Cover: Richard Howell & Don Heck

Hawkman #3

Oct 1986 · DC · 0.75 USD; 1.00 CAD; 0.40 GBP

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“Secrets, Shadows and Sinners!”

★ 1st appearance — Darkwing

About this Issue

Hawkman Vol. 2 #3 (October 1986) delivers the payoff to the opening 'Shadow Wars' arc of the first ongoing Hawkman series in eighteen years, concluding with Katar Hol and Shayera Thal finally apprehending the Shadow-Thief — their arch-nemesis since Gardner Fox and Joe Kubert introduced Carl Sands in 1961. Critically, the issue contains the debut appearance of Deron Ved (also operating as 'Mr. Glendon' and later as the villain Darkwing), a Thanagarian antagonist who would recur throughout Tony Isabella's run and anchor the series' overarching Hyathis Corporation conspiracy. The issue also continues the bold post-Crisis storytelling choice of having the Hawks operate without a secret identity — a dramatic cost of their war against their own homeworld that shaped the entire tone of this volume. As the first Hawkman ongoing since 1968, each issue of this series carried the burden of re-establishing the Silver Age Hawks in DC's newly unified post-Crisis continuity.

writer Tony Isabella · artist Richard Howell · inker Don Heck · colorist Michele Wolfman · letterer Milt Snapinn · cover Richard Howell, Don Heck

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History

The 1986 Hawkman ongoing series was a direct outgrowth of the success of The Shadow War of Hawkman, a 1985 four-issue limited series written by Tony Isabella with art by Richard Howell and Alfredo Alcala; DC gave Isabella the green light to launch the first regular Hawkman title in eighteen years. Issue #3 retained the same core creative team — Isabella on script, Richard Howell on pencils, veteran Don Heck on inks, Michele Wolfman on colors, and Milt Snapinn on letters — with Barbara Randall (later Kesel) serving as editor. Isabella reportedly had a five-year plan for the characters, but creative differences with editorial led to his departure around issue #7, and the series was ultimately cancelled with issue #17.

Trivia · 7 facts

First appearance of Deron Ved (alias 'Mr. Glendon,' later the villain Darkwing), a Thanagarian agent and director of the front organization Hyathis Corporation, created by Tony Isabella and Richard Howell.
Concludes the opening 'Shadow Wars' story arc of the series: Hawkman (Katar Hol) and Hawkwoman (Shayera Thal) capture the Shadow-Thief (Carl Sands) with the aid of police contact Commissioner George Emmett.
Shadow-Thief (Carl Sands) appears as the primary villain; Corla Tavo and Deron Ved appear as Thanagarian supporting antagonists embedded within Hyathis Corporation.
Clark Kent / Superman appears in the issue's cast, consistent with the post-Crisis DC Universe era in which John Byrne's reinvented Superman was active.
The series launched in 1986 as the first ongoing Hawkman solo title since the original series ended in 1968 — an eighteen-year gap — following the strong reception of The Shadow War of Hawkman (1985) limited series.
Written by Tony Isabella; pencilled by Richard Howell; inked by Don Heck; colored by Michele Wolfman; lettered by Milt Snapinn; edited by Barbara Randall (Kesel). Cover by Richard Howell and Dick Giordano.
The Hawks operate throughout this arc without a secret identity, having had their civilian identities (Katar Hol and Shayera Thal) exposed publicly — a consequence of their defection from Thanagar that began in issue #1 when Joe Tracy revealed their identities to the press.