Read: Hawkman v.4:no.9

Issue: Hawkman v.4:no.9 (reprinted in Hawkman v.2: Allies & Enemies)
Title: "In The Hands Of Fate"
Published Date: Jan 2003
Generation: Modern Carter
Retcon Status: In Continuity

Summary: Arriving back at Stonechat after his dinnre with Ray Palmer, Carter is surprised by the arrival of his son Hector, AKA Dr. Fate.  Hector explains to his father that he has now been caught up in his parents cycle of reincarnation, and takes Carter on a mystical trip back to Ancient Egypt, where he explains that not only are Khufu and Chay-era destined to be reborn again and again, but their treacherous high priest Hath-Set is destined to kill them again and again.  Fate then warns that the circumstances behind Carter's resurrection, and other changes such as his presence in the cycle, have made the future unpredictable and dangerous.

Meanwhile, tossing and turning in her bed, Kendra has flashbacks of her own, as she remembers a traumatic attack by a pair of police officers on her and her mother when she was only a child, which resulted in the death of one of the officers.  Not wanting to be alone with her memories, Kendra goes to Stonechat seeking out Carter, where she tells Carter that his complete withdrawl from her life hurt her.  But the discussion is interupted as the dead body of a Yeti is dumped through the roof, with a message about Kendra's uncle Speed attached to it.

Review: It's weird to get a guest star again after just having one last issue, but considering the new connection between Fate and Hawkman I guess it's okay.  Johns is clearly doing his worldbuilding stuff here and that's just fine with me, because it's really well done.  The idea of Dr. Fate being part of the resurrection cycle is interesting in that it is a bit of a departure for the character, who typically was passed to helm-bearer to helm-bearer; I get the feeling that Johns was trying to make the "true" or "definitive" version of the character like he was doing with Hawkman.  Does anything even need to be said about Rags Morales at this point?  

The Yeti seems to me to be a sly reference to the Silver Age story "Valley Of The Vanishing Men!"

Image: Hawkman v.4:no.9, 2003, Andrew Robinson.