Who's The Better Hawkman: Carter Hall or Katar Hol?

[Spectacus]

Who is your favourite Hawkman?

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[kcekada]

I like them both. Can't say I prefer one over the other.

[caj]

Katar for me. He's the one I grew up and it's been way too many years since he's been around.

[Bored at 3:00AM]

I like them both as the same guy. Splitting up an already small fan base hasn't worked out too well for either character.

[Dicer]

But aren't they the same guy?

[bat39]

But aren't they the same guy?

They were recently retconned into being the same guy...in a manner of speaking.

[MajorHoy]

Which version(s) of "Carter Hall" and "Katar Hol" are you referring to?

Don't forget, there was clearly a distinction between the pre-CoIE "Katar Hol" and the post-Hawkworld "Katar Hol".
Then they try to morph the stories with pre-CoIE "Katar-Hol" into the back story of the original "Carter Hall" (also referred to as the "Prince Khufu" version).

It all becomes an even more tangled, convoluted mess after that.

[Jim Kelly]

One of my little bugaboos is the name "Carter Hall." I like Carter Hall, the black-haired museum curator, who came from the stars and took the name "Carter Hall" because it sounded like his native name, Katar Hol. That's my favourite Carter Hall. I like him better than Carter Hall, the blond archaeologist, who is a reincarnation of Prince Khufu.

And those are just the original two Hawkmen (from 1940 and 1960). It gets even more complicated talking about all the variations on and amalgamations of those characters that have followed.

[bat39]

One of my little bugaboos is the name "Carter Hall." I like Carter Hall, the black-haired museum curator, who came from the stars and took the name "Carter Hall" because it sounded like his native name, Katar Hol. That's my favourite Carter Hall. I like him better than Carter Hall, the blond archaeologist, who is a reincarnation of Prince Khufu.

And those are just the original two Hawkmen (from 1940 and 1960). It gets even more complicated talking about all the variations on and amalgamations of those characters that have followed.

That's why Venditti's explanation that they are all the same guy appeals to me.

Funnily enough, on a personal level, I like Carter Hall, the archeologist who's been reincarnated, as Hawkman. But my favorite Hawkgirl is Shayera Hol, the Thanagarian warrior/detective. The latter I suspect is due to the JL cartoon.

[WonderScott]

I like both and miss the JLA/JSA, or Earth-1 and -2, divide that made them both possible.

[MajorHoy]

One of my little bugaboos is the name "Carter Hall." I like Carter Hall, the black-haired museum curator, who came from the stars and took the name "Carter Hall" because it sounded like his native name, Katar Hol. That's my favourite Carter Hall. I like him better than Carter Hall, the blond archaeologist, who is a reincarnation of Prince Khufu.

And those are just the original two Hawkmen (from 1940 and 1960). It gets even more complicated talking about all the variations on and amalgamations of those characters that have followed.

But then again,

I like both and miss the JLA/JSA, or Earth-1 and -2, divide that made them both possible.

That's they key point: having two guys calling themselves "Carter Hall" isn't really a big deal when they live on two separate Earths and are less likely to be in the same place at the same time.

[jetengine]

The latest retcon dealt with the entire issue the best it could be imo.

[Timothy Hunter]

The reincarnation aspect of Earth Two Carter I have found to have much more storytelling potential than the space cop, Earth One Katar, whose background I found comparatively generic.

[Hawkman]

Katar Hol will always be my favorite. Silver Age, if you want to get specific. I like his backstory more, and I've always found his cast of supporting characters far more compelling that Carter Hall's, most of whom remain forgettable, even today.

That said, though, I'm content with the mash-up compromise that Ostrander, Johns, Venditti, et al., have given us over the years.

[Kaijudo]

Gotta go with Carter. Katar was fine, but ultimately his place in the DCU was just another space cop, like Hal Jordan, with not enough in his character to distinguish him from that (unlike, say, Superman vs. Martian Manhunter). But Carter as winged hero/archaeologist/barbarian has a unique role within the universe, especially when you add in the reincarnation angle.