[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writer: Robert Venditti
Artists: Bryan Hitch, Andrew Currie & Paul Neary
Colors: Alex Sinclair & Jeremiah Skipper
Letters: Richard Starkings & Comicraft
Summary
Using the nautical chart on the hawk-headed scepter, Hawkman seeks out a hidden island. On the way to the island, he is confronted by a Tyrannosaurus Rex and a flock of winged humans known as Feitherans.
His battle with the feral flock of Feitherans goes on for hours, but when he finally makes it through them, he finds one last Feitheran waiting for him. This one is an older, wiser Feitheran who has no wish to fight and in fact, has been waiting him.
Hawkman enters a cave in the mountain and uses the scepter to discover a unique planetarium that only creates more questions.
Positives
Robert Venditti has managed to create an exciting and compelling mystery for Carter Hall to solve that leads him, as well as the reader, on an action-packed adventure. Best part about it is that, despite the action (in this case, due to the action in this issue) we’re able to learn more and more about Carter Hall and his true character. Hawkman has always been a bit of a bad ass, brute. But it is emphasized this issue when he takes on the entire flock of feral Feitherans. Fighting the endless number of them for hours is as bad ass a character as you can get.
But the best part must be the last page. Venditti has become a master at the art of ending each issue with a powerful scene. Yes, the cliffhanger is an important part of serials, but if you check out Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #50 (also out this week) you’ll see it isn’t just a cliffhanger that Venditti ends an issue well with. In this case, it’s a great call-back to the classic Hawkworld storyline, which I really enjoyed, so I can’t wait to see where this storyline goes next issue.
Negatives
This series has proven to be fantastic issue after issue, but if I must identify a negative, then it would have to be the discovery Carter Hall makes with his mace. When he loses it fighting the Feitherans, it returns to him on its own. But I have faith in Venditti. I expect over the course of the next few issues it will be explained, but as of this moment, it feels too much like Thor and his hammer.
Verdict
I am starting to sound like a broken record with my praise for this book, but I can’t help it. It really is a fun, action-packed, adventurous series with a compelling mystery so far. Archaeology, mythology and ancient civilizations has always been right up my alley and here it is combined with sci-fi and DC Comics. It doesn’t really get any better than that.
