As Superman and his mythos developed, it was revealed more and more Kryptonians survived their home world’s destruction, so much so that the nickname “Last Son of Krypton” may have been a misnomer – Supergirl, General Zod, and Krypto are but a few – however, Hawkman, in a previous identity, was also a survivor of Krypton’s destruction thanks to a unique twist in his history.
A stalwart of both the Justice Society and the Justice League, Hawkman is one of DC’s oldest characters. The original Hawkman was Carter Hall, a reincarnation of an Egyptian prince, awakened in the present day to fight crime as Hawkman; the second, Katar Hol, was a cop from the distant world of Thanagar, who came to Earth with his wife, eventually adopting the identity of Hawkman. Thanks to Crisis On Infinite Earths and subsequent reboots, the character’s history became tangled and convoluted. Over the years, various creative teams have tried to explain away the discrepancies in Hawkman’s history. In 2018, DC launched a new Hawkman book, written by Robert Venditti with art by Bryan Hitch. During the course of their run, it was revealed that Hawkman had, countless millennia ago, been a general in the Deathbringers Army, named Ktar. Ktar had been responsible for the destruction of countless worlds. As punishment, Ktar was to be reincarnated through the ages, until he had saved as many lives as he had taken as a Deathbringer.
As a result, Hawkman had many lives across space and time, and one of them was as a scientist on the planet Krypton named Catar-Ol, and readers meet him in issue #8. In the book’s present day, Hawkman is revisiting his past lives, looking for clues that will help him end the Deathbringers’ threat once and for all. The Kryptonians had developed a weapon that potentially could work, and Hawkman had returned to where Krypton once was to try and salvage it. While there, he met Catar-Ol and learned he had been present on Krypton the day it exploded. As Hawkman and Catar talk about their lives, Catar reveals that he not only knows Jor-El, Superman’s father, but is tutoring Jor-El’s niece Kara, the future Supergirl. Catar reveals to Hawkman there is nothing he can do to stop Krypton’s destruction, and Hawkman warps back to the present day as Krypton explodes, without the weapon he came for in the first place.
Hawkman is one of the mainstays of the DC Universe, and this issue strengthens his connection to it by linking him to Superman and Krypton. Hawkman has been reincarnated across space and time, so it makes sense he would be on Krypton. Placing him there at the time of its destruction creates an unexpected bond between Hawkman, Superman, Supergirl, and other Kryptonian survivors. It adds a tragic layer to Hawkman as well, as, throughout all his incarnations, he has sought to atone for his actions as a Deathbringer. Saving Krypton could have been the perfect way to accomplish this, but it was denied to him, forcing him to continue his quest, hoping to someday rid himself of the Deathbringer curse.
Hawkman has led many lives in the DC Universe, and his entire existence has been an epic quest to make amends for his past. His journey took him to the planet Krypton, revealing he was a secret survivor of the doomed planet’s destruction.
