Waiting In The Wings -- 1/13/2010

Not much in the way of Hawk-related stuff in shops this week (despite several Blackest Night tie-ins, I don't think either the Hawks or the Lovers will pop up in them), so let's take a look at some other DC offerings and see what looks intriguing or entertaining.

Action Comics #885 -- I read the last issue of Superman, featuring the return of Mon-El in his new, Superman-inspired uniform, and it scratched an itch for me.  I really enjoyed how Robinson handled the young hero and am eager to see how that continues in this issue.

Batman: The Brave And The Bold TPB -- This is consistantly and effectively one of the most fun television shows I have ever seen, and this seems like the perfect jumping on point for the comic adaption.  Outrageous!

Flash vs Gorilla Grodd Mini-Statue -- Aww Yeah, Silver Age!  I won't be buying this, but man, that's a neat piece.

The Shield #5 -- Any comic which features a hero fighting giant Nazi robots in South America while fending off the national superhero team of China gets the nod in my book.

Custom Mighty Mugg Hawkman

From the "never gonna see the light of day" department, check out this very cool custom Mighty Muggs Hawkman.  

I have never bought one of these guys before, although whenever I see the classic Iron Man I am tempted.  They have a sort of goofy charm, especially in this day and age of more and more articulation and design work.  Sort of an expressionist starkness, if you will.

Image: Custom Mighty Muggs Hawkman, 2008, image retrieved from Custom Mighty Muggs.

Read: Rann-Thanagar Holy War #7

Issue: Rann-Thanagar Holy War #7
Title: "On The Eve Of..."
Published Date: Jan 2009
Generation: Modern Carter
Retcon Status: In Continuity

Summary: On Rann, Adam Strange breaks the group up into teams.  He and Comet will ferry Starfire and The Weird out into space, outside of the forcefield, where they can Zeta Beam to Lady Styx and inform her about Synnar's ascendance.  Then he and Comet will attempt to Zeta Beam to Earth for reinforcements.  Meanwhile, Hawkman and the rest will find the generator Synnar is using on Rann.  The plan falls apart quickly, though, once Comet teleports everyone into space.  Synnar has placed a second force field in space, preventing the heroes from Zeta Beaming to Earth, and Starfire and Weird are immediately taken prisoner by Styx.  

Adam and Comet decide to investigate Synnar's satelite, since they can Zeta Beam there, and discover that it is a giant battery, draining nearly half a billion people of their life force to give Synnar the power of godhood.  And this is only one of several thousand such satelites, meaning Synnar has trillions such poor souls in his thrall.  On Lady Styx's flagship, Weird is able to slip through the guards and use his intangible hand to gran Styx's heart, forcing their release.  The quartet meets up and heads back to the surface.

On Rann, Synnar tells Deacon Dark that while the first step of his resurrection is complete, more is yet to come.  Meanwhile, Hawkman has found the generator, and is prepping the team to take it out.  He and Adam exchange information about their respective visions with Synnar, and Adam worries that whatever action he is taking here (including the mysterious "Plan X" he told Sardath to prepare for) will cause the ruin of Rann.  With the team ready, Adam and Hawkman launch the assault which will either end the Holy War or destroy his adopted home.

Review: The title of this story is very accurate, because we are in fact on the eve of armageddon in this issue.  Starlin clearly is only interested in certain characters at this point (namely, the Abberant Six, Synnar, and his cronies), so the other characters (such as Animal Man and Starfire) come across as less than important -- even when they are front and center!  But that is a result of the largish cast moreso than anything else, and since I like the characters which Starlin is focusing on, I don't mind so much.

Lim's art is fantastic, as it has been this entire series.  Sometimes you just get a really good match of artist and story, and this is one of those cases.  His Hawkman continues to look powerful and imposing, with a large, off-putting helmet which seperates him from his fellow heroes.  Everything just looks gorgeous, and his generous use of double page layouts, where there will be a two page splash to show the scale of something such as Styx's armada, overlayed with smaller panels, is really nice.

This series is pretty much rocketing towards its finale at this point, and there's no crazy revelations or anything like we had in the previous one.  It's still a good read, and fun sort of throwback cosmic comics.  I wish it had more Hawkman in it, but that's the way things go sometimes.

Image: Rann-Thanagar Holy War #7, 2009, Jim Starlin.

Hawkman vs The Falcon by MD Bright

Our sketch today is a commission piece by MD Bright, best know to me for illustrating Green Lantern through a good portion of the 90s.  And like any good commission, it's a fight -- between the Winged Wonder and Marvel flying hero, "Snap" Wilson, AKA The Falcon!  Considering I just got the Marvel Legends Falcon toy for Christmas, I thought this was appropriate.

Bright's always had a clean, crisp style which I thought made him really well-suited to the DC heroes and this image is no exception.  The wings are strong and dynamic on both characters, and both look suitably ripped.  The details of Hawkman's costume are nice, including well-proportioned Honor Wings and a clean wing harness.  I can't imagine how nice this would look in color!

Although I am not happy with Falcon getting the drop on Hawkman, this piece still rocks!

Disclaimer: I do not own or have possession of this sketch.  It is being reposted from the cited website only.

Image: Hawkman vs The Falcon, 2001, MD Bright, retrieved from www.mdbright.com.

Image: Hawkworld Annual #2 House Ad

Here we have an DC House Ad for Hawkworld Annual #2 (which I picked up at Charlotte Comic-Con last year!), hyping that issue's tie-in with the Armageddon 2001 event.  I have not had a chance to read this comic, because I haven't started with Hawkworld yet, but this ad would have made me want to pick it up back in the day.

I got this ad from Dixon over at Crimson Lightning, which is appropriate since it also features Flash Annual #4.  Needless to say I like this ad because it features my two favorite DC heroes!

I miss Annuals for the most part.  I like the idea of getting a big ole, oversized comic.  DC has been slowly but surely reintroducing these, and hopefully that trend will continue.

Image: Hawkworld Annual #2 House Ad, 1991, image retrieved from Crimson Lightning.

Waiting In The Wings -- 1/6/2010

Well, it doesn't look like we are getting anything overtly Hawk-related this week at our local comic shops, so let's take a look over the DC offerings and see what looks promising.

Doom Patrol #6 -- I have really enjoyed this series, and the two part Blackest Night tie-in that just wrapped up was extremely strong.  Giffen seems to be really enjoying himself handling the Patrol, and they are a good fit for his writing style.  The feature consistantly has this looming mien of uphappiness and menace hanging over the preceedings, and frankly I think that is great.  The Patrol should be the "weird" group, the misfits and freaks who don't fit in, and with Giffen amping up the "Anti Professor Xavier" vibe of Dr. Caulder, that foreboding bearing is perfectly suited to the team.  I have never read the Patrol before this title, but I have fallen hard on this series.

That and the Metal Men backup (which will be sorely missed!) is freaking hilarious.

JSA All-Stars #2 -- The first issue was very well done, and the second looks promising as well.  I was not really thrilled with the idea of splitting up the JSA, but this take seems like the best way to do this sort of thing.  The preview pages reveal that Johnny Sorrow is bringing back the Wizard, Tigress, and Geomancer -- it's like we're back in the early days of JSA right here!

Red Tornado #5 -- DC used to do minis like this back in the 80s, and I would like to see the trend continue.  Characters like Reddy are worthy of attention and face time in places other than team books, and these minis are the perfect avenue for just that.  This series has been very entertaining while fleshing out some of reddy's history and potential cast.  We have an ally in Red Torpedo, a potential sidekick in Red Inferno, and a nemesis in Red Volcano.  These may be obvious directions but sometimes the obvious choice is the best choice.  Hopefully they will stick around for a while.

So, you guys think anything else this week looks especially cool?

Read: Hawkman Special (1986)

Issue: Hawkman Special
Title: "Last Rights"
Published Date: ??? 1986 (There is no month on the cover!)
Generation: Silver Age Katar
Retcon Status: Out Of Continuity

Summary: Months after the events of the Shadow War of Hawkman, Katar Hol is plagued by nightmares, haunted by the Thanagarians he was forced to kill in their invasion attempt.  The Hol's discussion about Katar's nightmares has to wait, though, when they receive a call from the new police chief to report to Midway City Museum to investigate a strange glowing energy field.  When the Hawks touch the field, they find themselves in a strange wasteland, with giant misshapen beasts.  The beasts are called poltergeists, and are formed from strong emotions in the space between life and death... or so they are told by the Gentleman Ghost! Hawkman's interrogation has to wait though, as they are then greeted by what appears to be the ghost of the recently deceased Mavis Trent, who has lured them here before moving on.  The purpose of the lure?  To set up an ambush by the dead Thanagarians!  The Hawks fight but find themselves unable to get an upper hand on their foes.  Eventually, the world starts to fall apart and they wind up back in the museum and the energy field disappates.

Concerned for her husband, Shayera tells him about an old Thanagarian ritual her parents told her about, where the subject enters a trance and is able to help others "move on."  Moved by her concern, Katar agrees to the ritual.  The next day, while Katar is getting ready in Carter Hall's office, Shiera Hall has to shoo away the museum's new resident artist... who, unbeknownst to everyone, is actually a Thanagarian secret agent!  But for now that remains hidden, and Katar flies to Grinder's Bluff, the former HQ of the invasion and the location where Fell Andar died.  He calms himself, and enters the trance.  

In the trance, Hawkman again encounters Gentleman Ghost, who tells him that he is here to help his old foe and act as his spirit guide.  The Ghost leads Hawkman to each of the Thanagarians in turn; some are angry with him, some just want to say goodbye, and some just need the release.  But while he is helping his fellow Thanagarians in the trance, Katar's body is threatened in the real world by freshly animated rock monsters!  As the geomorphic creatures are about to strike, Katar is saved by the intervention of his wife!  A pitched battle ensues, in which the rock monsters are beaten back, and Hawkman and Hawkwoman fly off, ready to face the future.  But back at Grinder's Bluff, Gentleman Ghost admonishes the spirit of Fell Andar, who animated the rocks, saying that the Hawks are his to play with, and his alone.

Review: This issue serves as a Hawkman Annual, essentially, but DC policy at the time said that only ongoing series could have Annuals, and as this was released before Hawkman v.2 launched, it's a Special instead.  Semantics aside, this is a solid Annual/Special, featuring an oversized tale with several action sequences and plenty of characterization.  It's very clear that Tony Isabella had a strong plan of what he wanted to do with the Hawks after Shadow War and all of that starts right here.  The idea that the Thanagarians need closure is a very 80s sort of superheroing idea.  It reminded me, in a tangential way, of some of the Aquaman material from this time, where Arthur was forced to face and come to terms with his own anger and resentment.  But here, instead of his rage, it is Hawkman's guilt which he must overcome.  Howell's art is solid but not really superb; he is helped out quite a bit by Ron Randall's inking, which gives everything a nice bit of weight.  All in all a good issue though, one easily worthy of a second read.  (One of the reasons this review is late!)

Interesting also to note that this issue is the first one to definitively state that Gentleman Ghost is, in fact, a real ghost, and not a trickster or magician.  Lord knows that DC would get some mileage out of that revelation over the years!

Image: Hawkman Special, 1986, Richard Howell.