It's been a while since I thumbed through the pages of this title, but there was an element in this issue I just couldn't ignore: the artist. It's been a while since Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez handled the art chores on an entire comic-book story, and it was a treat to see the classic 1970s/1980s talent back in action. Another added pleasure was Johns's script, which delves into the heart of the title character and spotlights the tragic nature of the heroic figure's never-ending life.
Carter Hall, AKA Hawkman, takes a day to reflect on his life... and his past lives, and he wallows in the sadness he feels for all of the loved ones he's left behind as he's made his way from one life to the next. His reminiscences draw him to a small city in Germany, and he's delighted to find that it's changed little since he helped build it from the ground up in the 1500s in one of those past lives. There, he encounters another man -- angry and saddened by recent tragedies just as the winger hero is by ancient losses.
Garcia-Lopez really turned heads his a sleek, sexy style that was far more advanced than most comic-book artwork in the 1970s. I think I first sampled his skills on DC Comics Presents #2 of all things. Sure, the alien villain was brought to life through a crude, simian-like design, but it was clear that the artist had a mastery of anatomy that was unequalled. And in the 1980s, with the dark Cinder & Ashe, he demonstrated to this young reader that he was capable of much more than super-heroics. One can see how his work probably influenced such artists as Brian Bolland, Kevin Nowlan and Kevin Maguire. New comics readers who are unfamiliar with this classic artist's work would be well advised to check out this issue.
He does so again here. Johns's script keeps the title character in civilan garb for much of the issue, and the artist makes it clear he doesn't need colorful costumes to maintain the reader's attention. Garcia-Lopez conveys motion incredibly well, turning a run-of-the-mill action sequence into something far more exciting. My one qualm with the artwork is the unexplained change in the title character's costume in the opening sequence.
Another bonus here is how accessible this self-contained issue really is. Johns sums up the character -- his history and his tortured nature -- succinctly, hiding the exposition in some plausible dialogue. The writer makes the notion of reincarnation in a super-hero context seem completely acceptable. And his decision to play it up as a curse rather than a gift is clever, opening the door for some strong characterization.
I can't help but wonder why the writer didn't explore this notion earlier on in the series, as this story provides a strong new take on Hawkman while incorporating a defining element from his Golden Age origin. The one thing this script was missing was Hawkman's connection to Hawkgirl. I would assume that the burden of living multiple lives would be eased by knowing one was sharing the experience with another, but Johns doesn't get into it here.
