Darkhawk (2021) #1 Review

I was a huge fan of the New Warriors in the 90s and that's where I was first introduced to the character Darkhawk. Darkhawk was very mysterious to me back then because I was unfamiliar with his origin, but the character had an edgy Shadowhawk type of vibe. Upon reading this new volume of Darkhawk, I honestly still love the character, but the implementation leaves much to be desired. 

Darkhawk is written by Kyle Higgins, with Juanan Ramirez on art and Erick Arciniega on colour. Letters by VC's Travis Lanham. Darkhawk stars Connor Young. A high school basketball star who has been suffering bouts of disorientation. One day while Connor is jogging he loses his balance suddenly and falls down, sustaining a head injury. After a visit to the emergency room he is found to have MS. Connor takes a walk upon release from the hospital when a comet from outer space crashes near him. 

In the debris Connor finds the crystal that grants the powers of Darkhawk. Connor then uses his newly found powers to take down some criminals. Darkhawk has tough armor, the ability to fly as well as energy blasts and other powers. Connor seems able to use these powers immediately. 

This is one of the main problems I have with this book. Although the story is decent and Connors revelation of having MS makes you really feel for the character, reading this book just seemed like a chore. Perhaps the book will pick up in future volumes but for now Darkhawk feels just a little boring. Lacking the edginess of previous iterations. 

There is going to be an interview with an MS sufferer each issue, and the interview included here was quite touching. But that is not enough to save this book in my opinion. Hopefully we see more darkness out of Darkhawk. But give it a read if highschool drama and superheroes are your thing.