Kendra Saunders was a young Latina woman who died by
suicide. When Kendra's
soul left her body, that of her grandfather's first cousin
Shiera Sanders Hall, the Golden Age Hawkgirl and
Carter Hall's wife entered it, making Kendra a
walk-in. Her grandfather, former OSS agent and globe-trotting adventurer
Speed Saunders, recognized this, in part due to a change in eye color, and encouraged his granddaughter to embrace her destiny as the "new" Hawkgirl. Kendra had a daughter named Mia, who is not shown but mentioned. Still believing herself to be Kendra, she debuted as a hero using the original Hawkgirl's equipment and set out in search of a being called the Fate-Child (actually her own reincarnated son,
Hector Hall). This led to a meeting with the
Justice Society and Kendra's induction to that team. She currently has all of Kendra's memories, but almost none of Shiera's save for fighting experiences. This creates tension with Hawkman since he remembers all of their past lives together and believes they are destined for each other. Kendra has been presented as a very troubled young woman, haunted by the murder of her parents by a corrupt cop and confused by her jumble of memories and feelings. She has operated as
Hawkman's partner but only recently begun to actually admit her attraction to him. The truth about Kendra's identity was eventually revealed to her by the angel
Zauriel. She is one of the heroes who fought in space during the
Rann-Thanagar War. Following the events of Infinite Crisis, a
Zeta Beam transporter malfunction injured many of the superheroes in space, including Hawkgirl, causing her to grow over twenty feet tall.
Some time later, her proper stature restored, Kendra was shown living in
St. Roch, Louisiana, working in Stonechat Museum and protecting the city as Hawkgirl. She is also a returning member of the new
Justice League, having effectively served with the team when the original members were previously missing. A brewing relationship between Hawkgirl and
Red Arrow became one of the major subplots in the series though it appears to have ended. Hawkgirl is now 100% Kendra Saunders. Shiera Sanders' soul left Kendra's body and moved on to the afterlife. Shiera hopes her death will finally remove the curse of
Hath-Set.
Hawkman Vol. 4 (2002–2006) In the
Hawkman ongoing monthly comic book series, Hawkgirl was presented as a very afflicted young woman, seeking clarity regarding the murder of her parents by a corrupt cop and confused by her jumble of memories and feelings. She had all of Kendra's memories but almost none of Shiera's. This created tension with
Hawkman since he remembered all of their past lives together and believed they were destined for each other. She operated as Hawkman's partner, but eventually began to actually admit her attraction to him. One of Kendra's past lives is revealed as the bounty hunter,
Cinnamon, a reincarnation of the Egyptian princess Chay-Ara. As such, she becomes the lover of Prince Khufu's reincarnation, the hero
Nighthawk. When Cinnamon is assaulted by the burglar
"Gentleman Jim" Craddock, Nighthawk hangs him up, thereby tying his destiny to theirs. Cinnamon, along with Nighthawk, is killed by the latest incarnation of Hath-Set, their biggest enemy. Kendra eventually meets with the police officer
Hawkwoman, who was searching for her missing partner
Katar Hol, previously possessed by a creature known as the Hawk Avatar. Also seeking to arrest the
Thanagarian criminal
Byth Rok, Shayera Thal asked for Kendra's help. Working together they were able to defeat the villain. Before departing to
Thanagar with Byth as her prisoner, Hawkwoman gave Hawkgirl her harness as symbol of their recently formed friendship. Hawkgirl felt that she was not the first person
Hawkman would turn to in a moment of crisis, treating her as a damsel in distress incapable of holding her own, and degrading her position in both the eyes of the
Justice Society of America and in their partnership. She observed that he would frequently treat her as a
sidekick, a relationship that Kendra denied, wanting to be seen as his equal. Toward the end of the series Hawkgirl reveals all of her feelings to
Carter, causing him to apologize and admit that he was treating her wrongly all along. The story finishes on a romantic note with the Hawks fighting together during the
Rann-Thanagar War.
Hawkgirl, the series The
Hawkman ongoing monthly series was retitled to
Hawkgirl, with Kendra replacing Carter as the lead character. Hawkgirl is seen protecting
St. Roch, Louisiana in the absence of Hawkman, and working in Stonechat Museum. She fights Khimaera several times, finally killing her. She is later abducted and put on mock trial for high treason against her people by a group of rogue Thanagarian criminals, at the instigation of Blackfire. After declaring her guilty, one of the rogues ties her hands behind her back, covers her mouth with a piece of duct tape, and attempts to execute her by hanging — whereupon Kendra finds that she can hover without her wings, and is thus able to fake her death and defeat the criminals. Kendra then becomes a direct target of
Blackfire who decides to go to Earth, herself, to kill Hawkgirl and Hawkman. Together, the Hawks defeat her and take away her powers. Kendra later fights alongside the Furies of
Darkseid when St. Roch is attacked by an evil doomsday weapon of
Apokolips, a stolen Beta-3 Gizmoid. It turns out that the gizmoid is linked to the Hawks' old enemy, Hath-Set, as it had been taken to Earth ages ago and landed in Ancient Egypt during Hath-Set's reign, and hidden in a canopic jar. Due to Hath-Set's efforts to reacquire the jar, the gizmoid is reactivated near Stonechat Museum. According to its programming, it spots Hawkgirl and, choosing her as a template, assumes her form to begin Earth's eradication. Tracking it, the
Female Furies arrive by Boom Tube but are rendered conscious. As a giant mechanized version of Hawkgirl, the gizmoid begins attacking St. Roch with its arsenal of weaponry.
Bernadeth and the other Furies try to destroy the gizmoid but are unsuccessful. But, due to her brief connection with the gizmoid, Hawkgirl discovers a weakness whereby she and the Furies are able to defeat it. Hawkgirl's plan works and the gizmoid falls to pieces, but afterward the vampiric
Bloody Mary, one of the Furies, turns on Hawkgirl as she lies unconscious. Fortunately, Danny Evans had been following the battle and shows up just in time. He manages to delay Bloody Mary just long enough for Hawkgirl to reawaken and subdue her. The Female Furies collect Bloody Mary and reluctantly thank Hawkgirl for her efforts before departing. Kendra finally resolves to take the fight to her mortal enemy,
Hath-Set, who had been spying on her for some time. Hawkgirl starts getting closer to finding him with the assistance of
Batman,
Superman, and
Oracle. During her search Kendra is kidnapped by Hath-Set and taken to Egypt.
Hawkman follows on a rescue mission, but is captured and imprisoned by Hath-Set's minions. Meanwhile, Hawkgirl is able to free herself. She encounters Hath-Set, and after a final battle, kills him and saves Hawkman. The two now finally find peace, breaking the cycle of reincarnation and failure. They can see themselves falling in love again, but with Hawkgirl asserting that, this time, Carter must earn her love.
Justice League of America Hawkgirl's main story arc in the early issues of
Justice League of America Vol. 2 centered around her relationship with
Red Arrow. Initially both were looking for a fling, but then found themselves in love, with Hawkgirl even meeting his daughter
Lian Harper, a result of his former romance with
Cheshire. Their relationship became one of the major subplots of the series, with
Black Canary's disapproval of the relationship bringing some tension to it. Additionally,
Power Girl advised Red Arrow not to get involved with Hawkgirl, as she was destined to eventually return to
Hawkman (Carter Hall). Despite everything the two started dating, with the
Justice League later finding out after
Red Tornado caught Hawkgirl and Red Arrow sleeping together. This was the beginning of a turbulent relationship, with past relationships, parenting, and the inability to express their feelings to each other causing problems. Red Arrow's constant pain due Cheshire's absence, and Hawkgirl conflicted feelings regarding
Hawkman brought stress in their romance, causing the couple to fight regularly. Eventually the relationship dissolved and Red Arrow left the
Justice League. While in a mission with the
Justice League inside the
Prison Planet, Hawkgirl discovered another ability provided by the Nth Metal, the power to weaken forces drawn from the fabric of space-time. Thus, Kendra was the only member not affected by
Kanjar Ro, enabling her to fight against the villain and rescue her friends. Hawkgirl then left the
Justice League due to injuries sustained in
Final Crisis.
Blackest Night In
Blackest Night #1, Kendra is shown having an argument with Hawkman over whether or not to visit
Jean Loring's grave with the
Atom. As the two heroes quarrel, the reanimated corpses of
Ralph and
Sue Dibny, now members of the
Black Lantern Corps, enter Hawkman's sanctuary. The Black Lanterns attack, Sue impaling Hawkgirl on a spear. Ralph taunts Hawkman, telling him that Hawkgirl never loved him; a claim she refutes with her dying breath. Hawkman is killed shortly afterward, and both heroes are reanimated as Black Lanterns by
Black Hand. During the battling at
Coast City, the Atom is chosen by the
Indigo Tribe to be more effective against
Nekron's forces. The Atom tells Indigo-1 to keep his involvement in the deployment of the troops a secret, and asks that she help him find a way to legitimately resurrect Hawkman and Hawkgirl. In the final battle, the duo are transformed by Hal Jordan into the White Lantern Corps and upon Nekron's destruction, they are both resurrected. Hawkgirl says she remembers all her past lives, then unmasks to reveal herself to be Shiera, she and Carter joyfully reuniting.
Brightest Day In the
Brightest Day crossover, Carter and Shiera follow Hath-Set, who has collected the bones from all of their past bodies, and created from them a portal to
Hawkworld. While there, Shiera is told by the
Entity to stop Hath-Set from killing Carter because if he dies one more time, he will not undergo the cycle of resurrection again. Shiera is attacked in Hawkworld's dungeon and captured by Hath-Set. She is then taken to the Queen of Hawkworld, who reveals to Shiera that she is her mother. Hawkgirl is tied by Hath-Set and Queen Khea to the gateway, and they strike her to lure Hawkman to the location. Hawkman and his group of the panthera attack the Manhawks homeworld. When Hawkman arrives and draws his attention, Shiera turns the tables on Hath-Set and uses her legs to snap his neck, killing him. In the meantime, Hawkman is held by Queen Khea's control of Nth metal mace and armor, and she puts Carter with Shiera. Queen Khea opens the gateway and enters the portal to the
Zamaron homeworld. When she arrives on the Zamaron homeworld, Star Sapphire (
Carol Ferris) frees them both to stop Queen Khea's invasion. Hawkgirl soon faces her mother, but the Predator feels the lack of love inside Khea's heart bond with her and does not know if she truly is able to contain the power of true love. The Predator makes Khea his host, but Shiera and Carter manage to separate both of them by stabbing Khea at the same time with weapons made of Zamaronian crystals. The bones of the past lives of Hawkman and Hawkgirl separate from the gateway and, animated by the power of the violet light of love, grab Khea and imprison her in the Zamaronian Central Power Battery. Shiera and Carter, with both of their missions accomplished, have their lives returned and Carol teleports both of them back to the museum of St. Roch. There, the couple, happy for finally defeating the curse, start to take off their clothes to make love, but they are suddenly interrupted by the apparition of
Deadman, brought there by his white ring. The ring gives Shiera and Carter an order that they must live separately to live life stronger (because they appreciate love more than life itself), but when Carter replies by saying they are not going to live apart again, the ring responds "So be it" and unleashes a blast of white light that turns Hawkman and Hawkgirl into white dust, while Deadman looks in horror. Deadman orders the ring to resurrect both Hawkman and Hawkgirl, but the ring refuses, and tells him that Hawkgirl is unique and that she was brought back life to overcome what held her back in her past life because she is essential in saving Earth. When the "Dark Avatar" made his presence known, Hawkgirl and Hawkman are revealed to be part of the Elementals. They were transformed by the Entity to become the element of air and protect the Star City forest from the Dark Avatar, which appears to be the Black Lantern version of the
Swamp Thing. The Elementals are then fused with the body of
Alec Holland in order for him to be transformed by the Entity into the new Swamp Thing and battle against the Dark Avatar. After the Dark Avatar is defeated, Swamp Thing appears to have brought the Elementals back to normal; however, as Hawkman looks around for Shiera, he discovers that she was not brought back like he was. He is later told by Swamp Thing that Shiera is everywhere, revealing that she is still the elemental of air. Afterward, Hawkman returns home yelling "Shiera".
The New 52 In 2011,
DC Comics rebooted its continuity as part of the publishing event
The New 52. In stories set on DC's Prime Earth, the
Savage Hawkman story arc "Hawkman Wanted" (
Savage Hawkman #13-16, and optionally issues #0 and #12) explains the character's place in the New 52. Shayera Thal is revealed as the princess of Thanagar, former lover of
Katar Hol and sister of the Emperor Corsar. Initially, she is depicted as a villain, seeking revenge against Katar and coming to Earth to bring Katar to justice for his crimes against Thanagar and the murder of Corsar. It is later evident that Katar was innocent and Shayera is surprised when she discovers her brother alive and behind Katar's arrest in the attempt to part Katar from the Nth metal and own it for himself. She then sacrifices herself to save Katar's life. Following DC's
Convergence storyline, the Silver Age version of Hawkgirl is featured in a Pre-Crisis universe. With the story taking place right after the events of
Shadow of War miniseries,
Hawkman and
Hawkgirl have been captured inside a domed
Gotham City. They are featured working as curators in the city's museum, while also fighting crime against hidden Thanagarians that had the original intent of conquest over the Earth, admitting later that they abandoned it when the dome came down. One of the rogues explains that they have seen the future, and that their universe will not survive. Hawkman and Hawkgirl watch as their world starts collapsing due to the Crisis, but they also realize that there might be a new beginning and they fly off with hope in their hearts.
DC Rebirth In March 2016, DC Comics developed
DC Rebirth, as a relaunch of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Using the end of
The New 52 initiative in May 2016 as its launching point,
DC Rebirth restored the
DC Universe to a form much like that prior to the
Flashpoint storyline while still incorporating numerous elements of
The New 52, including its continuity. Following this, Hawkgirl made her first appearance in
Dark Days: The Forge and
Dark Days: The Casting, which served as a prelude to
Dark Nights: Metal. Hawkgirl was originally born as Chay-Ara, the lover of the Egyptian prince
Khufu. One night, Khufu and Chay-Ara discovered a Thanagarian ship that had landed on Earth. The ship was made of the mysterious Nth Metal. Exposure to the metal forced Chay-Ara and Khufu, as well as their enemy
Hath-Set, into a cycle of endless reincarnation through time and space. Chay-Ara lived countless lives, before being reborn most recently as Kendra Saunders, while her lover's latest incarnation is
Carter Hall. Kendra Saunders made her
DC Rebirth debut in
Dark Nights: Metal #1, she is introduced as the leader of the current
Blackhawks, an anti-apocalyptic team. Seeking to prevent the Dark Knights' invasion on Earth, Hawkgirl warned the Justice League of the upcoming invasion of the Dark Multiverse and later worked with the League to help them defeat the Dark Knights. Hawkgirl is also a member of the Immortal Men, a group of the oldest beings of Earth. As such, she was entrusted by the Immortals with the mission of using the
Anti-Monitor's astral brain in the
Rock of Eternity to destroy the Dark Knights. However, when she tried to do so, she was interrupted by Barbatos who transformed her into a dark-hawk version of herself called
Lady Blackhawk. It's later revealed that because of Barbatos's influence, Kendra's bond to the Nth Metal was merged into her being. She now boasts an altered physiology reminiscent to her past life as a Thanagarian, which resulted in the grafting of Nth Metal wings to Hawkgirl's back. Hawkgirl regained control of her body after Wonder Woman used her
Lasso of Truth on her, restoring Kendra's memories. After finding Hawkman's Nth Metal mace, Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl travel through a portal to Earth, where they battle corrupted versions of the Justice League. During their battle, Hawkgirl encounters Hawkman possessed by Barbatos. She releases him from the villain's command after encouraging Carter to remember all their past lives together. After assisting in the defeat of Barbatos and the Dark Knights, Hawkgirl is recruited to join the new Justice League. Searching for answers related to her new Nth Metal wings, Hawkgirl went on a mission to Thanagar Prime with
Martian Manhunter and
John Stewart. There Kendra encountered Shayera Hol, the Silver Age Hawkgirl. Shayera is shown as the Empress of Thanagar and protective of the planet's secrets. Kendra reveals that Shayera is indeed her previous life and Starman says that the two are existing at the same time is because of Perpetua and the Totality breaking the chain of resurrection and splitting the two. As such, Kendra and Shayera are two completely separate people . Later, Kendra would come to learn that she had a pivotal role in healing the
Source Wall that was previously destroyed in the Dark Nights: Metal event. Her Nth Metal wings were entrusted with the power to restore the Source Wall's integrity. After discovering this, Kendra tried to save the universe by sacrificing herself to the Source Wall, but her plan was thwarted by
Brainiac. Hawkgirl is a member of the relaunched Justice League bi-weekly series, written by
Scott Snyder. Hawkgirl was a member of the Justice League roster during the events of Death Metal. Kendra, and the rest of the team, were assigned to rescue the Legion of Doom from Perpetua's grasp. Hawkgirl is also shown as a member of the Guild of Detectives, a group featuring the greatest detectives of Earth.
Infinite Frontier After the conclusion of
Dark Nights: Death Metal, Hawkgirl is once again core member of the new Justice League series, written by
Brian Michael Bendis.
Dawn of DC After the conclusion of
Dark Crisis, with the Justice League disbanding, Hawkgirl got an ongoing solo book, exploring her new life in Metropolis. == Characterization ==