Hawkworld (Hawkman)

Hawkworld (1989) #1-3

by Timothy Truman

Trade paperback collection.

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Graphic Novels, Superheroes, Science Fiction, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1989

About the author

Timothy Truman is an American writer, artist and musician. He is best known for his stories and Wild West-style comic book art, and in particular, for his work on Grimjack (with John Ostrander), Scout, and the reinvention of Jonah Hex, with Joe R. Lansdale. Truman is currently writing Conan and is an instructor at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design.
Truman's first professional comics work was Grimjack with writer John Ostrander, for the independent comics company First Comics. Grimjack first appeared in Starslayer #10 in November 1983, before moving to his own series after issue #18 in 1984, and continued for 81 issues. Along with being a fan favorite and often imitated character, Grimjack almost single-handedly defined the "grim and gritty" action comic character archetype.
Truman has been continuously creative for more than 20 years, displaying his pulp sensitivities in his writing. In 1985, he created Scout, which was followed by Scout: War Shaman, a futuristic western. A year later, he relaunched the Hillman characters Airboy and The Heap for Eclipse Comics. He also developed The Prowler, a Shadow type character, and adapted The Spider for Eclipse. In 1991, at DC Comics he created Hawkworld, a reinvention of Hawkman. With author Joe R. Lansdale, he reinterpreted Jonah Hex as a horror western. In it, their creation of villain Edgar Autumn elicited a complaint from musician Edgar Winter. With his son, Benjamin Truman, he created A Man Named Hawken.
Truman was chosen by Dark Horse Comics to illustrate a newly completed Tarzan novel and wrote a story arc for the comic book. He also wrote virtually the entire run of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter for Valiant Comics, after David Michelinie launched the book with its first three-issue story arc and subsequently departed the series. For the defunct SF imprint of DC, Helix, he created The Black Lamb. He also worked on a typical pulp adventure Guns of the Dragon, featuring Enemy Ace and Bat Lash; and wrote Star Wars at Dark Horse Comics. While at Dark Horse Comics, he took over the writing of Conan from Kurt Busiek in 2006, and after that series ended he started Conan The Cimmerian.
Truman's startling work, Simon Girty, Renegade was a two-volume black and white graphic novel that translated the horrors and triumphs of the American settler's western frontier in a fresh, interesting light. In bold, black and white use of positive and negative space, Truman appealed to both young and old audiences in West Virginia and Pennsylvania. It was especially important for West Virginians that had been struggling against novelist Zane Grey's portrayal of Lewis Wetzel in an overly romanticized, florid light. Truman himself is an avid historian who dislikes nothing more than to see a drawing of a war using the wrong weaponry, and the second volume of his two-volume series on Simon Girty was devoted to the errors caught in his first volume.
Tecumseh! a graphic novel based on the West Virginia Outdoor Theater, is a colored graphic novel that shows the play from beginning to end. It renewed interest in the warrior in Appalachia. When asked why he used "Tecumseh" instead of "Tecumtheh" he explained he didn't want to explain to the mainstream audience the variance in spelling — the movement on pronunciation began with General William Tecumseh Sherman who came from a family that wanted to commemorate the warrior, but felt the lisping "Tecumtheh" would be unmanly.

Reviews

[Dan Schwent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Idealistic young Katar Hol rejected his privileged upbringing to be part of the police force but soon finds out that Thanagar's seedy underbelly is a thousand times worse than he expected...

I've never been much of a Hawkman fan but I've loved Tim Truman's artwork since Grimjack and Scout. I unearthed Hawkworld for a cool three bucks a comic convention and decided it was time to read it, only twenty-something years late to the party.

Hawkworld sees Katar Hol go from being a young cop to a patsy to an exile on a remote island to taking the final steps to becoming Hawkman. The man against his own culture theme reminded me of Elric a bit. While a lot of reboots felt unnecessary, I feel like this one did a lot to modernize Hawkman and make him a potential A-lister for DC. That didn't happen but it could have with the right creative team.

The artwork is well-suited to the tale, full of alien creatures and ancient weapons. It's a lot more in line with what Truman's later work on Jonah Hex than his Scout stuff. Truman's Dungeons and Dragons roots were showing quite a bit in the gritty underworld of Thanagar. Byth recast as a dirty cop worked pretty well for me. It was pretty thrilling once Katar came for Byth after a decade of exile.

Hawkworld was damn good. Now I want to go out and track down subsequent Hawkman tales, to find out how this Hawkman and Hawkwoman wound up on earth. Four out of five stars.

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating 3.7 stars.
I really had no clue what I was going to get reading this CE.
On the one hand, I’m glad so many things surprised me. On the other hand, I wish I understood things a little more as I was reading the first issue.

This felt reminiscent of a science fiction movie, like the one with Harrison Ford… Edit: Blade Runner! (It’s based off of Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?)
Now, I’m reflecting, it also reminded me of that Buffy comic where it was years in the future. (Again, I cannot remember the name!)

Anyway, I enjoyed seeing the different classes and their ways of life.

I was saddened by the treatment of Shayera, she was just so different! Until the last issue where this new Sheyara is like the old version we all know.

I don’t really know how I feel about that. It also makes Katar and Sheyara’s relationship feel a little gross, her being a lot younger than he is.

Overall, I liked how different this was from the Hawk stories we’ve had before but that’s also why I felt a bit disconnected with it.

Oh and I forgot to say that I liked the art! I rated this higher because of it.

[Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the late 1980's DC began publishing darker and more mature content with the success of books like The Dark Knight Returns. As a result of Crisis on Infinite Earths they started bringing on new creative teams to redefine classic characters and retell their origins to fit the post-crisis timeline. Books like Batman Year One, Green Lantern Emerald Dawn, The Man of Steel and Green Arrow The Longbow Hunters were examples of some of their classic characters getting the modern treatment, and this book belongs in that same list. It's essentially Hawkman Year One, and it's a great origin for the character. Katar Hol is new to the Thanagarian police force and he misses the old days of Thanagar in which they were a good people uncorrupted with power. He is eventually betrayed by his fellow commander, and exiled on an island for a decade and must come back to take his revenge. Timothy Truman was most well known for his Conan the Barbarian stories and that is kind of what this story feels like. The thanagarian mythology is rich, and explored well within this book and it's a most read for any DC fan. It kind of feels like Judge Dredd meets Conan the Barbarian.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great. I will say upfront I'm a huge Tim Truman fan, so I may be a bit biased.

This presented Thanagar in a new light. The story was basically an allegory for colonialism, racism and xenophobia which may have turned some people off. I thought it was a great reworking. The Tim Truman art was great, reminded me a lot of his Grimjack work. The setting itself was similar with the alien races and the seedy planet.

This reworking of Hawkman was done in 1989, so we've seen so many incarnations of the character since then this may have gotten lost in the shuffle. If anything the continuity just got more and more confusing. But if you want to read a Hawkman story that requires really no prior knowledge of the character, this is the book for you.

[Rylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

woa this took me by surprise. growing up i was never really a fan of the hawks they never really interested me but this story really grabbed me. it’s hard to believe it’s from the 80s it has such a cinematic feel to it like every panel was engaging. i think a huge reason for this book being as engaging as it was is having the writer do the art. everything feels intentional and you can tell each panel was exactly how it was intended to be envisioned. there’s a lot of rich visual storytelling, using the medium to its fullest. the story is really interesting reimagining the games origins putting them on an alien planet called thanagar as cops. the story deals with a lot of interesting political themes like corruption, the advancement of technology, and colonialism. it’s surprisingly deep for a hawkman comic. overall i highly recommend this it’s surprising that dc pays it little attention considering how much of a masterpiece it is in comic book storytelling. this should be on par with the dark knight returns and the killing joke.

[Fugo Feedback · Rating 4 out of 5]

RELECTURA DE LA EDICIÓN DE ZINCO, RERRESEÑA PENDIENTE.
En su momento conseguí el tercer y último tomo de la edición española de Zinco y lo leí ignorando qué pasó antes, y aun así me gustó. Mucho tiempo después la conseguí completa, la leí de pies a cabeza y no hizo más que sumar méritos. El guión de Truman es profundo, interesante, tiene un interesante punto de vista político y en ningún momento deja de ser entretenido, pese a la seriedad con la que enfoca temas como la desigualdad social y cultural. El dibujo de Alcatena no hace más que aportar virtudes estéticas y su estilo es perfecto para el tono de la historia. Quizás lo menos logrado sea el coloreado, pero es algo perdonable para el estándar de la época. En resumen, una obra casi impecable que pese a estar "fuera de continuidad" del caótico universo DC no pierde ni un ápice de fuerza ni interés. Habrá que ver si puedo decir lo mismo cuando lea cosas más actuales de Hawkman y sus múltiples interpretaciones.

Leído en la edición en tres tomos "prestige" de Editorial Zinco, que aunque está un poco hecha percha es bastante buena, pese a algún que otro error de edición menor (como esos dos malditos globos en blanco del tomo 2).

[Alex Sarll]

The story is predictable - grim and oppressed poor, cruel and decadent rich, and a brutal military police keeping the two separate. Corruption, you say? Imagine my surprise. And as part of the trend of darkening up superheroes who were doing quite nicely as they were, this 1989 book can be considered a forerunner of much that's gone wrong at DC since; it's not even the most interesting vision of a sinister Thanagar, when you consider that two years earlier Alan Moore gave us the creepy BDSM bastard Hawks in Swamp Thing. But good heavens it's beautiful. When Katar stands, hating himself, on a grassy isle, this could almost be Manara minus his faith in the world's inner joy. I need to find some more stuff Tim Truman drew - just maybe some that somebody else wrote.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book! After seeing hawkman in the Black Adam movie and liking some of the JSA characters from that, I decided to see what hawkman comics there were and this was recommended as a good starting point which I agree with. It shows an origin for hawkman and hawkgirl that also tells a very enjoyable story and left me wanting to read more, highly recommend this.

[Devero · Rating 3 out of 5]

Avevo sentito parlare diverse volte, in passato, di questa mini. Ero interessato a leggerla sopratutto per Alcatena, disegnatore argentino che apprezzo per alcuni suoi lavori editi in Italia dall'editoriale Eura-Aurea sulle sue testate, Lanciostory e Skorpio. Truman qui compare come sceneggiatore e disegnatore, lasciando le chine a Alcatena, ma probabilmente ha disegnato solo delle bozze visto che lo stile di Quique è preponderante. Come sceneggiatore, di lui, avevo letto solo alcune storie di Turok della Valiant di Shooter.
La storia è quella del giovane Katar Hol su Thanagar, e del modo in cui è legato al passato del suo pianeta e non apprezzi più di tanto il presente dittatoriale, o meglio, il modo in cui tratta le genti asservite allo stato degli uomini aquila. La decadenza della civiltà è ovunque, sia dal punto di vista della cultura materiale, sia da quello della moralità. Tra complotti, vendette e comprensione della necessità di aiutare davvero gli ultimi, i reietti, i resi poveri dai Thanagariani, la storia giunge a una conclusione che è un inizio.
3 stelle piene per questo albo.

[Jemir · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the days of yore when (in terms of comic book continuity) re-boots, re-imaginings and grim and gritty remained all the rage (no pun intended) it was common to see silver age characters and visions processed with a focus on seriousness through a grim and gritty lense.

"Hawkworld" has long been one of my favorites and that thought has grown many years removed from when the intial mini series (the three issues that make up this collection) came out.

The story focuses on the planet Thanagar (a war mongering planet with colonist like tendencies to conquer other worlds for resources and keep citizens of the conquered planets as prisoners, indentured servants or as slaves outright) where the elite "natural citizens" live in majestic cities in the sky while all "others" live on the desolate grounds below where resources are low and a police force known as Hawkmen enforce the rule of law on the "non-citizens" below in ways that are unjust and corrupt.

Into this mix comes Hawkman Katar Hol (a child of an affluent, politically connected, family from the skymade cities) and fellow law enforcer Shayara Thol (she too was born on Thanagar but her parents were not. She thus grew up in a ghetto and has earned her way up the latter the hard way) as they seperately and together - over a span of years - deal with corruption and crime on a virtual world of haves and have nots. In scope this is like Blade Runner meets V for Vendetta with a sci-fi twist. Recommended if you're looking for anyone looking for a fun, many tiered, read.

[Dony Grayman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Le habría venido bien un capítulo extra con lo que siguió a Hawkworld, pero no deja de ser una buena reedición.

[Zintulo Deyuno · Rating 4 out of 5]

HAWKMAN: Mundo Halcón.
Colección Héroes y villanos DC, #35 (según el código de barras), #39 (según orden de publicación en España).

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's two origin stories for Hawkman.

The first is the story of Carter Hall, and antiquities collector who is a re-incarnated Egyptian prince. I always liked that more over the second origin story, the story of Katar Hol, a space cop from the planet Thanager. Hawkworld changed all that.

The reason is the very mature themes going through the book. Thanager is a heavily militarized planet and a colonist. Hol is from the rich Thanagarian population and fascinated by Thanagarian history and culture. Surprisingly for a man in his position he becomes a police officer and is sent on patrol to the slums where the non-Thanagrians are left in slums; he discovers the hardship they've been forced into and that Thanagar has practically raped their planets of their precious commodities.

He discovers the police are corrupt...

It's a candid and sobering take on military and colonialism. Both Hawkman and Hawkgirls journeys here make them true planetary heroes, an aspect that was never really fulfilled in further episodes of this take of the characters. And the quality here is never surpassed. Timothy Truman excels in story telling and visuals. This is the zenith of story telling for Hawkman and Hawkgirl, making their characters rich, complicated, devoted and giving them a powerful origin story. A must read for any comic book fan.

[Joni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nunca había leído nada de Hawkman y al principio me costó encontrarle la vuelta a esta historia. Dc y sus revueltas de continuidad marean para quienes no están insertados del todo en el mainstream. Esta es una historia que transcurre por completo en Thanagar, origen de estos policías paramilitares que son los Hawkman, el o los que se conocen de actuar en la tierra y con la liga son representativos de esa fuerza compuesta por miles. En ningún momento se menciona la tierra ni otro personaje, se trata de Katar Hol y sus ideales, como descubre la tiranía de su imperio y se revela. Es una historia predecible, todo lo que pasa se ve llegar sin mucha sorpresa pero está bien narrada y entretiene. El arte de Alcatena, una de las principales razones por las que le entré a este tomo es maravilloso, con el estilo de la Fierro o Heavy Metal de los ochentas, bien entintado y coloreado se disfruta a montones.

[Zachary King · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hawkman reimagined as a space cop. Very straightfaced re-visioning of the character as a warrior on a corrupt world. Effective world-building and sets a tone to which it commits wholeheartedly. Katar Hol is a conflicted, complicated character who makes a number of moral concessions before he decides who he wants to be. The epitome of a grim and gritty reboot - It was a weird time in comics!

[Variaciones Enrojo]

Edición digital del clásico de Truman y Alcatena.

[Versus Tai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recopila los ya clásicos tres prestiges de Hawkworld postcrisis. Buena edición que habría estado mejor que incluyeran los primeros números de la serie regular posterior.

[Luis Fernández Tavera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hawkman: Mundo Halcón (Hawkworld en el original) es una miniserie de tres números de la editorial estadounidense DC del año 1989, recopilado posteriormente en un tomo.

¿De qué va esta estupenda pero injustamente poco conocida miniserie?

Katar Hol es un joven policía idealista del planeta Thanagar, hijo de una familia acaudalada, habituado a vivir en el lujo, pero preocupado por las injusticias sociales y la pérdida de identidad de su planeta natal.

Thanagar tiene una agresiva política de conquistar y minar otros mundos en busca de sus recursos para mantener el alto nivel de vida de sus familias más privilegiadas. Al percatarse Hol de ello, se rebela, es apresado y enviado al exilio.

En 1985, la editorial DC quiso reordenar todo su universo y mandó reinterpretar a muchos de sus componentes, en ocasiones con gran éxito, como fue el caso de John Byrne con "Superman" (1985), Frank Miller y su "Batman: Año Uno" (1987) o Mike Grell con "Green Arrow" (1987).

La tarea de revitalizar a Hawkman se le encomendó a un autor, que empezaba a despuntar, de nombre Tim Truman.

Hawkman pasaría a ser ahora un oficial de policía alienígena (en lugar de un príncipe egipcio reencarnado en arqueólogo condenado a presenciar la muerte de su amada una y otra vez), llegado a nuestro planeta, persiguiendo a un criminal huido desde el suyo.

Valoración final:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ de 5.
Imprescindible, aunque se hubiese beneficiado enormemente de un final algo más limpio.

Antes de mi análisis, no debemos olvidar que el año de publicación de Hawkworld es 1989, es decir, la miniserie es deudora directa de la Era Reagan.

Durante su presidencia, Ronald Reagan se caracterizó por una política de liberalismo económico, a favor de fuertes recortes fiscales, la reducción del Estado, meter en cintura a los sindicatos y el incremento de presencia militar en otros países.

No hace falta más que mirar la portada para cerciorarnos del Zeitgeist de aquel entonces; el protagonista, ametralladora en mano, casi sepultado entre una montaña de alienígenas asustados.

Estamos en la era de la proliferación de largometrajes como Top Gun, varias secuelas de Rocky y héroes como John Rambo.

Truman fue muy inteligente al servirse de una ambientación alienígena para plantear las cuestiones y los problemas de esa Era agresiva y que lamentablemente sigue de rabiosa actualidad; la explotación económica de países más pobres (léase planetas en esta miniserie) y más desfavorecidos, la utilización de mano de obra extranjera barata al tiempo que se alimenta la xenofobia, la brutalidad y corrupción policial y la desigualdad social.

Tiene la serie mucho de "El conde de Montecristo" de Alejandro Dumas. El exilio en una isla imposible de abandonar, el regreso a la civilización y la posterior venganza de Katar Hol.

Tiene Hawkworld giros muy interesantes por inesperados como la "muerte" de Shayera, el concepto de las torres desafiantes por encima de las nubes (y por ende del Bien y del Mal), la modernización de la armadura de Hawkman a un estilo más militar que la anterior representación de Hol a lo pecho palomo o el papel del padre del protagonista en la trama.

Tras la miniserie, el íntimo amigo de Truman, John Ostrander continuaría las aventuras en una nueva serie regular del mismo nombre con Katar y Shayera llegando a la Tierra (concretamente a la ciudad de Chicago) persiguiendo a Byth.

Tras eliminarle, deciden quedarse en la Tierra. Katar Hol moriría tras los eventos del arco Hora Cero. Luego lo volverían a resucitar.

Lo dicho, lectura obligada de un personaje que siempre me había parecido de un soso increíble pero que el Truman consigue imbuir de una épica grandiosa.

Os dejo con una reflexión legendaria por parte de unos de los personajes hablándole a Katar.

"Para usted y sus amigos aristócratas, la vida siempre ha sido un festín. Pero dígame, cuando ha sentido la necesidad de levantarse de la mesa, no se ha preguntado... ¿dónde va todo... cuando tira de la cadena?"

[Zac · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a soft spot for this Hawkworld miniseries. I believe it was an attempt to reboot Hawkman/Hawkgirl’s complicated origin story after the Crisis on Infinite Earths, but it ended up making the situation even more confusing. As a continuity-fixer, this was a big failure, but as a standalone miniseries this has a lot going for it.

The first issue starts out as a sci-fi cop story on gritty, futuristic Thanagar. The protagonist, Katar Hol, is a rookie cop from a privileged background with an unusual interest in Thanagarian culture and history before they became war-like colonisers. Through Katar, we get to see how bigoted the police force and ruling class are. There is a lot of slang and a mix of odd-looking alien races, so it is reminiscent of a 2000AD story. In the second issue, Katar is further exposed to the social inequality that exists on the planet and is personally entangled in police corruption so is exiled for 10 years as a fall-guy. Most of the issue equates to a long montage sequence where Katar grows up. In issue #3, Katar becomes a powerful underground smuggler who meets another good cop, who in a very practical way is the reincarnation of a previous love-interest Shayera Thal. Together they take down the corrupt hero cop, Byth. This third issue has its good moments, but is a bit diminished by the unnecessary bodily transformations of Byth, who would have been more interesting as a straightforward embodiment of modern Thanagar and not something more monstrous. The series is wrapped up pretty swiftly and obviously sets up an ongoing series (which I am yet to read).

The art here is not totally consistent, but there are some very solid wordless sequences. Some of the nature scenes remind me of Michael Zulli’s style. I’ve always loved the design of the Thanagarians in their hawk-like armour, and there is plenty of that in this book.

I’ve re-read the original issues, which are of the square-bound, “prestige” kind with no ads, and I think the series was worthy of that format. I really like the general concept of Hawkman/Hawkwoman being cops from a brutal, dystopian planet. It opens up the possibility of them being uncompromising, Judge Dredd-type characters when they come to Earth, though I'm not sure if this is exactly how they were depicted in future series.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who knew that Hawkman, a DC superhero I always assumed was kind of stupid, could make for such a compelling, well-realized commentary on class? I'm shocked, I tell you. Timothy Truman does an excellent job depicting the world(s) of the Thanagarian Empire (which I had no familiarity with before this volume), bringing it to life and telling a thorough, humanizing origin story for Hawkman in a mere three issues. It's very impressive.

I'd never read anything by Timothy Truman before, so I had no idea what to expect. Luckily, I really responded to it. Truman's dialogue is simple but very effective, and his art, while definitely of an era, feels perfectly suited for the dark, realistic storytelling he's doing here. There's no big dumb monologues or unbelievable stunts. This feels like the best sci-fi comics: grounded in a political/emotional reality while using larger concepts to fill out the world. There's some pretty crazy stuff at the end with the villain, who I guess maybe I was supposed to be familiar with, but beyond this, everything feels very relatable, like a mixture of Star Trek's morality and politics and Star Wars' crazy creatures and planets.

I'm half tempted to keep reading the rest of Hawkworld, which continued in a separate series after this original mini-series, but it seems that Truman doesn't continue on as creator after a few issues. Unfortunate, because I'd love to see where else he could've taken this.

In any case, this does a great job of standing on its own. I'm also happy to now know more than nothing about Hawkman!

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating read as it basically reimagines Hawkman as Katar Hol of the planet Thanagar and we see his life, and how he is a hero essentially defying his family history and sort of joining the police and seeing so much privilege around him and he is sort of naive and even people who work with him feel so but one day when a blast happens and kills his love shayera and his father and the truth about him is exposed/falsified and one of his comrades reveals his true self, the adventure of his being exiled on an island happens and he learns lessons and maybe finds himself again of sorts..? But the last issue was fun with a return to civilization and him trying to better himself. and some fun stuff with this new Shayera who has an interesting back story, I will say and then the usual battles.. but can Carter become the destined hero he was meant to be?

Its an interesting reinvention and certainly takes a lot of ideas from classic story tropes but does it in such a weird and interesting way, though some of it is confusing but I like how it challenges storytelling and shows the journey of a man who goes from a to z lets say which is always fascinating to read about characters like this, and I like the new Shayera and she and Katar hit a great romance vibe and next volume will bring them to earth and I am so looking forward to it!

[Clint · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this out after seeing it enthusiastically mentioned as an overlooked gem of the late 80s, and it definitely is, but I’m still surprised it isn’t more popularly revered. Hawkman is a corner of DC that I’m relatively clueless about, but I get the impression this reimagines the foundational basics of his backstory in classic late 80s fashion to tell a grittier, more cynical story about corrupt empire and social inequality. It shares some pleasant overlap with the tone and themes of Dune, with decadent nobility in an imperial sci-fi setting plus a well-meaning princeling fixated on history and the underclass and proving himself as a warrior. Some of its messaging and sense of irony can be a little on the nose at times, but overall I loved it.

I tend to not love the art in older superhero comics, but Truman uses a gritty hand-drawn style I love, richly watercolored and full of interestingly composed panels. I particularly love how many wordless sequences there are, where Truman lets his art tell the story instead. My only knock on the visuals here is the obvious hand-lettering that’s a bit shakier than the consistently great computer-aided modern lettering I’m accustomed to, but it’s a minor issue.

[Socialite · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those books that I borrowed from the library, I didn't think much of it but hey, it's free to read. I am so glad I did.
The story surprised me with how good it was. It's from the late 80s/ early 90s period of dark story telling that I associate with vertigo but done under the d.c. comics. It tells the story of Katar Hol, a Thanagarian from a powerful family who takes on the role within the imperial police force that tends to "police" other aliens within planets that Thanagarian have conquered. What follows is 3 books telling the tale of a man who fought injustice was wronged and yet then continued to fight the corruption he sees.
What I love about this story is the book FEELS like something written by someone who wants us to glimpse an alien society but uses classic themes. There's some parts that are like Flash Gordon, some that are like Conan the Barbarian, other parts feel Judge Dress. It's one of those rare books I put into the category of "I borrowed it from the library but it's so good I probably will end up buying a copy for myself". It's a delight and I think people who love there science fantasy will like this.

[Rick Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tim Truman's genius shines through with his eccentric take on the Hawkman/Katar Hol mythos. The story as told in three square-bound prestige length issues details the social inequalities and class warfare plaguing the planet Thanagar. Katar Hol, an idealistic cop from a privileged background, takes issue with his morally flexible co-workers who uphold a brutal hierarchical class system. Katar's morality puts him at odds with his fellow officers and commanders, and he quickly finds himself on their wrong side. The story is a tad predictable, but it is enjoyable all the way through.

What works best about Hawkworld is Truman's flawless worldbuilding. Thanagar is equal parts pristine as it is grimy, but the contrast between the two sides of the planet make for some interesting visuals. Given the story deals with a lot of murky individuals, the stark contrast in Thangarian lifestyles enjoyed makes for some engaging storytelling. But it's Truman's artwork that really makes Hawkworld such a blast of a comic to read.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art is excellent. The storytelling is a little more complicated. In a way it's very economical, as these are a short three issues and there's so much story! And mostly it is communicated through images rather than dialogue or narration. But it feels like it's punching above its weight a little bit too much. It wants to be a big sci-fi epic about imperialism and class, but it's really hard to suss out what it's saying. It has that problem where it wants to be about the underclass and stuff, but it's still so locked into the perspective of the privileged super-cop lead character.

It succeeds more as an effort at showing off a more mature take on Hawkwman's sci-fi origin. It's coasting a little bit on the other prestige miniseries of the time but I still enjoyed it.

[Gonzalo Oyanedel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recibida con críticas mixtas cuando fue publicada , la actualización del superhéroe alado a los patrones impuestos por "The Dark Knight Returns" y "Watchmen"promediando los ochenta gana bastante con la distancia de los años. Donde muchos apuntaron un ajuste a la moda "dark and gritty", la miniserie de Truman y Alcatena finalmente recoge una perspectiva urgente en su época, como la del crimen blindado por la política y el desprecio capitalista hacia las minorias, siempre perjudicadas y jamás ganadoras; temas que calzan con el perfil de un personaje torvo e intenso, cuyo sentido primordial de la justicia se tiñe ahora con el orgullo por sus raíces y la verguenza de verlas en decadencia, convirtiendo al Hombre Halcón en un héroe trágico de este drama policial fantástico, pero certero.

[Raul Reyes · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first two issues were very much like things I’ve read before, so I didn’t particularly like them. Especially because I wasn’t a fan of the choice to have Carter be part of the elite and also because things like the fact that the only people of color of the book being the wise monks, the entire training montage or the original Shiera’s death haven’t particularly aged the best. When we get to issue three is when the actually interesting discussions start (like the “new” Shiera, and her original identity being stripped away from her) but since it’s the last issue there’s very little depth to them. I definitely don’t understand why people absolutely love this book since I think you can comics exploring the same topics in more nuanced and deeper ways.

[ISMOTU · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tim Truman's modern version of Hawkman Katar Hol's origin story. His visceral gritty art depicts a planet Thanagar that is much more developed and seedy than the glimpses we got in the Silver Age of Comics. His Katar Hol is a privileged idealist who learns the secrets of the system that provides for his comfort and is battered down by it. These are grim n'gritty comics done by a master who doesn't go for cheap shocks but explores themes of colonialism and privilege in a sophisticated way (especially back in the 80's).

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story that highlights the descrepencies between the Haves and the Have Nots, and the lengths that some people will go to to keep the status quo, and that others will go to balance the scales. Not sure if this qualifies as a D.C. Elsworld title or not, but this is not your Justice League Hawkman. This is more a military/political sci-fi story than a superhero story. Overall good story with some definite high spots, but the ending was a bit weak and abrupt.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Post-Crisis, DC had to re-interpret and update some of this heroes. This led to; Batman: Year One, Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn, The Man of Steel, Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters, Mike Baron's Flash, etc.

This is essentially "Hawkman: Year One" and it's gloriously illustrated to boot. Unfortunately, Hawkman was one of the most convoluted histories and has been subsequently rebooted a few times since then.