On a Wing and a Prayer: Hawkman Appreciation!

[Hawkman]

That page from Futures End is probably the first time I've gotten legitimately excited from reading a comic book since Justice League of America (2013) #1. I don't think we've seen any sign of Hawkman post-Convergence yet, either. If there is some post-Zero Hour style tweaking that goes on following this event, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Hawkman as a major beneficiary of that. And hopefully Hawkgirl, too.

[nj06]

Who's name is that he's saying?

Seriously though, I agree with you about the Thanagarians. The wing-harness thing is a little bit silly and seems like such an exploitable weakness. I hope they keep the wings as being attached going forward.

I also agree. I want the wings of the Thanagarians to be actually attached and be biological and not from the harness.

[nj06]

Saw this on comicvine:

by: Freddie E. Williams II

[Baggie_Saiyan]

What are your guys thoughts on the new 52 Savage Hawkman? I have only read 3 issues, I found them to be enjoyable certainly not as bad as all the reviews made it out imo, art could be better though, I decided to put the rest of Savage Hawkman on the back of my reading list, as I pace myself through Johns Hawkman run up too #8 great so far.

[Hawkman]

Newsarama posted an interview with Jeff Parker about Hawkman: Convergence. From the interview:

Nrama: What appeals to you as a writer about Hawkman and Hawkgirl?

Parker: I really like the fact that the Hawks are a couple that make a good fighting/problem solving team. It’s a lot like what I’ve enjoyed in writing the adventures of Aquaman and Mera.

Nrama: Have you always been a fan of Hawkman, or did you have to do some research into his history?

Parker: This is one where the brunt of the attraction is from reading stories as a kid, usually reprints of Joe Kubert comics that I loved. That was the Hawkman I knew best, and since this is supposed to be that version, I didn’t need to do any research.

It’s interesting — Tim Truman is drawing that era of Hawkman, but adding in a little bit of detail you’d associate with his Hawkworld version, which fits neatly with the fact that this is a time and reality in flux.

A man after mine own heart. This is gonna be great!

[Hawkman]

What are your guys thoughts on the new 52 Savage Hawkman? I have only read 3 issues, I found them to be enjoyable certainly not as bad as all the reviews made it out imo, art could be better though, I decided to put the rest of Savage Hawkman on the back of my reading list, as I pace myself through Johns Hawkman run up too #8 great so far.

I've said more than a few times around these boards that I feel The Savage Hawkman is pretty underrated, and for the most part unfairly reviewed. It's nothing special, but it's a nevertheless solid action comic, the back half of which--at least in my opinion, anyway--does a good job of capturing the spirit of Hawkman.

[Stormcrow]

What are your guys thoughts on the new 52 Savage Hawkman? I have only read 3 issues, I found them to be enjoyable certainly not as bad as all the reviews made it out imo, art could be better though, I decided to put the rest of Savage Hawkman on the back of my reading list, as I pace myself through Johns Hawkman run up too #8 great so far.

I agree it's nothing extraordinary but it's surprisingly solid work, especially for Liefeld. It's a shame it was cancelled just when it was finding it's stride, maybe the multiple creative teams affected it but it stands out pretty well as a whole after all. It just frustrates me that they got the winged Thanagarians right but then a "virus" or some crap took them off... and Shayera was terribly used. But still worth a look.

Newsarama posted an interview with Jeff Parker about Hawkman: Convergence. From the interview:


A man after mine own heart. This is gonna be great!

Thanks for sharing, I can't wait for this one. Best Hawkman project in forever.

[liwanag]

Who's name is that he's saying?

Seriously though, I agree with you about the Thanagarians. The wing-harness thing is a little bit silly and seems like such an exploitable weakness. I hope they keep the wings as being attached going forward.

i love when angel became archangel, especially the evil wings concept. when it comes to thanagarians and hawkman in particular, i wouldn't mind if the got an "upgrade" of sorts.





armored wings seem more menacing than feathered ones. the least it could do is give hawkman a better chance against deathstroke or black adam.

[The_Greatest_Username]

i love when angel became archangel, especially the evil wings concept. when it comes to thanagarians and hawkman in particular, i wouldn't mind if the got an "upgrade" of sorts.

armored wings seem more menacing than feathered ones. the least it could do is give hawkman a better chance against deathstroke or black adam.

Maybe Thanagarians could have naturally feathered wings, but Hawkman's wings would become metallic when he bonds with Nth metal?

[colonyofcells]

Probably possible to give armor to all thanagarians similar to the reach beetles :
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-63h8MoEmSK...%2BUnited3.jpg

[liwanag]

now that would be a cool story line. have the thanagar try to root out and repel a reach invasion.

i wonder if hawkman has enough blunt force power to overcome a reach infiltrator.

[Stormcrow]

I've never liked Hawkman with bulky armors, I prefer the gladiator-like look. And probably because most armored designs have been pretty bad as well.

But I do like the idea of giving him armored wings in battle mode, it should be pretty easy with the Nth metal's current status as weapons silly putty. Just wish they'd define it into something more concrete, the whole arm regrowing thing is just Wolverine at his worst. The DCAU go it the best IMO, wish they'd adapt that into the comics.

[liwanag]

imagine hawkman's wings getting an upgrade where it can transform and become razor sharp and metallic. so the next time black adam tries to rip the wings off he would get cut and sliced by it.

this is probably too much, but maybe hawkman can get super-saiyan. wings on fire, extra strength, healing and agility, rage multiplied to ten.

[Hawkman]

Bleeding Cool has posted an article about the thematic appeal--or lack thereof--of certain comic book superheroes, and Hawkman's mentioned in a not-so-flattering light. From the article:

Hawkman, on the other hand, is a character dead on arrival. That may sound harsh, but there’s a reason he’s never had his own movie or show (or filmed pilot that’s never been picked up): he’s an incoherent mess. Put aside the continuity chaos of the Golden Age reincarnated archeologist and the Silver Age space cop, and what do you have? Years of a vanilla personality, silly costume and generic if overly complicated powers. There’s a kernel of an idea with him representing the purity of antiquity, but it’s never been fleshed out and is all but nullified by the bolted-on science fiction elements that point to the advantages of progress. Much like Aquaman, attempts were made to spice the character up by emphasizing his bull headedness and conservatism, especially in contrast to Green Arrow’s liberalism, but the hawk totem and use of archaic weapons never intertwined to any satisfying degree. The fatalistic connection between Carter Hall and his wife Shiera only limited the possibilities for the character, and his connection to ancient Egypt is perfunctory at best, serving only to make the character distant and unknowable.

I actually don't completely disagree with this. In fact, I think his final two points are spot-on, and indeed were my biggest issues with the Egyptian origin and why I don't hope to ever see it again. Likewise, if Hawkman ever does make the jump to the big screen, concessions will no doubt have to be made all around, as I don't believe any straight-up interpretation would make that transition in a favorable way.

Where I disagree, however, is in terms of his personality being "vanilla" and his costume being "silly." The former may have been true in the Silver Age, but I defy anyone to name many DC characters who weren't during that era, and nowadays I think Hawkman's pretty well defined as a hard-nosed, uncompromising warrior. Likewise, while the costume tends to be a love-it or hate-it type of design--as many comments found in this very appreciation thread are indicative of--it remains an overall unique aspect of that character that, incidentally, plays well to his now longstanding demeanor.

[scary harpy]

Bleeding Cool has posted an article about the thematic appeal--or lack thereof--of certain comic book superheroes, and Hawkman's mentioned in a not-so-flattering light. From the article:

I actually don't completely disagree with this. In fact, I think his final two points are spot-on, and indeed were my biggest issues with the Egyptian origin and why I don't hope to ever see it again. Likewise, if Hawkman ever does make the jump to the big screen, concessions will no doubt have to be made all around, as I don't believe any straight-up interpretation would make that transition in a favorable way.

Where I disagree, however, is in terms of his personality being "vanilla" and his costume being "silly." The former may have been true in the Silver Age, but I defy anyone to name many DC characters who weren't during that era, and nowadays I think Hawkman's pretty well defined as a hard-nosed, uncompromising warrior. Likewise, while the costume tends to be a love-it or hate-it type of design--as many comments found in this very appreciation thread are indicative of--it remains an overall unique aspect of that character that, incidentally, plays well to his now longstanding demeanor.

I agree with this article completely. These flaws keept Hawkman a 2^nd tier character.

With a little vision and continuous effort, Hawkman could be on par with Batman.