The groundbreaking launch of the first all-Indigenous superhero universe has been a huge success, with all copies of the first edition comic book selling out at Perth's Supa Nova Comic Con this week.
The Dark Heart comic - the brainchild of Gooniyandi and Miriwoong Kadjerong man Scott Wilson - introduces Adam Hart as the first superhero into the Indigiverse with the powers of the Dreaming at his disposal.
Mr Wilson and his team have spent the past few years working on the idea which they were able to launch at Supa Nova, a dream come true for Mr Wilson who is a long-time attendee at the major comic event.
Mr Wilson said the first run of Dark Heart was snapped up almost within a day and had already received global interest.
"We had so much interest that on day two of Supa Nova we had to unfortunately tell people that yeah, we had no copies left," he said.
"I was so in awe of so much people that came and asked questions and we're just so interested in the universe and especially indigenous and non-Indigenous people, majority non-Indigenous people, come up and was asking about the stories.
"I've had people messaging me from America, across the world, asking about the universe and the stories that will be shared with him."
The first edition delves into the origin story of Adam Hart, a mixed-race Aboriginal and otherworldly university student and foster child from the Kimberley displaced in Sydney.
He grapples with familiar themes of connection, identity and responsibility, with his galactic ties to a supreme race yet to be unveiled.
Through the Dreaming, Adam Hart gets training from Goorramindi, named after Mr Wilson's grandfather, on how to harness his newfound powers for good to become Dark Heart.
With the first superhero off the press, Mr Wilson and his team are already working on the second edition and the next major character to come out later in the series, set to be a female named Dream Walker.
https://www.nit.com.au/trailblazing-aboriginal-superhero-powered-by-the-dreaming-in-new-comic/
Mr Wilson said the Indigiverse would help to share First Nations stories and culture in a familiar way - through superheroes - to a mass audience.
"We wanted to create a world where First Nations stories can live in the fictional universe that surrounds superheroes and sharing our story through, you know, the empowering nature of superheroes," he said.
"We have had Marvel and DC and a lot of other universes that kind of lead the way, but it's about time when we can share our stories through that medium as well and actually be in control of that narrative.
"The world can get behind our superheroes and really get immersed in a lot of the language, a lot of stories."
Mr Wilson said he planned to introduce five superheroes into the initial Indigiverse whose stories would span across the world and galaxy.
The series was created by Mr Wilson and Benny Eggmolesse's Ice Cream Productions, illustrator Katie Houghton-Ward and Wolfgang Bylsma's Gestalt Comics.