Blackhawk was an American flying ace who led the Blackhawk Squadron, an elite team of volunteer pilots of various nationalities, against the Axis Powers, during World War II.
History
During the Second World War, Blackhawk and the Blackhawk Squadron fought Nazi, Fascist, and Imperial forces, of every kind, on almost every battlefront in the world.
After the war, Blackhawk and his team kept very busy, for over ten years, curbing the expansionism of the Soviet and Chinese Communist nations, and the evil schemes of a wide variety of renegade scientists, criminal masterminds, pirates,[1] international terrorists,[2] fake space aliens,[3] real space aliens,[4] and other non-governmental entities.
Powers and Abilities
Abilities
- Aviation Blackhawk could fly any aircraft ever built.
- Botany
- Chemistry Blackhawk could make ether, from car-battery sulfuric acid and medical alcohol.[5]
- Climbing Using no special equipment, Blackhawk could scale the outside of a tall office building.[7]
- Disguise Blackhawk crafted fake whiskers and make-up to impersonate a well-known Nazi fugitive.[8]
- Equestrianism Blackhawk can not only ride horses,[citation needed] but camels.[9]
- Gadgetry Blackhawk designed and built the CO2-generating effect into the exhaust from the Grumman Skyrockets, which extinguished one villain's "Flame Planes." He also was the original designer of the Flame Planes, which were virtually bulletproof.
- Hand-to-Hand Combat (Advanced) Blackhawk once killed a tiger, with no weapons, and while tied up.[10] He also had learned some Savate from Andre.[11]
- Leadership
- Marksmanship Standing on a sidewalk, using a handgun, Blackhawk could kill an enemy sniper crouching atop a tall building.[7]
- Mimicry At least over the telephone, Blackhawk could fool seasoned Japanese officers into believing him to be their commander.[12]
- Multilingualism Blackhawk spoke and understood the Shangshi dialect of Chinese,[13] as well as Japanese,[14] and several other languages. Blackhawk could read Hieroglyphics, but only a little.[15]
- Science
- 1948: When a villain invented an electronic ray, which explosively converted water into hydrogen and oxygen, he used it to turn human beings (or anything containing water) into bombs, and robbed some banks. Blackhawk deduced how it worked, and reverse-engineered an antidote for the ray's effects. He and his team drank this concoction, and it worked.[16]
- In 1953, Blackhawk and his Squadron supervised an atom bomb test, for a weapon based on a principle discovered by Blackhawk.[17]
- Robotic Engineering In 1952 Blackhawk invented a robot dog that was capable of tracking someone by their brainwaves.[18]
- Singing On their return flights from their many international adventures, it was commonplace for the seven aviators of the Blackhawk Squadron to join their voices in a hearty chorus of their Blackhawk Anthem.
- Suspended Animation An Indian fakir taught Blackhawk how to seem to be dead.[19]
- Swordsmanship Blackhawk was a capable swordsman, and killed several villains, including the Badarstani leader of the Brotherhood of Assassins,[20] and several Japanese military officers,[21] and infantrymen,[12] using swords.
- Throwing Blackhawk once killed a lion, with a thrown rock.[22]
Paraphernalia
Transportation
- Blackhawk's most preferred aircraft, during World War II, was a Grumman XF5F Skyrocket ground-attack fighter aircraft. After the war, he flew several early fighter jet warplanes, most notably North American F-86 Sabres, then Lockheed/Blackhawk F-90B and F-90C long-range interceptors.
Weapons
- On the ground he typically carried an M1/AI Thompson submachine gun and an M1911 pistol.
Notes
- This version of Blackhawk, including all history and corresponding appearances, was erased from existence following the collapse of the original Multiverse in the 1985–86 Crisis on Infinite Earths event and later restored following the rebirth of the infinite Multiverse during the Dark Crisis of 2022-2023. Even though other versions of the character may have appeared, this information does not apply to those versions.
- Per Blackhawk #85, 1st story, in early 1955, Blackhawk was 6' 1", 180 lbs.
- Per Blackhawk #92, 3rd story, in late 1955, Blackhawk weighed 200 lbs.
- Over the course of his long and violent career, a severe physical toll was taken on Blackhawk.
- Blackhawk has been shot down at least twenty-two times.[23]
- Blackhawk walked away alive from not less than seventeen aircraft crashes.[24] Five of these crashes were deliberate.[25]
- Blackhawk got a stab wound that left him hospitalized, in 1943.[26]
- He received multiple bullet wounds in 1944,[27] and has been gunshot-wounded at least eight times since then.[28]
- Blackhawk was subjected to prolonged severe torture at least seven times,[29] and was shot up with unidentified sedatives at least once.[30]
- He caught a dose of phosgene gas, in 1947, that had him bedridden for some time afterward.[31]
- In 1949 Blackhawk was the only survivor to crawl out of the wreckage of a collapsed government office building.[7]
- In 1954 Blackhawk went blind for several weeks, from the up-close flare of a pistol shot.[32] Earlier that same year he spent a week in the wilderness, immobilized by an injured ankle.[33]
- Blackhawk has been knocked unconscious, or at least stunned, with a blow to the head, not less than sixty-eight times.[34]
Trivia
- Blackhawk smoked a pipe until at least 1951.[35] Blackhawk's publisher, Quality Comics adopted the Comics Code Authority, starting with Blackhawk #87 April 1955, after which time he was not seen smoking again. The Comics Code actually has no rule about heroes smoking, and plenty of other heroes still did smoke, but Blackhawk stopped.
- Blackhawk is the sole living great-grandson of early American lawman George Johnson.[36]
- Blackhawk served briefly as the President of the ancient land of Fusang, in 1951,[37] and in 1952 served briefly as the President of the newly-founded Island Federation.
- Blackhawk once had a pal in a water circus who taught him how to do a dangerous high-diving stunt.[5]
Related
- 209 Appearances of Blackhawk (Quality Universe)
- 47 Images featuring Blackhawk (Quality Universe)
- 179 Quotations by or about Blackhawk (Quality Universe)
- Character Gallery: Blackhawk (Quality Universe)
Footnotes
- ↑ Modern Comics #48
- ↑ Blackhawk #75
- ↑ Modern Comics #101
- ↑ Blackhawk #22 4th story, Blackhawk #43 5th story, Blackhawk #100 1st story
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Blackhawk #76
- ↑ Modern Comics #81
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Modern Comics #91
- ↑ Military Comics #26
- ↑ Blackhawk #35
- ↑ Blackhawk #11
- ↑ Blackhawk #32 4th story
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Military Comics #41
- ↑ Blackhawk #61
- ↑ Military Comics #28, Military Comics #41
- ↑ Blackhawk #32 4th story
- ↑ Modern Comics #75
- ↑ Blackhawk #71
- ↑ Blackhawk #48, 1st story
- ↑ Blackhawk #101
- ↑ Blackhawk #14
- ↑ Military Comics #39
- ↑ Blackhawk #12
- ↑ Military Comics #6, Military Comics #13, Military Comics #19, Military Comics #28, Military Comics #30, Military Comics #33, Blackhawk #9, Military Comics #39, Military Comics #42, Modern Comics #44, Blackhawk #10, Blackhawk #12, Blackhawk #13, Modern Comics #69, Blackhawk #18, Blackhawk #21, Blackhawk #36, Blackhawk #64, Blackhawk #80, Blackhawk #81, Blackhawk #85, Blackhawk #88 May 1955.
- ↑ Military Comics #4, Military Comics #6, Military Comics #13, Military Comics #14, Military Comics #19, Military Comics #33, Blackhawk #9, Military Comics #39, Modern Comics #61, Modern Comics #83, Modern Comics #91, Blackhawk #64, Blackhawk #70, Blackhawk #80, Blackhawk #81, Blackhawk #83, & Blackhawk #88
- ↑ Military Comics #14, Modern Comics #61, Modern Comics #83, Modern Comics #91, Blackhawk #83
- ↑ Military Comics #24
- ↑ Military Comics #27
- ↑ Military Comics #31, Military Comics #35, Modern Comics #65, Blackhawk #20, Modern Comics #78, Blackhawk #36, Blackhawk #81, & Blackhawk #82
- ↑ Military Comics #4, Military Comics #5, Military Comics #9, Military Comics #28, Modern Comics #82, Blackhawk #36 1st story, Blackhawk #57 1st story
- ↑ Modern Comics #76
- ↑ Modern Comics #64
- ↑ Blackhawk #75 3rd story
- ↑ Blackhawk #75 1st story
- ↑ Military Comics #7, Military Comics #30, Military Comics #36, Military Comics #39, Military Comics #41, Military Comics #42, Modern Comics #47, Blackhawk #11, Modern Comics #51, Modern Comics #52, Modern Comics #53, Blackhawk #12, Modern Comics #54, Blackhawk #13, Modern Comics #56, Blackhawk #14, Modern Comics #60, twice in Blackhawk #15, Blackhawk #16, thrice in Blackhawk #17, Modern Comics #67, Modern Comics #69, Modern Comics #71, Modern Comics #73, twice in Blackhawk #21, Modern Comics #78, twice more in Blackhawk #22, Blackhawk #23, Modern Comics #84, Modern Comics #89, Blackhawk #27, Modern Comics #91, Modern Comics #93, Blackhawk #31, Modern Comics #98, Blackhawk #32, Blackhawk #35, Blackhawk #42, Blackhawk #43, Blackhawk #45, Blackhawk #46, Blackhawk #48, Blackhawk #50, Blackhawk #51, twice in Blackhawk #52, twice in Blackhawk #57, Blackhawk #58, Blackhawk #62, Blackhawk #63, Blackhawk #64, Blackhawk #65, Blackhawk #70, Blackhawk #75, thrice in Blackhawk #78, Blackhawk #79, Blackhawk #80, Blackhawk #82, Blackhawk #87, Blackhawk #99
- ↑ Modern Comics #49, Modern Comics #70, Blackhawk #21, Modern Comics #97, & Blackhawk #42
- ↑ Modern Comics #97
- ↑ Blackhawk #43