Are Hawkgirl's wings real?And if so, how does she hide them when not in costume?

[Batman 80]

Anyone know?

[The Guard]

They appear to be growing out of her back on JL. I doubt she has a secret ID, so she probably only leaves her costume to bathe.

Mmm...

[Green Lantern]

I believe that in almost all versions of the Hawkgirl character, the wings are not physically part of her body. They do come off.

Although I agree with The Guard about Hawkgirl not having a secret identity. I really doubt this interpretation of the character would use one.

[Karkull]

Hawkman had a secret identity. Maybe Hawkgirl acquired one.

[superfriend]

Originally posted by Karkull
Hawkman had a secret identity. Maybe Hawkgirl acquired one.

In the comics, true and so did Hawkgirl as they were husband and wife. But he doesn't even exist in JL.

[The Guard]

Look close. Sure look organic to me...

[kid_flash]

They're fake. Doesn't matter how attached they look, they're fake. Those are the wings given to all Thanagarian police officers. It's how they keep an eye on people, I would assume.

[Mr. Obsession]

I agree that they do look organic, what with the feathers coming off and all. But remember it doesn't matter if they're fake in the comics, what matters is if the creative team wants them to be real. So if Bruce Timm comes out and says their real, then gosh darn it people, in the animated series they're real.

I would like to know, if her wings aren't organic then why does her space suit seem modified to protect them?

[Joe Tully]

I'd argue that they are probably made of the gravity-defying Nth metal, like in the comics. I haven't noticed feathers coming off of them myself...maybe they are there for show? The wings don't seem to move very much, so I think that they are fake. As for why her space-suit would have "wings", well, she wouldn't be able to use her fake wings to fly otherwise. And being unable to fly would really reduce her ability to function effectively as a part of the team. And I dunno if you'd really want to wear something over a space-suit, it could be awkward or block off oxygen or something.

I'm hoping that the HG ep. clears up a lot of this. Of course, this is all just my educated guessing, so if anyone has alternative explanations, I'm open to them.

[kid_flash]

Originally posted by Mr. Obsession
I agree that they do look organic, what with the feathers coming off and all. But remember it doesn't matter if they're fake in the comics, what matters is if the creative team wants them to be real. So if Bruce Timm comes out and says their real, then gosh darn it people, in the animated series they're real.

I would like to know, if her wings aren't organic then why does her space suit seem modified to protect them?

That's just it, though: It doesn't seem possible to fit her wings into something like that. I think the space suit just has a different set of wings.

[Blade1225]

Well, in recent X-men Evolution we see Angel (who has wings just like hawkgirl and hawkman) and he is able to hide it by folding them together and wearing a trench coat

[Karkull]

I'm starting to think that they're real: in In Blackest Night, Part 1 Hawkgirl flaps them to take off (she apparently glides with them, like the Gargoyles, so that's why they don't flap too much). In addition, in the battle she lost some feathers.

If they were real, would she need to eat a lot like the Flash? Supporting her weight with her wings would consume a lot of energy.

[Ed Liu]

Howdy all,

Attempting to keep all of Hawkman/Hawkgirl's incarnations straight is almost impossible, due to a number of incredibly bad editorial decisions on DC's part. However, in every incarnation of the "canon" Hawks except for one, the wings are fake, even if they do have feathers on them. The short version:

1. "Golden Age" Hawkgirl: Shiera Sanders Hall of Earth. This version had feathers, although they were made of "Ninth Metal" or "Nth Metal"

2. "Silver Age" Hawkgirl: Shayera Thal of Thanagar, wife of Katar Hol of Thanagar. These wings were also "Nth Metal."

3. "Modern Age" Hawkwoman: Also Shayera Thal of Thanagar, partner to Katar Hol. This version of the Hawks was much tougher than the Silver Age ones (which, if I remember right, now never existed), wearing body armor and having big Nth metal, featherless wings instead of the more organic ones of the Gold and Silver Age Hawks.

3a. This one gets a little weird, but there was the "Hawk Avatar" version of Hawkman, which was supposed to be all the previous incarnations of the Hawks wrapped up in one. This version is the only one where the wings are real, and Katar could grow them out of his back when he needed them. There is no Hawkgirl/woman any more.

4. "Post-modern Age" Hawkgirl: Kendra Saunders, a troubled teen who ends up being the receptacle for a re-incarnated Shiera Hall (the Golden Age one, I think -- are you getting a headache yet?) and takes up the mantle of the new Hawkgirl (along with a midriff baring costume). The wings are organic and feathery again, but are back to the Nth metal.

It seems that Bruce Timm & co. have adopted elements of the 2nd and 3rd Hawkgirl/woman characters and made their own, which is a Good Thing if it only eliminates all the continuity problems created by the various Hawk incarnations. I say the wings are Nth metal and fake, not organic, and that Shayera is actually wearing her "dress" wings; her Thanagar space-cop uniform has a different set that's all metal, no feathers. Kind of like how police officers and soldiers all have a dress uniform and a "daily use" uniform. She doesn't wear her combat wings because Earthling dangers aren't as bad as Thanagarian ones and they make her less intimidating to the soft Earthlings.

-- Ed/Ace

[Apache Chief]

The real question is, is she a true redhead?

[CoryB]

One thing that may be incorrect - I don't think the wings had the Nth metal. I think that the metal was in the belt buckles of most of the Hawks. For the current incarnations, the metal is in the boots.

The wings themselves were inorganic and used only to help fly, not actually be used for all the flight.

[SimonMoon5]

Originally posted by CoryB
One thing that may be incorrect - I don't think the wings had the Nth metal. I think that the metal was in the belt buckles of most of the Hawks. For the current incarnations, the metal is in the boots.

For the Golden Age Hawkman, the wings were definitely Nth metal. For the Silver Age Hawkman... I believe that it was just the belt that was required to defy gravity. The Modern Age/avatar version had wings of Nth metal that he sprouted out of his back. So, clearly, it varies, depending on the version. I think having metal in the boots is an awfully goofy idea, personally.

[Kal-el]

Originally posted by Apache Chief
The real question is, is she a true redhead?
Well, normally you can just look at the wings to be sure, but in HG's case you apparently can't do that. We'll probably never really know.

[Nightwing]

I appreciate Ace's brief yet descriptive history of Hawk-continuity and characters, as a knowledge like that can really help us until Bruce Timm himself sets us straight as to how things are being handled. But MY question is this:

What exactly is "Nth" metal? My only assumption is it's a "comic metal" that exists in sci-fi world, like Marvel's adamantium. Of course if I'm just overlooking the obvious, as it's just a metal that is native to Hawk Girl's planet and manufatured for use by the cops, just give me a good smack and I'll have it straight. ;)

[SimonMoon5]

Originally posted by Nightwing
What exactly is "Nth" metal?

Nth metal was originally called "ninth metal" for a very good reason: the classical era recognized seven metals (gold, silver, copper, tin, lead, iron, and mercury). The ninth metal is thus a classical allusion--a metal beyond that which is known, which fits it precisely. It's a very 30s SF idea, very a propos.

In the first version of Hawkman's continuity, it was a metal invented by the Golden Age Hawkman, who was a bit of an inventor.

Next, after Crisis, we find out that Nth metal was a Thanagarian invention whose secrets were given to the Golden Age Hawkman by a Thanagarian visitor, Paran Katar, who would later father the Thanagarian Hawkman.

Later, we are told that none of that is true. It turns out that Ancient Egyptians had "night metal" powered by batteries involving lightning bugs. The secret of Night Metal was given to the Egyptians by the god Horus. The Golden Age Hawkman later dreamed of these events, misremembering "night metal" as "ninth metal". He later (as an archeologist) dug up a set of the Ancient Egyptian night metal wings. That's how he ended up with Nth metal.

Later, we learn the true secret of Nth metal. It turns out that Paran Katar was a sorcerer, not a scientist. In order to power Nth metal, Paran had to trap a powerful entity (named the Hawkgod) in another dimension. So, Paran Katar invented Nth metal while on Earth, and gave the secret to the Golden Age Hawkman.

In the most recent history-destroying revelations, we learn something completely different. It turns out that the Golden Age Hawkman's "invention" of Nth metal was related to a Thanagarian ship which crashed on Earth during the Ancient Egyptian era, thereby supplying the Ancient Egyptians with Nth metal. Furthermore, with the latest alterations, Nth metal can do anything at all; it is no longer just an anti-gravity metal.

To quote from characters in the book:

Hawkman: Nth metal controls more than just gravity. Given the right knowledge and quantity, the four fundamental forces of the universe [can be controlled].

Mr. Teriffic: The Grand Unified Theory. Of course. The four forces that separated at the origin of the universe. Gravity. Electromagnetism ... The strong force which binds atoms together. And the weak force which is responsible for radioactive decay

Furthermore, Nth metal apparently has the power to transfer Thanagarian racial memory, but only to certain Earthlings apparently.

When Onimar Synn conquers Thanagar, he says that "with the Nth metal now at my beck and call, the universe is a blank canvas on which I will sketch my revenge."

Nth metal seems to be only (or at least primarily) found on Thanagar, and it is a large part of Thanagar as well.