Cover: Denys Cowan & Jimmy Palmiotti

Hardware #1

Apr 1993 · DC · 1.50 USD; 1.85 CAD; 1.00 GBP

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“Angry Black Man”

★ 1st appearance — Hardware★ 1st appearance — Curtis Metcalf★ 1st appearance — Edwin Alva

About this Issue

Hardware #1 holds a singular place in comics history as the very first comic book published by Milestone Media, making it the opening salvo of the most ambitious creator-owned, Black-led publishing venture the American mainstream had ever seen. Written by Dwayne McDuffie and drawn by Denys Cowan, it introduced Curtis Metcalf — a Black genius inventor who builds powered armor not to become a traditional hero but to wage war against the corrupt corporate patron who exploited him — embedding a pointed allegory about systemic oppression and creators' rights directly into the superhero genre. The issue launched the shared 'Dakotaverse' alongside Blood Syndicate, Icon, and Static, all debuting in early 1993 under a groundbreaking deal that let Milestone retain full copyright and editorial control while DC handled publishing and distribution. Thirty years on, its central theme — a Black man trapped by an institution that profits from his genius while denying him dignity — still resonates with uncomfortable clarity.

writer Dwayne McDuffie · artist Denys Cowan · inker Jimmy Palmiotti · colorist Noelle Giddings · letterer Janice Chiang · cover Denys Cowan, Jimmy Palmiotti

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (NM) $3

CGC 9.8 · 237 in census $49*

CGC 9.6 · 125 in census $26

CGC 9.4 · 64 in census $24

CGC 9.2 · 52 in census $24

CGC 9.0 · 49 in census $21

CGC 8.5 · 25 in census $20*

Show all 16 grades ▾

CGC 8.0 · 11 in census $20*

CGC 7.5 · 7 in census $20*

CGC 7.0 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 6.5 none in existence

CGC 6.0 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 5.5 none in existence

CGC 5.0 none in existence

CGC 4.5 none in existence

CGC 4.0 none in existence

CGC 3.5 · 1 in census $20*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

More listings for this title

Variant $2.69 NM $3 VF $3.98 VF/NM · Variant $4 VF/NM $4.95 VF $4.98 FN/VF $4.99 NM $4.99

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History

Milestone Media was founded in 1993 by Dwayne McDuffie, Denys Cowan, Michael Davis, and Derek T. Dingle, a coalition of African-American creators who believed that minorities were severely underrepresented in mainstream comics and set out to correct that imbalance with a Black-owned company. Before a single issue shipped, McDuffie and collaborators assembled an extensive 'bible' mapping the history, geography, and characters of the fictional Midwestern city of Dakota, while Cowan produced the original character designs that guided the whole line's visual identity. The publishing deal Milestone signed with DC in September 1992 was structurally unusual for its era: DC handled printing, marketing, and distribution while Milestone retained complete ownership of its characters, final creative say, and all merchandising rights — a level of independence rarely afforded to any imprint, let alone a startup. Hardware #1 shipped on February 23, 1993, arriving on stands slightly ahead of the line's other debut titles, and carried the distinction of hosting the first-ever Milestone letters column.

Trivia · 8 facts

First appearance and origin of Curtis Metcalf / Hardware, created by writer Dwayne McDuffie and penciller Denys Cowan; inked by Jimmy Palmiotti, colored by Noelle Giddings, lettered by Janice Chiang.
First appearance of antagonist Edwin Alva and villain Reprise.
Certified as the very first comic published by Milestone Media — it shipped February 23, 1993, with a cover date of April 1993.
The debut story is titled 'Angry Black Man' and follows Metcalf's transformation into Hardware after discovering that his mentor and employer Edwin Alva is a criminal mastermind who views Metcalf as little more than a tool.
Issue #1 was published in at least three distinct editions: a standard Direct Edition, a Newsstand Edition, and a polybagged Collector's Edition that included a mural poster, a cover poster, a Skybox trading card, and one quarter of a 'Secrets of the Big Bang' poster — the other three quarters appearing in the Collector's Editions of Blood Syndicate #1, Icon #1, and Static #1.
The issue introduced the 'Hardware's Arsenal' backup feature, spotlighting Hardware's jet-pack and retractable sword — a recurring informational section that ran throughout the series.
Hardware #1 has been reprinted in: DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes (Little, Brown, 1995); Hardware: The Man in the Machine trade paperback (DC, May 2010, collecting #1–8); and Milestone Compendium #1 (DC, April 2022).
The series ran for 50 issues (April 1993 – April 1997) before Milestone ceased its publishing operations; the character was later folded into the main DC Universe following Final Crisis (2008) and returned in a new Milestone relaunch beginning in 2021.