Icon (Arnus; alias Augustus Freeman) is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, one of the headline characters introduced by Milestone Media in the 1990s. A being from another planet, he has taken on the form of an African-American man, and has abilities such as flight, super-strength, and invulnerability. He uses these in partnership with Rocket, a human teenager using his alien technology, to protect the people of Dakota City.
An original character from Milestone Comics, he was created by Dwayne McDuffie and M. D. Bright and first appeared in Icon #1 (May 1993). Although published and distributed by DC Comics, the Milestone titles took place in a different continuity. In addition to guest appearances in other titles, the character appeared monthly in his own series, until the Milestone imprint was discontinued in 1997. In 1994, the character was involved in Worlds Collide, a month-long crossover between Milestone and DC Comics' Superman titles.
In the late 2000s, the Milestone Universe and characters were revived and merged into the DC Universe, as part of an agreement between DC Comics and Milestone Media. The merger treated the characters as new to the universe, ignoring the previous crossover. Icon, along with Shadow Cabinet, appeared in Justice League of America (vol. 2) #27, written by McDuffie.
In 1839, an alien starliner malfunctioned and exploded, jettisoning a life-pod in the middle of a cotton field in the American South. The pod automatically alters the appearance of its passenger, Arnus, to mimic an enslaved black woman named Miriam, who witnesses the pod land on Earth and adopts Arnus as her son.
In the present, Arnus is still alive. He did not age visibly beyond adulthood; to disguise this fact, he periodically assumes the identity of his own son. By the late 20th century, he is posing as Augustus Freeman IV, the great-grandson of his original human identity.
When Freeman's house is broken into, he uses his powers for the first time in decades. This is witnessed by one of the intruders, Raquel Ervin, an idealistic teenage girl who was born in Paris Island, the poorest, most gang-ridden neighborhood in Dakota City. Her prospects seemed fairly bleak until this encounter with Freeman. After seeing Freeman use his powers, Raquel persuades him to become a superhero named Icon, with herself as his sidekick, Rocket.
During the Final Crisis storyline, Orion kills his father Darkseid, which destabilizes the space-time continuum and threatens the existence of both the Dakotaverse and the mainstream DC universe. Dharma uses energies harnessed from the entity Rift to merge the two universes, creating an entirely new continuity and altering history so that the residents of the Dakotaverse have always existed in the DC universe. Only Dharma, Icon, and Superman are aware that Dakota and its inhabitants ever existed in a parallel universe.
Icon appears to have an existing friendship with Superman and to be a member of the Shadow Cabinet. Icon also claims that, due to his status as a citizen of the Cooperative (an alien civilization in the Hoag's Object galaxy), he is exempt from prosecution at the hands of the Green Lantern Corps.
After the events of New Krypton led to Kryptonians being banned from Earth, it is shown that Sam Lane is keeping tabs on Icon. It is not made clear whether Lane believes Icon is a Kryptonian, or if he is merely watching him due to his friendship with Superman.
Icon's lifepod altered his DNA so he would resemble a human, thus enabling him to blend among Earth's natives. A side effect of this process was the maximization of his hybrid genetic structure. As a result, Icon possesses a variety of superhuman abilities that are unusual even for a Terminan. Icon possesses immense strength, durability, speed, and senses, and is able to project radiant energy. Icon can project low-energy bolts that can render humans unconscious and overload electronic devices. Icon can focus positron energy into his fists, which he can then use to shatter virtually any substance.
Icon can detect the presence of Bang Babies (superhumans who gained their powers from the Big Bang) by generating a field of positrons. The field interacts with the invisible quantum well surrounding a Bang Baby, who then glows as they give off mild gamma particles. Hence, Icon can use these fields to distinguish Bang Babies from other metahumans as well as normal humans.
Icon ages at a much slower rate than human beings, making him appear middle-aged despite him being several centuries old. Icon's lifespan is typical for a Terminan and the only power that is not the result of his genetic maximization.
Icon is an experienced lawyer with decades of experience in the field. Icon is also a formidable combatant, whose fighting skills are close to those of Superman. Icon is well trained in unarmed and armed combat, having fought in major conflicts ranging from the Civil War to World War II.
For interstellar journeys, Icon employs his personal starship, which possesses a faster-than-light drive that allows it to shift into the realm called hyperspace. Gravity compensators provide artificial gravity that can be adjusted.
Icon's starship is linked to the Info Tool, a computerized database of knowledge that scan an item (organic or inorganic) and store its molecular structure within files called "software". Apart from storing and retrieving data, the Info Tool can link to and control any computer-operated device or system.
The Maker is a molecular factory that can construct any physical item, molecule by molecule, from structural data files stored within the Info Tool. These data files are called "software", while objects created by the Maker are known as "hardware". The Maker operates by tapping the vast energies of the reactor for Icon's starship and converting them into matter used for the construction of hardware. The Maker can create any item in a matter of seconds as long as its structure is on file within the Info Tool.
Icon's ship is equipped with cloaking technology that can render the vessel invisible to both the human eye and electronic surveillance. Though not typical for a civilian vessel, the cloak was installed in Icon's ship so he could use it on Earth without attracting attention.
Icon appears in Young Justice, voiced by Tony Todd. This version is an associate, later member, of the Justice League.
Icon is a conservative Republican who holds conservative views on economic and social issues, which often put him in conflict with more liberal Milestone Comics superheroes, including his sidekick. Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas was an avowed fan of Icon, to the extent that he quoted the character on multiple occasions; upon learning of this, author Dwayne McDuffie, who in the blog post he wrote on the matter described himself as liberal, suffered writer's block out of fears that dialogue he wrote would be used in the service of conservatism.
Icon was nominated for three Eisner Awards and is a three-time winner of Parents' Choice Award honors.