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CBR? Newsarama? Comics Alliance? ComicBook? Michael Davis Would Love To Hear From You.

A Michael Davis – From The Edge Special – The Right Thing To Do.

Michael Davis is an artist, writer, mentor, and entertainment executive. He writes,

Since January, with the blaring exception of Bleeding Cool and Comicmix whom I write for, when the Washington Post story broke announcing to a unsuspecting world and a gullible me, the return of Milestone Media as Milestone 2.0 not one industry news outlet has reached out to me.

No industry press has inquires as to why I wasn't involved, included, or even mentioned by the new Milestone.

Instead, weeks later, some outlets printed passages from things I've written to explain why I wasn't a part of M2.0. Although what I wrote was all-true, it was yet another of many attempts to play nice with M2.0.

They were supposed to issue a statement (at my request) that simply said, things change, I was not a part of M2.0, but we were cool.

For reasons known only to them that I can only guess (I can do more than guess but unlike some I don't speak for others) they decided not to issue that promised or any statement regarding me. They decided this without telling me, so I wrote how things had changed, and because of those changes I was no longer able to be a part of M2.0

All true.

Things did change, I just don't know what, they never told me. In fact, to this day I've been told nothing. I asked often but all I got, when they were talking to me was the run around and some sh*t about what happened 22 years ago but I was hung up on before I heard all of that.

I was hung up on because I was a wee bit upset and raised my voice. I do that a lot, I freely admit.

But I'm getting better…

"Excuse me sir, would you mind not pushing your chair back so fast or so far? My knees are already pushing up against the back of your seat."

This I said as nice as I could. I was on a flight to Seattle where I would board a cruise ship to Alaska. I have long legs and all three of them were pressed against the seat of the man who was ignoring me.

Yep, I was being ignored. That seems to be the thing now days. I ask the flight attendant to alert the gentleman as to my predicament. She does so, smiles at me and goes about her merry business.

Perhaps 5-6 minutes later…

"Ouch! Oh my goodness, I think perhaps you're broken the skin ole chap." I said this to the man who had shoved his seat back as far as it would go until my shin stopped it. He had indeed broken the skin and then some. The flight attendant was quick to offer me a medicated wipe and a rather big Band-Aid.

Unfortunately the blood was now flowing down my leg in a rather alarming fashion and was seeping through my rather expensive pants & when I say rather expensive I mean as a child in the hood the thought of spending this kind of money for a single pair of pants would be mere fantasy and a silly one at that.

I only do it now because in business at a certain level that sort of thing is standard operating procedure.

And here as they say, lay the rub my friends.

I understand fully what it takes to be a success in my business. That's enough for me to be a presenter at the Eisner Awards and have my name on a school but clearly it's not enough for M2.0.

Well now it isn't.

Funny, before M2.0 when BET Animation couldn't get a booth at SDCC it was enough when I got it for them. When SDCC did not invite (nor did they remember) a Milestone partner it was enough when I made it right. It was my pleasure to correct that wrong and it was the right thing to do so he could attend and be recognized for his considerable contributions at Milestone's 20^th anniversary.

It was enough over the last few years until one day it wasn't. When I was hung up on so quickly and for nothing but a very loud "WHAT?" It occurred to perhaps my brand of loudness was not welcome in the new M2.0.

Again that's funny as my loudness was never an issue when something was to be gained it seems.

Yes, I often raise my voice but only when I think it's necessary. I thought it necessary when the idiot in front of me put a pretty deep gash in my leg. That resulted in me being bumped to First Class among other perks.

When Denys Cowan's art was stolen many thought the last thing to do was get loud at UPS. The thinking being UPS would dismiss me because I was acting in such a manner.

Denys got every single piece of art back, because I was loud and my goal was true.

The truth is UPS was wrong and I was right to put them on blast.

Those in the comic book press who are content to get my side of the story from everyone but me hear this, DON'T. That goes for lifting quotes from sh*t I've written. I'm easy to find, you want to know something about me, ask me.

The interviews with M2.0 are no more than extended press releases as such they only comment on my absence when they are in front of a crowd and can't ignore it.

Don't take my word for it READ the interviews.

No one at M2.0 returns my emails or calls and has not since the day after the bomb was dropped on me. Why that is and why I was completely blindsided, my heart crushed by those I thought friends almost 8 months ago are still a mystery. It could be my loudness, swagger, or any number of things. Hell, it could be Yoko for all I know.

I can't imagine any other industry where this kind of treatment without explanation, clarification, or justification would not be scrutinized by the press.

If you consider I was a founder and have been active more than any (since Dwayne passed) in keeping the Milestone dream alive it's much more than a slap in my face it's a SLAP in the faces of all those Milestone fans who have waited all this time for it's return, in my opinion.

This type of thing was never a Milestone thing. We didn't roll like this, we were liberated from this comic book industry sh*t and never EVER, turned our back on Black creators. EVEN when some hated us we never closed the door to a dialogue.

I'm a founder, was a friend and although offered much to do so, NEVER waivered when I had to make a decision involving friends, Milestone or both and I've got the paperwork to prove it. My bottom line was always- if not ALL of us, NONE of us.

But that's just me.

To be fair, I keep reading this is a NEW Milestone so perhaps that's what's new.

NO MATTER what it was no matter who may not want me there for whatever reason, SOMEONE should have said SOMETHING to me before I put in all my effort, commitment and heart.

It was right thing to do.

"If you want something you had better make some noise."

Malcolm X

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