Hawkgirl Reading Order: Where to Start (A DC Comics Guide)

Hawkgirl is one of DC’s oldest heroes and one of its most tangled. She has been a 1940s adventurer, a Thanagarian police officer from an alien world, and a modern reincarnation who does not remember her past lives. Across eighty years of publishing, DC has rebooted her origin more than once, which is exactly why new readers bounce off her. The winged mace looks great; the continuity looks terrifying.

It does not have to be. This is the Hawkgirl reading order we actually recommend, built around the runs that stand on their own and arranged so the reincarnation mystery reveals itself in a satisfying way instead of confusing you on page one. You do not need to memorize Thanagar’s history first. Start with a great modern run, then work backward and forward as the story pulls you. Here is the path.

Two heroes, one name: understanding Hawkgirl

Before the reading order, the one thing that unlocks Hawkgirl is this: there is more than one of her, and that is the point. The Golden Age Hawkgirl is Shiera Sanders. The Silver Age Hawkgirl (later Hawkwoman) is Shayera Hol, an alien cop from the planet Thanagar. The modern Hawkgirl is Kendra Saunders, a young woman whose body became host to a reincarnated Hawk soul. The central DC concept is that Hawkman and Hawkgirl are eternal lovers, reborn across the centuries and doomed to find and lose each other again and again.

Once that clicks, the reboots stop feeling like contradictions and start feeling like verses of the same song. If you want the wider DC landscape first, our best DC graphic novels list is a good companion, and the DC hub collects everything in one place.

Stage 1: The Golden Age origin (Flash Comics, 1940)

The very beginning is Flash Comics #1 (1940), created by Gardner Fox and Dennis Neville, where archaeologist Carter Hall discovers he is the reincarnation of an Egyptian prince and takes up Nth-metal wings as Hawkman. Shiera Sanders debuts alongside him and first suits up as Hawkgirl in Flash Comics #24 (1941). These are pulpy, fast, gorgeously old-fashioned adventures. You do not need to read many, but a few give you the DNA of everything that follows.

The most accessible way in is the Golden Age reprint volumes and DC’s archive and omnibus collections, which gather the earliest Hawkman and Hawkgirl serials. Treat this stage as flavor, not homework.

Stage 2: The Silver Age reboot (Brave and the Bold and Hawkman, 1961-1968)

In The Brave and the Bold #34 (1961), Gardner Fox and artist Joe Kubert reinvented the Hawks as Katar Hol and Shayera Hol, married police officers from the alien world of Thanagar who come to Earth to study its methods. This is the version many longtime fans picture first, and it led into an ongoing Hawkman title beginning in 1964. Shayera fights crime as Hawkgirl and is a full partner rather than a sidekick, which was ahead of its time.

Kubert’s art is the reason to seek these out; the collected Silver Age Hawkman editions are stunning. Again, sample rather than complete. The point is to understand who Shayera is before the modern books start braiding all these lives together.

Stage 3: The modern starting point (JSA by Geoff Johns, 1999-2006)

This is where most readers should actually begin. Kendra Saunders is introduced in JSA Secret Files #1 (1999) and becomes the new Hawkgirl in the JSA series by David S. Goyer, James Robinson, and Geoff Johns. Kendra died and was resurrected with a reincarnated Hawk soul in her body, so she has the destiny but none of the memories, which makes her a perfect audience surrogate. The run also resurrects Carter Hall in a spectacular sequence, reuniting the eternal lovers with all the awkwardness of one of them being a stranger.

JSA is a fantastic superhero team book on its own terms, and it is collected in the JSA by Geoff Johns paperbacks and omnibus editions. If you like this era, our Justice Society reading order maps the whole run, and it slots neatly next to our Justice League reading order.

Stage 4: Hawkman by Geoff Johns (2002-2006)

Spinning directly out of JSA, Geoff Johns and Rags Morales launched a new Hawkman ongoing in 2002. It stars Carter Hall but gives Kendra co-lead status, and it is the book that finally makes the centuries-spanning reincarnation romance land emotionally. Morales draws some of the best Hawks art ever, and Johns treats the convoluted history as an asset instead of an embarrassment.

Read this immediately after the JSA material, since the two run in parallel and share characters. It is collected as Hawkman by Geoff Johns in trade paperbacks and omnibus form, and it is the single best sustained showcase for the modern Hawkgirl.

Stage 5: Hawkgirl goes solo (2006-2008)

When the Hawkman ongoing was renamed Hawkgirl with issue #50, Kendra finally headlined her own book. Walter Simonson wrote the early issues and Howard Chaykin handled art, moving Kendra to St. Roch and later leaning into cosmic and horror-tinged adventures. It is an uneven run, but it is historically important as the first solo Hawkgirl series and it puts Kendra front and center.

This stage is optional for casual readers and essential for completists. If you loved the Johns material, the solo issues are the natural continuation before the big events arrive.

Stage 6: Death and rebirth (Blackest Night and Brightest Day, 2009-2011)

The Hawks are central to two of DC’s biggest modern events. In Blackest Night (2009) by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis, Hawkman and Hawkgirl are killed early and rise as Black Lanterns, a genuinely upsetting turn that pays off the reincarnation theme. Then in Brightest Day (2010-2011), Johns and Peter Tomasi resurrect Carter Hall and Shiera, sending them on a quest into the Hawkworld dimension that tries to reconcile the tangled history.

A content note: Blackest Night is a horror-inflected event with graphic zombie imagery. Both books are collected in multiple formats, and they read best back to back. They are also a good sampler for how the Hawks function inside the wider DC universe, which our best superhero comics guide puts in context.

Stage 7: Hawkman by Venditti and Hitch (2018-2021)

After the New 52 and Rebirth eras muddied the waters again, Robert Venditti and Bryan Hitch delivered the run that finally tied every incarnation together. Their Hawkman (2018-2021) sends Carter Hall on a globe- and time-spanning quest through his own past lives, and it treats the character’s messy publishing history as a literal feature of the story. Hitch draws it like a blockbuster.

Hawkwoman and the wider Hawk mythology feature throughout, and it is the cleanest single explanation of how all the reincarnations connect. It is collected in four trade paperbacks and is a great jumping-on point if you would rather start recent and read forward.

Stage 8: Hawkgirl by Axelrod and Nahuelpan (2023)

The most recent solo outing is the six-issue Hawkgirl miniseries (2023) by Jadzia Axelrod and Amancay Nahuelpan, spinning out of the Lazarus Planet event. It relocates Kendra Saunders to Metropolis, pairs her with a new supporting cast, and gives her a fresh, contemporary voice. Nahuelpan’s flight sequences are a highlight.

It is collected as Hawkgirl: Once Upon a Galaxy and works as a low-commitment modern sampler if you want to try Kendra before diving into the longer runs above.

Reading order at a glance

Step	Title	Era / collects	Best for
1	Golden Age Hawkman & Hawkgirl	Flash Comics (1940-41)	Origins and flavor
2	Silver Age Hawkman	Brave and the Bold #34 onward (1961-68)	Kubert art, Thanagar
3	JSA by Geoff Johns	JSA (1999-2006)	The best modern start
4	Hawkman by Geoff Johns	Hawkman (2002-06)	The reincarnation romance
5	Hawkgirl (Simonson/Chaykin)	Hawkgirl #50-66 (2006-08)	Kendra solo
6	Blackest Night + Brightest Day	Events (2009-2011)	Death and rebirth
7	Hawkman by Venditti & Hitch	Hawkman (2018-2021)	Tying it all together
8	Hawkgirl: Once Upon a Galaxy	Hawkgirl (2023)	A quick modern sampler

Work down the table and the reincarnation puzzle assembles itself. You never need a continuity wiki open in another tab.

Where to buy and how to collect

The modern material is the easiest to find. The JSA by Geoff Johns and Hawkman by Geoff Johns trades are widely stocked, the Venditti and Hitch run is collected in four affordable paperbacks, and Hawkgirl: Once Upon a Galaxy is a single slim volume. The Golden and Silver Age material is best sampled through DC’s archive and omnibus editions, and libraries carry a surprising amount of it.

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Where to go next

Hawkgirl is inseparable from her partner and her teams, so the natural next steps are our Hawkman reading order for Carter Hall’s side of the story, and the Justice Society reading order for the team where modern Hawkgirl truly shines. From there, branch into the wider Justice League reading order.

Frequently asked questions

Why are there so many different Hawkgirls?

Because reincarnation is baked into the character. Shiera Sanders (Golden Age), Shayera Hol (Silver Age Thanagarian), and Kendra Saunders (modern) are all versions of the same eternal Hawk soul, reborn across time. DC’s periodic reboots reshuffled the details, but the core idea is that Hawkgirl keeps coming back.

Where should a beginner start with Hawkgirl?

Start with the JSA by Geoff Johns run (1999-2006), where Kendra Saunders becomes Hawkgirl with no memory of her past lives. It is a great team book that eases you into her mythology. If you prefer something recent and short, the 2023 Hawkgirl: Once Upon a Galaxy miniseries works too.

Do I need to read the old Golden Age comics first?

No. The Golden and Silver Age material is fun flavor, but every modern run explains what you need to know. You can comfortably start with the Geoff Johns era and read the classics later if you fall for the character.

What is the difference between Hawkgirl and Hawkwoman?

They are often the same person under different names. The Thanagarian Shayera Hol has been called both Hawkgirl and, in her more adult Silver and Bronze Age depictions, Hawkwoman. Modern stories generally use Hawkgirl for Kendra Saunders and Hawkwoman for the alien Shayera.

Keep exploring with our Hawkman reading order and best DC graphic novels guide.