Hawkman, Vol. 2: Deathbringer

Hawkman (2018)

by Robert Venditti, Bryan Hitch (Illustrator)

The Deathbringers have arrived, and no one is safe! As Hawkman struggles to protect London from the devastation of this new threat, the answer he seeks resides in his past life - the only question is which one?

With the soul of a hero, the wings of a raptor, and the heart of a warrior, Carter Hall--the superhero known as Hawkman--has lived countless lives through time and space, continuously taking up the cause of serving justice through an endless series of reincarnations. Now, in his latest form, Hall must undertake a quest to reclaim his destiny by following the fragments of his former selves--a journey that will take him from Earth to Thanagar to ancient Krypton itself!

And he'd better hurry--because Hawkman is not the only bird of prey in the sky. The black wings of the Deathbringers are coming ever closer to Carter Hall, and after tracking him to Earth, they aim to pick the bones of our world clean. Can this hero of more than a thousand faces summon the strength to beat back the darkness? Or will his epic flight finally come to an end?

Find out in Hawkman Vol. 2: Deathbringer--the soaring new chapter in the saga of one of comics' most iconic characters, from acclaimed writer Robert Venditti (Green Lantern) and legendary artist Bryan Hitch (Planetary, The Authority)! Collects issues #7-12 of the acclaimed ongoing series.

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

168 pages, Paperback

Published December 10, 2019

About the author

Robert Venditti is a New York Times bestselling author of more than three hundred comic books and graphic novels. Some of his works include the monthly comic book series Justice League, Superman ’78, Hawkman, and Green Lantern for DC Comics, X-O Manowar, Armor Hunters, and Wrath of the Eternal Warrior for Valiant Entertainment, and the graphic novel Six Days, inspired by the story of his uncle’s participation in D-Day. He has also adapted Rick Riordan’s global bestselling Percy Jackson and the Olympians and The Heroes of Olympus novels, as well as Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia and Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz. His graphic novel The Surrogates was adapted into a feature film by Touchstone Pictures, and his work on The Flash was the basis for season three of the CW television series.

Venditti lives in Atlanta, where he both writes and serves as a storytelling consultant for some of the most recognizable entertainment brands in the world.

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

"There's more. There has to be." -- an frustrated Carter Hall, a.k.a. Hawkman

Unfortunately there is not, Hawkman, as far as I'm concerned here. I took a potshot or two at the underwhelming Vol. 1: Awakening just last month, and now I'm also spurred on to do the same with the follow-up Vol. 2: Deathbringer. I think this should've been titled Death Knell instead, because it killed any remaining interest I had in continuing with this series. Hawkman, as presented thus far, is an underwhelming protagonist - arguably he's more effective as part of the super-heroic Justice League ensemble - and the 'story' in this volume was mostly, after the initial chapter, just one looooong fight sequence. I knew the plotting (which was both minimal yet while also piggybacking on a confusing, annoying and long-winded backstory involving past or alternative lives) wasn't working for me when the title character was taking down a friend-turned-foe nearing the climax . . . and it seemed like sadistic smackdown overkill towards the poor guy over the course of six pages.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Venditti has taken the reincarnation aspect of Hawkman explored by Geoff Johns during his 2000's run and expanded it into the wildness Snyder has built up on the wings of Justice League: No Justice. Carter Hall's beginnings now go way further back than Egyptian times, maybe to the beginning of time itself. It sounds complicated, but Venditti has streamlined everything into a big, bombastic story with Hawkman eventually confronting the Deathbringers. Bryan Hitch brings his epic style to illustrate it all.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was pretty epic!

Hawkman finally remembers his past as Ktar the leader of the Deathbringers and how it relates to his life and big mission and well a trip to his life as Catar-Ol of Krypton and it was intriguing for sure and I kinda liked it and finally we get to see what happens when his frenemy Idamm and his deathbringers come to earth and what will Carter do to save his planet? And also what legion will he bring along with him to save the world?

Its an intriguing volume which harpoons across all of Hawkman's history and brings around all the versions of him to fight this threat and I love the way it resolves itself and also hinting at future storylines to come with Hawkwoman and Lord beyond the void! The art was amazing as usual and makes for a fun read! Venditti really did something special across the arc that is very transformative for a character!

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

After only 12 issues, Robert Venditti has revolutionised Hawkman and built up a conclusion to what could have been the series at large, but is only the first arc of the book. With the Deathbringers at the door, the world is in peril and Hawkman will have to call on all the knowledge of his past lives to save us; epic as a word thrown around far too much these days, but it really does describe this story well.

There's even time before the main Deathbringers arc begins to flash back to one of Carter's previous lives on Krypton; I wonder if this'll be a recurring theme through the book, kind of like the old Starman series and the Times Past issues.

And somehow, Bryan Hitch manages to draw all six of these issues as he did the previous six as well. His art's well-suited for this level of bombastic storytelling and it never falters, even after twelve issues in a row. It's just grand.

Hawkman's first solo series in a while caps off its first year with an explosive conclusion worthy of an event-level book, then whacks you in the head with a mace and moves on to whatever comes next, just as Carter himself would. Top marks.

[Artemy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first volume of Robert Venditti’s Hawkman was okay, but it did feel overstuffed at times. I’m happy to say that the second volume is much better! Venditti’s script for Deathbringer is much simpler and more straightforward, essentially boiling it down to one large-scale conflict — and there’s simply no one else in comics who does wide-screen blockbuster action like Bryan Hitch. The man is a treasure. And that's not to say that Venditti phoned this one in, either — he actually does some really cool things here with the entire Hawkman mythos, he just does it in such a simple and clean way, and as a result also lets the art shine and carry a big load of storytelling. This book was a breeze, and a really welcome change for me after a long streak of very stuffy, expository and convoluted books (looking at you, Monstress and Snyder’s first three volumes of Justice League). I gotta say, I am really looking forward to reading more of Venditti’s Hawkman even if Hitch moved to on to another book with Warren Ellis (squee!!), and based on the character’s reputation that is a sentence I never expected to say (well, type).

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is phenomenal & Venditti and Hitch have made this book as great as I always knew Hawkman could be.

Easily among the top three runs/takes on this character in his 80+ years of publication

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Deathbringers have followed Carter Hall home. His ancient self, the original Deathbringer was replaced by an original and powerful friend. This legion of warriors pours out of the Deathbringer robotic transports, attacking London. Carter has to dig deep and with help and prodding from Madame Xanadu, Carter Hall realizes he must unleash all the existences of himself he has strove to discover of late, or the Earth will be reduced to ash. Such is the way of the enemy at hand.
The battles in this book are amazing and the end result is satisfying and yet opens up new doors for further exploration into what is Carter Hall and his various incarnations. Can this happen again? Are we still in danger?
The writing and art presented here are superb. The author and artist, colorists, inker and letterer are in lockstep on this book. Having my love of comics diminished over the years due to the current state of DC and Marvel, this was a refreshing change of pace and gave me hope that this industry can removed its head from where it currently is and give us some good stories again. I hope against all hope that this indeed happens.
Pick these two graphics up. You will not be disappointed.

Danny

[Robert · Rating 1 out of 5]

There was no need to take a hero and stain his backstory with poorly explained or justified genocidal campaigns.

[Guilherme Smee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este encadernado continua a saga de Carter Hall, o Gavião Negro, em busca de suas outras vidas. Mostra que no princípio ele era um serviçal de uma horda de assassinos de mundo e que é seu destino se tornar novamente este tipo de ser, mesmo que ele consiga cumprir o karma dessa vida que destroçou milhares de mundos e de almas. Em Londres, ele conta com a ajuda da Madame Xanadu para tentar entender o que se passa com ele. Em Krypton, Carter Hall se encontra com um ancestral seu que era um cientista kriptoniano. Com a ajuda destas percepções ele descobre que para enfrentar os exércitos desses piladores e assassinos de mundos, ele só pode contar com ele mesmo. Então, é isso mesmo que ele faz: dá um jeito de ter acesso a todos aqueles que já foram suas vidas passadas em algum momento desse karma de repetição de vidas como uma espécie de salvador das civilizações nas quais renasceu. A arte de Bryan Hitch continua dando uma sensação boa para a leitura dos roteiros de Robert Venditti. O que deixa a desejar, contudo, são as cores irregulares de cada numero deste encadernado. Uma pena isso.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

The action in this series gets amped up here as we not only see the invasion of the Deathbringer army that has been hinted at throughout the series, but we also witness the solid forming of the Hawkman mythos that writer Robert Venditti has been building towards.

Venditti skillfully takes the complicated and confusing origins of Hawkman and somehow retcons it all in a way that is not only interesting, easy to understand, and steeped in character, but also without throwing away anything that came before. Interesting stuff!

[Frédéric · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5*

I don't know much about Hawkie and his mythology; bits here and there but never enough to be really interested. Truth be told I bought the series for Bryan Hitch, not the guy with the clouted mace!

Maybe it's my lack of knowledge of the characters but I remember vol.1 left me kinda confused about what was actually going on but vol.2 explains it all with a bang. Half explanations/tension building and half gigantic battle over London- a nice change of scenery btw- Venditti and Hitch deliver one solid story with meaningful implications and consequences, probably even more for those who know the character better than I do.

On to the next volumes!

[Lucy Batson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some interesting, fresh status-quo changes for Hawkman, which have been a long time coming.

[Greg Trosclair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid conclusion to the first long story arc. Good writing and good art. It is a pretty solid satisfying story with a solid conclusion.

[Blindzider · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hawkman's complete origin and purpose is finally revealed. It wraps all of the previous incarnations and stories of him in a compelling narrative that makes sense and gives him a little bit of uniqueness. Granted, I say that without having read every story of his, but from what I do know, it at least makes sense to me. The finale is a big slugfest with a fairly predictable ending, but drawn beautifully by Bryan Hitch.

Overall, these two TPBs give an excellent, "modern origin" to the hero, a primer and first read for anyone wanting to dive deeper into the character.

[tony dillard jr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert Venditti continues to slay it in this 12-issue series that seeks to make sense out of all of Hawkman's reincarnations. Venditti kicks things off with revealing the Carter Hall's very first life and the events that lead to him constantly dying and then being resurrected. While I was very satisfied with the end results of this series, I didn't feel like everything was properly explained or covered.

As I said during my review of volume 1, you will not see the JSA version of Hawkman as in 2017-18, those characters were currently non-existent due to events of Final Crisis or some other similar massive crossover event that rewrote multiverse history. I would have liked Venditti to explain what happens when one of Carter Hall's past lives are wiped from existence due to a Crisis level event. But such a concept isn't explained.

Also, I noted the absence of Hawkgirl from this series in the volume 1 review. That kinda happens here too. But in Hawkman's very first lifetime, there IS a mysterious woman who constantly hounds him. I'm assuming that this woman is Shiera/Sheyara/Kendra. But really there's no explanation as to why Hawkgirl keeps being reincarnated along with Hawkman. Having the pair be some sort of fated lovers doomed to never be together eternal romance is one that I am okay with. But if you start this love affair from Hawkman's very first life, things just don't make very much sense under that theory.

Last thing I am disappointed in is the cover to this book. It pretty much gives away the amazing ending to this book. Yes, Carter Hall manages to defeat the big boss Deathbringers at the end of this story with the help of all of his past lives. Maybe the cover doesn't blatantly tell you what happens. But if you connect the dots throughout this series, this cover winds up ruining the surprise climax. So don't get mad at me for spoiling the ending. DC's trade paperback editorial and marketing staff did that for me.

This series was great. It has a few unanswered questions. And the cover kinda ruins a big surprise. But I enjoyed the heck out of the final battle and thought that Robert Venditti did an amazing job making sense out of a beloved character with a very confusing backstory.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read volume 1 of this series in... late 2019. At first, I couldn't quite remember what had happened. But after the first issue I remembered enough that I was able to dive right in and enjoy the story. (That's a mark of good writing: Not so much going on that you can't hold on to it, but not so little that it's not engaging.) This was a very fast read, mostly because I was so interested to find out what was going to happen next. While some of the "comic book-ness" of it could have been fleshed out and explained a little better--namely how exactly all the different Hawkman lives ended up in the present--the end result was a dynamic story that made this Hawkman newbie want to read more and I'm sure will give veteran fans a lot to enjoy. The artwork also really drew you in and captured the character of Hawkman. (At least that was the impression I had as a newbie.) Plus, I really love the idea of someone being reincarnated until they save enough lives to balance all the ones that they took. The themes about life, goodness, redemption, etc., are strong with such a character, and in this story all of them are handled with expertise and excitement.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Deathbringers are coming!
We start this Volume with learning the final piece of Hawkman's past. His very first life was as Ktar Deathbringer, a warlord who worked to help conquer planets. As their leader, when he decided to turn against and no longer follow the same path, the rest of the Deathbringers named him "the great betrayer" and Ktar was forced to seal them away in a different dimension.
Now, the Deathbringers have arrived on Earth and Carter Hall must defend against them. Fighting Idamm (formerly the second-in-command, now leader), things look grim at first. Seeing the real reason for his missions to experience and understand his past, Hawkman is able to summon all previous versions of himself to fight the enemy army. Defeating Idamm, Carter retakes control of the army, forces them to help, dispatches them, and get Idamm in lockup.
Overall, an extremely action packed Volume. Looking forward to seeing what is next...
Does it have anything to do with the dark version of Hawkman calling himself Deathbringer?

Recommend.

[Julian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun solid read, probably 3-3.5 stars but Hitch's great art won't let me put anything less than 4. (MILD SPOILERS BELOW)

You know what Hawkman doesn't need? Another origin. BUT, having said that, the new origin (sigh) is pretty well-thought out and does unite the many, many disparate threads of Carter's/Katar's reimaginings over the last 80 years or so. Action aplenty and some minor supporting character spotlight on Madame Xanadu and (of all people) Hawkman's Kryptonian incarnation.

Biggest complaint: Who is Carter Hall/Katar Hol, the protagonist and what makes him different from Barry Allen / Ray Palmer / Harold Jordan or any other vanilla-flavored Silver age white-guy-with-a-WASP name? I still feel like the character himself is a cypher and we are supposed to just be caught up in the stuff happening around him... not looking for a deep character study, hey.. but a little more differentiation would be nice.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Robert Venditti and Bryan Hitch set up an interesting twist on the eternal reincarnation of the Hawkman character, suggesting he'd been reborn throughout time and space on many worlds and not just Earth, and that he had an ancient enemy called the Deathbringers. This volume showed the reader who the Deathbringers were, and they maybe we're as impressive as they looked at first (then again, they were Hawkman foes, not the sort of thing you need, say, Superman to bring down), and while there are some interesting further twists on who Carter Hall is and what he can do, I really felt like this one was a few chapters too long. The running battle between Carter and an ancient enemy he only just remembered seemed tedious at times, like the two kept repeating if not their speeches to each other, then at least I kept wondering why it was taking so long. Bottom line: interesting continuation, but there seemed to be some pacing issues this time around.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first climax of Robert Venditti’s Hawkman has had the unfortunate effect of lulling most fans into complacency. It’s also a complete twelve issue run with legendary artist Bryan Hitch aboard, which is another false signal that must be ignored. This is a great conclusion, but there’s more to come!

The fact that an arc completes here is certainly something to celebrate, how Carter Hall comes to a reckoning with his past and the man he once was, complete with an epic revisiting of all his major reincarnations in a giant battle that fills out a good chunk of the collection.

All that’s worth celebrating!

But again, it’s a considerable disservice to then pretend nothing that follows is worth taking as seriously! And this is the big stumbling block that many impatient readers have already discovered in the initial reaction to a milestone in superhero comics. Don’t be one of those! Appreciate what’s here! And continue!

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hawkman finishes up his time travel adventures from Hawkman, Vol. 1: Awakening, meeting a few more historical versions of himself. With a bit more knowledge of his past in hand, Hawkman's prepared to fend off an invasion of Deathbringers over London's skies.

Two issues of backstory - four issues of flying and punching. The final four issues could easily have been condensed to one. Still, the action is enjoyable and it's nice to read a DC series that includes both time travel and past lives, yet makes total sense. I'll take a clear, action-packed read any day.

[HowardtheDuck95 · Rating 5 out of 5]

It continues right where the first left off, with a mystery and a deadline. And this volume provides answers and resolution. And it is fantastic. Seriously, great stuff. Themes of atonement, regret, hope...all here. Lots of old school weirdness. Fantastic action sequences, too. Just overall, this is not a book to miss.

The art is stellar. Except for one panel, where it looks like someone’s head got rearranged while trying to fight bad guys. It was one of those “once you notice it” things. That said, didn’t detract from my enjoyment in the slightest.

I really can’t recommend this book enough.

[Scott Waldie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume is better than the first as the horrible truth is revealed and the story spins towards an epic confrontation. I actually quite like what Venditti has done with Hawkman's backstory, the 'tally' of those he must save vs. those that he slaughtered in a former incarnation could prove fruitful for future stories. I do think the Deathbringer ships were a little underused in this volume, for as cool and frightening as they appeared they wound up useless. Otherwise I did quite like this one, a little more than Awakening.

[Dave Levingston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally an origin to explain it all

Nice to finally give an origin that makes sense, and explains the any lives of Hawk man. Been reading this character since his very first appearance in the silver age. There have been good stories, and some that made no sense, so it was great to finally see it all come together. Great job to the team of Vendetta, and Hitch, and the rest that brought this story forth

[RND · Rating 3 out of 5]

Man, Hitch's art really makes this book; it has that epic feel from Ultimates, and Venditti's story comes to a pretty solid climax. I didn't know that Hawkeye's mace behaves sorta like Mjolnir now, but am appreciating how central this 12-issue run has made Hawkeye in the DCU. There's a sequence here straight outta Iron Man 3 (the movie), which felt weird, but okay.

[Brannigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The epic of who Hawkman is continues. It’s hard to say more about this series other than to say this is amazing and near perfect. I haven’t enjoyed a Hawkman story like this since Geoff John’s run on the title. Enjoy it my friends.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I heard people raving about Venditti's Hawkman, but I haven't been impressed so far. Learning about Carter's past lives was interesting, but the big fight at the end with the Deathbringers didn't excite me at all. I also just kept waiting for Shayera to have a bigger role ...

[Javier X · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read, it keeps developing the plot of the first vol and it gives a good closure, I like how this story feels self-contained but also it feels like it’s happening in the DC Universe, I just like that the Justice League or someone showed to help and it was on him to save the day.

[Will Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hey, how bout that? Hawkman searching for his past and finding out ancient secrets of himself as well as a story of redemption and a pretty great battle, all drawn by Bryan Hitch. I liked this a bunch!

[Vishal · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read!

A must read Even if you are not a superhero fan. Art is much better than the first volume, more kinetic. Also inking is much better in this one. And the story really kicks off! Absolutely loved it!!