| Connor Hawke | |
|---|---|
.png) Artwork of Connor Hawke's design for the 2023Green Arrow series. Art by Sean Izaakse. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Green Arrow (vol. 2) #0 (October 1994) |
| Created by | Kelley Puckett (writer) Jim Aparo (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Connor Hawke |
| Species | Human(current) Metahuman(former) |
| Team affiliations | Team Arrow Justice League League of Assassins |
| Partnerships | Oliver Queen / Green Arrow Green Lantern / Kyle Rayner Cassandra Cain Tim Drake |
| Supporting character of | Green Arrow |
| Notable aliases | Hawke |
| Abilities | Peak physical conditioning, master martial artist, and expert inarchery and marksmanship. |
Connor Hawke is aDC Comicssuperhero who operated as the secondGreen Arrow, created byKelley Puckett andJim Aparo. In the post-Zero Hour continuity, Connor is the eldest son of Oliver Queen, the original Green Arrow, and his former college girlfriend Sandra "Moonday" Hawke, making him Oliver's heir of his estates and the Green Arrow legacy. Connor Hawke first appeared inGreen Arrow (vol. 2) #0 (1994).[1]
The character's prominence in DC comics has gone up and down at many points following his short-lived tenure as a full-time replacement for Oliver Queen. For a decade, from 2011 to 2021, the character was largely absent after DC attempted to make Oliver Queen a younger man again and to reintroduce his supporting cast gradually as part of itsThe New 52 relaunch, although versions of the character continued to appear in comics set elsewhere in theDC Comics Multiverse. With theInfinite Frontier initiative in 2021, Connor is restored to prominence, reintroduced as the second Green Arrow and Oliver's illegitimate son. Furthermore, Connor's multi-racial European, African, and Korean background is made more prominent.[2] TheDC Pride 2022 anthology confirmed that Connor isasexual.[3]
Outside of comics, multiple versions of Connor appear inThe CW'sArrowverse, where Connor Hawke is the pseudonym of the Earth-16 counterpart ofJohn Diggle's son, portrayed byJoseph David-Jones while the other Connor Hawke, portrayed by Aiden Stoxx in the present and David-Jones in the future, is the son ofBen Turner. Separately, another loose adaptation of Connor's comic book origin story involves Oliver discovering he has an illegitimate son namedWilliam Clayton, is also depicted onArrow with the present-day version portrayed by Jack Moore and the future adult version portrayed byBen Lewis.
Connor Hawke metOliver Queen after Oliver came to stay at theashram where Connor had been studying for some years. Oliver who had previously retreated to the ashram decades before, looking for peace after accidentally killing a criminal,[4] returned to the ashram under similar circumstances, haunted by the thought that he had killed his former best friendHal Jordan, who, at the time, was involuntarily serving as the host of thesupervillainParallax. Thanks to Connor, who was a big fan of Green Arrow, Oliver was able to regain a semblance of inner peace and venture out into the world again, especially after numerous attempts on his life had been made.
Connor decided to journey with Oliver, and created a costume similar to his. Connor serves as Oliver's sidekick and meetsEddie Fyers, a former federal agent and counsel for Oliver. It was during this time that Oliver learned about his connection to Connor from the ghost of Hal Jordan: Connor was Oliver's son, conceived during Oliver's college years.[5] After Oliver is killed in battle with theEden Corps, Connor succeeds him as Green Arrow.[6]
Connor continued to travel with Eddie, accompanied at times by Connor's martial arts mentor Master Jansen. Connor tried to find his place not only in the hero world, but also in the legacy of Green Arrow. Akin to the friendship between his father and Hal Jordan, Connor became quick friends with the newGreen Lantern (Kyle Rayner), who himself was struggling to live up to a legacy.[7]
Besides making other friends such asRobin (Tim Drake),[8] he also made significant enemies in the fighting world, including the Silver Monkey, an assassin and member of the Monkey Fist martial arts cult. Their first encounter resulted in a decisive loss for Connor, which was also filmed and sold underground. Connor's close win in a rematch resulted in a loss of face for the Monkey Fist cult and set Connor on a path that would bring him face to face withLady Shiva, said to be the deadliest assassin in the world. During the Brotherhood of the Fist storyline, the Monkey Fist schools attacked various world-class martial artists attempting to prove their worthiness and skill after having been dishonored by the Silver Monkey's loss. Under the alias "Paper Monkey," Shiva arrived in Gotham City where Connor had allied withBatman,Nightwing, and Robin. Shiva's final opponent was Connor, who was the prime target of the Monkey Fist. Though a close and taxing contest, Shiva was the victor, with Connor unconscious and defenseless. Thankfully, Shiva's old pupil, Tim Drake who had saved her life during a previous encounter, asked her not to kill Connor, trading a life for a life. After warning Robin that using the favor now meant she would challenge and kill the boy wonder when he was older, she refrained from killing Connor and departed. Batman warned Connor that he would be perceived as surviving a battle with Shiva through his own skill and would therefore be a possible target for any fighters building their way up to a battle against her.[9]
Connor also applied for membership in the JLA, replacing his father.[10] On the date of his second interview, he singlehandedly saved the League from the hands of theKey, defeating the Key's robots by using his father's old trick arrows after the Key had destroyed his own. In the end, he knocked out the Key using his father's trademark boxing glove arrow, and was accepted as a member of the JLA.[11]
He would later be used by Batman as a "traitor" in the League in a ploy to defeatLex Luthor's Injustice Gang.[12] Connor left the League afterward, feeling he was better suited for the street-level work and out of his element in the epic adventures of the Justice League, although he did remain on reserve status. During this time, he also developed a friendship withKyle Rayner, the latest Green Lantern, occasionally contacting Kyle for help if he felt that he was dealing with a problem that went beyond his skillset. One unique mission against the Eden Corps- the organisation responsible for Oliver Queen's death- saw Connor team up with a temporally-displacedHal Jordan, pulled from early in his career as a hero, with the two musing on how they had each never had a chance to know Oliver (As Hal was from a point before he had developed his close ties to the archer). He and Eddie returned for a time to the ashram where Connor was raised, although they both often returned to the outside world, aidingRobin at one point when his Brentwood Academy roommate had been attacked by a demon, and again when Robin, theSpoiler, andBatgirl were attempting to protect Robin's father from an ancient cult.
When Oliver returned from the dead, Connor left the ashram and tracked him down. After Connor manages to save his father from warlockStanley Dover, Connor and Oliver move in together inStar City.[13] The two live withMia Dearden, a runaway that Oliver has taken in and trained as his new sidekickSpeedy. Since returning to the superhero life, Connor has been wounded seriously twice, once by the villainOnomatopoeia[14] and once byConstantine Drakon, but he continues in his hero role. He is the voice of reason for Oliver, and the two have since formed a real father-son relationship. During his recovery from Onomatopoeia's attack, Oliver Queen and his former sidekickRoy Harper went on a trip across the country recovering old possessions. One of them was an old photograph which revealed that Oliver had been present at Connor's birth, but later ran from the responsibility of being a father.[15] Oliver kept this fact from his son. However, Connor already learned the truth years ago from his mother, and has already forgiven him without Oliver's knowledge.
During the 2006 "One Year Later" storyline, Connor is revealed to be on an island withMia Dearden andOliver Queen as Oliver trains for his return to Star City.[16]
In November 2006, Connor starred in his own six issue miniseries, entitledConnor Hawke: Dragon's Blood. It was written byChuck Dixon with art by Derec Donovan. Dixon stated, "A big surprise leads to major changes in Connor's life, particularly as it relates to his father."[17]
InTony Bedard'sBlack Canary miniseries, Connor is shot byLeague of Assassins agents and infected with a neurotoxin, leaving him in avegetative state.[18][19] He recovers, but is rendered amnesiac and unable to wield a bow. Furthermore, he is spliced withPlastic Man's DNA, giving him an advanced healing factor.[20][21]
InBlackest Night, Connor travels toCoast City and battles Green Arrow afterNekron transforms him into aBlack Lantern. He is hesitant to fight his father, but eventually stops him by spraying him withliquid nitrogen. After Oliver's defeat, Connor, Mia, and Dinah join in the fight against the other Black Lanterns.[22]
After this, Connor returns to the ruins of Star City (which had been destroyed just prior toBlackest Night) and tries to help maintain order. Connor is approached by Oliver, now a fugitive after having murderedPrometheus, the villain that destroyed the city in the first place. Oliver tries to talk to his son, but Connor angrily states that his battle with his Black Lantern father somehow jogged his memory, and that he now remembers all the terrible things Oliver had done to him. When Oliver tells Connor that he had thought he had forgiven him, Connor states that he no longer has the strength to forgive him for his transgressions. Though he refuses to turn Oliver over to the Justice League, he also refuses to help him, instead telling him to do the right thing for once in his life.[23]
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FollowingThe New 52 continuity reboot, Connor appears as a member of the League of Shadows, a splinter faction of theLeague of Assassins.[24][25]
TheDC Pride 2022 anthology confirms Connor to beasexual, following decades of fan speculation.[3][26] The debut story, titled "Think of Me", was created by an entirely-asexual team consisting of Ro Stein, Ted Brandt, and Frank Cvetkovic.[26][3]
Connor Hawke makes his first appearance in the Robin series written by Joshua Williamson where he comes into conflict withDamian Wayne during a tournament for theLazarus Pits.[27][28][29] Connor answersNightwing's call to participates inDark Crisis againstPariah, and helpsBlack Canary, andRoy Harper locate Green Arrow.[30]
There's been confusion as to the identity of Connor's mother. Throughout the later issues of the firstGreen Arrow series written byChuck Dixon, Connor's mother was identified as Sandra "Moonday" Hawke; a flighty ex-hippie, who had reportedly been one of many conquests for a young Oliver Queen. Moonday played a frequent supporting role in the series, often requiring rescue due to the machinations of her husband - an arms dealer named Milo Armitage, who would be a frequent foe of the newGreen Arrow.[8]
Shado, an assassin who also mothered a child with Oliver Queen, is often identified as Connor Hawke's mother. One reason for this is because of aWizard Magazine issue, which identified Connor's first appearance in comics being inGreen Arrow (vol. 2) #24. While this was the first appearance of Shado's infant son (who was later revealed to be named Robert), Connor appeared as a man in his early-twenties inGreen Arrow (vol. 2) #0. Both Robert and Connor were seen together, many years apart in age, in Chuck Dixon's 2007Dragon's Blood miniseries. Furthermore, inBirds of Prey #109, in whichBarbara Gordon identifies Shado as Connor Hawke's mother when running down a list of women with whom Oliver Queen cheated on long-time girlfriendDinah Lance. WriterTony Bedard acknowledged this as an error on his part,[31] with the error being removed in future printings.
Typically depicted with no inherent superpowers, Connor is considered a highly skilledmartial artist andarcher.[32][33] Connor's prowess in the former depicts him among the best fighters within theDC Universe, making him comparable or surpassing notable formidable fighters such as his father,Nightwing,Lady Shiva,[34] andDamian Wayne[35] although he is not as capable in marksmanship as his father. He is also a proficient swordsman.
Connor may have some degree of enhanced protection or regenerative powers as a result of his bathing in the blood of a dragon (inDragon's Blood) and having his DNA spliced withPlastic Man's (inGreen Arrow and Black Canary). This has been alluded to in the respective series, but rarely mentioned otherwise.
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Numerous characters based on Connor Hawke appear in media set in theArrowverse.
A character based on Connor Hawke namedConnor Lance-Queen appears inInjustice 2.
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