Getting my thoughts untangled one at a time . . .
Dwayne McDuffie is dead. Dead at 49. Dead without knowing the impact his imagination had on my life. Dead without knowing the comfort his creations gave me as I was growing up. I know it sounds silly. They were just cartoons. To everyone else they were just cartoons, maybe. But to me they were so much more. They shaped who I am. They awakened part of my imagination I hadn't known existed before. They gave me comfort and hope when I needed it most. And while I realize this wasn't due to his own single-handed effort, Dwayne McDuffie was a fundamental piece of the bigger picture. These cartoons, their characters, their emotions wouldn't have held without him. I have so much respect for a man I've never even met, and I know how stupid and silly that makes me seem. But the fact remains that he was quite an influence, and things won't be the same in his absence.