detail that might be unmatched, even with the rest of the Earth-M books right now. Draper-Ivey has a strong sense for scenic views that lets the City of Dakota feel alive, from the many beautiful high rises to the citizen traffic and food trucks, there’s so much going on in the initial few pages, but he gives everything a sense of flow so that we’re absorbed into the city while still focusing on Virgil’s movements. This is even better when contrasted by the later moments of destruction as Draper-Ivey excellently portrays the destruction that’s liable to happen in a city populated by super powered beings as streets are destroyed, debris flies everywhere and the pages are given a blur effect to sell the speed that things are happening at.

The action itself is very high intensity as Virgil has to weave between saving people through swift motions and using his powers to disarm and stop the mercenaries. Draper-Ivey knows how to make things look dynamic with people running away from the damage and having Static use his flying disc to leap over and catch people in amazing splash pages to showcase both his new costume and the athleticism he’s likely been practicing to evade being hit by nets and gunfire. Draper-Ivey’s linework is absolutely beautiful to look at. For the most part, his lines are very thin, allowing for the characters to maintain that same flow that the city has as Static’s long coat drifts in the wind, looking like it doesn’t have much of a border, making it seem seamless with the background. Other times, his lines are thick, allowing for the characters to pop against the sometimes detail-less backgrounds, such as to showcase Static’s electric powers.

Draper-Ivey’s colors in is book are also very impressive! While there doesn’t seem to be a thematic element for lighting, everything in the city does look very bright and optimistic, with clear blue skies. This changes when the attack commences and the colors take on a mix of slight oranges and heavy greys for the fire and smoke of the explosion, but the book really shines when Static’s powers are shown as they have an outer glow of blue while showing white inside of the streaks themselves. It’s an absolute wonder to look at, especially as Draper-Ivey works in a filter of rainbow distortion and TV static in certain areas to capture that feeling on the page. It’s another aspect of the attention to detail that makes Draper-Ivey one of DC’s best artists right now!