Board Review of Hawkman No. 21: Death's Doorway Part Two: The Key

Great Polaris! That was fun! Hawkman No. 21 continues the Sky Tyrant saga and this issue was a blast. At the end of the last issue, we were on an unnamed planet where a key is locked away and guarded by a huge, we’re talking gargantuan, guardian of the grave of one of Hawkman’s former lives called the Titan Hawk. Sky Tyrant wants this key to unlock a weapon that will cause widespread death across the universe and ensure that his reincarnating will continue forever.

From Hawkman No. 21

For those of you who haven’t read Hawkman No. 7 (February 2019), let me explain. Hawkman was the general of a winged army that killed and sacrificed people on planets all across the universe for thousands of years. This was to give power to “The Lord of the Void” to enter this realm. Hawkman rebelled and sacrificed his life to send the evil entity and his army back into the realm. As he was dying another entity appeared and gave him the power to reincarnate and save lives to make up for the lives he took. Once he saves as many lives as he took, his next death will be his last. So Sky Tyrant has figured that if he can kill billions of lives in one shot, he would reincarnate forever. That’s why he is after the key for this weapon.

From Hawkman No. 21

Batman Who Does What? Being infected was what brought Sky Tyrant out of Carter Hall’s consciousness, but the BWL is nothing but an afterthought in this series. Writer Robert Venditti has figured out a way of using it as a way to advance Hawkman’s story instead of totally disrupting it. He has used it to bring Hawkwoman, the Atom, and Adam Strange together as a team for maybe the first time ever. I can’t recall that ever happening before.

Maybe they showed up together in a couple of Justice League of America issues from the Silver Age, but not as a proper team. It makes you wonder why it hadn’t been done before. These are the things that Venditti notices and doesn’t hesitate to use them.

From Hawkman No. 21

Huge Defeat. Since Sky Tyrant has to get through the giant guardian to get the key, we all knew the guardian was going down, but it was still sad to see. Once this is all over, maybe we will get a scene where Carter takes the key back to him for safe-keeping.

From Hawkman No. 19

Don’t forget that in a couple of issues ago, Hawkwoman handed Sky Tyrant’s ass to him on a silver platter with extra whipped cream on top. And I do mean whipped. Dayum. Do not mess with Hawkwoman.

From Hawkman No. 21

From Hawkman No. 7

At the end of the issue, we get a good look at the key. But wait. It looks kind of familiar. Haven’t we seen some like this before? If “The Lord of the Void” comes into play during this run, that would be very interesting.

Venditti continues to give us a series where each issue is a great story all by itself, and he also leaves us wanting to come back for more. There was a very funny panel where the similar names of two of the characters caused some confusion. In a very tense and action-filled story, Venditti is able to throw in a hilarious moment between the characters as well. That is good writing, my friends.

The art is just fantastic. Fernando Pasarin, Oclair Albert, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Jeromy Cox team up to give us a beautiful comic. The detail is maybe the best we’ve seen in this series, and the colors are bright and loud. It really added to the intense moments in the story. Wade Von Grawbadger did a couple of Hawkman issues in Vol. 4 about 15 years ago, so it was nice to see him back. I hope this team stays together for many issues to come.

Hawkman by Robert Venditti continues to be one of the best comics that DC Comics has to offer right now. If you’re looking for a good superhero adventure, this is the place.

Hawkman No. 21 Variant cover by Trevor Hairsine and Rain Beredo

Writer: Robert Venditti

Penciller: Fernando Pasarin
Inkers: Oclair Albert, Wade Von Grawbadger
Colorist: Jeromy Cox
Letterer: Rob Leigh
Editors: Andrea Shea, Alex R. Carr

Cover by Raymund Bermudez

Variant Cover by Trevor Hairsine and Rain Beredo

Rating: 10/10