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waspredteeth · 6 months

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tiny appreciation post/insane rambling about Tom Bronson

re-re-re-reading JSA 2007. Tom Bronson is a good character, fight me. Everyday I claw at the air in rage for the many characters introduced into the JSA and then never given any more detail. There's just too many people in the '07 JSA, man. Too Many. Tom is unfortunately one of those comic characters that has a super niche fanbase and nothing to follow up on outside of JSA.

so, in light of me inserting him into the TAXONOMY!verse and putting the guy smack dab into the Battle for the Cowl and Bette Kane's radar - I'm just gonna gush a little bit about his first appearance. (and include some headcanons for the au).

Putting aside my favorite Old Man Trio, can I just say that I like how pretty the art makes Tom look? The first time I read this comic, I got a very James Dean/1950's bad boy vibe from Tom. I'd like to think it was a little bit intentional in order to parallel Ted Grant and his eternal Old Americanism. At least it's something I'll keep in mind.

Getting into the main post though, throughout his first appearance and the later fight with Vandal Savage, its made clear that Tom is surprisingly knowledgable about superheroes and the surrounding goings-on of them. He knows who Wildcat is (though obviously Ted is canonically an old hero, he has to be somewhat well-known) and he instantly recognizes Vandal Savage.

(sidenote: Ted looks like a stiff Barbie doll being thrown into the kitchen there)

I take the fact that he recognizes and correctly identifies heroes/villains as a point towards my "Tom is an observant and analytical person" hc.

Earlier on in issue #3, we see that Tom gets right to heart of things when talking with Ted and that he's quick to reach (somewhat right) conclusions.

Despite this, he doesn't really show it anymore as he quickly drifts into a side character spot as the comic run goes in. I choose to believe that Tom doesn't voice his thoughts to the JSA bc he doesn't know them well and he prefers to make snarky remarks in conversation instead of inserting himself into anything personal.

Later on in the series, Tom is reluctant to learn how to box and is shown to dislike fighting in general.

Given the whole estranged-dad-is a famous boxing champ thing, Tom probably doesn't like boxing specifically because of Ted. He says that he doesn't like fighting because of his were-cat form, which it's assumed that he would unconsciously shapeshift into whenever he got into conflict.

(sidenote: why is this the only time I see his inner monologue in comics *sob*)

This distinct trait of disliking combat, at least the personal fist-flying kind, is definitely something I'm including in the au.

Both Tom and Bette are chosen for the au partially because I like them, but also because they have distinct personalities and philosophies that clash with baby Damian Wayne who's coming fresh into the Bat-scene. There will be conflict as Damian will dislike and mostly abhor Tom's personal disdain for fighting. Tom doesn't seem to fight unless necessary and he canonically prefers to rely heavily on his powers to get out of fights. He's only shown getting more violent than usual after Grant Emerson's death, which is pretty reasonable. They were clearly fast and close friends.

Hooo boy Grant should not have died. Especially in Blackest Night, of all things. Despite my personal dislike of it though, I'm still flip-flopping between leaving him dead and then resurrecting him in the au - or just ignoring his canon death altogether. On one hand, I like Grant and I like their friendship so I want him to appear in the au somewhere (alongside Maxine). On the other, his death allows for a just a little bit of dramatic character development/detailing for Tom that lets me explain why he's not with the JSA and instead is in Gotham. Choices.....

Ending the post here with the final smorgasbord of headcanons and blurbs for the au.

he is Mexican-American, but distant from his roots because his mom raised him single and cut-off from her larger family.

he and Bette will enter a relationship. It came to me in a vision and I decided to implement it bc why not. Tom/Bette is bi4bi.

they start dating bc they both strike me as "why not?" type of people, but it develops relatively quickly after Damian enters the picture and they have to co-parent/watch over him as Gotham collapses in slow-motion around them

its shown in the background of some of the panels above that he's into music, specifically guitar and piano

so he will be in a band at some point

bc Alfred does not have the same relationship with Damian in the au, Tom is one who gives him/lets him keep the kitten

(also bc I don't subscribe to the "League of Assassins hate/kill animals" idea - Tom bonds with Damian over a mutual care for animals/cats)

Tom and Damian are a rocky pair, and it takes them longer to get along than Bette does with Damian

He treats Damian as the annoying little brother he never had, and their sense of humor kinda lines up

Tom fully encourages Damian’s sarcasm and rude comebacks

Believe me, there will be a scene where Tom unconsciously purrs in his werecat form and Damian definitely notices

adding to the maybe Grant stays dead part, I'm still iffy on whether to include a one-sided crush on Tom's part that adds to the angst

unlike Grant though, I'm definitely keeping Yolanda Montez alive

Tom and Yolanda have a semi-distant sibling relationship that's a little awkward bc of the age gap and differing experiences with Ted

Might also resurrect Jake Grant, I need the Wildcat family reunion

Ted and Tom still talk, and even though Tom doesn't stick with the JSA, he's still regularly invited to whatever gathering they have

Tom still keeps up with working out/a bit of training - but he focuses on defense and avoidance instead of out-right conflict

Tom got into heroism bc of Ted, but he stuck with it bc of Grant and Maxine

he does not have strict ideals or a drive to save the world, but he likes to focus on the small things and helps where he can

#tom bronson #wildcat #dc comics #flamebird-in-gotham au #wasp does a thought #justice society of america #justice society of america 2007 #jsa #TAXONOMY!verse #tom bronson headcanons #dc #small edit: I will be adding alt image descriptions later!!!#Damian Wayne #is mentioned #Bette Kane #is also mentioned #dc's junk drawer appreciation

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zaritarazi · 7 months

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okay so i'm unfixable but when i was reading hawkman (2002 - 2006) i didn't realize that black reign was a jsa tie-in even though it tells me to read the next jsa issue at the end of the issue, that sign can't stop me etc

so actually going through and reading black reign i just want to say 1. mess 2. the fact that the issue with kendra almost becoming a vampire is directly after this. directly after carter is like i had us all fly out here bc i don't want these kids to kill anyone, bc i want to kill someone every day and it weighs so heavily on my soul, and everyone is like you're so brave, carter, and dc comics just said these 2 things are unrelated. completely different stories. 2 ships passing in the night

like listen we all know this blog boils down to "if [cape media property] was good it would-" LISTEN. we were denied so much by not getting to see kendra as a vampire, even if it was only for a little while. they could've cured her! or maybe not, and she'd still be a vampire to this day. if it works for jubilee, why not us???

like you know how comics is a painfully obvious medium and even then manages to tell stories inefficiently. we get that line of dialogue in blackest night that kendra hasn't helped carter be less violent- what if the narrative asked real questions and was like "actually, why should she?"

like we knew kendra was kind of an exception as hawkgirl, that she was someone who actually was a lot like carter in ways that made him deeply uncomfortable, so why shouldn't she have gotten her own unhinged violence arc as a vampire? why not make carter clean up after her, for once? why not let kendra ruin the birthday party carter put together for her? why not put more vampires in everything?? WHY NOT???

#kendra saunders #dcu #dcu headcanon #carter hall #hawkman (2002 - 2006)#hawkgirl #hawkman #hawkmates

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wellofhavoc · 3 months

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Hello I just want to thank you for being the only person on here with consistent hawk and dove content (especially on your art account). They are my special little guys and your characterization of them is SO GOOD. I’ve read some of your tags about the Mordru/Hector/Unity stuff and I’d love to hear your thoughts about it if you’re comfortable. Hank haters be damned 💙💙💙

Oh thank you so much! I'm really glad to be here for anyone who is looking for content. I don't fill the fanfic niche quite yet, but that can be fixed with my Many Thoughts- so thank you for asking to hear them and in advance: I'm Sorry.

[TW for mention of SA during The Conception, the rest doesn't mention it.]

A Quick Guide

For the sake of simplicity when talking about this with my friends who didn't read all of this comic stuff, I've built a list of shorthand that makes things easier for people listening. Since this is written, I won't have to use ones like "Dawn" and "Donny" but I feel like some others being explained here could help. I also have headcanons I'll explain my reasons for in some areas, but in others it's just how I deal with the MANY retcons that surround the whole "Monarch/Extant/Mordru" nonsense.

The body Hector Hall possesses- the actual, lost child of Hawk and Dove- is "Dector" Hall [because it's funny and simple.]

"Mordru" and "Hank" as one body are known as "Extant" and it's my general belief that Hank started with more control that he gradually lost over time but Hank never stopped fighting the control Mordru had over his powers and his body.

Dawn did die in the moment "Monarch" killed her, but then Mordru simply revived her in the hand-waving fashion most villains get to just do that when he wanted to have their child instead.

The point of the Unity project wasn't just to have a baby, but for Hawk and Dove to decide to have a baby. This means that Dector is not a true Unity and, in my opinion, doesn't have full access to the Hawk and Dove powers, just the propensity for a balance between Order and Chaos.

The Conception

The only part I've ever hesitated to share is my feeling on how Hank and Dawn would process their trauma regarding Hector's conception because I largely think Dawn would handle it by: Not Handling It and Hank would probably immediately try to process his feelings by finding a target for his aggression only to be faced with one simple fact: The JSA and Dawn already killed him.

There's also the less simple fact that Hank probably wouldn't immediately assume Dawn knew as much as he did about the time he was under Mordru's control considering she was dead for a portion of the time, asleep for a lot of it, and just not physically present for much of the stuff Mordru did as "Extant." This means that he feels bad not talking about it because- even though probably one of the first conversations since Blackest Night [when he was resurrected] was about the whole "baby thing" was about the assault so he knows she knows- he convinces himself that he IS keeping how BAD IT was from her and that that makes him just as horrible and that he "must have actually gotten some satisfaction out of it." At the same time, he doesn't feel like he can bring it up to her again and again without making it seem like he WANTS her to be traumatized, because all he actually wants is a conversation he doesn't feel the right to ask for.

All of this to say that I want to include Hank's perspective on the assault without CENTERING him because I do think Dawn's experience with being killed, being assaulted, and her lost motherhood that she never asked for [and in my opinion, never saw for herself] would absolutely wreck her but Dawn has always been the type to bottle up and focus on the "practical." She would try to "get over" her feelings without processing them because... what is the logical point in doing the work when she can just skip to the pay off? Obviously the answer is that that's largely not how emotions work, but she wouldn't care, but not realize that she's not handling it as well as she thinks. Sure she could talk about it with Hank, but she would understand it upsets him and wouldn't see any benefit to bringing it up or letting him talk himself into the ground about it.

The main issue is that they both hold themselves to an impossibly high standard: How they see each other. They would both probably come to the conclusion that the other one is FINE so they should be FINE and that's not only not how feelings/trauma works but it's also not true.

If I had a season of a TV show or five issues to delve into their dynamic post-possession, I think it would take a third party to maybe cross that line for them and ask how they are regarding that specific blip in their history or likely privately ask one of them how it's affected their relationship and open their eyes to the fact that their partner is definitely not taking this as well as they seem to think they are. Maybe then they could actually start unpacking Hank's known horror of his time as Mordru's puppet and Dawn's unknown horror of their lost time and how she was used.

Dector Hall

Of course there's still one person we haven't addressed in regards to their feelings. Some people forget that this was a character- or at the very least was intended to have character at some point.

When Hector visits with the other Fates inside of the helmet at the barbecue, there is an implication that someone is missing from the party outside of Mordru. Hector's subconscious is lined with pictures of Hawk and Dove before he was forced to reconcile with the fact that this body was their child.

Dector was a child sacrificed to the mantle of Doctor Fate- to be a vessel for Hector Hall- for the fate of the universe and then forcibly aged. If it wasn't Hector, it would have been Mordru, after all. It's just an incredibly sad thought, and considering this child seems to have been either conscious enough of the circumstances of his birth to know who his biological parents are. He was a PERSON, isn't that fucked up?

Wish the comics had more to say about these implications- but I sure do!

I fear a lot of them won't make sense outside of the story I've elaborately crafted in my head- but a lot of things I like to think about stem from me thinking about how it would feel from behind the eyes of someone not quite a friend and not quite a stranger to watch your mom leave in search of someone to belong to and someone that she can take care of while you're so small and without the voice to ask for her to turn around and really look at you.

Dawn and Motherhood

I think Dawn's feelings about motherhood would be complicated. I think Dawn is a caretaker, but helplessness scares her. She likes responsibility. It makes her feel good, and she likes to be trusted and needed.

But helplessness frustrates her. We can see this with Ren freaking out about Copperhead and Dawn telling her to calm down because "people are watching" while Hank just keeps consoling her. She's not a robot, but she isn't good with high emotions- she thinks the insurgence on Druspa Tau must be totally born from Hank or M'shulla because she knows the logic behind the decisions regarding population and resource control, doesn't think to check in with Ren until she starts avoiding her because SHE knows she's not hitting on Hank and thus doesn't see why Ren should be upset, her immediate reaction after Terataya and T'charr confess their plans for the future of Hawk and Dove and kiss in their bodies is to ask if she and Hank should fall in love as if it's that simple.

She was also still getting her associates in college in her early 20s when she was killed/abducted, so something tells me "I'm ready to have a baby" never crossed her mind.

But she had one, and it's the last purpose Tarataya and T'charr laid out for her and Hank before they vanished. Crossing that off of her list and no longer needing to justify a possible romantic relationship she wasn't ever really interested in: What's next?

I do feel she would have a sense of loss, though. How could she not think about those possible futures she saw from Waverider and how she felt watching and living in them?

I think Dawn could be happy as a mother if she had time to prepare for it, but that's definitely not the case here. I don't think Dawn is a very warm person, but she still cares about other people. That means I can't believe she doesn't have SOME emotions about the person Hector has warped into his new body. Even if Dector isn't conscious at all- which he definitely was at at least some point between the writers- it would be hard to separate the logic of this body being a shell from the emotion that that shell was a human being that grew inside of her- that she met with different faces in a sea of different futures and in one of those worlds held in her arms.

Unity

I have plans- so many plans- I will one day sit down and properly start "Hawk and Dove: Revenge" a long-form fancomic where I hope to explore a full AU. This will also include the Don Revival AU and my ideas on other unexplored or half-explored Hawk and Dove concepts [The War Council, Revisiting Druspa Tau, Holly and Dawn's relationship, Holly Granger Character Arcs, power evolution-] but for now-

Unity!

She doesn't have a canon name- only known as "Dr. Arsala," considering this was 1. Never meant to be a canon ending for Hawk and Dove, just another possibility but this one being born of both of their futures if they survive to the future together and 2. In a book FULL of alternate children- sons and daughters, brown, black, and blonde haired- we can assume "Dr. Arsala" is just another "what if?" an example of the kind of person a child of Hawk and Dove could be.

Still she's a GREAT character- a mouthy neurosurgeon who is as direct as she is crafty. That's why I choose the more literal interpretation- that she was their future in a universe ruled by Monarch. Of course, that universe can't really exist now and Hawk and Dove are loosely implied to only be a "One in a span of different universes" kind of deal, meaning one Hawk and one Dove per each cluster of timelines since there is only one Chaos and Order dimension across those timelines [See the Phantom Zone for a better idea of how that works- it's too much to explain here- the idea is that Druspa Tau, the Chaos Dimension, and the Phantom Zone are their own dimensions separate of multi-universe theory, meaning that for however many infinite Earths exist, there will only be one Hawk and Dove per that cluster.]

Of course, due to the nature of INFINITE Earths being infinite- it stands to reason that- in theory- there could exist multiple Hawks and Doves... they'd just be from Universe Group B instead of another dimension in Universe Group A- just like there being a possibility of other Phantom Zones and maybe even a group of universes without ANY Hawks or Doves either because there is no Chaos or Order Dimension or because T'charr and Terataya never met or simply ran off together.

All of this to say, there's plenty of room for A Unity to exist out there somewhere, and I would love to see her get to replant a world on Monarch's scorched ground.

More than that, I'd like to break down her feelings on her mysterious conception- did her mom cheat on her dad? Did Sal know about it? Did Hank and Dawn knowingly have this child as a last resort against Monarch? Is she a weapon?

Personally, I think what we see of our Doctor is that she has Dawn's tendency toward the practical in high-stress situations, but that she has Hank's heart. From both of them, she has their sense of duty. I think that means she'd understand if she was conceived with the sole purpose of saving the world, and from there struggle with how that makes her feel or if she gets to have feelings. It's not as though the people responsible for her being alive would be around to talk to her about why they did what they did or to apologize for putting so much onto her.

She is the last hero of Earth in the future, too. If she rewrites Monarch's mind into something useful, he will still only be a weapon- no one that she can relay information to or discuss her place in the world with. Without Monarch's iron fist in place, there would definitely be a new wave of people trying to fill a perceived power vacuum. Just because she was strong enough to beat an inflated dictator doesn't mean that taking over his world and rebuilding it will be easy, nor does it mean that more intense threats will be just as easy to handle. Sharp claws and a sharper mind are good weapons, but they aren't the only thing she'll need against any possible underground revolts that might fear the last Meta Human might be a WORSE dictator than Monarch was.

Of course, we'll never get to see her tact or how it would stack up to these new types of foes, but this is about my thoughts and this is what Unity makes me think about.

There's also the cosmic implications- what would magic users previously removed from the now VERY dangerous, Monarch-Ruled dimension think of its new caretaker and her power source? The War Council? So many possibilities for a future never meant to be in canon.

I think even if she got everything she wanted- full Utopia- she's not the kind of person to not like having a project. Maybe she'd have to take her services elsewhere, and we'd get to see the Doc make a few house calls.

Conclusion

Thanks for reading my rambles, however much you did. I am very grateful for the excuse to dump my thoughts out like this.

#hawk and dove #hank hall #dawn granger #dc #comics #unity #havoc blog #hector hall #doctor fate #mordru

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augustheart · 2 months

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3, 8, 14, 15, 20!

3. What’s your favorite fic that you’ve written?

i don't know :( i like a lot of what i've written. however. when i think of my best work, the first thing that comes to mind is we're miles from way back when (quantum leap fic). and since it definitely ranks among my favorites, i'm using it as the answer.

8. What project(s) are you currently working on?

what project aren't i currently working on... i think the thing i have the most of is firestorm projects, the majority of which are divergent aus/what-if ideas (what if ronnie never got his powers back after stein became the elemental and left to travel the universe, what if gehenna wasn't the one to die in blackest night, what if the suicide squad's mission to capture firestorm was successful, etc). got a lot of jsa shit kicking around too, and some wrong earth concepts including one i'm pretty far into (probably 1/3rd of the way, which maybe isn't that much but is further than i've gotten for the others). i also have a doom patrol idea but if i wanted to write it properly it would take a lot of mental energy so it's on the back burner until i finish at least one of my other big projects.

14. If you could see one of your fics adapted into a visual medium, such as comic or film, which fan fic would you pick?

give it up for we're miles from way back when everyone! i'm linking it twice! but if it's cheating to use it a second time i'd go with anything from the weight of living. and all of this would preferably comics.

15. How do you come up with titles for your fics/chapters?

the vast majority are song lyrics or the titles of songs. the past handful have been from fairly popular songs but i do usually try to make it just a little more obscure. if i'm going to title chapters, i'll try to make it on-theme with the title (i.e. in come avarice, come attrition all the chapter titles are the titles of other decemberists songs, in sirius & canopus they're all constellations, etc) while still being relevant to the story in some way (to use sirius & canopus as an example again, chapter eight, "corona borealis" is our "cameron" chapter).

20. What’s a favorite title for a fic you’ve written?

mmm... i don't think i can take credit for same stars, different perspective because it's a line from the comic it's based around, but that was the first one that came to mind. oh, given the context of the fic being about tyler my friend tyler i think epimetheus is really good! it's one of saturn's moons but it's named after a titan who represented hindsight, and... well, it's about tyler! the future justice league member who was the hero of saturn! trying not to be human and have hindsight and feeling guilt about not being able to protect his friend!

#came home early because i got wildly sick #honey-dont

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shieracarter · 7 months

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Something I'm intrigued by and very confused about is how does the Hawkman (2002-2006) run and the Blackest Night/Brightest Day events fit into the most recent Hawk canon?

The Metal series established that during the 20th century, Carter and Shiera were married and were involved in discovering the secrets of the Dark Multiverse. Carter then went into the Multiverse and disappeared, later to be brought back as the Dragon of Barbatos. After that was concluded, the story of the 2018 Hawkman run started.

Shiera died sometime after Carter disappeared and was then reincarnated as Shayera in Thanagar (and I guess one could include the Hawkworld storylines, with some retcons and adjustments, in this timeline?). Carter, while still being lost in the Dark Multiverse, was also reincarnated as Katar, who ended up dying fighting Despero. As we know, Carter and Shayera were then reunited in the last Hawkman run.

Kendra, for her part, was born/reincarnated as the other half of Shiera on Earth, was apart of the Blackhawks, was involved in the Metal event and became a member of the JL.

THAT'S THE NEW POST-REBIRTH CANON! Now on to the old one...

There was no Dark Multiverse storyline so Carter and Shiera only died when they were merged with Katar's soul in the Zero Hour event.

Then in the JSA (1999) book Carter is brought back from the "nether-realm" where Shiera's soul was also trapped before she reincarnated in Kendra when she tried to "unalive" herself.

At least 2 other circumstances that don't add up with the new canon are the meeting between Shayera and Carter in the Hawkman (2002-2006) run, where Shay initially mistakes Carter for Katar and Shayera's death in the Rann-Thanagar War (2005) series. Keep in mind that before Rebirth, Shiera and Shayera were 2 separate people while now they are reincarnations of one another.

SO when did the whole story with Kendra and Carter actually happen? In a parallel universe, while Carter was stuck in the Dark Multiverse? Is it not considered canon anymore? Do the writers get to pick and choose if they want to acknowledge it?

#hawkman #hawkwoman #hawkgirl #dc comics #me: how confusing do you want canon to get? dc:...yes #the savage hawkman story got retconned (thank god) so was this also retconned? then why is kendra mad at carter for “”leaving“” her?#does kendra have a daughter in the new canon? did she ever tried to unalived herself?#no one is gonna answer me but if i'm missing something pls let me know #text

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the-overanalyzer · 2 years

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In the Kid Flash Thad au, where is Owen?

Okay, so obviously in this better world Blackest Night Flash never happens, and if we're throwing that out we can fudge the timeline a little bit so that Owen is still on the Outsiders, because that's really the only way this scenario works, and in my head it goes: Owen gets injured worse than his team can handle themselves so they take him to the JSA brownstone so Dr. Midnight can take a look at him. Thad is hanging out there on Jay's say-so and when he sees him the kill bill sirens start going off because oh yeah, there's something he really ought to have mentioned. Midnight says Boomer needs a blood transfusion and Thad immediately blurts out that he can do it because they have the same blood type and everyone just turns to look at him like 'and how exactly do you know that? 👀' and he strongly considers running right back into the speed force to escape the awkward conversations that must now ensue.

So now Bart has not one but two pain in the ass little brothers (Owen disputes that because he's technically lived longer even if Bart was born first), and Thad must now go through life as the bona fide baby of the bunch. Digger eventually comes back and the hero community takes bets on whether Flash or Red Robin will re-kill him first.

#owen mercer #captain boomerang ii #thaddeus thawne #inertia #kid flash #flashfam #im living for this au i gotta tell you #kid flash thad au

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bi4bihankking · 10 months

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Hi hi hello! I do not have a single clue what you are talking about most of the time because I don't interact with enough of the same part of the DC fandom as you do, (I am but a simple man who is horney for a fish) BUT I want to LEARN. PLEASE tell me more about your faves! I must know!!!

Okay so around the time season 1 of Stargirl was coming out, I ended up getting into baby boy Hank, mostly because Stargirl made him kind of the emotional core of the first season and then killed him off so his wiki page was blowing up, and I have a thing about exactly the type of character he is so I ended up reading Infinity Inc.

Infinity Inc. is a team made up of the kids of the Justice Society, I guess it was kind of like the Titans but it was mostly bio kids, with some adopted ones mixed in, and Hank is the kid of a JSA villain, who...

Putting it very nicely, because what he did was immensely stupid, but also really funny, and cemented him as my fave, he's a telepath, and ended up picking up his father plotting with another telepathic villain, so he went to the JSA to warn them, but they did not listen (because for UNKNOWN FUCKING REASONS he decided to pretend to be his dad), and the entire team of old men started trying to beat him up. He ends up meeting with the rest of Infinity Inc. and to sum up the first arc:

The villains make the kids go evil and send them back in time to the 1940s, and Hank has to run around World War 2 trying to get 40s heroes in the past to help, but hasn't really improved his tactics, but eventually the problem is solved, and they go back to the present, where the villains are making the parents go evil to try and get them to kill the kids, except Hank's dad is... well, he's terrible, but he loves his baby boy, so when the other villain attacks Hank, his dad betrays the operation, and gets killed for it. (I also should mention that Hank's dad is like... the Lex Luthor or Joker of the JSA, he is their biggest villain, him dying, permanently, to protect his kid is really surprising in the context of who he is. He never gets brought back aside from flashbacks and Blackest Night).

But Hank's dad decides to give his son his powers as he dies, which is initially a very sweet thing and I DO NOT think he knew what was going to happen when he did it, but intermittently during the course of Infinity Inc. there were a few moments where an illusion of Hank's dad would pop up to torment him, and this really did not have good implications for what was to come.

Anyway, during Infinity Inc., Hank dates Jade, the original Green Lantern's daughter, Alan DOES NOT like Hank very much, mostly because of his dad, Hank and Jen as a ship are very sweet but they give off very baby's first college relationship vibes, and also I think a lot of people who read Infinity Inc. ship Hank with her twin brother instead. Back in the 40s Hank's dad made Alan think he committed a mass murder, which might add context to this situation. Hank's also the nephew of the leader of Infinity Inc. by adoption, because his mother was the Girl of 1000 Gimmicks, Brainwave Sr./Merry is the weirdest ship in the world, btw, and yeah Hank and Syl's dynamic is also very cute, it's a bit more like siblings because they're close in age, and Hank enjoys being an annoying younger brother it seems.

(He also has a half sister, they have not met, we only found out she was alive like 2 months ago, yeah I am desperate for them to meet, this is not really related to anything else but here you go).

Anyway Cameron is another kid of a JSA villain, his dad is Icicle, who is actually a Green Lantern villain, but who absolutely hates his kid because Cameron is a meta, and his power is ice, and you really really do not want ice inside your womb, just as a warning for any prospective mothers out there, and Cam's dad thinks Cameron is responsible for the love of his life's death. Cameron is kind of semi-adopted by 3rd JSA villain the Wizard tho so it's fine in the end. Cameron is actually a villain, and during the very last arc of Infinity Inc. is involved in Sylvester's murder.

The Infinitors do not last long after Sylvester's murder, btw, Hank peaces out, and when we see him again he's in the middle of a mental breakdown, and is in a fight with an arm of the Justice League, the team manages to beat him, and figures out he's going through severe mental health issues, and basically say if he gets help and rest he'll be fine.

This is where Alan Scott, the Original Green Lantern, re-enters the picture, he builds a special asylum to house Hank, because knowing what his dad was like, he thinks he could be a huge threat, but staffs it with people who are uhhhhhh... not people who want to help Hank get better, they explicitly say they want to study him, and Alan pretty much just wants him locked up too. When he gets out, he is not happy with Alan, especially since he knows that Alan didn't do it because he cared what happened to Hank, he did it because he didn't want Hank dating his daughter.

Anyway, around this time, Hank starts working with Black Adam and Atom Smasher (another member of Infinity Inc., ordinarily a very cute himbo) during their Invasion of Kahndaq, there's 3 other people involved, one of whom is Yolanda Montez's (another member of Infinity Inc.'s cousin), one of whom is Northwind (another another member of Infinity Inc., they may have been a short lived team but they got everywhere) who has unfortunately been de-evolved into a bird man in what is kind of racist writing Geoff Johns, and Soseh, who I only know from this arc lol.

The JSA goes to Kahndaq to try and get their kids back

They completely fail, btw, Alex and Soseh die, Carter rips his godson's wings off, and they have to leave Al behind. They do get Hank back though. Anyway at this point Hank is revealed to have Mister Mind in his head, who is controlling his actions, and maybe was a little bit before, but probably not for the initial breakdown.

So now Hank is better! Yaaaay! And he's living with his mom who was dead but showed up in Young Justice so she just abandoned Hank as a child in a way that made him think she was dead (this is never dealt with)! Also Jay now wants to adopt him and actively tries to do so in future issues! This is an improvement!

Hank is not canon queer yet but there's a few things that make me think it was planned at some point, most notably a scene where Sandy Hawkins (a character most JSA 1999 fans thought was going to be gay) saw him outlined in the stars of his future dream, and a scene where Mister Mind asks Black Adam if the Black Reign team suspects he's possessing Hank, and Black Adam says "Northwind might but I believe it no longer matters to him", which is very strange because Hank and Northwind WERE NOT close in Infinity Inc. this may imply UNSEEN EVENTS.

Also at some point he finds out people used his dad's DNA to make children, sneaks out of the country without the JSA knowing so he can try to keep those kids safe, but then his younger siblings get turned into gods and he loses them again. DC will not let him have 1 thing.

We do get this amazing panel though:

Karen is like... consistently so mean about his mental health issues, unfortunately I feel like DC comics would use that as a basis for a het ship.

Anyway that is everything with Henry up to date. Other than him currently getting kidnapped and tortured.

I ship him with Cameron because of this:

Ice bukkake, but also because thematically it makes sense for Hank to date a villain, he's a lot more understanding of criminals than the rest of the JSA, and I think it would cause drama.

#henry king jr #brainwave jr #long post #meta

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ufonaut · 11 months

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Do you happen to have a compilation of queercoded Alan Scott panels from before Flashpoint by any chance? It's really interesting to know how even as far back as the Golden Age the seeds for his sexuality were there and nobody really noticed

i do! kind of! i have a bunch spread across various post so i'm just gonna put together a compilation of gaycoded alan scott moments from the golden age (and beyond) for you right now :)

in his 1940s stories alan not only shows a complete disinterest in women but he actively rejects their advances at every turn

(in green lantern 1941 #34 he refuses to go on a date by pretending his dog dislikes girls)

(in green lantern #33 he reacts with disgust to the idea of marrying a woman)

(in all-american comics 1939 #71, alan's completely immune to a mad scientist's daughter that's been specifically created to be irresistible to men)

(in green lantern #13 doiby falls for a debutante that only has eyes for alan, and alan can't stand her or any affection from her)

much of his gaycoding also revolves around the close and intimate relationship he has with his best friend doiby dickles, whom he shares a bedroom & a bathroom with

(an especially flagrant example from all american comics #60 but keep in mind this is the status quo for all their golden age appearances after doiby finds out alan's identity in aac #35)

(a couple other examples of such intimacy from gl #28, aac #54, the big all-american comic book 1944 #1, and gl #34)

there's also a story in comic cavalcade 1942 that implies a great deal about alan's relationship with a nightclub owner named jonah dayton, which stands out in stark contrast to alan's distinct lack of romantic & social life

(comic cavalcade #23, note doiby's strange insistence that alan is 'ruining his life')

these are all just examples because it'd be impossible to show you panels from all his 130+ golden age appearances but if you were to read them in full you'd discover that over the course of his 1940s stories alan has no romantic relationships whatsoever and he and doiby live together, go on vacations together, adopt a dog together, babysit doiby's nephew together, and generally share a closeness that is 'inexplicable' even for the comics of back then. notably, alan's first silver age appearance in green lantern 1960 #40 has alan & doiby still living together and alan's employees at gbc calling him alan's 'man friday'

the 1976 run of all-star comics (which picks up the golden age series' numbering) goes so explicit with the confirmed bachelor aspect that it's undoubtedly what led to roy thomas' subsequent retcons in infinity inc (and specifically infinity inc annual #1)

(missing doiby in all-star comics #60, after doiby's subsequent marriage in the silver age gl series)

(writer paul levitz' retrospective on asc 1976 in the amazing world of dc comics #16, note how alan's the one jsaer to have never married and who has no family besides his close friend doiby)

it's within this context of alan's history that roy thomas' attempts to make him seem straight in infinity inc must be approached and how the confirmation of alan's sexuality in the present day is just that -- a confirmation, a return to form -- and not a retcon, after all for forty-one years of his existence there had been no women in alan's life.

this isn't to say though that with molly in the picture the gaycoding ever actually stopped, it just became rarer as any focus on alan himself or his personal life became rarer and the jsa-as-people (rather than heroes) sort of faded into the background. we still got the occasional gems like everything during the sentinel era (special shout out to the book of fate 1997 and the weird psychosexual things contained within) and how showcase '95 #1 has alan fighting the maybe-ghosts of his teammates while saying they have no right to judge him after they accuse him of not being 'a real man'

or green lantern: in brightest day, blackest night 2002 stating he'll never be able to settle down into a normal life because he's not a 'normal man'

and there's a lot to be read into molly's effective disappearance over the years, too. she's been pretty much erased post-early 2000s to the point that you could easily pinpoint their separation/divorce somewhere around 2007 or so.

there's certainly much more out there and having read all his appearances i've found next to none that didn't feature some hint of gaycoding but i hope you've enjoyed these examples! lmk your thoughts if you'd like :)

#alan scott #green lantern #jsa #justice society of america #dc #dc comics #asks #anon

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daydreamerdrew · 2 years

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If you haven't read it already, I wonder if you'd be interested in James Dale Robinson's Starman series from 1994. It seems like it'd be up your alley, but it 's pretty long (81 proper issues including #0, plus annuals, then two or so "bonus" issues like the Blackest Night Special and One Million). It's critically acclaimed for a reason and while there's aspects of it I don't care for it is quite good. I know there are issues of it that cross over with TPOS, but I'm not sure if I'm right to assume you've read those ones to get the complete story. Just a recommendation if you enjoyed those issues or if you're looking for something that feels very much like one long complete story; it feels like it falls on the same end of the comic book spectrum as Watchmen does for me, although I'm not sure I could explain exactly why.

Hello! I actually have not read Starman (1994) yet, but have been intending to for quite a bit. I think I put it off because I wanted more familiarity with the JSA before starting it.

I read the 2 issues that crossover with TPOS! (1995) once upon a time, but purposefully skipped them and the TPOS! half of the crossover as well in my TPOS! reread last year because I knew I was planning on reading Starman and truthfully don’t really remember them.

I am really intrigued that you’d think it would appeal to me based on my blog- I’ll try to prioritize it and get to it sooner rather than later.

I actually own that big compendium that came out for it last year… which I’m hoping won’t be too unwieldy to read, as you say it’s pretty long:

Thank you for thinking of me and for taking the time to send me this- I appreciate the recommendation! <3

#inbox

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waspredteeth · 6 months

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Wasp’s Comics Review (more like rambling, none of this is filtered thought)

Here’s some comics I’ve been reading in order to give me more motivation to keep writing the TAXONOMY!verse. Most of these are here in order to inform my personal views of characterization and how I’d write certain people based on their comics pre-2009/Bruce-Death.

Comics I have just recently finished/coming close to finishing:

Titans (1999)

Batgirl (2000)

JSA (2007)

Daredevil (2014)

Infinite Crisis

Battle for the Cowl

Blackest Night

Gotham Central

Nightwing (1999) #51-53

Robin (1993) #183

Titans (1999)

Okay, wow. I wasn’t expecting how good it would be. I started reading it mostly for Damage-Grant Emerson since I heard he had a nice relationship with Roy, and there’s a couple issues where Bette and Gar show up. Despite a few moments where the comic shows it’s age, I’m pleasantly surprised at its overall quality and character writing. Before this, I had only a little bit of prior knowledge of the Titans, so I really got to know them from this. My only gripes with it is that I don’t get to see Grant again (in a speaking/active role) after Roy drops him off at the reservation, and I think that storyline where Argent turns out to be dating a kid is weird. This comic has also given me more appreciation for Roy and Lian. I can understand Arrowfans now, Lian shouldn’t have been killed. Wtf, man. I got attached to her. I also think Roy and Cheshire’s relationship was interesting. Garth is not a huge character in this run, but I appreciate the kind of characters that are little more drama-free. (Not totally) (again, knowing Dolphin/Cerdian from this run, wtf man. Why do so many kids die in the 90s/early 2000s?!?) In conclusion, Roy Harper and Garth are now way higher up on my list of favorite DC characters. I also enjoyed Donna Troy, even though I had no prior context to all of the Dark Angel/mind wipe stuff.

Batgirl (2000)

This was a re-read, since I last read it around 2021. I forgot a pretty good portion of the early issues, so reading it again gave me renewed appreciation for the writers and Cass’s character. It reminded me just how great her character is, and definitely refreshes my ideas about her. I will be taking this in greater consideration when I get into her role in Chiroptera. I’m still not a Cass expert though, so if anyone else has some good ideas about how she would gain the Batman mantle and fight ideologically with Jason over it - thoughts are needed!!

JSA (2007)

Another re-read. Mostly here bc I needed to refresh Grant post-Zoom attack and Tom Bronson in my mind. Now that I’ve read Titans 1999, I can see how some people might take his characterization in JSA as different and a little ooc. My POV is, Grant in JSA is older so he’s gonna be different no matter what - it doesn’t bother me as much. When he shows up in the TAXONOMY!verse though, I am definitely including his familial relationship with Roy & Lian, and maybe hinting towards his brief friendship with Toni. I do think that Roy should’ve made at least one appearance in JSA for Grant.

Daredevil (2014)

My only non-DC read this month. I mostly read this bc I needed to step away from DC content, but also I like seeing the differences in the writing of vigilantes between Marvel/DC. I want to include just a bit of the grounded chaos from this Daredevil run into the au. Also, the utter insane angst that Matt goes through. This man is constantly struggling.

Infinite Crisis/Battle for the Cowl/Blackest Night

They’re…events. Not much else to say. Somehow I need to figure out how to work out the whole “Bette got teleported onto another Earth” in the au. Also, I think I will be keeping Grant’s death. Not because I like it, but because I need the emphasis of loss and grief (for Tom) for the themes of Chiroptera to work. I’m going to resurrect him eventually. No way he’s staying dead.

Gotham Central

Unrelated to the au. I just wanted to reread some Renee Montoya stuff.

Nightwing #51-53; Robin #183

Exclusively read bc it takes place right before Battle for the Cowl. This will inform a bit of my characterization for Dick and Tim. Will give a disclaimer though, I am way more familiar with Dick’s character now than I am Tim’s. I’ve read Nightwing 1996 more than once and I’ve gained further insight from Titans 1999- so hopefully I have a better idea of him. I’ve attempted to read Young Justice (1998) but I’ve never finished it yet. I’ve only read the Robin issues that crossover with No Man’s Land and War Games before this. I have my work cut out for me with Tim’s content *sigh*

#dc #dc comics #waspdoescomics #titans 1999 #nightwing 1996 #robin 1993 #batgirl 2000 #daredevil 2014 #jsa 2007 #Grant Emerson #tom bronson #batman #robin #nightwing #roy harper #Cassandra Cain #waspdoesathought

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