Hawkman The Way He Used To Be

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	• Showcase Presents: Hawkman, Vol. 1 Gardner Fox, Bob Haney DC Comics, 2007 - 560 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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Hawkman The Way He Used To Be

I remember buying the first issue of Showcase Presents in 196-whenever and being blown away by the story and art. Particularly the art. I was already emulating Gil Kane's art style from Green Lantern and Carmine Infantino's style for The Flash, but was not prepared for the renderings of Joe Kubert.

Kubert is a master of shadows. He creates believable breath-taking scene with minimal lines and large black areas that many current comic illustrators could learn from. In particular, consider the way Kubert draw the feathers of the Hawk's wings, as well as any other bird featured in the stories. Kubert never drew "all" of the individual feathers. He used minimum lines, a lot of shadows, and conveyed more detail that those artists who felt compelled to draw "every" feather.

He also endowed Katar Hol and Shayera (Hawkman and Hawkgirl) with intellect and personality: When confronted by an adversary, Katar would make his selection of weapons, and proceed to the confrontation with a smile on his face. If the ensuing battle, Katar's countenance would become grim with determination, and went victory was achieved, another smile would grace his countenance. No other artist seemed to endow their characters with this quality.

Kubert consistently drew masterful flight scenes. I've seen other artists have moments of inspiration, but the aerial acrobats Kubert rendered had you believing that the characters were actually flying. And the form and grace with which they flew was lyrical.

A final detail: the Hawkmasks. They had "pupils" when worn, not sitting on a shelf. The inference was the eye-openings were translucent to the outside viewer, and only the wearer's pupils created the mask's pupils and that mean they were visible when the masks were worn.

It wasn't until Issue 11 of the Hawkman comic that I accepted Murphy Anderson as illustrator for the series. I acknowledge Anderson for the work he did inking Curt Swan's Superman; that artistic team sent a whole new standard for Superman art. Anderson is very much a "deliniater"; he uses a lot of lines where shadows, i.e., areas of black would work better. Nonetheless, in his own right, Anderson is an accomplished artist. He had a very formidable artistic challenge when he took over Hawkman after Kubert.

I also wonder if the artist influenced the tone of the story. Garner Fox is credited with writing all of the Hawkman stories. Yet, it seems to me that the flavor of the stories with Joe Kubert were decidedly different from the stories with Murphy Anderson.

Oh, yeah, and back to Showcase Presents Hawkman: Volume 1. One thing I like about these Showcase Presents series is that they present, essentially, the inked, uncolored pages of the stories. Color can add a lot, but, from what I have written about the art styles of Kubert and Anderson, you correctly gather that I am very interested in the art. With this volume you get to examine, unemcumbered by color, the artistry of these two illustrators, both masters in their respective styles. This feature along more than makes the book with its price.

Another nice feature, for good or for bad, is the Showcase Presents Hawkman, Volume 1, follows Hawkman through his six "try-out issues" in Showcase Presents comics, the cross-over where Hawkman appears in the Atom, with pencils by Gil Kane and inks by Murphy Anderson, Hawkman's appearances in Mystery in Space, the one-shot team-up of Aquaman and Hawkman in the Brave and Bold Presents DC team-ups, and on into, at long last, Hawkman's own comic book series. And the stories are presented in chronological order, a plus so the collector doesn't have to cross-reference issues/collections. All in all, this is an excellent volume to introduce fans to the Silver Age Hawkman.

Footnote: I also have the Archives Editions of the Silver Age Hawkman, Volumes 1 and 2, AND I have the Showcase Presents Hawkman. The Showcase Presents does contain all the stories of the Archives Edition and for one-fifth the cost. If you don't mind the absence of color, the Showcase edition is an excellent way to inexpensively expand your collecton.

And I also have to admit, having grown up on these stories, the book is a trip through nostalgia.

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The definition of Heroic

Simply put, any of the Silver Age volumes in DC Comics Showcase and Marvel's Essentials are better crafted, and more fun than the current kill 'em all and let god sort 'em out software those companies now publish.

Buy Green Lantern. Buy Adam Strange. Buy Batman. Buy the Elongated Man. Buy Antman. Buy The Fantastic Four. Buy Ironman. Buy Daredevil. Heck. Buy Haunted Tank and Man-thing! It really will make you question comics current direction.

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Joe Kubert masterpiece!

The first half of this monstrous (500+ pages) volume includes some of the great comics of the 20th century. Joe Kubert is simply one of the all-time great artists and the story of Hawkman and Hawkgirl is quite different from anything else in Silver Age comics. Hawkman and Hawkgirl are a husband and wife team of police officers from another planet who are on Earth to study Earthling police methods. They have no superpowers themselves but utilize their advance alien technology to fight crime on our planet. Great stuff! I give this volume only three stars because unfortunately Joe Kubert only provides art for about half of the stories. I don't find the remaining half of the comic nearly as interesting.

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