Hawkman Reading Order: Untangling the Winged Warrior
Untangling Hawkman's continuity, from Johns to Venditti.
By Web Admin
Hawkman has a reputation, and it is not entirely fair. Yes, his continuity is famously tangled — reincarnated Egyptian prince, alien policeman from Thanagar, and several reboots that tried to reconcile the two. Longtime editors have joked that Hawkman’s backstory is the most confusing in comics. But here is the good news: you do not have to understand every retcon to love the character. You just need to start in the right place.
This Hawkman reading order untangles the mess and hands you a clean path. We will explain why the continuity got so knotted, point you to the modern run that fixed it, and lay out the classic stories worth your time. Whether you want the definitive modern take or the deep JSA-era lore, there is a clear on-ramp for you here.
Why is Hawkman’s continuity so confusing?
The short history: the Golden Age Hawkman (Carter Hall) was the reincarnation of an Egyptian prince, Prince Khufu, doomed to be reborn across the centuries alongside his love, Shiera. The Silver Age introduced a completely different Hawkman — Katar Hol, an alien police officer from the planet Thanagar. For decades DC tried to have both, then merged them, then split them, then merged them again. Add the 1989 Hawkworld reboot, which reset Katar’s timeline and caused years of contradictions, and you have the tangle Hawkman is known for.
The reason the modern run works so well is that it stopped apologising for this and turned it into the whole point: Hawkman has literally lived every one of those lives.
Best starting point: Venditti’s Hawkman (2018)
If you read one thing, read Robert Venditti’s Hawkman (2018), with art by Bryan Hitch and others. It is the cleanest, most confident modern take, and it needs no prior reading. Venditti’s masterstroke was to embrace the contradictions: Carter Hall goes on an archaeological quest across his own past incarnations, meaning every previous version of Hawkman becomes canon as a life he has lived. It is thrilling, self-contained, and genuinely resolves decades of confusion. Start with Vol. 1: Awakening. For where it sits among DC’s best, see our best DC graphic novels.
The classic lore: Geoff Johns’s JSA and Hawkman
Before Venditti, the definitive modern Hawkman came from Geoff Johns. Johns brought Carter Hall back in his acclaimed JSA run around 2001 and then spun him into a solo Hawkman series. This is the run that firmly re-established the reincarnation origin, his romance with Kendra (Hawkgirl), and his home base of St. Roch. It is richer in continuity than the Venditti run, so we usually recommend it second — once you already like the character. Johns’s ability to make legacy heroes matter is on full display, and it is a great gateway into the wider Justice Society; see our Justice League reading order for how the teams connect.
The reboot that caused the chaos: Hawkworld (1989)
Timothy Truman’s Hawkworld (1989) is a genuinely excellent, gritty reinvention of Katar Hol and the planet Thanagar as a stratified, corrupt society. Read on its own, it is one of the best Hawkman stories ever told. Its problem was continuity: by rebooting Katar’s history, it accidentally broke the timeline for years. We recommend it as a standalone classic rather than as part of a strict chronology — enjoy it for what it is. Fans of grounded, morally complex superhero comics will find a lot to like; our best superhero comics guide has more in that vein.
Reading order at a glance
Here is the path we recommend. The first two rows are the essentials; the rest deepen the lore once you are hooked.
| Order | Run / story | Creators | Year | Why read it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawkman, Vol. 1: Awakening | R. Venditti, B. Hitch | 2018 | Cleanest modern start |
| 2 | JSA (Johns run) | Geoff Johns, various | 2001–06 | Reintroduces Carter Hall |
| 3 | Hawkman (Johns solo) | Geoff Johns, Rags Morales | 2002–06 | Definitive lore build |
| 4 | Hawkworld | Timothy Truman | 1989 | Standalone Thanagar classic |
| 5 | The Brave and the Bold (Silver Age) | Gardner Fox, Joe Kubert | 1960s | Classic origins |
What about Hawkgirl and the Hawks together?
Hawkman and Hawkgirl (Shiera Sanders in the Golden Age, Kendra Saunders in the modern era) are inseparable in most incarnations — the reincarnation curse binds them across lifetimes. Many of the best Hawkman stories are really Hawks stories. Kendra also headlines her own recent series, and both characters are pillars of the Justice Society. If you enjoy legacy team dynamics, you will want to explore the JSA more broadly.
- Carter Hall — the reincarnated warrior, the “classic” Hawkman.
- Katar Hol — the Thanagarian police officer version, central to Hawkworld.
- Kendra Saunders — the modern Hawkgirl, tied to Carter across lives.
How to collect Hawkman
The Venditti run is easy to find in trade paperbacks and is the best value entry point. Johns’s Hawkman and JSA have been collected in various formats over the years — look for the omnibus or the newer paperback lines. Hawkworld and the Silver Age Kubert material are more of a hunt; Nth-metal-era back issues occasionally surface in our best comic book runs discussions. For the full lay of the land, the DC hub collects everything in one place.
A practical tip for newcomers: resist the urge to read strictly by publication date. Because the pre-Hawkworld, Silver Age and Golden Age Hawkman stories contradict one another, reading them back to back will only reinforce the confusion the character is unfairly known for. Instead, treat each major run as its own self-contained take. Start with Venditti to get the whole reincarnation concept in one clean package, then read the Johns and Truman material as deeper explorations of the myth rather than as sequential chapters. Approached that way, Hawkman goes from “the most confusing hero in comics” to one of DC’s most rewarding — a warrior who has genuinely lived a hundred lives, fought across every age of history, and always comes back for the woman he loves.
The character also rewards patience with his supporting mythology. The Nth metal that powers his flight, the mace-wielding combat style, the recurring foe Hath-Set and the eternal cycle of reincarnation are all threads that pay off differently in each era. Once you have the Venditti foundation, going back to see how earlier writers handled those same elements becomes a pleasure rather than a chore.
Frequently asked questions
Where should a new reader start with Hawkman?
Robert Venditti’s 2018 Hawkman, beginning with Vol. 1: Awakening. It requires no prior reading and cleverly turns the character’s confusing history into the story’s central quest.
Why does Hawkman keep getting rebooted?
DC has long struggled to reconcile two separate origins — a reincarnated Egyptian prince and an alien Thanagarian police officer. The 1989 Hawkworld reboot in particular created timeline contradictions that took years to resolve, leading to repeated attempts to fix the continuity.
Is Hawkworld still worth reading?
Absolutely, as a standalone. Timothy Truman’s Hawkworld is a gritty, well-crafted reinvention of Thanagar and one of the best Hawkman stories on its own merits — just do not treat it as part of a strict chronology.
Do I need to read the JSA books to understand Hawkman?
Not to start, but Geoff Johns’s JSA run is where the modern Carter Hall was reintroduced and is a rewarding second step once you enjoy the character and want deeper continuity.
Continue with the teams he flies with in our Justice League reading order, or browse more capes in the DC hub.
