Hawk & Dove #1

DC

Writer: Sterling Gates; Artist: Rob Liefield

Sep 14, 2011 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

It’s a pretty obvious sign that the first issue of Hawk & Dove didn’t especially grab me when the two things that most stuck with (and bothered) me about it were, 1. the new grey and red costume for Hawk (admittedly a dumb criticism, but it looks stupid vs. his classic red & white); and, 2. Rob Liefield draws a crappy Deadman. I mean, Deadman is one of the coolest looking dudes in DC’s menagerie, and in his supporting role here as Dove’s romantic interest, his face looks like a weird blob.

This is an interesting book because it was on the Hawk & Dove miniseries from the late ‘80s—which also established a new status quo for the bird-themed avatars of peace and war—that Liefield first came to attention of the industry. (New Mutants came later). So this is a homecoming of sorts. Of course, the original Hawk & Dove miniseries was inked by Karl Kesel, an industry legend, so it looked a lot sharper. Even so, there’s really a nostalgia tug in that sense. Liefield, along with Todd McFarlane and current DC co-publisher Jim Lee, more or less defined the direction that comic art took in the ‘90s. Liefield is a known quantity and his art is very polarizing; fans will be fans and cite his dynamism, non-fans will note the lack of feet and weird proportions (such as an immensely oversized Washington Monument in this issue) and lots of grimacing. I actually liked much of the art; the Dove portions of the airplane fight, for instance.

So, the story. Hmmm. I liked Hank’s (Hawk’s) hero worship of his brother and the revelation that Dawn (“new” Dove, if you consider 1988 to be recent) and Don (original Dove and Hank’s brother) had a relationship. But the dialog was clunky and overly expository across the board (worst example was Hank’s conversation with his father). So it’s another case of decent idea, middlin’ execution. Granted, it’s better than Detective‘s relaunch. And also similar to that book, I want to see where this will go, more out of an attachment to the characters and a fondness of other things Sterling Gates has written than anything in this volume. Despite that forward-looking optimism, this issue isn’t that great. (www.dccomics.com)

Author rating: 4/10

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