Polite Dissent

The Kesel and Kesel Hawk & Dove series remains one of my all-time favorite comic book series. In its 28 issue run there were several excellent issues, and Hawk & Dove #5 is one of those issues.

Two storylines compete in this issue. In the first, Hank Hall (Hawk) and his girlfriend Ren are enjoying day at the beach when Sudden Death, a minor league villain, tries to pick up Ren. He is unaware that he is trying to steal Hawk’s girlfriend and a nicely explosive battle commence. This is the first issue to hint at what is under Hawk’s costume, and it’s not exactly Hank Hall. Sudden Death makes another appearance a year or so later, but remains a wannabe villain.

Meanwhile, Dawn Granger (Dove) is recuperating from the flu and is visited by the ghost of the original Dove (Don Hall). The conversation between the two does a good job of showing how this Hawk and Dove series is firmly built on Steve Ditko’s original.

The script is by Karl and Barbara Kesel. The art is low key but appropriate by Chris Wozniak, with Karl Kesel on the inks.

Sadly, the series was a victim of Armageddon 2001 and ended after 28 issues and 2 annuals. There was another Hawk and Dove series in 1997, but it bore no relation to the previous series and was quite lackluster. Hank Hall (as Monarch, then Extant) has been seen in the several Armageddon 2001 mini-series, Zero-Hour, and recently JSA. Dove has shown up in recent issues of JSA as well.