Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for James Gunn’s Superman
After James Gunn’sSuperman,the origins of one new DCU hero in particular have become a pretty exciting mystery. While the first live-actionDCUmovie naturally gives the bulk of the spotlight to David Corenswet’s new Man of Steel, it also features several other heroes. This includes Kendra Saunders' Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), a fearsome warrior known to have quite a complex past in the original comics.
Despite being the first major movie in the DCU,James Gunn’sSupermanis the furthest thing from Kal-El’s origin story. Instead, audiences are thrown into an established universe, one filled with metahumans alongside the Man of Steel.However, this also means that James Gunn’sSupermandoesn’t feature origins for many of its new characters either, including the specific history of Hawkgirl.
James Gunn’s Superman Introduces Hawkgirl To The MCU
A Member of the Justice Gang
In James Gunn’sSuperman,Kendra Saunders aka Hawkgirlis introduced as a fierce warrior. Armed with a mace and an impressive set of wings allowing her to fly, Hawkgirl is a member of the Justice Gang, a trio of heroes funded by LordTech CEO Maxwell Lord (whose team name is still temporary). Likewise, Kendra in particular says more than once she’s not a fan of the team’s current name.
Not only does Hawkgirl participate in the battle against the giant kaiju Lex Luthor unleashed on Metropolis, but she also helps stop the Boravian invasion of Jarhanpur at Superman’s request. However, not much is actually revealed about her past or origins in James Gunn’sSuperman.While the same is true for Guy and Mister Terrific, the question of Hawkgirl’s backstory in the DCU is particularly fascinating given the complexity of her origins in the comics.
What We Know About Hawkgirl’s DCU Origins
Alien? Ancient Egyptian? Both?
Originally in the Golden Age of DC Comics,Hawkgirl and Hawkmanwere introduced as an ancient Egyptian warrior priest and priestess, lovers cursed to reincarnate across the ages upon their deaths, who subsequently became members of the JSA in the present. However, the Silver Age depicted them as alien space cops from the planet Thanagar, having come to Earth to learn more about human criminal activity and policing techniques.
FollowingCrisis on Infinite Earthsand theNew 52andRebirtheras, Hawkgirl and Hawkman’s Thanagarian alien origins have since been incorporated into their reincarnation origins, a past life of many in their extensive timeline since Egypt. As such, one has to wonder which direction the DCU plans to go now that Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl has made her debut inSuperman.
First and foremost,Merced herself has spoken to Hawkgirl’s DCU origins, citing the trauma of carrying dark memories of past lives, confirming that reincarnation is indeed the focal point of the backstory she was told, with one of them being alien. Likewise,Superman’sHall of Justice mural featuring several surprise DC superheroes includes Silent Knight, a medieval hero who was one of Hawkman’s reincarnations.
During his pitch to the Defense Department, it’s also notable that Lex Luthor specifically singles out Superman as an alien, while other known metahumans aren’t.As such, this certainly supports the argument that Hawkgirl is more than likely a current human with memories of a past alien life (among others). That said, the current whereabouts of Carter Hall’s Hawkman in the DCU haven’t been fully revealed either.
What The Future Holds For Hawkgirl In The DCU
Peacemaker Season 2 (And Likely Beyond)
One of the biggest mysteries about Hawkgirl’s DCU origins is when they’ll actually be revealed in-universe. Currently, we know Kendra will be featured next month inPeacemakerseason 2, joining Guy Gardner and Maxwell Lord as they reject John Cena’s Chris Smith, denying him a spot among the Justice Gang. However, I doubt her role will be anything substantial or any kind of deep dive into her complicated backstory.
With that in mind, I do wonder if the best chance at learning more about Hawkgirl will come from Mister Terrific’s rumored spin-off. Perhaps there’s even a project for Hakgirl herself in the works that we just don’t know about yet.Despite having what felt like the least amount of meaningful screentime compared to her fellow Justice Gang members, Hawkgirl feels like the hero with the most fascinating past.
With any luck, Hawkgirl’s past will end up being revealed sooner rather than later. There’s plenty of room for her future to be explored just as much as her dynamic past. After all,Hawkgirl did end up killing the Boravian President Vasil Ghurkosat the end ofSuperman, something that will likely have some political blowback when it comes to metahumans (as was also teased by the movie’s end).
