Blackhawk

reviewed by Syl Francis and David R. Black

Written and illustrated by Howard Chaykin

Before we get into our comments, a brief intro is in order. "Blackhawk" was a three issue miniseries published by DC in 1988. Set in the waning days of World War II, the plot has Blackhawk being stripped of his American citizenship, and his team's financial backing by the USA government, because of his past associations with Communists.

Blackhawk's associate, Lt. Weng Chan (formerly known as "Chop Chop") manages to secure two new backers for the Blackhawk team - the governments of Britain and the Soviet Union. As part of this new Anglo-Soviet venture, Blackhawk's mission is to stop an anti-Brit, anti-Soviet air strike force called the White Lions. The White Lions, with backing from Nazi Germany and Tsarist loyalists in Russia, are led by Lord Death Mayhew, a former film star turned Axis officer.

Meanwhile, the plot thickens when a prototype atomic bomb is stolen by a mobster named Emil Bronski. When he learns that Germany financed his heist of the bomb, Bronski decides not to go through with the deal. As Chan says, "Bronski may be a mobster, but he's an American mobster." The White Lions, Blackhawk, and an American expatriate turned Russian operative named Natalie Reed are all sent by their respective backers to retrieve the bomb.

We're not going to give away the story's ending, but needless to say, there's plenty of political intrigue, twists and turns, and as you'd expect from a Blackhawk comic, airplanes.

Syl Francis and I both read the series and discussed our reactions to it. Syl's comments are in italicized typeface, and mine are in regular typeface.

I have mixed feelings about the characters. Chaykin did gave Blackhawk a better name (like you mention, Janos Prohoska is a lot more Polish sounding than "Bart Hawk"), and he did away with the awful stereotype of Chop-Chop. And I liked Chaykin's version of Lady Blackhawk a lot better than the original (or the one who later appeared in Guy Gardner's series). I also liked the idea of having Prohaska involved in the Spanish Civil War.

I'll admit though, that if you were looking for bright and shiny heroes, you won't find 'em in this miniseries. Prohaska was portrayed as a drunk, a womanizer, and as too cocky/arrogant for his own good.

I'd have to agree that Chaykin's version of Blackhawk did ruffle my feathers at first, but then I realized that in three issues, Chaykin did more to develop Blackhawk's character than had been done in the previous 50 years. Blackhawk and his men were pretty much "blank slates" up until this point.

Is being characterized in an unappealing way better or worse than not being characterized at all? I'm not sure.

Since you didn't like Blackhawk's character, I'd advise staying away from "Twilight." In that miniseries, Chaykin's take on the early space explorers of the DCU (i.e. Tommy Tomorrow, Star Hawkins, the Star Rovers, et al) is very similar in scope. Definitely not for those who have fond memories of the original characters.

I don't think Reba even knew her own name after using so many aliases. Seriously though, your point is well taken.

The two women in the series, Reba and Natalie (Lady Blackhawk) Reed, were studies in contrasting personalities. Whereas Reba simply used her body in classic bimbo-fashion to get what she wanted, Natalie was a much more complex character. Natalie was a self made, fiercely independent woman way ahead of her time. She designed planes (the self launching X-5SF in the Tehran scene), was a well respected spy, etc. She managed to flourish in a male dominated time period and in a male dominated vocation. Sorry, but I've gotta admire a gal like that.

I agree that Blackhawk should have had at least a "For Mature Audiences" label on it. Before Vertigo came along, it seemed like DC didn't know what to do with books having more mature themes (such as "Longbow Hunters" and "Cinder & Ashe"). A lot of those books didn't find their intended audience, and at the same time, probably wound up in the hands of audiences (i.e. kids) they weren't intended to be in.

Totally agree with you on that one, Syl. Chaykin went a bit overboard in his use of unusual story telling techniques.

As to Blackhawk being a communist: Well, he did fly with the "Bolshevik" Bill Heywood squadron during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. All the other members of the squadron were communists, so Blackhawk was sort of guilty by association. In issue #2, Blackhawk says in passing, "I left the [Communist] party because of Stalin, and I see no reason to rejoin the fold now. That's Blackhawks, not Redhawks."

Plus, Hightower, the senator behind Blackhawk being stripped of his American citizenship because of his Communist ties, was secretly one of Death Mayhew's cronies.

I agree, however, that Chaykin wasn't very explicit in dealing with the whole "Blackhawk as a communist" idea. It seemed to be the thrust of the first issue, but then it sort of faded into the background as the miniseries progressed. Asides from a mention of Natalie Reed being a "Young People's Socialist League Beauty Queen" in her youth, the issue of American Communists (and what to do with them) is quickly forgotten.

And to make matters worse, Blackhawk is in the Soviet Union for the better half of issue #2, flying missions for them in the joint Anglo-Russian air unit. If I were of Polish descent, like him, I'd want nothing to do with a country that helped bring about the occupation and invasion of my homeland.

OK, let's move on to the art. The cover of the third issue is one of my all time favorites. Blackhawk's body and outfit fading into the black background while the red dress of the woman he's dancing with grabs the reader's attention makes for a powerful, yet subtle feel.

The interior art is also very eye catching and Chaykin seems to capture the feel of the time period (i.e. the way people dress, the cars, surroundings, etc). The "Life" and "Signal" magazine covers featuring Blackhawk and Lord Death Mayhew, respectively, also added a nice touch of realism. Had Blackhawk been a real person, I'm sure he'd have made the cover of many a magazine.

The high quality paper the series was printed on also contributes to making the art look great. I should also mention that Steve Oliff and Ken Bruzenak also contributed to the book's feel. Their exact roles in the series aren't stated, but I think it's safe to assume that they're the letterer and colorist.

But great art with a questionable plot doesn't make for a great overall story. Can't have one without the other, right?

I think Blackhawk Express is still around in some capacity, but I'm not totally up to date on them. I remember a Suicide Squad story line from a few years back ("Dragon's Hoard," in #53-57) where Deadshot, Gort, and Count Vertigo covertly parachuted into Thailand (?) with the help of Blackhawk Express.

Blackhawk Express also made a brief cameo in Suicide Squad #64. There's a scene where Nightshade and Outlaw (John Henry Martin) jump out of a Blackhawk plane.

Anyway, back to the series at hand. On a scale to one to ten, Syl, how would you rate the overall story?

I'd give it a 6.5. The art is great (an 8 or 9), but the logic flaws in the story bring down the overall grade.

AVERAGE of the TWO REVIEWS: 6