"New Origin of the DC Universe": Screwing Up Hawkman. Again.

 

Back in March, DC Comics announced a new 4-issue series called the "New History of the DC Universe." DC "superfan" Mark Waid would write the history and several top artists would be doing the artwork for the series. This would be a massive undertaking and I wondered how they would handle Hawkman and Hawkgirl's history, if they even cover it at all. 

The first issue came out on June 25. And wow... I was shocked at several things  as I read the book. I don't know about the other charcters, but if Hawkman and Hawkgirl are any indication, this book is an absolute mess. The art is great but they totally screwed up or tried to change the history of the Hawks and even contradicted themselves with their own endnotes. As a Hawkfan, I have questions and also need to set some things straight for those who were as confused as I was and came here for some clarity. There are spoilers ahead and if you still want to read it after that intro, come back after you have read it. 

1. Shrra (Hawkwoman) never served the evil entity.

"Ktar Deathbringer and Shrra served an ancient force of evil before being redeemed"

Ktar Deathbringer was the first life of Hawkman. He was probably created to serve the Lord of the Void but he eventually realized that what he was doing was evil and started to question it all. Shrra saw his change of heart and helped him break away from the control of the evil entity. She was a herald angel who was told by her own god to stay away but she intervened anyway and as punishement was stripped of her status and thrown into the reincarnation cycle with Ktar until he atoned for his sins.  (Hawkman Vol. V No. 7 (Feb. 2019)

2. Prince Khufu and Chay-ara are not from Thanagar. 

"...and reincarnated as humans Prince Khufu Maat Kha-tar and Chay-Ara of the planet Thanagar."

What? Khufu and Chay-ara are now from Thanagar? When did that happen? Never! And in the endnotes in the exact same issue, they contradict themselves with this.

I also have to take issue with Prince Khufu being the first reincarnation. According to Hawkman Vol. V, Hawkman had hundreds, maybe thousands of lives on Earth and many other planets across the universe for thousands of years. So long, he has even been included in the group of immortals. (Dark Days: The Casting, September 2017) 

3. Nighthawk and Cinammon (Hawkman and Hawkwoman) 

It was nice to see Nighthawk and Cinammon included, although the part of that it was one of their past lives was never mentioned. But it's a crowded and busy book, so I undertand that there is not time or space for that. 

4. The JSA meeting FDR without Hawkman. 

This page implies that Hawkman was not present at the beginning of the Justice Society. It makes it seem like he joined later with Hawkgirl. But past stories say otherwise. 

Secret Origins No. 31
September 1988

Action Comics No. 633
March 1991

DC Special No. 29
August 1977

Hawkman was a charter member of the Justice Society. He was the third chairman and stayed in that position for eight years, all thru the Golden Age. He is the only member who appeared in every issue during the Golden Age. There is no Golden Age Justice Society without Hawkman. 
But DC appears to be erasing or diminishing his role during this era. He is not on the cover, while Green Lantern, Flash, and Wildcat are featured prominently. He doesn't even appear on the back cover. This is an issue about the Golden Age and Hawkman is being shoved aside. That's the impression I got. Why does DC want to do this? 

5. The contradictions in the same issue

Why do they contradict themselves in the exact same issue. Most casual readers will read the pages with the amazing art, and then probably skim over the end notes that are provided at the end. So the casual reader is now even more confused than before. Hawkman served an evil entity with Hawkwoman? He was an Egyptian prince on...Thanagar? How did he end up on earth? Are they going to come up with a new origin in the next issue and ignore their own endnotes in the first issue?

As a Hawkman fan, I have to say that this issue is just one big colossal screw up. For an issue that is trying to set the origin of the DC Universe straight, they did the exact opposite. If I didn't know any better, I would think they had a cheap AI spit something out and didn't bother to edit or research the results. 

6. Figuring out Hawkman, Hawkwoman, and Hawkgirl.

Edit (June 30)
I came across this interview with Mark Waid on dc.com. Like I said at the beginning, I understand the massive undertaking this must have been. DC has a 90-year history, and to try to put it all it all together must have been exhausting. However, with all the editors and researchers he had to help him, with all the resources on the Internet, why could not they have advoided these mistakes? When another Hawkman writer wrote a Hawkman comic, he actually used the info I have on this site to help him understanding Hawkman. I learned about that after he wrote the comic. The info on Hawkman is so contradicting and confusing, I'm left wondering why more care and research wasn't put into this. Hawkman is one of the central figures in the history of the Golden Age for the reasons mentioned above. Why does his status have to be so diminished? The lack of presence on the cover, the lazy mistakes, the diminishing of Hawkman's history with the JSA was really disappointing. But not surprising. 

"The JSA was another instance where I just had to, ultimately, use the Sword of Damocles to cut through all the rejuvenations they've enjoyed into something reasonable since their continuity was a mish-mash. And we all deserve a medal for finally figuring out Hawkman, Hawkwoman and Hawkgirl." 

I have to ask what they figured out about Hawkman, Hawkwoman, and Hawkgirl? I assume that is in regard to what is coming in the next three issues. Because the only thing we learned and then unlearned was that Prince Khufu and Chay-Ara were from Thanagar. And then they weren't. If the first issue is any indication, I have a very bad feeling about how they are going to explain the Hawks' history.  (End edit) 

Mark Waid is one of the most popular writers in DC right now, and I honestly expected something way better. If you need the correct history of Hawkman, Hawkwoman, and Hawkgirl, check out my history of the Hawks here. I spent about three years writing this article and I cared about what I was writing, because I wanted fellow comics fans to know the history of my favorite characters. The writers of this issue, judging from what we got, did not. 

Do better, DC.  

Tim Board's Guide to the History of Hawkman, Hawkwoman, and Hawkgirl
 

Writer: Mark Waid 
Associate editor: Marquis Draper
Editors: Brittany Holzherr, Andrew Marino 
Additional research: Benjamin Le Clear