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In just a handful of years, Dwayne McDuffie became a pillar of comics and the superhero industry that surrounds it, with highlights including co-founding Milestone Media and co-creating Static (as well as the majority of headline Milestone characters), and being a key part of the seminal animated series Justice League and its sequel, Justice League Unlimited - and that's saying nothing about his time as a writer for Marvel, DC, Acclaim/Valiant, or working on Cartoon Network's Ben 10 animated franchise. (Not to mention what might be the greatest memo in Marvel history.)

We were robbed of more of his creations and more time with McDuffie when he died in 2011, but later this month at Comic-Con International: San Diego, we're getting some time to remember him - with some of his closest friends and colleagues telling his story.

On Sunday, July 28 at 12:00 PM in room 28DE at SDCC 2024, Dwayne's widow Charlotte (Fullerton) McDuffie will be hosting a panel all about McDuffie, fittingly titled 'Everything you ever wanted to know about Dwayne McDuffie but were afraid to ask!' In the hour-long panel, friends such as Matt Wayne (Justice League Unlimited, Samurai Rabbit: The Usage Chronicles, SVP); Eugene Son (Ben 10, LEGO Marvel Avengers); Joe Illidge (Milestone, The Winterfields: a Harlem Renaissance story for Noir Is the New Black); John Semper (Static Shock), and Mrs. McDuffie will be telling never-beford-told stories and answering questions about Dwayne McDuffie in a panel moderated by the Beat's Taimur Dar.

I will be there in the audience - and so should you.

Not to brag or anything, but New York Comic Con on Thursday, October 17 is where you’ll get an extended sneak peek at episode 5 of HBO’s The Penguin before anyone else. Not to mention, Colin Farrel will be discussing all the limited series’ juicy details with the cast and crew live. Limited Thursday NYCC 2024 tickets are still on sale.