The NEW 52: Hawk & Dove #1

Hawk & Dove is written by Sterling Gates and penciled by Rob Liefeld.  Gates has worked on several high profile characters including, but not limited to: The Green Lantern Corps, Superman-Prime, Superman, and Supergirl.  Interestingly enough one of Liefeld’s early works includes the limited 1988 series, Hawk and Dove, by Barbara and Karl Kesen.

The DC Comics website summarizes and plugs the first issue of Hawk & Dove with these remarks:

“Hank Hall is not happy. He's not happy to have Dawn Granger as a new partner in his war on crime. He's not happy that she's dating the ghostly Super Hero, Deadman. He's not happy to learn that someone is trying to plunge the United States into a new civil war! Now it's up to Hawk and Dove to root out the forces behind this conflict and stop them before they turn the U.S. into a wasteland!
 And who is the monster lurking in the shadows, watching Hawk and Dove from afar? Find out in this new series from Sterling Gates (FLASHPOINT: KID FLASH LOST) and artist Rob Liefeld (X-Force, Youngblood)!”

Personal Thoughts:  Truthfully I did not care for this issue so much.  The story was ‘meh’ at best and nothing has been altered to Hawk & Dove since the two heroes graced the pages of DC’s maxiseries, Brightest Day.  Essentially, DC Comics could have rolled out this issue the moment Brightest Day concluded, but in order to keep with the NEW 52 they waited to publish.  Hawk & Dove’s costumes, demeanor, and back-stories have not changed a bit and issue #1 primarily covers the stereotypical mad scientist, the angry anti-hero (Hawk), and nifty flashbacks pertaining to Hawk & Dove’s origin.  It may just be me, but it seems as if every Hawk & Dove comic and/or series that I have read is an origin story rehash.  The writing is not bad, but it is not riveting by any means.  The art is solid, but Liefeld seems to enjoy penciling Hawk with a grimace and with clenched teeth more often than not.  Matt Yackey’s coloration is wonderfully done and I really appreciated the bright colors.  The coloration accents Hawk & Dove’s duality perfectly by complementing each other’s design with the use of a lot of reds and blues.

I give Hawk & Dove three-out-of-five stars.  I most likely will not be picking up the second issue, unless I hear of something spectacular through the grapevine about the series. 

Check back here news and reviews about DC’s NEW 52 throughout the weeks of September!

WATCH The NEW 52: Hawk & Dove #1 FULL MOVIE ONLINE STREAMING