In The Night Comes... Nighthawk!

 

The story of Nighthawk--erstwhile member of the Squadron Sinister and, later, would join the dynamic Defenders--really begins at the point when he's conscripted to take part in a deadly game of life and death engaged between the alien Grandmaster and Kang the Conqueror which would decide the fate of the Earth. It was the Grandmaster who formed the Squadron to serve as his own "players" who would individually face Kang's chosen team of Avengers in battle--and while the latter team fought for the survival of their world, Nighthawk and his partners had more self-serving ends in mind.

As we'll learn, the Grandmaster had a direct hand in bringing Kyle Richmond's identity as Nighthawk to life--and while it may seem odd that the Grandmaster would bother with providing Nighthawk's mode of transportation, it appears to be the key to Nighthawk proving victorious against his opponent, despite what we may have assumed in regard to victory being achieved by the defeat of the player.

We'd have to look at the fine print of this game's terms to be certain, but here it seems that Nighthawk would win his match against Cap if his plan to destroy the Statue of Liberty had succeeded, rather than defeating Cap personally; otherwise, the Grandmaster would have declared Nighthawk the winner when Cap was caught by the villain's rope and slammed into unconsciousness against the statue's stone base. Regardless, since Cap came out on top by defeating both plan and opponent, the point is rendered moot.

In the end, the Grandmaster would ultimately be the losing party in the game and depart, leaving the members of the Squadron Sinister free to chart their own course. Hyperion's fate at the hands of Thor would be more problematic in that regard; and while we were left to assume that the Whizzer and Dr. Spectrum would have been turned over to the authorities, that doesn't seem to have been the case for Nighthawk*, who turns up roughly four months later to use his criminal talents to con his way into Daredevil's territory.

*Unless Richmond's high-priced attorneys managed to secure a reduced sentence for his client--though I'd be flummoxed at such a development, given the literal size of the theft involved.

The con job begins when Daredevil catches in the act a couple of gunsels committing a theft, and Nighthawk beats him to the punch (so to speak) in preventing their getaway. Yet Daredevil is unaware at first that Nighthawk has drugged him during their brief contact in the air, thereby giving Nighthawk a clear shot at capturing the criminals for all to see. Afterward, Nighthawk is elated that all has gone according to plan.

Curious words on the part of Nighthawk--who indeed would think to look for him at Richmond's mansion? Since Nighthawk is so self-assured of that fact, it means that no one in law enforcement possesses a record of Nighthawk's identity as Richmond, confirming that (a) he was never taken into custody after the Statue debacle, and thus (b) no arraignment in court took place. What's surprising is that writer Roy Thomas would go to such effort to cover Richmond's tracks, given that he was also the writer who had Richmond blurt out his identity to Cap, thus insuring that Nighthawk's identity would end up on file with the Avengers along with dossiers of the other Squadron members. As to why the Avengers didn't turn that information over to the police who would likely have issued a warrant for Richmond's arrest, you've got me.

Fortunately, you and I are not so hamstrung by all of that, as we learn more of Nighthawk's origin--and, more importantly, what he's really after.

Meanwhile, Daredevil has done a little investigating of his own after figuring out that Nighthawk had drugged him--and when he discovers that the armed men Nighthawk corralled were never brought in for processing by the police, he sets up a little con job of his own, which exposes Nighthawk's ruse for all to see and hear. (Though if anyone could overhear that information in Times Square--arguably the most congested, chaotic and noisy environment in the city outside of a sports arena--their ears must be more receptive than Daredevil's.)

The game up for Nighthawk, that leaves only the battle between them--though on a moonlit night, DD may be surprised by his foe's resilience and strength, as well as his athletic ability. But as their venue changes, Nighthawk finally reaches the end of the road in his attempts at shaking his pursuer--or does he?

Despite the closing panel's tease that we could very well be seeing Nighthawk again in these pages, writer Len Wein would have other plans for the character a little over four years later in The Defenders, where the other Squadron members recall their beaked partner to take part in a scheme of Hyperion's which will likely result in the end of all human life on Earth. And unlike the Avengers, they won't hesitate to disclose Nighthawk's true identity in order to secure his cooperation.

Lucky for Earth, the PPC has the 411 on that story and its outcome in a previous post. (But be sure to bring along a parka.)