Hawkman
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Hawkman is the name of several
Several incarnations of Hawkman have appeared in DC Comics, all of them characterized by the use of archaic weaponry and by large, artificial wings, attached to a harness made from the special Nth metal that allows flight. Most incarnations of Hawkman work closely with a partner/romantic interest named Hawkgirl or Hawkwoman.
Hawkman is most often depicted as human archaeologist
The character has been adapted into other media numerous times, with significant appearances in the animated
In live action, the character first appeared onscreen in the two-part 1979 TV special Legends of the Superheroes by Bill Nuckols appearing alongside Adam West and Burt Ward as allies Batman and Robin. Hawkman was later portrayed by Michael Shanks in Smallville and by Falk Hentschel in The CW's Arrowverse family of shows, with both versions favoring the ancient Egyptian version of the character. Hawkman made his cinematic debut portrayed by Aldis Hodge in 2022's Black Adam set in the DC Extended Universe.
Publication history
Hawkman first appeared in Flash Comics #1 (1940), and was a featured character in that title throughout the 1940s. This Hawkman was Carter Hall, a reincarnation of the ancient Egyptian prince Khufu. Hall discovered that the mysterious "ninth metal" (later changed simply to "Nth metal") could negate the effects of gravity and allow him to fly. He donned a costume with large wings to allow him to control his flight and became the crimefighter, Hawkman. He also had a companion hawk named Big Red that assisted him in fighting crime. An archaeologist by profession, Hall used ancient weapons from the museum that he curated.
Hawkman was a charter member of the Justice Society of America, beginning with All Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940). In issue #8 he became the JSA's chairman, a position he held until the end of the JSA's run in All Star Comics in 1951. He was the only member of the JSA to appear in every adventure during the Golden Age of Comic Books. He romanced his reincarnated bride, Shiera Saunders, who became the crimefighter Hawkgirl. His first three adventures were drawn by creator Dennis Neville (who modeled Hawkman's costume on the hawkmen characters in the Flash Gordon comic strip by Alex Raymond), then by Sheldon Moldoff, and later by Joe Kubert, who slightly redesigned his mask in Flash Comics # 85 (Jul 1947) and then, one year later, replaced the winged-hawk-like mask with a much simpler yellow cowl in Flash Comics #98 (Aug 1948).
Along with most other superheroes, Hawkman's Golden Age adventures came to an end when the industry turned away from the genre in the early 1950s. His last appearance was in All Star Comics #57 (1951).
Later in the decade, DC Comics, under editor Julius Schwartz, decided to revive a number of heroes in new incarnations, but retaining the same names and powers. Following the success of the Flash and Green Lantern, the name "Hawkman" was revived in The Brave and the Bold # 34 (Feb–Mar 1961), this time as an alien police officer from the planet Thanagar, though his powers were largely the same. Created by Gardner Fox and Joe Kubert, this Hawkman named Katar Hol came to Earth with his wife Shayera in pursuit of a criminal, and decided to remain on Earth to study earth police methods as well as fight crime. They adopted the names Carter and Shiera Hall and became curators of a museum in Midway City.
This Hawkman became a member of the Justice League of America in issue #31, where he often verbally sparred with the iconoclastic liberal hero Green Arrow. In the 1960s, it was revealed that the original Hawkman lived on the parallel world of Earth-Two, and that Katar Hol lived on Earth-One. The JLA and JSA had an annual meeting throughout the 1960s and 1970s during which the two heroes often met.
The Silver Age Hawkman had his own series for a few years in the '60s, but with declining sales it ended at issue #27 and was then merged with that of the Atom. Atom and Hawkman lasted only another year or so before cancellation.
In the late 1970s in
The landmark 1985 series Crisis on Infinite Earths resulted in a massive revision of much of DC continuity and led to many characters being substantially rewritten. Hawkman was to suffer some of the greatest confusion as successive writers sought to explain his various appearances. In the revised timeline there was a single Earth which had witnessed the JSA in the 1940s and the JLA decades later. Successive revisions sought to establish exactly who had been Hawkman and Hawkwoman at different stages. For the first few years the pre-Crisis incarnations were still used, during which time they were prominent across the DC Universe and joined the latest incarnation of the Justice League.
DC decided to reboot Hawkman, in a limited series (which later led to an ongoing series) titled Hawkworld originally by Tim Truman, and later John Ostrander. In this series, Thanagar was a stratified society which conquered other worlds to enrich itself. Katar Hol was the son of a prominent official who rebelled against the status quo. He and his partner Shayera were sent to Earth and remained there for some years until Hol was apparently killed.
This created several continuity errors. Because the new Katar Hol had only just arrived on Earth, someone else had to have been Hawkman previously. In an attempt to resolve the problem it was established through
The Zero Hour miniseries muddied the waters further by merging the different Hawkmen into a "Hawkgod", who was the focus character in the third volume of the monthly Hawkman series. This version of Hawkman also had a small role in the alternate-future series Kingdom Come. After the end of this series, Hawkman's continuity was considered by DC to be too complicated,[citation needed] and he was absent from comics for several years.
In the late 1990s, the JSA series untangled Hawkman's continuity, establishing him as Carter Hall, a man who—along with Shiera—had been reincarnated dozens of times since his life in ancient Egypt, and whose powers were derived from Thanagarian Nth metal, which had been retroactively renamed from "ninth metal". The Katar Hol of the Hawkworld series had also come to Earth during the 1990s, as previously established. The 1980s Hawkman Fel Andar returned to Thanagar. The Hawkgod was later revealed to be an avatar of the Hawk aspect of the Red (from which Animal Man receives his powers) and only believed that he was Hawkman.[citation needed]
During the
Subsequently, Hawkman was reincarnated and given a new series in 2002 entitled Hawkman vol. 4, written initially by
Hawkman was a major character in the Rann–Thanagar War miniseries, which stemmed from events in Countdown to Infinite Crisis. During this time his continuity was further changed (see Carter Hall section below).
The character then received a new series spinning out of Dark Nights: Metal, helmed by Robert Venditti and Bryan Hitch.[1]
Fictional character biographies
Carter Hall
In the days of
Carter Hall and Shiera Saunders had a son together, named Hector Hall, who grew up to also have a superheroic identity as Silver Scarab and later adopted the mantle of Dr. Fate. Hector Hall was a member of the superhero groups Infinity Inc. and the JSA, where he served alongside his father.
Katar Hol
Katar Hol is an honored
Although initially depicted as surviving the
In DC's The New 52 universe, Hawkman is Katar Hol but uses the name Carter Hall.
Fel Andar
Late in the 1980s, Thanagarian
Zauriel
When Grant Morrison revived the JLA comic book in 1997, they expanded the roster to include over a dozen heroes. With frequent collaborator Mark Millar, they intended to create a new Hawkman with no links to the old characters. This new Hawkman, an Earth-bound angel of the "Eagle host" named Zauriel, was to be introduced into the JLA with issue #6 (June 1997). Morrison was denied permission to use the name "Hawkman" by DC editorial, which still considered it "radioactive", due to the complex post-Crisis continuity problems with the character.
In the Wizard JLA Special, Morrison made an appeal to the fanbase, "It's a good name and it seems a shame to let it go to waste. We're hoping that fans will figure 'For God's sake, let's just call him Hawkman and get him in the Justice League as Hawkman,' and the editors will relent. We're hoping to start a campaign." DC held firm, and the "Hawkman" name went unused for several more years.[2]
Charley Parker
Originally the
Powers and abilities
All incarnations of Hawkman used the fictional "ninth metal" or "Nth metal" to defy
The Golden Age Hawkman was also granted the ability to breathe underwater by the sea god Poseidon.[3] He also discovered a hidden kingdom of sentient birds led by the old One-Eye, who taught him their language and later sacrificed himself to save Hawkman's life.[4] Among the leading birds was a hawk named Big Red who became a companion and even helped the Golden Age Hawkman solve crimes.[5]
The Silver Age Hawkman also had enhanced senses comparable to a hawk's. He, and sometimes the Golden Age Hawkman as well, was also able to converse with birds, though not command them in the same way that, say, Aquaman could command sea creatures. Hawkman also wore special contact lenses that allowed him to detect beams and radiation.[6]
The Silver Age Hawkman also possessed a Thanagarian police space ship and a variety of science fiction weapons.
All versions of Hawkman prefer to use
All versions of Hawkman have shown enhanced levels of strength. The Golden Age Hawkman was said to have the strength of 12 men but later that idea was dropped. Where as the Golden Age Hawkman's strength appeared natural, it was later explained (with the
It has also been explained in the JSA series that the Nth metal greatly aids in healing,
The Nth metal also regulates the
Other versions
- During the chronal disruptions of Zero Hour, multiple versions of Hawkman (and Hawkgirl/Hawkwoman) from alternate timelines were appearing in and out of existence. It turns out the Hawks were one of many anomalies in the timestream resulting from the Crisis. Somehow the various versions were converged into the current reality's Katar Hol.
- A Hawkman evolved from Northwind.
- Hawkman's Anti-matter Earth counterpart is Blood Eagle. He was killed by the Crime Syndicate.[9] It is unclear whether he is a Thanagarian (like Katar Hol) or a human (like Carter Hall).
Awards
The series and character have won several awards over the years, including:
- 1961 Alley Award for Best Adventure Hero/Heroine Not in Own Book
- 1962 Alley Award for Best Hero
- 1963 Alley Award for Cross-Over of DC Heroes (The Brave and the Bold with the Flash)
Reception
Hawkman was ranked as the 118th-greatest comic book character of all time by Wizard magazine.[10] IGN also ranked Hawkman as the 56th-greatest comic book hero of all time, stating that the best part of Hawkman is his incredibly short fuse. IGN also described him as a complete and total badass.[11]
Collected editions
Carter Hall
Title | Material collected | Published date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|
Golden Age Hawkman Archives Vol. 1 | Material from Flash Comics #1–22 | February 2006 | 978-1401204181 |
Golden Age Hawkman Archives Vol. 2 | Material from Flash Comics #23-63, Big All-American Comic Book #1 | June 2017 | 978-1401243845 |
Blackest Night: Rise of the Black Lanterns | Atom & Hawkman #46 and Power of Shazam! #48, Catwoman #83, Suicide Squad #67, Question #37, Phantom Stranger #42, Weird Western Takes #71, Starman #81 | July 2010 | 978-1401228064 |
Hawkman Vol. 1: Endless Flight | Hawkman (vol. 4) #1–6, Hawkman Secret Files #1 | April 2003 | 978-1563899522 |
Hawkman Vol. 2: Enemies & Allies | Hawkman (vol. 4) #7–12 | March 2004 | 978-1401201968 |
Hawkman Vol. 3: Wings of Fury | Hawkman (vol. 4) #15–22 | June 2005 | 978-1401204679 |
JSA: Black Reign[12] | Hawkman (vol. 4) #23–25 and JSA #56–58 | July 2005 | 978-1845760724 |
Hawkman Vol. 4 Rise of the Golden Eagle | Hawkman (vol. 4) #37–45 | May 2006 | 978-1401210922 |
Hawkman by Geoff Johns Book One | Hawkman (vol. 4) #1–14, Hawkman Secret Files #1 | June 2017 | 978-1401272906 |
Hawkman by Geoff Johns Book Two | Hawkman (vol. 4) #15–25 and JSA #56–58 | April 2018 | 978-1401278342 |
The Hawkman Omnibus Vol. 1 | Hawkman (vol. 4) #1–25, Hawkman Secret Files #1, JSA #56–58 | January 2012 | 978-1401232221 |
Dark Nights: Metal: The Resistance | Hawkman: Found #1 and Teen Titans (vol. 6) #12, Nightwing (vol. 4) #29, Suicide Squad (vol. 5) #26, Green Arrow (vol. 6) #32, The Flash (vol. 5) #33, Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #32, Justice League (vol. 4) #32–33, Batman: Lost #1 | July 2018 | 978-1401282981 |
Hawkman Vol. 1: Awakening | Hawkman (vol. 5) #1-6 | June 2019 | 978-1401291440 |
Hawkman Vol. 2: Deathbringer | Hawkman (vol. 5) #7-12 | December 2019 | 978-1401295585 |
Hawkman Vol. 3: Darkness Within | Hawkman (vol. 5) #13-18 | September 2020 | 978-1779502490 |
Hawkman Vol. 4: Hawks Eternal | Hawkman (vol. 5) #20-29 | February 2021 | 978-1779508065 |
Black Adam: The Justice Society Files | Black Adam - The Justice Society Files: Hawkman #1 and Black Adam - The Justice Society Files: Cyclone #1, Black Adam - The Justice Society Files: Atom Smasher #1, and Black Adam - The Justice Society Files: Dr. Fate #1 | January 2023 | 978-1779517982 |
Katar Hol
Title | Material collected | Published date | ISBN |
---|---|---|---|
Hawkman Archives Vol. 1 | The Brave and the Bold #34–36, 42–44; Mystery in Space #87–90 | May 2000 | 978-1563896118 |
Hawkman Archives Vol. 2 | Hawkman (vol. 1) #1–8 | April 2005 | 978-1401201616 |
Showcase Presents: Hawkman Vol. 1 | The Brave and the Bold #34–36, 42–44, 51, The Atom #7, Mystery in Space #87–90; Hawkman (vol. 1) #1–11 | March 2007 | 978-1401212803 |
Showcase Presents: Hawkman Vol. 2 | Hawkman (vol. 1) #12–27, The Atom #31, The Atom and Hawkman #39–45, The Brave and the Bold (vol. 1) #70 | August 2008 | 978-1401218171 |
Hawkworld | Hawkworld (vol. 1) #1-3 | March 2014 | 978-1401243296 |
The Savage Hawkman Vol. 1: Darkness Rising | The Savage Hawkman #1–8 | October 2012 | 978-1401237066 |
The Savage Hawkman Vol. 2: Wanted | The Savage Hawkman #0, #9–20 | December 2013 | 978-1401240844 |
Convergence: Crisis Book One | Convergence: Hawkman #1-2 and Convergence: Batman and the Outsiders #1-2, Convergence: The Adventures of Superman #1-2, Convergence: Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #1-2, Convergence: Green Lantern Corps #1-2 | October 2015 | 978-1401258085 |
The Death of Hawkman | The Death of Hawkman #1-6 | June 2017 | 978-1401268244 |
In other media
Television
Animation
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure, voiced by Vic Perrin.
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in Super Friends, voiced by Jack Angel.
- Two characters based on Hawkman appear in media set in the DC Animated Universe (DCAU):
- A character loosely based on the Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman called Hro Talak appears in the Justice League three-part episode "Starcrossed", voiced by Victor Rivers.
- A character based on the Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman with elements of Katar Hol appears in Justice League Unlimited, voiced by James Remar.
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in The Batman, voiced by Robert Patrick.
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in the Batman: The Brave and the Bold episode "The Golden Age of Justice!", voiced by William Katt.
- Hawkman appears in DC Super Friends: The Joker's Playhouse, voiced by David Kaye.
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman and Hro Talak appear in Young Justice, with the former voiced by James Arnold Taylor while the latter has no dialogue.[13]
- An unidentified Hawkman appears in the Mad segment "That's What Super Friends Are For".
- Hawkman appears in DC Super Friends (2015), voiced by Sean Schemmel.
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in Justice League Action, voiced by Troy Baker.
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in DC Super Hero Girls, voiced by Phil LaMarr.
- Comic artist/writer Jack Kirby produced concept art for a planned Hawkman animated series.[14]
- Carter Hall / Hawkman makes cameo appearances in Harley Quinn,[15] voiced by Tyler James Williams.[16] This version is African-American like the DCEU version.
Live-action
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in Legends of the Superheroes, portrayed by Bill Nuckols.
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in Smallville, portrayed by Michael Shanks.
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in media set in the Arrowverse, portrayed by Falk Hentschel.[17][18][19]
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in Stargirl.
Film
- The Carter Hall and Katar Hol incarnations of Hawkman make cameo appearances in Justice League: The New Frontier.
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, voiced by an uncredited Michael Gough.
- An Crime Syndicate.
- An unidentified Hawkman appears in Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League, voiced by Phil Morris.
- A Hawkman film was in development by Warner Bros. in the early 2010s, but nothing came of it.[20]
- An unidentified Hawkman makes minor non-speaking appearances in the DC Animated Movie Universe (DCAMU) films Justice League Dark,[21] The Death of Superman, and Justice League Dark: Apokolips War.
- An Earth-2 incarnation of Carter Hall / Hawkman appears in Justice Society: World War II, voiced by Omid Abtahi.
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in Injustice.
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in Teen Titans Go! & DC Super Hero Girls: Mayhem in the Multiverse, voiced again by Phil LaMarr.
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in Black Adam, portrayed by Aldis Hodge.[22][23]
- An unidentified Hawkman makes a non-speaking appearance in Scooby-Doo! and Krypto, Too! as a member of the Justice League.
- An unidentified Hawkman appears in Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One, voiced by Geoffrey Arend.[24] This version is the reincarnation of Carter Hall.
Video games
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears as a playable character in Batman: The Brave and the Bold – The Videogame, voiced again by William Katt.[25]
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears as a character summon in Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure.[citation needed]
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears as a non-playable character in DC Universe Online, voiced by Jason Liebrecht.[citation needed]
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes, voiced by Troy Baker.[26]
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears as a support card in the mobile version of Injustice: Gods Among Us.[citation needed]
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears as a playable character in Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, voiced by Travis Willingham.[citation needed]
- An unidentified Hawkman appears as a playable character in Lego DC Super-Villains, voiced again by Travis Willingham.[citation needed]
Miscellaneous
- The Carter Hall incarnation of Hawkman appears in Justice League Adventures #20.[citation needed]
- The Katar Hol incarnation of Hawkman appears in All-New Batman: The Brave and the Bold #9.[citation needed]
See also
- Birdman and the Galaxy Trio – 1967 TV cartoon series with a similar character
References
- ^ Adams, Tim (March 14, 2018). "DC's Hawkman Takes Flight in New Series From Venditti & Hitch". CBR.
- ^ [1] Archived March 18, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Flash Comics #9
- ^ Flash Comics #23
- ^ Flash Comics #24
- ^ Justice League of America #32
- ^ Flash Comics #18
- ^ Just Imagine Stan Lee creating Crisis (January 2002)
- ^ JLA, no. 112 ((May 2005)). DC Comics.
- ^ "Wizard's top 200 characters. External link consists of a forum site summing up the top 200 characters of Wizard Magazine since the real site that contains the list is broken". Wizard. Archived from the original on June 8, 2011. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
- ^ "Hawkman is number 56". IGN. Retrieved May 17, 2011.
- ISBN 978-1779514462)
- ^ G-Man (2010-07-24). "Comic-Con: Brave and the Bold & Young Justice Panel". Comic Vine. Retrieved 2010-07-26.
- ^ Tobin, Brendan (February 21, 2010). "Inking The King: Hawkman". Brendan Tobin.
- ^ "'Harley Quinn' Valentine's Day Special Ordered at HBO Max". October 7, 2022.
- ^ "Quinta Brunson & Tyler James Williams to Voice Hawkman & Hawkgirl in 'Harley Quinn' Valentine's Day Special at HBO Max". February 6, 2023.
- ^ Dyer, Mitch (July 11, 2015). "COMIC CON 2015: HAWKMAN COMING TO LEGENDS OF TOMORROW". IGN. Retrieved July 16, 2015.
- ^ Petski, Denise (August 3, 2015). "Falk Hentschel To Play Hawkman In 'Legends Of Tomorrow'". Deadline.
- ^ Almalvez, Laurence (August 8, 2015). "'Legends of Tomorrow' EPs Tease Character Deaths, Hawkman Details". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ^ "Hawkman Movie Plans Revealed – A Bit Like These Other Popular Movies". Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movie, TV News. Retrieved December 4, 2014.
- ^ Perry, Spencer (July 26, 2016). "Justice League Dark Featurette Reveals Matt Ryan Returns as Constantine!". Superhero Hype.
- ^ Murphy, Charles (March 8, 2019). "EXCLUSIVE: New 'BLACK ADAM' Script Features Hawkman, Atom Smasher and Stargirl". That Hashtag Show. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
- ^ Kit, Borys; Galuppo, Mia (September 25, 2020). "'Black Adam': Aldis Hodge in Talks to Play Hawkman in New Line's DC Movie". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
- ^ Harvey, James (2023-12-05). ""Justice League: Crisis On Infinite Earths, Part One" Release Date". The World's Finest. Retrieved 2023-12-05.
- ^ "Batman: The Brave And The Bold: The Videogame Trailer". Leagueofcomicgeeks.com. 2010-06-01. Retrieved 2010-09-14.
- ^ "Hands on: LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes - GayGamer.net". Archived from the original on 2012-05-25. Retrieved 2012-05-27.
External links
- Official website
- Hawkman on DC Database, a DC Comics wiki
- Hawkworld [2]- An Extensive Fan Site for Hawkman and Hawkgirl
- History of Hawkman on Sequart
- Everything You Never Wanted To Know About Hawkman
- Hawkman Timeline Archived 2020-08-01 at the Wayback Machine
- Hawkfan – A fansite dedicated to Hawkman and Hawkgirl. Not to be confused with the Hawkwind fanzine.
- Hawkworld: Still Goin' Strong!
- Comics 101 – Hawkman: Winging It PART I, PART II, and PART III