During the 90′s, the Marvel Universe wasn’t always the most compelling place to visit (with the bright side being that I discovered Indies to a much greater degree). Be it the hyper-angst, multiple covers, trading cards, Wolverine appearing in every issue, or the general downward spiral where both the writing and art were concerned – things just weren’t going all that well. But there were a few bright spots and while my encounters with the character were relatively few and far between before taking a break from the hobby all-together, Darkhawk may very well have been one of them. In those first issues I found that I liked the Darkhawk visual an awful lot (perhaps the good ‘ol Silverhawks influence pulled me in) and Chris Powell seemed to be a character crafted in the mold of a Peter Parker, or Rich Rider, with just enough there to differentiate himself from the two classic heroes. In other words, the potential was there. Unfortunately, as I mentioned, I stepped away from comics for several years about this time and never really got to see how things played out over the next several years. I did catch up with Darkhawk briefly when Excelsior appeared in the pages of Runaways and really enjoyed seeing the character there and in Loners mini-series not too long after. I thought he made a great addition to the current M.U. and that some of that potential I saw back then was definitely being brought to the surface.
So, long story short, I was glad to find out that a couple of newly crowned favorite writers in Abnett & Lanning were going to put their pens to paper and write a Darkhawk appearance in Nova’s excellent series, hopefully, further cementing that potential for future use. Rosemann & DnA have the right idea:
Darhawk’s appearance in “Nova” came about because of a suggestion by DnA’s editor Bill Rosemann, one that the writing duo thought made perfect sense. “For the most part, Darkhawk reminds us of Nova – young, hot-headed, under-appreciated, under-used,” the writers told CBR News. “But there’s a mystical quality to him, that contrasts him with Nova’s SF edge. And he’s got that temper, of course.”
Despite Darkhawk’s temper, DnA feel the character and Nova could possibly become very good friends. “They have been teammates, after all, and they complement one another,” DnA said. “Rich has a ‘big brother’ edge–especially after what he’s been through these last couple of years. He could probably teach Chris quite a lot.”
Nova #16 hits stands later this week!
