Static: Season One artist Nikolas Draper-Ivey pays homage to Akira’s iconic poster in a newly revealed cover for the series’ next issue.
Nikolas Draper-Ivey has revealed that an upcoming issue of Static will feature a stunning homage to Akira.
The artist unveiled his cover to Static: Season One #4 on Twitter, proudly labeling it as “Static X Akira.” The image shows Static walking up to a manhole cover branded with the signature “M” logo of Milestone Comics. The placement of Static with his back to the viewer is a direct recreation of the iconic poster for Akira, with Virgil taking Shōtarō Kaneda’s position and the manhole cover replacing Kaneda’s motorcycle. Draper-Ivey also recreated the Akira logo at the bottom of the page, replacing it with “Static” and some superimposed Japanese typeface. While Nikolas Draper-Ivey has been known to go “full anime” with his work in the past, this cover takes that to the next level.
Akira is a 1988 anime film set in the year 2019 that revolves around a biker gang leader named Kaneda, who faces off against the government in an effort to save his friend. It is highly regarded as one of the greatest anime films of all time and has stayed popular for decades. Based on a manga by Katsuhiro Otomo, Akira has remained a sci-fi staple for decades and has been cited as an influence for the likes of Looper and Stranger Things. A live-action adaptation has been in development for years at Warner Bros., with Taika Waititi attached to direct.
This is only the latest instance of Nikolas Draper-Ivey paying tribute to his artistic influences through Static: Season One. When the artist was tasked with redesigning Static’s costume for the new series, he drew inspiration from legendary artists Denys Cowan and John Paul Leon, who worked on the original Static comic in the ’90s. Elsewhere, Draper-Ivey playfully recreated the costume from Static Shock as a pretend outfit worn by Virgil in his childhood. Static’s animated series costume makes another appearance in Draper-Ivey’s newly revealed variant, which technically makes this cover an homage within an homage.
Written by Vita Ayala with art by CrissCross and Nikolas Draper-Ivey, Static: Season One is part of the relaunch of Milestone Comics known as Milestone Returns. Alongside Icon and Rocket: Season One and Hardware: Season One, the series reimagines Milestone’s heroes in the modern era. In the case of Static: Season One, the “Big Bang” that gave Virgil his powers was updated from a gang battle to a protest against police brutality. However, the books still contain the core elements that have helped Milestone’s heroes endure in the hearts of fans for nearly 30 years.
Static: Season One #4 goes on sale in October from DC.
Source: Twitter
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