We’ve all heard of Hawkgirl, we know where she comes from and how she gets her powers.
But, there was one other Thanagarian who came before her. His name is Hawkman!
There have been several incarnations of the superhero known as Hawkman in the DC Comics universe, all of which are characterized and shown by the large, artificial wings that are attached to a harness made by the Nth metal that is also used to forge their archaic weaponry.
The very first Hawkman appeared in 1940 under the human name Carter Hall, a reincarnation of the ancient Egyptian prince, Khufu.
After discovering the mysterious Nth metal, he found out that the metal could allow him to defy the laws of gravity and grant him the ability to fly. Upon this discovery, Hall had decided to become a superhero.
He created a costume with large wings to allow him to be able to control his flight patterns and created the name, Hawkman, to instill fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere.
Being a professional archaeologist, Hall created his weapon of choice by combining ancient weapons that belonged to the museum.
Shortly afterward, Hawkman was placed as a member of the Justice League of America, where he had classic back-and-forth arguments with our liberal archer, the Green Arrow.
Now, let’s talk about some of the different Hawkmen that have existed in the world of DC Comics.
As mentioned before, the first ever Hawkman was Carter Hall, who was a reincarnate of the ancient Egyptian prince, Khufu. Prince Khufu was fighting his enemy, the Egyptian priest known as Hath-Set, during the time of ancient Egypt. Hath-Set captures both Khufu and his lover, Chay-Ara, and kills them both by using a cursed dagger made by the same Nth metal that Hawkman uses for his mace. A millennial later, Khufu was reincarnated as Hall, Chay-Ara as Shiera Saunders and Hath-Set as Anton Hastor. After Hall becomes Hawkman, he goes off to rescue Shiera from Hastor, realizing that he was the reincarnation of his former enemy. After Hall successfully saves her and Hastor was killed by electrocution.
The next Hawkman is Katar Hol, an honored police officer on his home world of Thanagar. Using the anti-gravity Nth metal to power their wings and weapons, Hol and his wife, Shayera, fight crime and apprehend the most dangerous of criminals on Thanagar. After being sent to Earth on a mission to capture the shape-shifting criminal, Byth, they had decided to stay on the planet to work with the law in the United States and learn the methods of the human race.
There have been many more men who have taken the mantle of Hawkman under their own part such as Fel Andar, Zauriel and Charley Parker.
With all the abilities granted to Hawkman by the Nth metal and his slightly enhanced strength, it’s no wonder why he is a warrior who is to be feared by his many adversaries.
A proud Thanagarian, Hawkman will make his presence known when he appears in The Flash, Arrow and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow this upcoming season. Just how will he do it? We’ll find out sooner than we think!
DC’s Legends of Tomorrow premieres in 2016 on SFL-TV, the CW!
