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Justice League Unlimited Season 5 Episode 2

Shadow of the Hawk

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8.8

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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 9/17/05

Batman doesn't like the looks of Carter Hall, Shayera's new boyfriend, when he learns that Carter has connections to Thanagar.

FAN RECAP

Fan Episode Reviews (8)

Finally...Hawkman!! Unfortunatly not quite the way many had hoped, although (Along with Ancient History) it does deliver somewhat of a conclusion to the love triangle between GL, Hawkgirl, and Vixen...the origin aspect of the masculine hero with wings hasmoreless

6.5

By nitewing2010, Apr 15, 2006

Hawkman, a hero in the comics with quite possibly more alternating versions than any other hero ever created. In fact his identity had become so convuluted and confusing that DC comics actually gave up on him for almost 10 years (1990's).

In all his appearances (until post 2002) he never seemed to fit his personality; appearing to be a cool somewhat viking/egyptian-like, barbarian warrior with wings and a nice-guy, friendly neighborhood hero-type personality. Not exactly a a fitting match.

Recently, and seen most prominantly in Batman/Superman, Identity Crisis, Rann-Thanagar War, and Infifnte Crisis we have a Hawkman who finally matches his appearance...Warrior-like, no-nonsense, hit first and ask questions later-type personality. That is the verson of Carter Hall most were expecting.

It's respectable that the episode reflects an attempt to use his first origin story from the Flash comics (Reincarnation from Egypt), but that version has proven quite poignantly not too have worked.

Arguably the favorite version of most fans has been the Warrior Alien from the militaristic world of Thanagar. That is one of the biggest reasons Starcrossed worked sooo well.

Overall, while it is nice to have Hawkman in the animated continuity, it would have been much nicer to have had the version most fans have been truly waiting for.

On a side note, it was good to get a little bit of a conclusion to the unresolved soap opera-like relationship between Hawgirl, GL, and Vixen. Plus (in Ancient History) we get a follow-up to the future son story Arc of the Thanagarian she-warrior and the soldier-like Lantern.moreless
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All Shayera all the time...

9.6

By fougerec, Oct 15, 2005

This is what I like best about the JLU, the inclusion of never before seen in the 'toon-verse DC characters. Whether major or minor characters, it doesn't matter to me because of the writing staff I know they'll be portrayed well.

This episode sums up the most convoluted back history for any character in the DCU (Hawkman) succinctly, establishes his relationship with Shayera and still manages to include some good action scenes.

Now if only they would spin off Wally and Shayera into their own show I'd be a happy, happy fan.moreless
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Good but not great.

8.0

By Capstern, Sep 25, 2005

Episode 502 - Shadow of the Hawk

This was not as good as the opener in that to me it felt like more of a filler episode then one of the story arc episodes, BUT it did have Batman and welll BATMAN always rocks.

This was about how a Thangarian couple crashed to earth back in egyptian times and helped the people but then when they passed away all they had helped come to pass was gone within a generation.

The focus of this episode was Shayera meeting Carter Hall and going out with him, which seems to bug GL. Then against the warnings of Batman and GL she follows him to Egypt (followed by Batman) and we get to see the introduction of Hawkman. Carter believes that he and Shayera are the reincarnations of the dead Thanagarians and we are not sure what Shayera believes.

The episode ends with the two going their own ways but Carter defiantly claming that he knows they are destined to be together and Shayera looking somehat unsettled.

You are also left wondering, thanks to Batmans comment to GL just how much longer GL can stay with Vixen. We all know (last season) that GL and Shayera have a son, but thats not happening while hes with Vixen, so we shall see.

Its a good back story and decent as a filer episodes. I would normally give it 2 out of 4 but having Batman (kevin Conroy kicks butt) always good for a little extra.

2 3/4 out of 4moreless
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Summary: Freaky stalker shows up and brings Hawkgirl to Egypt, despite Batman/GL's urges to the contrary. Much calamity ensues, as with most TV shows.

9.5

By sugarland31, Sep 18, 2005

Whoa whoa whoa. I loved it.

But then again, I\'m a huge GL/Shayera fan.

I\'m gonna start with them. Couldn\\\'t help but love the elevator scene. I kept thinking \'Look how close they are, look how close they are!\' And it looked like something was about to happen. But Bruce steps in and screws it all. Another Batman moment is at the end, when Shayera asks if Carter was right, and Batman said, \"If you really think that...\" Makes you wonder what was going through his mind, after talking with GL just that day about how messed up his relationship with Shayera is.

Which got me wondering. If GL thinks he and Shayera are \\\"destined\\\" to be together, then I\\\'m on the same plane of thought as Batman. Why doesn\\\'t he just dump Vixen? Which makes me wonder if GL only thinks they\\\'re destined to be together b/c of the events of \\\"The Once and Future Thing.\\\" I hope not, cuz I\\\'ve shipped GL/Hawkgirl since the beginning. That made me wonder if GL really likes Vixen enough to keep going out with her, even if he truly is in love with Shayera. (I think that\\\'s still the case...I just loved the elevator scene.)

The whole Thanagar-Egyptian tone rocked out loud. The shadow thief, though kinda undeveloped (character-wise, people!) fit really nicely into the setting and everything else going on.

Carter just made me crack up, to be frank. How can anyone not love an episode with freaky stalkers? I\\\'m not going to emphasize much on that subject--everyone pretty much gets the picture there. (\\\"You don\\\'t know anything about me.\\\" \\\"Your favorite color is teal, you could eat oysters everyday, even though they give you heartburn...I forget what he said. It was funny, though.)

All in all, a great Shayera episode for those of us who have been waiting. I\\\'m anxious to see what the staff does with GL/Shayera\\\'s relationship.

And I\\\'m pissed that it was on an hour later than I thought it was and I accidentally recorded \\\"One Piece\\\" instead of JLU.moreless
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This was a very unique episode.

8.9

By The_Arbiter4444, Sep 18, 2005

Shyira's new boyfriend Carter Hall,seems very peculier,and Batman decides to investigate,at first they rank him as a stalker,but then discover that he is Hawkman.

Hawkman claims that him and Shyira had lived and been married together in ancient times,and they had died years ago.And the it appears that rthe Shadow theif has been the one stalking them from the beggining of the episode.

This was a great episode,and I found it very interesting.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Maria Canals	Hawkgirl/Shayera Hol
Kevin Conroy	Batman/Bruce Wayne
Phil LaMarr	Green Lantern/John Stewart

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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James Remar	Carter Hall (uncredited as Shadow Thief)	Guest Star
John DiMaggio	Dreamslayer	Guest Star
Gina Torres	Vixen	Recurring Role

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (3)
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- When Batman is talking to Shayera and John in the elevator and he goes to leave, you see him stop the doors from closing with his hand. When the camera angle changes, you can see the doors opening behind Batman, despite the fact that they never closed.
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- At the end of the episode after the devastation, the rips in Batman's costume are gone.
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- Trivia: As confirmed by Dwayne McDuffie, the early Thanagarians did not initially have natural wings such as Hawkgirl does now - they relatively recently genetically engineered themselves to acqurie them. Three signs point to their non-natural wings in this episode: 1) Hawkman's flying harness, 2) the Thanagarian lawmen in the flashback having metal wings, and 3) the mummies of the Thanagarians at the end having no wings.
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QUOTES (7)
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- Batman: I've never been afraid of shadows.
  Shadow Thief: Now is an excellent time to start.
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- Carter: The trick is the raised glyphs. If you push them in the right order, they deactivate all the traps down here.
  Shayera: And if you get it wrong?
  Carter: Well, we're already in a tomb, so that's handy...
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- Shayera: I'm sorry. I'm not laughing at you. Exactly. I just, I've got the worst taste in men.
  Carter: I'm serious, Shayera.
  Shayera: I know you are. And I'm in a lost Egyptian tomb with my stalker. The worst part is I'm going to have to listen to John and Batman saying "I told you so."
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- Shayera: Aliens? Well, then he must be a lunatic because we know there's no life on other planets.
  Batman: There's more.
  Shayera: What?
  Batman: Our Mr. Hall spends quite bit of time on the Internet.
  Shayera: Dang, lock him up!
  Batman: He frequents the "I Hate Hawkgirl" boards.
  Shayera: That doesn't mean..."boards"? How many are there?
  Batman: Fifty-seven. Web rings. Unaffiliated sites number in the hundreds...
  Shayera: Forget I asked!
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- Green Lantern: Shayera, I wanted to...Judas Priest!
  Shayera: Problem?
  Green Lantern: No, no. I've just...uh, I've never seen you in a dress before.
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- Shayera: How stupid do you think I am?
  Batman: Scale of 1 to 10?
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- Dreamslayer: You think you can defeat me with a bubble?!?
  Green Lantern: It's a really good bubble.
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NOTES (6)
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- This episode first aired on YTV in Canada on February 8, 2006.
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- Gina Torres reprises her role as Vixen. James Remar previously played the Lead Manhunter in the first season episode "In Blackest Night (1)."
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- Character bios: Hawkman, The Shadow Thief, the Extremists
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- Scenes at the end are from "Chaos at the Earth's Core."
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- In the opening credits, with this episode it becomes clear that the credits reflect what is in each episode - specifically the shot after Green Lantern, then the two shots after Batman. All other clips remain constant.
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- Heroes who appear without dialogue: Superman, Elongated Man
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ALLUSIONS (3)
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- Joseph Gardner
  Carter Hall's "real" name is an allusion to his creators - artist Joseph Kubert and writer Gardner Fox.
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- Batman Pose
  When Gorgon advances toward Batman and Shayera grabs his tentacle, Batman is standing in the same pose as in the opening credits of Batman: The Animated Series with practically the same building and lighting in front of him.
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- Origins
  The origin of the Thanagarians in Egypt is almost exactly as depicted in JSA #22-25, the "Return of Hawkman" storyline.
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