Original incarnation After a period of membership fluctuations during the first 10 issues of
Military Comics, the team finally settles into its most famous roster. Although minor character details would shift and change over time, this original version of the team would stay largely intact from the characters' debut in 1941 to the end of their first run in 1968. At one point or another, every member of the team except Blackhawk is depicted in ways
stereotypical for the time, and over the course of the series several would develop their own
catchphrases. •
Blackhawk – first Polish, then American, the man known as Blackhawk is portrayed as a strong, decisive leader. He is not always easy on his men—calling Olaf a "big fat-head", for example—but always appears to command their unquestionable respect. At one point late in the first series' run, he is given a name,
Bart Hawk. •
Stanislaus – Blackhawk's second-in-command. Polish, Stan is initially depicted like his teammates with various ethnic distinctions, but those disappear as the series progresses to the point that he could very well pass for an American. He is often portrayed as an acrobat, then later as the team's strongman. •
Chuck – at different times stated as being from Brooklyn or Texas, Chuck is often shown as the team's communications specialist. His words are peppered with frequent American
colloquialisms like "I reckon!" and "Dagnabbit!" •
Hendrickson – known as "Hendy" for short, the oldest of the Blackhawks is also their ever-dependable sharpshooter. Heavyset with white hair and a thick, Germanic mustache, he is usually portrayed as Dutch (though German in some accounts), and often exclaims, "Himmel!" (German for "sky" and "heaven") or "Ach du lieber!" (a German phrase akin to "Oh, dear!"). •
André – with his pencil-thin mustache and natural born suavity, André's appreciation of beautiful women often leads the team into precarious situations. Their demolitions expert, he frequently utters "
Sacre bleu!" (an old French profanity). •
Olaf – a giant of a man, Olaf is usually portrayed as Swedish, his brutish size and poor English playing into the "big, dumb Swede" stereotype. He often shouts, "Py Yiminy!" and demonstrates impressive acrobatic abilities (a trait that Stanislaus' character loses over time). •
Chop-Chop – Chop-Chop is originally the team's Chinese cook and essentially Blackhawk's sidekick, riding along in Blackhawk's plane as opposed to piloting his own. He evolves over time from comic relief mascot to a valued member of the team proficient in the
martial arts. His full name is eventually revealed to be Liu Huang. Other short-term members are Baker, an Englishman, and Boris, a Russian. Both characters only make single panel appearances. Zeg, Polish like Blackhawk and Stanislaus, manages to last a bit longer, but is gone by the Blackhawk's ninth appearance in
Military Comics. A significant ally to the team throughout the 1940s is
Miss Fear, who never formally joins the group but appears frequently during their Asian missions, developing a romantic interest in Blackhawk himself. The strip's most significant supporting character is Zinda Blake, also known as
Lady Blackhawk. After a failed attempt to become the team's first female member, she is eventually awarded honorary status and makes numerous appears from 1959 to 1968, even becoming the villainess Queen Killer Shark for a time. The team acquires an animal mascot in the 1950s, Blackie the hawk. Possessing remarkable intelligence he can type notes in plain English, among other skills and fitted with his own miniature belt radio, he is often shown perched on Blackhawk's shoulder.
1967's New Blackhawk Era . When the Blackhawks are proven by the secret spy organization G.E.O.R.G.E. (the Group for Extermination of Organizations of Revenge, Greed, and Evil) to be inept and ineffective as a modern-day fighting force against the evils of the world, the team regroups and dons dramatic new identities that, as the U.S. president happily observes, returns them to their rightful place as one of America's "top trouble-shooting teams". For 14 issues beginning with
Blackhawk #228 (January 1967), the Blackhawks become: •
The Big Eye (Blackhawk) – Constantly monitoring the activities of his squad from the Hawk-Kite, a mammoth
dirigible made to look like a two-headed hawk, Blackhawk is the only one of the seven to not take on a new alter-ego. •
The Golden Centurion (Stanislaus) – Clad in the gleaming gold armor of a dead foe, Stan not only gains the ability to fly, but can also fire bolts of "ionized pure gold". •
The Listener (Chuck) – Chuck facilitates communication between the team, wearing what resembles pajamas covered with drawings of ears. •
The Weapons-Master (Hendrickson) – Hendy is the team's master of weaponry. • '''M'sieu Machine (André)''' – André becomes designer of exotic crime-fighting gadgets. •
The Leaper (Olaf) – Donning a rubber-titanium outfit reminiscent of a human cannonball circus performer, Olaf's natural acrobatic abilities are now complemented with the ability to leap and bounce great distances. •
Dr. Hands (Chop-Chop) – Mixing martial arts with
beryllium-encased hands, Chop-Chop is able to "smash through practically anything". The "New Blackhawk Era" ends after just 14 issues when G.E.O.R.G.E. headquarters is unceremoniously destroyed, leaving the Blackhawks with only their classic blue and black uniforms.
1976–1977 When the series resumes in 1976, it features a mercenary team composed of familiar unaged faces. Their origins and place in the
DC Universe are never explained, though it is firmly stated that this version of the Blackhawks consists of "the original seven" and surmises that they had "first banded together in the fifties to battle a growing number of costumed villains and foes". The members of the team are described as follows: With Hendrickson left ailing in the final issue of the run, and Chuck seemingly killed in battle, it is possible that big changes were in store for the team's line-up had the series continued past
Blackhawk #250. Two possible replacements are set up, either of whom could have also taken the mantle of Lady Blackhawk:
Duchess Ramona Fatale (also referred to as "Patch"), a mercenary with questionable allegiances, but harboring love for Blackhawk; and Elsa, Hendrickson's daughter.
1982–1984 With the team's return to a World War II setting, many basic aspects of the original incarnation are restored, complemented by what writer Mark Evanier called "a more contemporary attitude towards characterization". The core members are: •
Blackhawk – Described as "Polish American" and referred to as Bart on a few occasions. He abhors killing, doing so only in self-defense. He is strong and level-headed, not always reacting as swiftly or as violently as some of his men might like. •
Stanislaus – Blackhawk's Polish second-in-command and loyal friend. Lacking confidence from being in Blackhawk's shadow for so long, he envies Blackhawk's strong leadership capabilities. •
André – A former member of the French resistance, he is the team's experienced military planner and full-time ladies' man. •
Olaf – A Swede whose tall height and thick accent plays into a common stereotype, but in actuality conceals amazing acrobatic skills and a savvy mind in combat. •
Hendrickson – The team's Dutch weapons master and sharpshooter. The oldest of the group, he grapples with feelings of resentment, often left feeling like his much-younger teammates don't always make full use of his wisdom. •
Chuck – A Texan who volunteered for the British R.A.F. before bringing his expert piloting and mechanic skills to the Blackhawks. He is portrayed as tougher and more rude than previous depictions. •
Chop-Chop – Both the youngest and the newest member of the team, he is a martial arts master named Wu Cheng. Also introduced during the run is
Lieutenant Theodore Gaynor of the
United States Marine Corps, who joins the team when Chop-Chop takes a leave of absence to fight the Japanese in China. Gaynor leaves the team after it is learned his hardline stance against the Germans includes the execution of not only Nazi soldiers, but also civilians.
1988–present After the
Crisis on Infinite Earths rewrites the history of the
DC Universe, the Blackhawks' own history, both during World War II and after, undergoes yet more transformation. The members are: •
Major Janos Prohaska (Blackhawk) – Reestablished as being born and raised in Poland, Prohaska is portrayed as the consummate leader, but also as a brash, hard-drinking womanizer. He is also revealed to have been a member of the Communist Party, expelled by
Joseph Stalin after opposing the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, a 1939 treaty of non-aggression between the Soviets and Nazi Germany. •
Captain Stanislaus Drozdowski – Longtime friend of Blackhawk's who fights alongside him in the Polish Air Force before becoming one of the earliest members of the Blackhawks—and one of the team's first casualties. •
Captain André Blanc-Dumont – An excellent but slightly reckless pilot, the Frenchman is second-in-command of the team, as well as Prohaska's closest confidant and frequent co-pilot. •
Captain Olaf Friedriksen – Danish in this version, athletic Olaf is a savant with languages and skilled at radio operations. •
Captain Ritter Hendricksen – The Dutch marksmen and demolitions expert, as well as the oldest member of the team. •
Captain Carlo "Chuck" Sirianni – An Italian-American from New Jersey who served with the U.S.
Office of Strategic Services before joining the team and becoming their chief navigation officer. Chuck is also a dabbler in electronics and aeronautic technology. •
Lieutenant Weng Chan (Chop-Chop) – Chinese and said to be just 17 when he first joins the team, Weng is a skilled pilot, flight mechanic, and cook. •
Captain Natalie Reed (Lady Blackhawk) – Brilliant Russian-American flight engineer who redesigns the Blackhawks' aircraft and fights alongside them. She gives birth to a son in 1945, the product of a brief affair with Hendricksen. Other early members of the team include Russians
Boris Zinoviev and
Kazimierc "Zeg" Zegota-Januszajtis, and Englishman
Ian Holcomb-Baker, who are "the first to fall in battle". Later team members include African-American
Grover Baines, Malaysian
Quan Chee Keng (known as "Mairzey"), and Mexican
Paco Herrera.
2011–present Core members of the Blackhawk Squadron as depicted in the New 52 era: •
Colonel Andrew Lincoln – Deputy of operations. •
Lady Blackhawk •
Kunoichi – Nikki Nemzer, Japanese field operative. •
The Irishman – Ukrainian field operative. •
Attila – Hungarian field operative. •
Canada •
Wildman – Randall Wildman, Field support operative. ==Evolution of Chop-Chop==