Bang Baby Diaries

"Life as a shorty shouldn't be so rough..."We are back for episode 5 featuring the one and only, Static! You may think you know, but you have no idea. As one of our hosts, Theo says, "This is not the Static Shock cartoon". Static issues 1 - 4 are a wild ride that matches the mission statement of Milestone Media as a whole. Black heroes that we can see ourselves in. Join us as we talk about the turbulent experiences of Virgil Hawkins, a nerdy Black adolescent dealing with family, high school, crushes, minimum wage, bullies, racism, gang violence, getting superpowers, and having to make life-changing decisions on the fly. All while trying to look fly. I'm sure y'all remember those days (sans the superpowers). Listen, like, share, and leave in the comments: What impossible decisions did you have make as a teenager so that you would be here, as you are, today?

What do we owe others? How much of a responsibility to our community should we have? Are we obligated to help at all? Or is it every man, woman, and child for self with the 24 hours that we are all given day in and day out? Join us as we explore the ideology behind community and personal responsibility within it while discussing Icon issues 1-3. In these first 3 issues, we are introduced to the conservative Icon who believes in making it by one's own power and Rocket, his sidekick, who prompts him to understand that it's never that simple in oppressed communities. If one Black man can fly, shouldn't we all be able to experience the wind beneath our feet? 

Today, we look at the lived experiences of those from "Ground Zero" of the infamous Big Bang through the eyes of Paris Island's Blood Syndicate. The "Big Bang" refers to an incident in which gang members from all over Dakota met in one massive battle. The police got word of the coming attack and planned to gas them with tear gas laced with a radioactive marker and take them all into custody. Unbeknownst to all, the tear gas used to disperse them was laced with a mutative agent called "quantum juice". While many gang members and police officers died, others were transformed in horrific and amazing ways. Emerging from such was the Blood Syndicate, which differed from other supergroups in being a street gang. In fact, they were the surviving remnants of two street gangs ("Paris Island Bloods" and "Force Syndicate"), who had gained superpowers in the "Big Bang", and decided to use them for a greater purpose.

In this episode, the crew breaks down the origin of spurned genius turned vigilante, Curtis Metcalf, also known as "Hardware". The first official title out of the Milestone universe features the high-tech, take-no-mess fighter for personal vengeance and social justice. Join us as we talk about what it's like to be young, gifted, and Black on the corporate climb, all the while having the ladder constantly kicked from under you. The kind of thing that would make you angry. Do Black folks have a right to be angry in a system like that? What do we do with our anger? Are words and actions out of anger justified? Hit play on episode two of the Bang Baby Diaries Podcast to find out what we think as we break down the adventures within issues 1 through 4 of Hardware, covering the story arc, "Man in the Machine". 

Join us as we embark on a new hero's journey through the world of Milestone Media in the Dakotaverse. Exploring characters and stories from one of DC's hidden gems. We begin this trek with a discussion of Milestone Generations, a documentary that details how the founders of Milestone Media posed and answered the question, "Where are the Black Superheroes?"

How often have you seen yourself as the hero of a popular story? As Black comic book fans, that question often comes with tension. We relate to the values, but rarely the faces or experiences. Where are the heroes from marginalized communities,doing good without being given the benefit of the doubt? On the Bang Baby Diaries Podcast, we delve into the stories through Milestone Media's groundbreaking work with DC Comics. As educators and counselors by day and comic historians by night, we dive into each book through a professional lens—no red pill talk, just unapologetic Black nerd appreciation.