Q: I'd really like to know why DC isn't using more Milestone characters, for starters. I'd love to hear your thoughts on where each of Milestone's characters might best fit into the current DC lineup
Michael Davis: Matt, first and foremost, DC is in the Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman business. Those characters will always be the core concern at DC.
That's not as cold-blooded as it may sound if you consider that, to DC's parent company Warner Bros., the DC characters are the only concern.
For a fan, that may seem cold, but it's not. Far from it; regardless of whether the company is as small as a hot dog stand or as large as AT&T, one rule of business will drive them both, and that's the rule of revenue. Specifically, spending as little money as possible to make as much money as achievable.
Low overhead, high revenue.
Those four words influence everything in for-profit corporate America.
DC Comics stopped being in the comic book business years ago; they're in the branded entertainment business. Those who hadn't already figured that out should have when DC Comics became DC Entertainment.
Their intellectual properties are among the most recognized brands in the world. They control and protect those brands with laser beam focus, and rightfully so.
DC does not own Milestone; our character Static Shock, although popular, is nowhere near the level of Batman.
If you own Batman, Batman in a very real way, owns you. Batman is such a mammoth property; any brand with that sort of reach will forever be THE agenda, not part of AN agenda.
That does not mean some DC editor is not excited at the thought of a Robin and Rocket mini-series. DC ideas for Milestone are discussed frequently, but to any fan waiting for anything, talk is cheap.
What many in fandom ignore or don't understand is an idea, no matter how good, can only move as fast as the environment in which it was born. I'm always amazed at those who think it's easy to get something done just because the idea is so darn cool. The world simply does not work that way.
Consider the following: except for some extreme a$$holes on the Right, most people would agree that equal rights for women are a good idea. Yet still, the Equal Rights Amendment, originally written in 1923, has not been adopted in 2014.
That's pretty fukked up.
The entertainment world certainly does not work that way.
Static Shock was a smash hit on television; most people would agree a Static Shock action figure is a great idea. Yet there isn't one.
That's fukking reality and pretty fukked up.
Again, that does not mean scenarios that make a Static Shock toy a reality don't excite Milestone. In a nutshell, the atmosphere has not been precise enough for Milestone characters to get more play in the DCU or to make a toy deal. There's no one at DC (well not anymore) trying to screw with the Milestone Universe for dubious reasons. Speaking of which: how you doing, Bruce?
The Robin and Rocket scenario is all I can give you, my friend, on the sort of thing I'd like to see happen with Milestone characters in the DCU. You asked for thoughts on 'each' of the Milestone characters. Dude, there are hundreds of Milestone characters and dozens of main characters. I'm late enough with these articles as it is so I'm not even going to think about going there.
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2014/04...-you-wont-get-it-michael-davis-from-the-edge/