Hawkman: Awakening

Brian C. Poole
4 min readJun 17, 2019

Hawkman: Awakening brings a fresh spin to a venerable character with a tangled history.

An encounter with a mystic artifact causes archaeologist Carter Hall, a/k/a Hawkman, to come to some crucial realizations. He knew he’d reincarnated many times across history, but now discovers that he’s also reincarnated across space and dimensions and that his original life well pre-dates the time of Ancient Egypt he’d long associated with his origins. That sends Hawkman on a quest through his past lives, moving through Egypt, Monster Island, Thanagar and even the Microverse on the trail of clues he’d left for himself in the past to help prepare him for the arrival of a menace that could threaten the entire universe.

Hawkman can be a difficult character to get a handle on, both for creators and fans. Various attempts to “straighten out” his origins over the years often have only made things more confusing. Writer Robert Venditti succeeds by leaning into that inherent obstacle and making it a strength. By embracing all of the disparate versions of Hawkman spun out over the years and using them to create a historical jigsaw puzzle for the hero to unravel, Venditti honors the past, but does so in a smart way that’s accessible and entertaining, providing narrative momentum that helps illuminate the strengths of the character.

Venditti’s Hawkman is heavily rooted in a pulp, or neo-pulp, aesthetic. Indiana Jones is the obvious touchstone here, as the writer shrewdly blends the superhero aspects of the character with his vocation as archaeologist and scholar, using both halves of his persona as part of an inspired jaunt through time and space. Venditti also borrows from the old Doc Sampson stories, including the globetrotting adventures and that Hawkman has an extensive support network comprised of the descendants of people he’s helped across his various lives. It’s a smart idea that provides an elegant solution to the logistical support the plot calls for on occasion. Venditti effectively demonstrates how Carter’s past lives inform and interact with his present incarnation, making the most of his checkered past but in a manner that’s sensible and opens up the character in a way that’s rarely been seen in recent years.

Venditti’s character work is strong, making Carter as relatable as he’s ever been. For a character known more for his physicality, Venditti deftly demonstrates how Carter’s intellect is as big a piece of his puzzle. He tones down some of the more strident aspects that other writers…

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Brian C. Poole

Author (Grievous Angels) and pop culture gadabout #amwriting