Warning! Spoilers for Static: Season One #1
Virgil Hawkins’ family knows about his powers in Milestone Comics’ rebooted series, Static: Season One, unlike previous iterations of the teenage superhero. Throughout his history, Virgil has kept his electromagnetic abilities hidden from his parents and his sister, but it seems like they know all about it in this new iteration.
After a mysterious experimental gas had been dispersed by police during a Black Lives Matter protest, teenagers in Dakota City received unique powers. Soon, Virgil realized that he had the ability to control and generate electricity, whereas high school bully Francis Stone received the ability to blast fire from his hands. It wasn’t long before Francis showed off what he could do at school, giving himself the name Hotstreak. To Francis’ surprise, Virgil had powers of his own, and managed to get the upper hand in a fight. By the end of the debut issue, Hotstreak showed up at the Hawkins’ door during dinner looking for a rematch. Picking up where they left off, Static: Season One #2 by Vita Ayala, Nikolas Draper-Ivey, and ChrisCross reveals the result of this confrontation.
It seems that Virgil’s parents Robert and Jean Hawkins, along with his sister Sharon, know that he has powers, while he defends them against Hotstreak in their front yard. A newly released cover by artist Khary Randolph and colorist Emilio Lopez shows the family’s shocked expressions as their house is engulfed in flames behind them. As of this point, Virgil hasn’t put on his newly redesigned Static costume yet or even given himself the name “Static.” Unlike any version of the young superhero’s origin story before, his family appears to be in on the secret that he was among the teens who got powers.
Although covers can take creative liberties with the stories they represent, this change in Static’s origin feels right with what had been established in the first issue. Since so many kids were affected by the Big Bang, it almost became normal that some youth were changed that day. When Virgil faced Francis in the halls of their high school, kids watched the fight, casually accepting that their peers both have powers. They even kept it a secret from a police officer who started asking questions. Now that Virgil’s powers aren’t even a secret from the student body, it makes sense he wouldn’t be so concerned to keep them from his family.
This is an intriguing twist on Static, as he has often struggled to find the balance between life as a student and as a superhero, while also being a son and brother. With such a massive change to his backstory, it might take old fans some getting used to. Now that Virgil’s parents and his sister are in on his secret before he even takes on a superhero persona, they’re likely to be at his side in support. However, they might also have some other thoughts once the smoke fades. Static: Season One #2 releases on Tuesday, July 27.
