Lady Blackhawk is an alias used by three fictional comic book characters appearing in American comic books . The first, Zinda Blake, was introduced in a DC Comics publication in 1959 ( Blackhawk #133); the second, Natalie Reed, appeared in a DC Comics title in 1988. The third, as-yet-unnamed, Lady Blackhawk debuted in a DC Comics title in 2011. All three characters were aviators and soldiers.
87-681: Reed has not appeared since the 1992 one-shot special; Blake was more recently a regular character in the Birds of Prey comic book from 2004 to 2009, and from 2010 to 2011. The third Lady Blackhawk appears in the Blackhawks comic. Zinda Blake , the first published Lady Blackhawk , is a fictional DC Comics character. She was introduced in Blackhawk #133 (February 1959). The Quality Comics characters were purchased by DC Comics and DC published Blackhawk from #108. Military Comics #20 (July 1943) featured
174-573: A Comic Book Resources interview that he liked the concept of Platinum Flats. Bedard wanted to mix the concept of 21st century white collar crime with 1930s mob families and said that Oracle is his favorite Birds of Prey character. DC canceled the series in February 2009, with the Oracle: The Cure mini-series beginning publication the following month as part of a company-wide reorganization of Batman-related titles. Birds of Prey returned under
261-584: A Man-Thing story he did [for Marvel Comics ' Fear #10 ( cover-dated Oct. 1972)], and I penciled a thing for [the magazine] National Lampoon called " Michael Rockefeller and the Jungles of New Guinea." He then apprenticed under Neal Adams , working with the artist at Adams' home in The Bronx . This led to his first work at DC Comics , one of the two largest comics companies: Neal showed me to [editors] Murray Boltinoff and Julius Schwartz . Murray gave me
348-618: A 26, 27, and 20-year-old guys talk about. Our art, TV, you name it. I pretty much knew at the time, 'These are the good ole days.'" Chaykin's first major work was for DC Comics drawing the 23-page "The Price of Pain Ease"—writer Denny O'Neil 's adaptation of author Fritz Leiber 's characters Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser —in Sword of Sorcery #1 (March 1973). Although the title was well received, it lasted only five issues before cancellation. Chaykin drew
435-585: A botched attack on a terrorist training camp. In this alternate earth, war has broken out across the dimensions just after World War 2. A team of Lady Blackhawks (Lena, Killah, Pixie, Red, Monkey, Princess) provides flying support to the Society of Superheroes as they try and neutralize the threat via supernatural means. Lady Blackhawk was ranked 48th in Comics Buyer's Guide 's "100 Sexiest Women in Comics" list, although
522-424: A brief hiatus from the team in the process. Despite the previously all-female central roster, male allies such as Nightwing , Wildcat , Savant and Creote frequently assist missions. In addition, Hawk and Dove briefly joined the team, making Hawk its first male member. The title series began with Chuck Dixon's one shot Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey (cover date 1996 / published December 1995). Initially,
609-557: A brief resumption of her modeling career, little is known of Miss Reed's post-war life. She briefly was employed by Blackhawk Airways in Singapore in 1947, but dropped out of sight shortly thereafter. In 1948 Natalie Reed resurfaced in New York, employed as the writer of licensed comic book adventures about the Blackhawks. She was accused of working Communist doctrines into her scripts, but she
696-483: A foil for each other, and affirmed her love for her characters: "The team is a group of individuals, quite unlike the friendship between Dinah, Helena and Babs. And any team with Barda on it automatically has a certain bull in a China shop tremble, and I love that... The characters don't apologize for being asskickers, nor for being smart, nor for being sexy, nor for being sexual, for that matter. There are always going to be some people who find that not to their taste, but at
783-448: A friendship that they believe in. Huntress...I see Helena as someone who is not a loner completely by choice. Dinah is so accepting and so open that Helena sees an opportunity to be part of something without having to force her way in. There's friction, because once Helena puts the mask on, she's really not very good fitting in. But she likes that they're giving her a chance. Whether she blows it or not, you'll have to keep reading". Simone
870-476: A front of Guy Gardner's latest heroic endeavors. Zinda is instantly accepted by Guy and offered a place to live. Multiple times she assists him and his makeshift team against supervillains, often serving as a pilot. Zinda's companions include, but are not limited to, Arisia , who is a former Green Lantern , Buck Wargo, a millionaire adventurer and 'Tiger-Man', a half-tiger, half-man. In one incident, Zinda suffers multiple injuries while defending Warriors patrons. She
957-414: A heart attack at 23. I gave Gil a call, and he said, 'Yeah, I can use you.' So I went to work for him. ... He was doing [the early graphic novel ] Blackmark , and I did a really bad job pasting up the dialog and putting in [ Zip-a-Tone ].... It was a great apprenticeship. I learned a lot from watching Gil work. In 1970, he began publishing his art in comics and science-fiction fanzines , sometimes under
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#17328594861561044-536: A major defense contractor. She remained in that identity at least until 1968, according to Blackhawk Special #1 (1992). A new Lady Blackhawk debuted in September 2011's Blackhawks #1 as part of DC's The New 52 initiative. Little has yet been revealed about her. She, like Reed, is also seen wearing a patch over her left eye. Kendra Saunders took the name of Lady Blackhawk in Dark Nights: Metal #1, where she
1131-436: A number of trade paperbacks published by DC Comics . The Birds of Prey appear in a self-titled film , consisting of Dinah Lance (portrayed by Jurnee Smollett-Bell ), Helena Bertinelli / Huntress ( Mary Elizabeth Winstead ), and Renee Montoya ( Rosie Perez ). Additionally, Harley Quinn (portrayed by Margot Robbie ) and Cassandra Cain ( Ella Jay Basco ) appear as temporary allies before they part ways with
1218-457: A one-page filler. I also got some work from Dorothy Woolfolk , who edited the love comics . It was all just dreadful stuff, but you stumble along, and you learn. A problem for me was that by the time I became a professional, I lost any interest whatsoever in superhero comics. I'm not a horror [comics] guy, and I didn't know what the hell to do! (laughter) What I wanted to draw is guys with guns, guys with swords, and women with big tits, and that
1305-558: A per-page basis, the most profitable book I've ever done." Chaykin returned to DC to write the three-issue miniseries Twilight , drawn by José Luis García-López and revamping some of DC's science-fiction heroes of the 1950s and 1960s, such as Tommy Tomorrow and Space Cabby . Later, Chaykin collaborated twice with artist Mike Mignola : In 1990–1991, they produced the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser miniseries for Epic Comics with co-writer John Francis Moore and inker Al Williamson . This
1392-431: A pilot and expertise in aircraft design. Reed's connection with the Blackhawks came with her contribution to the design and production of the team's modified Grumman XF5F-1 Skyrocket planes. Later, while working with Soviet intelligence, she helped defeat Death Mayhew in his plot to destroy Manhattan . During this period Natalie Reed was dubbed "Lady Blackhawk" by the U.S. press. Aside from several publicity tours and
1479-594: A pulp-adventure strip inspired by the likes of Terry and the Pirates as well as the EC Comics war stories created by Harvey Kurtzman . That year, Chaykin became part of the creative team on Mutant X , a television series inspired by the Marvel Comics series of mutant titles. His next work was Mighty Love , a 96-page original graphic novel published in 2004 and described as " You've Got Mail with super-powers". This
1566-542: A shared studio space on West 29th Street in New York City. The membership of the studio changed over time. Chaykin penciled DC Comics' first miniseries, World of Krypton (July–September 1979). In the next few years he produced material for Heavy Metal , drew a graphic novel adaptation of Alfred Bester 's The Stars My Destination , and produced illustrations for works by Roger Zelazny . Chaykin collaborated on two original graphic novels— The Swords of Heaven,
1653-451: A stint as artist with issue #100. In 2011, the title was relaunched under writer Duane Swierczynski and artist Jesus Saiz. With the 2016 company-wide soft relaunch DC Rebirth , the Birds of Prey are re-introduced in the new title Batgirl and the Birds of Prey , featuring a team consisting of Batgirl, Black Canary and Huntress. Despite the title of the series being Birds of Prey , the phrase
1740-439: A story about a woman who attempts to become the first woman member of the Blackhawks, who looks, sounds and behaves much like Zinda Blake, although she does not divulge her name, and never calls herself Lady Blackhawk . In the story, she flies to Blackhawk Island, declares herself part of the team, and helps the Blackhawks on a mission behind German lines. Ultimately, she rescues Blackhawk himself. Zinda Blake, determined to become
1827-562: A story in Heavy Metal between May and September 1981, in the same painted art style he'd used for the Moorcock graphic novel. In June 1980, a story that he collaborated on with Samuel R. Delany, called "Seven Moons' Light Casts Complex Shadows" was published in Marvel's Epic Illustrated #2. In 1983, Chaykin launched American Flagg! for First Comics . With Chaykin as both writer and artist,
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#17328594861561914-571: A story serialized online in 54 chapters for ESPN.com 's Page 2 section. ESPN.com columnist Jim Caple wrote the text, each episode of which was accompanied by a single-panel Chaykin drawing. In 2006, he began working on his first superhero title for DC Comics, pencilling Hawkgirl , with Walter Simonson writing, starting with issue #50. With issue 56, he stopped drawing the series, mainly to get time to work on Marvel's Blade with Marc Guggenheim, although he continued to draw Hawkgirl covers for eight more issues. Also in 2006, DC Comics published
2001-475: A story that is both very funny ... and at the same time very, very ugly. Really nasty and unpleasant. Because frankly, it's the place to do that sort of thing." Although Chaykin hoped it would be available in 1988, the third volume will be included in the Time² Omnibus, released in February, 2024 through Image Comics . Chaykin has described Time² as the single work about which he is most proud. "To tell you
2088-467: A superhero-themed public relations satire. In 1996, DC's Helix imprint published Cyberella , a cyberpunk dystopia written by Chaykin and drawn by Don Cameron. Chaykin began to drift out of comics by the mid-1990s. With the exception of several Elseworlds stories he wrote for DC Comics, including Batman: Dark Allegiances which he wrote and drew in 1996, his comic output became minimal as he became more involved in film and television work. He
2175-454: A supporting character to Guy Gardner, Warrior . During Zero Hour , Zinda befriends Guy, Steel and an alternate-universe Batgirl. They have several adventures in various time periods, such as the Wild West and far future. Ultimately, the small group is separated by the events of the cross-over. Zinda perceives no time passing before she appears in front of Warrior's , a nightclub that serves as
2262-546: A two-page Black Canary origin story drawn by Chaykin for the series 52 . Later that year, DC released Guy Gardner : Collateral Damage . The two-issue series, written and drawn by Chaykin, revolves around the Green Lantern Corps ' role in an interstellar war. After Blade was cancelled with issue 12, he pencilled issue 50 of Punisher , Wolverine (vol. 3) #56–61, Punisher War Journal (vol. 2) (#16–24) and an issue of Immortal Iron Fist . Chaykin illustrated
2349-436: A two-volume graphic-novel series with a heavy dose of jazz, film noir and a fantasy version of New York City: Time²: The Epiphany ( ISBN 0-915419-07-6 ) and Time²: The Satisfaction of Black Mariah ( ISBN 0-915419-23-8 )). In 1987, Chaykin described plans for a third volume, saying, "It's probably going to be grossly different from the first two, because I'm taking things in another direction ... I want to do
2436-463: A woman from joining the team. Zinda followed this exploit by rescuing the entire Blackhawk team from the Scavenger, and in return was told, by Blackhawk himself, that she could become an honorary member of the team. After a number of adventures with the Blackhawks, Zinda became the victim of the villainous Nazi operative Killer Shark , who used a chemical potion to brainwash her, forcing her to take up
2523-503: Is made up of Oracle, who serves as the leader of the group, Huntress and Black Canary , with other heroines forming a rotating roster sometimes for extended periods, sometimes for merely one adventure. After Black Canary's departure, Huntress remained as the staple member and field leader, alongside new "core members". Following the events of Flashpoint (2011) and the company-wide relaunch as part of The New 52 , Oracle recovers her mobility and reclaims her former Batgirl identity, taking
2610-513: Is the leader of the Blackhawks, an anti-apocalyptic team that wants to prevent the Dark Multiverse from rising. Kendra Saunders returns to her original alias Hawkgirl in issue #5 of the comic. It is later revealed that Kendra was the Blackhawk that saved Batman during All-Star Batman issue #9 and she and the Blackhawks were watching him since then. During the decades-long publishing history of
2697-505: Is treated at Wargo's medical facility and told she will make a full recovery. In 2004 Zinda began service as the team's pilot in Birds of Prey . Barbara Gordon recruits Zinda Blake as the team's fourth member. Since Zinda is looking for a change, she gladly accepts. Flashbacks reveal the other Blackhawks have died, Wu Cheng being the last. She has been having trouble fitting back in with the current Blackhawk Inc. an international shipping company (which she owns one-eighth of). Zinda accepts
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2784-562: The Brightest Day banner in 2010. Gail Simone returned to write series with Ed Benes providing the artwork. Hawk and Dove were brought as new members of the team as well, with Oracle playing a strictly supporting role. While in Singapore in December the same year, she announced, in an interview with the newspaper Straits Times , an intention to create a Singaporean superheroine. The title
2871-628: The Avengers 1959 five-issue miniseries, a spinoff of a storyline introduced in The New Avengers . The first issue was released in October 2011. Chaykin helmed a reboot of the science-fiction character Buck Rogers beginning in August 2013, again in the capacity of both artist and writer. In 2018, Chaykin began Hey Kids! Comics! , a cynical parody of the history of the rise of the comics industry and
2958-480: The Huntress to the lineup. In her first arc, entitled "Of Like Minds", Simone let Black Canary walk into a trap set by Brian Durlin, known as Savant , and his assistant Creote . With Black Canary now critically injured and chained, Savant begins listing demands, the most significant of which is the true identity of Batman. In the end, Huntress and Canary defeat their enemies, and form a team. Author Simone commented on
3045-600: The pseudonym Eric Pave . Leaving Kane, he began working as an assistant to comics artist Wally Wood in the studio he shared with Syd Shores and Jack Abel in Valley Stream , Long Island . He worked there for a "couple of months", and in 1971 published his first professional comics work, for the adult-theme Western feature Shattuck in the military newspaper the Overseas Weekly , one of Wood's clients. He also " ghosted some stuff" for Gray Morrow : "I penciled
3132-646: The 2008 Marvel MAX comic War Is Hell : The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle , scripted by Garth Ennis . He wrote Supreme Power vol. 3 #1–12 (Sep. 2008 – July 2009) for Marvel. In 2009, he wrote and penciled Dominic Fortune . In 2010 he wrote Die Hard: Year One , a comic about John McClane from the Die Hard series for Boom! Studios . Marvel in June 2010 published a Rawhide Kid miniseries drawn by Chaykin and written by Ron Zimmerman . Chaykin wrote and drew
3219-728: The American Communist journalist who lived for long periods (and died) in the Soviet Union. Natalie emigrated to Russia in 1940 to live and study. Natalie became an expert in aeronautical engineering, and chief designer at the Valentine-Prendergast Airplane Factory. Due to the state of competition between the Soviets and the West, it is possible that her adopted country may have provided exaggerated accounts of Reed's skills as
3306-631: The Beholder" in Forbidden Tales of Dark Mansion #7 (Oct. 1972) and the one-page "Enter the Portals of Weird War" in Weird War Tales #9 (Dec. 1972). At one point Chaykin lived in the same Queens apartment building as artists Allen Milgrom , Walter Simonson , and Bernie Wrightson . Simonson recalls, "We'd get together at 3 a.m. They'd come up and we'd have popcorn and sit around and talk about whatever
3393-423: The Birds of Prey . Huntress is aware of Batgirl and Black Canary's secret identities, but they do not seem to be aware of hers. The three women form an uneasy alliance to take down mutual foes. Batgirl and Black Canary are attempting to find yet another villain who is using the name "Oracle". Issue #4 is essentially Huntress's origin story, showing why she is waging war against certain mob families. In June 2023, it
3480-518: The Blackhawk Squadron as a young adult, serving first with the ground crew (circa 1963), and eventually as a pilot. As a result of internal strife in the 1950s within the ranks of what became the CIA , which the Blackhawk Squadron was informally allied with, Reed was surgically altered and forced to assume the identity of Constance Darabont, a former paramour of Blackhawk and owner of Darabont Industries,
3567-429: The Blackhawks, there have been several other female characters who have tried to join the team of aviators. These range from "Sugar" in 1943 to Blackhawks member Hendrickson's daughter, Elsa, in 1977. In the alternate universe seen during the 2011 storyline " Flashpoint " universe, Zinda Blake was a member of Team-7 , an elite unit of soldiers led by Grifter . Zinda and most of her teammates were ultimately killed during
Lady Blackhawk - Misplaced Pages Continue
3654-647: The DCU timeline. Brooklyn-born Natalie Gurdin was the child of Benjamin and Lucille Gurdin, card-carrying members of the Communist Party USA . They raised their daughter to believe as they did. At her parents' urging, Natalie entered and won the "Miss Young Communist League" beauty contest in 1937. The title sparked a short-lived modeling career and a role in the low-budget 1938 film Gun Molls in Trouble . Miss Gurdin changed her name to Reed at this time, in honor of John Reed ,
3741-559: The February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine . Chaykin's contribution was a story featuring American Flagg! . In 1972, Chaykin married Daina Graziunas. The marriage ended in 1977, and the following year he married Leslie Zahler. That marriage ended in 1986, and in 1989, in Los Angeles, Chaykin married Jeni Munn, a union that lasted through 1992. In November 2002, in Ventura, Chaykin married Laurel Beth Rice. As of 2013, Chaykin serves on
3828-520: The Flowers of Hell with writer Michael Moorcock , and Empire with Samuel R. Delany —and found time to move into film design with work on the movie version of Heavy Metal . In 1980 he designed the album cover of The Legend of Jesse James , a concept album about legendary outlaw Jesse James . Chaykin had a six-issue run on Marvel's Micronauts series, drawing issues from #13 (January 1980) to #18 (June 1980). He went back to Cody Starbuck with
3915-478: The Joker, but thanks to a new kind of implant, she can walk again. She has to deal with some PTSD, though. Dinah approaches her old friend with an offer to join the new Birds of Prey team she is putting together, but she declines, instead suggesting that Katana take her place. The gun-toting vigilante Starling is also recruited into the team, along with Poison Ivy . Following the departure of Poison Ivy after issue #12,
4002-586: The United States of America. Once again, Oracle relies on the Huntress when no other allies are available. While Oracle and Huntress share a long history of animosity with one another, Black Canary eventually persuades Oracle to employ Huntress as a full-time agent. The budding friendship is cut short during the "Hero Hunters" arc. In the final issue of the storyline, the Huntress realizes Oracle has been manipulating her psychologically to make her "behave" properly, in
4089-428: The aid of the U.S. government. In 2005, Chaykin produced the six-part City of Tomorrow , a DC/ Wildstorm production involving a futuristic city populated by gangster robots . Chaykin described the mini-series as " The Untouchables meets West World at Epcot ." That same year, he wrote the four-issue mini-series Legend updating the character Hugo Danner for Wildstorm. He illustrated 24 College Ave. ,
4176-501: The character Ironwolf in the science fiction anthology title Weird Worlds for DC, and did the pencils and ink for a 12-page Batman story written by Archie Goodwin and published in Detective Comics #441 in 1974. In 2018 he looked back on this Batman story as one of the worst things he had ever drawn, adding, "Anything of value in that story was Archie's." Moving to Marvel Comics , he began work as co-artist with Neal Adams on
4263-572: The codename Oracle at the time, but has expanded to include additional superheroines . The team name "Birds of Prey" was attributed to DC assistant editor Frank Pittarese in the text page of the first issue. The group is initially based in Gotham City and later operates in Metropolis and then relocates once more to "Platinum Flats", California , a new locale introduced in Birds of Prey in 2008. The series
4350-512: The company. In 1988, Chaykin created perhaps his most controversial title: Black Kiss , a 12-issue series published by Vortex Comics that contained his most explicit depictions of sex and violence, with a story of sex-obsessed vampires in Hollywood . Though Black Kiss shipped sealed in an "adults only" clear plastic bag, its content drew much criticism. This did not stop it from selling well enough for Chaykin to describe it as "probably, on
4437-476: The first Killraven story, seen in Amazing Adventures #18 in 1973. After this, Chaykin was given various adventure strips to draw for Marvel, including his own creation, Dominic Fortune (inspired by his Scorpion character, originally drawn for Atlas Comics ), now in the pages of Marvel Preview . In 1978, he wrote and drew his Cody Starbuck creation for the anthology title Star Reach , one of
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#17328594861564524-560: The first 26 issues of American Flagg! , Chaykin started work on new projects. Chaykin's involvement in his original run of the series was that of writer for 29 issues, interior artist for issues #1–12 and 14–26, and cover artist for issues #1–33. He returned to full art and writing for the American Flagg! Special one-shot in 1986. In 1987, a four-issue run was released, then the title was cancelled and relaunched as Howard Chaykin's American Flagg! , which ran 12 issues. The first new project
4611-713: The first independent titles of the 1970s. These strips saw him explore more adult themes as best he could within the restrictions often imposed on him by editors and the Comics Code Authority . The same year, he produced for Schanes & Schanes a six-plate portfolio showcasing his character. In 1976, Chaykin landed the job of drawing the Marvel Comics adaptation of the first Star Wars film , written by Roy Thomas . Chaykin left after 10 issues to work in more adult and experimental comics, and to do paperback book covers. In late 1978, Chaykin, Walt Simonson , Val Mayerik , and Jim Starlin formed Upstart Associates ,
4698-482: The first time while rescuing her from a potentially life threatening situation during the "Sensei & Student" storyline. The US government had become aware of the existence of Oracle and formatted a list of suspects to interrogate, one of whom was Barbara. Without any form of due process, two federal agents imply they believe she is the Oracle and that if any evidence is brought to light she will be tried for treason against
4785-402: The first woman member of the famed World War II unit known as the Blackhawks, trained herself to pilot a wide range of modern aircraft and made herself an expert in various forms of combat and weaponry. Her first attempt to join the group came when she helped rescue a member from a modern-day pirate called the Scavenger. Despite her able assistance, Zinda was told that the Blackhawk codes forbade
4872-481: The following year. Chaykin said that after high school, "I hitchhiked around the country" before becoming, at 19, a "gofer" for the New York City–based comic book artist Gil Kane , whom he would name as his greatest influence. Chaykin's earliest work with comic books was under the tutelage of Gil Kane, whom he would later call his mentor. I'd heard on the grapevine that Gil's assistant had dropped dead of
4959-458: The identity of the costumed Queen Killer Shark. Zinda battled her former comrades a number of times as Killer Shark's accomplice before she was freed of the effects of the potion. Due to the time-warping effects of Zero Hour , Zinda is now in the present DC continuity, looking as she did in 1959. Her whirl through time involved her assisting in the battle against the villain Extant. She has served as
5046-431: The job with Black Canary's unofficial group on the grounds she is in full control of any flying duties. Zinda first suggested the name Birds of Prey for Barbara's team in Birds of Prey #86. Blake resigns from the Birds of Prey in the issue #107 rather than see Barbara Gordon forced to dismiss her under orders from the group's new leader, Spy Smasher . She later comes to Barbara's aid in Birds of Prey #108, and rejoins
5133-433: The lineup. She let Black Canary leave the team with her ward, a little girl called " Sin ", and used a prison break arc to introduce superhumanly strong Big Barda , pacifist Judomaster and rascally Misfit into the new squad, and with the new Spy Smasher as an ambiguous Jack Bauer -like anti-heroine and Lois Lane cornering Oracle into almost giving away her secret identity. Again, the characters were chosen to provide
5220-563: The list does not specify which version of the character was chosen. A group of Lady Blackhawks appear in Batman: The Brave and the Bold #21. Birds of Prey (comic book) The Birds of Prey is a superhero team featured in several American comic book series , miniseries, and special editions published by DC Comics since 1996. The book's premise originated as a partnership between Black Canary and Barbara Gordon , who had adopted
5307-550: The many creators exploited in the process (particularly those exploited by Marvel Comics ). This Image Comics series was completed in September 2023 after three volumes and 17 total issues. In April 2022, Chaykin was reported among the more than three dozen comics creators who contributed to Operation USA 's benefit anthology book, Comics for Ukraine: Sunflower Seeds , a project spearheaded by IDW Publishing Special Projects Editor Scott Dunbier , whose profits would be donated to relief efforts for Ukrainian refugees resulting from
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#17328594861565394-412: The new lineup, saying that each character provided a foil for the two others: "In this case, Babs and Dinah respect each other tremendously, and each is capable of great things the other is not. Dinah's not just Oracle's legs, sometimes, she's her conscience, or her muse, or just her best friend. And Oracle is far more to Dinah than just the mission controller. They trust each other, and out of that, there's
5481-508: The new series having some similar characters which existed in a different universe than the previous DC titles. Novelist Duane Swierczynski replaced Andreyko as the writer, with Jesus Saiz handling the art. Noted Batman villain Poison Ivy was one of the new characters joining the team. The book's first storyline begins shortly after Barbara regains the use of her legs after the events of Flashpoint . However, she still has been paralyzed by
5568-415: The same time, Birds of Prey regularly brings in people who don't otherwise read mainstream comics, a whole audience that may not pick up any other superhero titles, and I love that niche, that little area between good taste and utter shamelessness". Finally, Simone stated her agony of leaving the book: "I miss the characters in all the books I've worked on. Writing the last issue of Birds of Prey I'm doing
5655-449: The same way a teacher attempts to reform a troubled child. Despite Oracle's remorse for her actions, Huntress temporarily departs from the group. She later rejoins the team, once again as a full-time agent along with newcomer Lady Blackhawk . Although the personnel on Oracle's team grows and changes, Huntress and Lady Blackhawk remain core agents. As Birds of Prey approached its hundredth issue, Simone used issues #99 and #100 to shake up
5742-597: The series was successful for First and proved highly influential, mixing all of Chaykin's previous ideas and interests—jazz, pulp adventure , science fiction and sex. Chaykin made wide use of Craftint Duoshade illustration boards, which in the period before computers allowed him to add a shaded texture to the finished art. American Flagg! made a huge splash at the 1984 Eagle Awards , the United Kingdom's pre-eminent comics awards. Chaykin and American Flagg! were nominated for ten awards, eventually winning seven. After
5829-520: The team roster changed again when Katana spun off into her own solo book along with providing her services to the Justice League of America . With occasional help from Condor and a former Talon (an assassin of the Court of Owls), named Mary Turner, a young African-American woman who became mute after being injured by a Japanese Fu-Go balloon bomb attack when she was a little girl whilst the rest of her family
5916-431: The team, which is restored to Barbara's command. Zinda is an ace flyer, able to easily handle any type of aircraft. She is a fine markswoman, skilled in the use of a variety of weapons, and has superior abilities in hand-to-hand combat. Blake continues to wear her own version of the Blackhawks uniform in Birds of Prey , which consists of a blue tunic, military cap, frilled miniskirt and boots. In her early appearances she
6003-550: The trio on good terms. Howard Chaykin Howard Victor Chaykin ( / ˈ tʃ eɪ k ɪ n / ; born October 7, 1950) is an American comic book artist and writer. Chaykin's influences include his one-time employer and mentor, Gil Kane , and the mid-20th century illustrators Robert Fawcett and Al Parker . Howard Chaykin was born in Newark, New Jersey , to Rosalind Pave and Norman Drucker, who soon separated. Chaykin
6090-514: The truth, my first interest would be to do another Time² because that was a very personal product for me," he said in 2008. "It's a fantasia of my family's story." Before returning to American Flagg! , Chaykin revamped another DC Comics character with Blackhawk , a three-issue miniseries about a team of heroic aviators, set in the 1930s. In 1987, DC proposed a system of labeling comics for violent or sexual content, Chaykin with Alan Moore and Frank Miller boycotted DC and refused to work for
6177-410: The two heroines featured were Barbara Gordon (formerly " Batgirl ") and Dinah Lance (currently "Black Canary"). From the beginning, Canary was written as passionate and idealistic. In an interview with Comics Bulletin , Dixon described this choice as a fertile clash of values: "Dinah's more idealistic approach is at the heart of this book". When Gail Simone took over the series in 2003, she added
6264-489: Was a revamp of The Shadow in a four-issue miniseries for DC Comics in 1986. Rather than setting the series in its traditional 1930s milieu, Chaykin updated it to a contemporary setting and included his own style of extreme violence. In a 2012 interview, Chaykin stated, "The reason I pulled him out of the period was because I thought it would be commercial suicide to do a period character at that point." The American Flagg! Special one-shot introduced Chaykin's Time² ,
6351-559: Was acclaimed as a return to the type of work he did on American Flagg! and contained his first art in a title since the early 1990s. That year, Chaykin and Tischman revamped Challengers of the Unknown in a six-issue mini-series for DC, as well as writing a mini-series about gangster vampires called Bite Club for Vertigo. The pair wrote Barnum!: In Secret Service to the USA , a graphic novel in which real-life showman P. T. Barnum comes to
6438-754: Was actually physically painful". After Simone's departure to sister title Wonder Woman , Sean McKeever wrote Birds of Prey from issues #113 to #117. McKeever used his short stint to pit a new incarnation of "Blackhawk" villain Killer Shark against ex-Blackhawk Zinda Blake and to introduce the location of Platinum Flats, called by IGN "the Silicon Valley of the DC universe and a hotbed of white-collar crime committed by mysterious villain 'The Visionary ' ". IGN called his short stint "enjoyable and creative". His writing deeds were taken over by Tony Bedard , who stated in
6525-505: Was announced that a new Birds of Prey ongoing series would launch on September 6, 2023 as a part of the Dawn of DC relaunch initiative. The series will be written by Kelly Thompson , drawn by Leonardo Romero, colored by Jordie Bellaire, and lettered by Clayton Cowles. The initial line up for the first arc is set to be composed of Black Canary, Cassandra Cain / Batgirl , Big Barda , Zealot , and Harley Quinn . The series has been collected into
6612-405: Was appreciative of her work, saying Birds of Prey editor Lysa Hawkins "was looking for a slightly tougher Birds of Prey and asked me to submit a proposal. I have a huge fondness for Babs and Dinah both, so it's a bit of a dream come true. I'm really excited by the art, which is very sleek and sexy, with a nice dark tone, by Supergirl star Ed Benes ". The Huntress later meets Oracle in person for
6699-518: Was cleared of this charge. Little is known about the accident that cost her the use of one eye. All files containing information about Natalie Gurdin Reed remain classified, and her current whereabouts are unknown. Reed had a son with a fellow Blackhawk, Ritter Hendricksen. Hendricksen was lost in a helicopter explosion in the spring of 1948 shortly after discovering he was the father of Natalie's child, Jimmy (born in 1945 ( Blackhawk Annual #1)). Jimmy joined
6786-462: Was conceived by Jordan B. Gorfinkel and originally written by Chuck Dixon . Gail Simone scripted the comic from issue #56 to #108. Sean McKeever was originally to replace Simone, but McKeever subsequently decided to leave the project and only wrote issues #113–117; Tony Bedard , who wrote issues #109–112, briefly took over the title at issue #118. Artists have included Butch Guice , Greg Land , Ed Benes and Joe Bennett ; Nicola Scott began
6873-582: Was declared dead, although Chaykin, as an adult, located him alive. Chaykin's "nutty and cruel" adoptive father, whom Chaykin until the 1990s believed was his natural father, encouraged Chaykin's interest in drawing and bought him sketchbooks. He was introduced to comics by his cousin, who gave him a refrigerator box filled with them. He graduated from Jamaica High School at 16, in 1967, and in mid-1968 worked at Zenith Press. He attended Columbia College in Chicago that fall, but left school and returned to New York
6960-535: Was drawn wearing blue tights. Natalie Reed (born Natalie Gurdin ), the second published woman to be known as Lady Blackhawk , was introduced in the 1988 prestige format mini-series Blackhawk written and drawn by Howard Chaykin . Reed was written to have been a part of the Blackhawk Squadron (at the behest of the Soviet Union ) from 1943 onwards. This retcon established her as the first Lady Blackhawk in
7047-610: Was eventually cancelled along with every other DC book as part of a company-wide relaunch following the Flashpoint event. Two months prior to the title's cancellation, Simone left the book after issue #13. In July, writer Marc Andreyko and artist Billy Tucci took over the title for the final story-arc, which featured the original Black Canary and Phantom Lady . Manhunter, a former Birds of Prey member created by Andreyko, appeared as well. DC Comics relaunched Birds of Prey with issue #1 in September 2011 for The New 52 relaunch with
7134-578: Was executive script consultant for the 1990–1991 The Flash television series on CBS , and later worked on action-adventure programs such as Viper , Earth: Final Conflict and Mutant X . Near the end of the decade, Chaykin returned to comics and co-wrote with David Tischman the three-issue miniseries Pulp Fantastic for the Vertigo imprint of DC, with art by Rick Burchett . Chaykin began co-writing American Century with David Tischman for Vertigo. This story, set in post-war America, would be
7221-510: Was followed with the Ironwolf: Fires of the Revolution graphic novel in 1992. Chaykin then wrote and illustrated Midnight Men for Marvel's Epic imprint in 1993. He co-created/designed Firearm for Malibu Comics that same year, and then with several colleagues formed the creator-owned Bravura imprint for Malibu Comics. Chaykin created the four-issue miniseries Power and Glory in 1994,
7308-542: Was initially raised by his grandparents in Staten Island , New York City, until his mother married Leon Chaykin in 1953 and the family moved to East Flatbush and later to 370 Saratoga Avenue, Brownsville, Brooklyn . At 14, Chaykin moved with his now divorced mother to the Kew Gardens section of Queens . He said in 2000 he was raised on welfare after his parents separated and that his absent biological father eventually
7395-511: Was killed from the bombing during World War II and was recruited into the Court. In Batgirl Annual #1, Catwoman freed Mary from Blackgate Penitentiary, and Batgirl chose her to replace Katana after she left. The Birds of Prey gave her the codename Strix (Latin for Owl). The Birds of Prey moved on with writer Christy Marx in issue #18. DC Comics reconfigured the continuity of their shared universe again in 2016 with DC Rebirth . The Birds of Prey had their own title once again, now called Batgirl and
7482-401: Was not mentioned in the book until issue #86, when one of the group's members, Zinda Blake , suggests that it might be a fitting name for the team, but other characters get sidetracked and do not respond to her suggestion. Oracle , the team's leader, refers to the group by that name in a conversation with the new Blue Beetle , Jaime Reyes , and later within the series. The core of the team
7569-532: Was the extent of my interest in comics at the time. The "one-page filler", titled "Strange Neighbor", was inventoried and eventually published in the Boltinoff-edited Secrets of Sinister House #17 (May 1974). His other earliest known DC work was penciling and inking the three-page story "Not Old Enough!" in Young Romance #185 (Aug. 1972), and penciling the eight-page supernatural story "Eye of
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