Hawkman, The - Archives, Volume Two (Archive Editions (Graphic Novels)) by Gardner Fox

Unlike many who review these books, I didn't grow up in the Silver Age. I grew up in the 80s, and I grew up Marvel. My knowledge of DC heroes came from one place - the Superfriends. I watched them in syndication for years. Challenge of the Superfriends was the obvious favorite. And my favorite Superfriend? Hawkman. He could fly like Superman! He, uhhh, carried a mace sometimes, which he never used! But most of all, he had the most striking outfit of the bunch. I never knew what Hawkman, and what was his accoutrement. Did he actually have wings? Did he need them to fly (when he was shown flying, often he just floated - his wings rarely flapped)? And what was up with his head? Is that a helmet? If so, why doesn't he ever take it off?

Well, anyway, these memories led me to purchase Hawkman, Volume 2 archives (well, that and a sweet price tag). This volume gathers issues one through four of Hawkman's namesake series, so even as a volume 2, it's hardly in medias res. The stories are pretty standard fare, although I find the Hawkman and Hawkgirl pretty uninspired. Carter and Shiera of the Golden Age seemed more interesting. The tales here range from the mundane (Hawkman tests out some wings, while some random gangsters cause trouble) to more sci-fi-ey (Hawkman and Hawkgirl must stop an alien species from absorbing cosmic rays in order to continue enslaving their planet - they are apparently no danger to Earth). In this iteration, Hawkman and Hawkgirl are space cops who are learning new policing techniques from Earth (which, as far as I can tell, is otherwise well behind the homeworld of the Hawks, Thanagar). Hawkman doesn't seem very hawkish for the most part - he's mostly tame. Often, Shiera is downright useless. As far as I can tell, Zatanna makes her first appearance in this volume. I've never liked Zatanna, but that rack and those fishnets have kept her around for a long time (she's probably more popular than Hawkman nowadays).

I like the artwork enough, and of course DC does these volumes right. The paper and coloring are just great. One small thing that bugs me, though, is the Hawkman helmet. The white of the eyes are clearly painted, so as far as I can tell, neither Hawkman nor Hawkgirl have any peripheral vision (and for the most part, the comic agrees - the two are generally staring straight ahead, all of the time). That's probably the first police technique they should borrow from earth - don't wear a mask that obstructs your vision. Also, sometimes the cartoonish gets lazy, and those painted eyes move. This is most apparent with the strange disembodied heads of Hawkman and Hawkgirl that end every part of the story.

But anyway, this is good fun. I deduct one star because I just think that Hawkman and Hawkgirl should be better characterized. They're kind of boring. A little Golden Age irascibility would really help here.

I am an old Hawkman fan ant it was great to read the old stories. The book was in great shap.

Written by Gardner Fox with art by Murphy Anderson. I received almost as much bliss reading the archive edition as I did reading the original comics back in 1964. The Silver Age at its height!

Always enjoyable to read

The book was packed perfectly. It arrived right on time. It was a gift for my brother. I don't know what the book was about, but I know that he liked very much.

Quite possibly the most consistently beautiful artwork of the Silver Age . Curt Swan's work was perhaps more charming and natural; Gil Kane was possibly more dynamic and dramatic; Kirby was definitely more powerful and bolder; and Colan was more surreal and moodier. But Murphy Anderson(later to be half of the incredible Swanderson Superman art team )was the epitome of the Silver Age comic artist. The cover to Hawkman #7 is maybe the finest cover ever produced during this magical age of creativity or since. Smooth, polished, and detailed, Anderson's inking and penciling were an exquisite combination of the best characteristic of all his peerless peers.