Hawkman #14 Review

To Light A Candle Is To Cast A Shadow

Written By: Robert Venditti

Art By: Pat Olliffe, Tom Palmer, Jeremiah Skipper, Starkings & Comicraft

Cover Price: $3.99

Release Date: July 10, 2019

Now that we're done diving into the past of Hawkman, which I'm not sure we're actually finished with yet, it's time to tie this in with everything else going on at DC Comics and that means it's time for someone to get an offer from Lex Luthor.  That's actually the weirdest part of this book for me because it's going to be a villain of Hawkman, but we've spent over a year without really showing any villains for Hawkman beyond his original army from millions of years ago.  With that being the case though, why not jump into The Offer strong by giving us one of Hawkman's classic baddies...... The Shadow Thief.  Let's jump into this issue and check it out.

For this issue of Hawkman we see our Winged Warrior trying to calm his mind now that he's been given the gift of his full memories, which apparently isn't as cut and dry as Ktar Deathbringer made me believe it was at the end of the Deathbringers story arc in issue #12.  It seems that Carter is having memories of past lives that are coming to him from sounds and smells, but the truly dark memories of his past lives are coming to him in the form of nightmares and as I think we can all understand, a Hawkman that doesn't get a good night sleep is a grumpy Hawkman.

Really though, there isn't much to this issue beyond a secret tranquil spot in Kenya that Hawkman tries to meditate at before he is attacked by a new and improved Shadow Thief.......... I say new and improved, but with no real backstory about what this Carter Hall and this Carl Sands have gone through and what still remains continuity from their past and what doesn't, this could be the first time that old Shadow Thief has gotten himself an upgrade.  

All in all, this is on the right direction for where I want the series to go because I'd just like Hawkman to get to some crime-fighting at this point, but even with that, this issue didn't really do much for the character, except for put him in some peril for future issues, while it just announced a villain, which I like, but did little to reveal the connection that these two would have had in the past.  It's a mixed bag as far as story goes and as for the art........ I'm not a fan of what we got here.  There's not enough detail throughout the book to the point where the characters come off little more than basic outlines with color thrown in.  I was just looking for a little more out of both the story and the art here, even though I like the direction the series is heading.

Bits and Pieces:

While this issue takes a step in the right direction with giving us one of Hawkman's rogues gallery, this issue does little to setup the villain and even less to move Carter Hall's story beyond what we've dealt with over the last year.  I still enjoyed aspects of this issue, even though I found the art here lacking from what we've come to expect.  Really though, I look forward to what comes next.

6.5/10