HAWKWORLD: Petition for The Shadow War of Hawkman and Hawkman Vol. 2

Way back in 1968, Hawkman's first solo run ended and he was teamed up with the Atom in the retitled Atom series, but The Atom and Hawkman lasted only 7 issues before being canceled. It began a long period where you would have to go to the Justice League of America series, backup features in Detective Comics, or stories in the World's Finest Comics to find the Hawks. Despite being almost a first-tier or strong second-tier hero in DC Comics during this time, Hawkman was without his own series for a very long time.

House Ad for The Shadow War of Hawkman (1985)

Finally, in 1985, Hawkman and Hawkwoman were given another chance with a series called The Shadow War of Hawkman by Tony Isabella (script) and Richard Howel (art). The story about Hawkman and Hawkwoman fighting off a Thanagarian invasion was a hit, after a special issue in the winter of 1985-86, Hawkman was finally given a regular. Isabella left after 12 issues, and Dan Mishkin took over the writing, but the series was canceled after only 17 issues in 1987. Isabella has said in comments on the Hawkworld Facebook group that he had a five-year story all planned out, but the series had the misfortune of running almost exactly alongside the Crisis on Infinite Earths. DC Comics changed its plans for many heroes and Hawkman was one of the heroes whose continuity and place in DC Comics was really damaged by the new direction. But that's a whole other story for another time.

The Shadow War of Hawkman

1986 Special

Hawkman Vol. 2

The series remains a favorite among Hawkman fans, but sadly, DC Comics has never collected the issues in a trade or collection. This is a missed opportunity for DC Comics but without demand, it will never happen. Fans need to step up and ask DC Comics to correct this oversight and gather the following issues into one omnibus.

The Shadow War of Hawkman No. 1-4 (May-August 1985)
Hawkman Special 1986 (March 1986)
Hawkman Vol. 2 No. 1-12 (August 1986-December 1987)
Action Comics No. 588 (May 1987) Note: Comes after issue No. 10 of Hawkman Vol. 2.

Action Comics No. 588 (May 1987)
This issue comes between Hawkman Vol. 2 No. 10 and 11.

Whenever comics fans ask me what Hawkman stories I would recommend, this is always on my list. Isabella's amazing ability to make the Thanagarians a truly frightening threat, and also his ability to show the relationship of Katar and Shayera is absolutely beautiful. Howell's art brings beauty to the Hawks and a terrifying look for the Thanagarians. For the Hawks, the Isabella and Howell team-up is one of the best in their history. The scene where the Hawks are finally united after it appears that Hawkwoman was killed is one of my favorite pages of all-time.

The Shadow War of Hawkman No. 3 (July 1985)

I created a petition for Hawkman fans to sign and show their support for the series to be collected. It's been a slow process but I haven't given up on it. I want to make this a reality but it can only happen if a LOT of Hawkman fans support it. Please click the link and sign the petition! Let's make this happen!

Link to the petition: Hawkman Omnibus (Isabella-Mishkin-Howell Collection)