Flying High: As I expected, the series grew stronger as soon as it left behind the force premise that launched the series last month. Goyer and Johns tell a thoroughly personal story that captures the tortured essence of the new Hawkgirl while adding to her character. Even more impressive is down to earth this new element is. This is both a heartening and sad story that's illustrating quite well by Phil Winslade.
Hawkgirl and Speed Saunders, after dealing with a group of rather silly but well-armed militant Americans, travel to a secluded farmhouse in rural Oregon. Hawkgirl has a loose thread in her life she has to tie off, and it requires her to face up to a mistake from her past... one that also stands out as one of her greatest gifts and accomplishments. In the process, she brings thrills and happiness to the life of a little innocent.
Winslade's detailed style reinforces the more grounded and realistic tone of the story. the artist captures Hawkgirl's graceful, exotic nature quite well, and he sells the heart of the story with the young girl's wide-eyed innocence. Mind you, the choreography of the action sequence did not flow well at all. Furthermore, that opening scene was far too long and added nothing to the central plot of this issue or the broader story of the series.
Speed's irreverent personality and wisdom make for a nice balance with Hawkgirl's anger, confusion and fear. Hawkgirl's reluctant but resolved decision to face her past works incredibly well, and I love how the story grew silent as two young souls -- one lost and one just developing -- came together in a moment that felt quite natural, despite being set in the skies.
Every Night: This was a wonderful tribute to Golden Age comics storytelling. Loeb and Sale capture the simplicity of comics of yesteryear while instilling a dark and more mature atmosphere. Not only does Sale adjust his style to capture the rougher look of the Hawkman stories from Flash Comics in the 1940s, but Chiarello does the same with the colors.
The length of this backup feature is restrictive, though. Loeb doesn't get a chance to say much about the character, and I was a bit surprised there wasn't more of a synergy with the main story. There are no parallels, but given that different creative teams handle the segments, I suppose that's to be expected.
