Nighthawk (Marvel Comics) - Publication History

Publication History

Kyle Richmond, the original Nighthawk, debuted as a supervillain in the final panel of The Avengers #69 (Oct. 1969), a superhero team in the mainstream Marvel Comics continuity the company designates Earth-616. This story is the first chapter of a three-issue arc by writer Roy Thomas and penciller Sal Buscema. The story arc introduced the supervillain team the Squadron Sinister, whose four members were loosely based on heroes in DC Comics' Justice League of America, with Nighthawk based on Batman.

Following this arc, Nighthawk appeared in a solo adventure in the title Daredevil, before reappearing with the Squadron as antagonists in the superhero team title The Defenders #13-14 (May–July 1974). Nighthawk then reformed, and after adopting a new costume joined the team the following issue.

Nighthawk appeared on a regular basis in The Defenders and a number of other Marvel titles, including Giant-Size Defenders 2-5 (Oct. 1974 - July 1975); Marvel Team-Up #33-34 and 101 (May–June 1975, Jan. 1981); The Incredible Hulk #206-207 (Dec. 1976 - Jan. 1977); Marvel Two-In-One #34 (Dec. 1977); The Avengers #167 and 182 (Jan. 1978, April 1979); Doctor Strange vol. 2, #29 (June 1978); The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #15 (Dec. 1981); Captain America #268 (April 1982); and with other heroes in the graphic novel The Death of Captain Marvel (April 1982) and the humorous Fantastic Four Roast (April 1982).

Following a solo adventure in Tales To Astonish vol. 2, #13 (Dec. 1980), he apparently sacrifices his life in The Defenders #106 (April 1982). The supervillain Dead Ringer briefly impersonated him in Captain America #429 (July 1994), but is captured. In the three-issue miniseries Nighthawk (Sept.-Nov. 1998) Richmond was revealed to be alive, but in a coma and brain dead. Through supernatural means, he was revived and resumed his crime-fighting career, and co-starred in the 12-issue run of The Defenders vol. 2 (March 2001 - Feb. 2002) and the miniseries The Order #1-6 (April - Sept. 2002). Afterward, he appeared in the team comics New Thunderbolts #15-18 (Jan.-April 2006) and Thunderbolts #100-108 (May 2006 - Jan. 2007), and was among the many heroes featured in the miniseries Civil War #1-7 (July 2006 - Jan. 2007). He went onto to appear sporadically in Avengers: The Initiative, beginning with issue #1 (June 2007). Nighthawk formed a short-lived version of the Defenders with the mutant Colossus, the Blazing Skull, and She-Hulk, as part of the Initiative, and depicted in the miniseries The Last Defenders #1-6 (May - Oct. 2008).