Darkhawk
Throughout his comics history, Darkhawk had fallen into obscurity, making minor appearances here and there and working within several hero teams. Only recently has Darkhawk gotten more attention, from his quick run during the War of Kings story-line, and more of a come-back during Infinity Countdown. He has a strong cult following and new interest thanks to his reworking and return to the comics.
As mentioned before, Christopher Powell started his superhero work as a teenager, when he discovered an alien artifact of mystical power, an amulet. When he connected with the amulet, he gained the ability to transform into an alien android, empowered with a variety of impressive powers, weapons and systems, making him a dangerous killing machine. However, the suit has had other side effects, including hallucinations, warped memories and anger management issues. He eventually gives up on using the amulet and attempts to live a normal life, as a police officer for the NYPD and a fiance to Miranda Cruz. Overtime, Chris would soon discover (rather violently) that his amulet and his Darkhawk body are of Shi'ar origins. He is a Raptor Armor, androids created to protect the Shi'ar Empire through assassination and other ruthless plans, and Darkhawk must battle against a group of these androids called the Fraternity of Raptors.
So, we have a character who started rather a product of the 90's that has evolved greatly over the years, becoming someone interesting, likable and pretty badass. So, how could Darkhawk be used in the MCU? Well, let's answer some obvious questions:
Do We Really Need A Darkhawk Movie?
Having Darkhawk in the MCU is not at all that important. He's been a rather small-scale and obscure hero in Marvel Comics, only making some impacts recently in the comics, and a damn good one at that. Despite this, there hasn't been really much to warrant a Darkhawk movie.
Well, it's the rather small, obscure nature of his character that makes it ideal to be given to lesser known but highly skilled director and actors. The openness of Darkhawk's character and the his supporting characters allows for a newer director to play with, and for good but underutilized actors to get out big.
In addition, they can play with the darker, personal side of the MCU. Most of the movies in the MCU are either light-hearted or epic, or both. Daredevil and Jessica Jones are able to do the darker, more personal stories very well, but these characters don't have much of an impact on the MCU. In Darkhawk's comics, much of of what he'd known of his amulet and armor was a result of his mind unable to apprehend the Datasong and the AI attempting to take him over. With this, we can have Darkhawk struggling to keep his grasp on reality and control over his body and actions. This can can come off even darker as he eventually discovers that he'd cause great injury to several people and even killed others while the AI was running amok. This can leave Darkhawk questioning whether being a hero is truly good or not, looking at the costs of having powers that you can't completely control.
I'm not saying it has to be 100% dark and gritty; there should still be some color and fun to it. Wonder Woman is a great example of binding the darkness (war-torn Europe) and the light (Themyscira and after the war). We can still feature some light-hearted interaction with Darkhawk's friends and family, some banter and joking in his hero-work, and feature other jokes and what-not. However, I feel Darkhawk can be made as proof that the MCU isn't all positive or epic; it does leave us question how far is too far.
Where Does He Begin?
Many MCU characters are introduced through hints or appearing in full in other movies. With this mentality, I believe that Christopher should be introduced in much of the same way. I believe that he can be introduced as himself, Christopher Powell, in a Spider-Man movie; in the comics, Powell is from Queens, New York, and has been a frequent friend and ally of Spider-Man. However, instead of introducing him as another teenager, I believe that he should be introduced as young adult and a recruit at the police academy in Queens. He can prove himself to be brave and capable but still human. He doesn't get the amulet yet and thus we don't get Darkhawk... yet.
Perhaps towards the end of a Guardians of the Galaxy movie or even a Nova movie, we're given knowledge that an unique energy ping was identified on Earth by the Nova Corps, which they could identify to be similar to Shi'ar technology. This ping is from the activation of a Shi'ar Raptor amulet, being activated by Christopher Powell. From there, we can bring in a Darkhawk standalone.
How Accurate Are We Going To Be?
When it comes to the origin to the amulet, I would say that we stick with the current cannon, but not actually reveal the full nature and instead play on both earthbound villains and his own inner demons. I would like to have a more armored/robot look to the Darkhawk android but his appearance can be anything. I would also like aspects of is backstory to stay true, such as his father being a former cop and his mother an assistant district attorney.
The biggest change is in the story of how Chris obtained the amulet: I see the amulet as having a history throughout its time on Earth, possibly having been used by a Native American during pre-colonialism and giving the android its name: the Darkhawk. The reason why it wasn't used much between pre-colonialism and modern times is because of the belief of a "spirit" neither good nor evil that resides in it, which is the AI; the AI is invasive and attempts to take over the user, causing hallucinations of an evil version of itself while causing the user to go berserk and hyper violent.
How Powerful Is Darkhawk?
Darkhawk has a strange placement in the power scale of Marvel. At his base, his physical attributes are typically a match to Spider-Man, sharing equal levels of strength and agility, with possibly superior speed and reflexes due to his flight speed capabilities. His energy manipulation/projection capabilities and reconfiguration is what makes him so deadly.
His Darkforce blast from his chest piece is capable of obliterating Ultron in a single point-blank blast. As Ultron is built from adamantium and is nearly indestructible, this is evident how f*cking powerful he really is. He can also produce energy shields of unheard-of durability. His reconfiguration capabilities allows him to form a variety of weapons and attributes, and are now only limited by his imagination and will. He's even capable of reconfiguring into a colossal mech! In truth, the Darkhawk is possibly one of the most dangerous heroes in the comics.
Though Darkhawk is a dangerous combatant, in the MCU, he's not likely to even know of the full potential of his suit. Perhaps we can see a few moments of him losing control, allowing his A.I. to enter a berserk state, causing death and destruction around him. One occasion can be when he's about to break into a facility of Bazen's, he losses control and brutally murders several armed criminals, followed by him beating down two capable Avengers, leave only as Darkhawk began to regain control. The last incident would be at the end, where he loses control again and beats the living hell out of his friends.
Honestly, it would be better to show his full potential in future movies, whether it's his own or in other movies. Whence he takes complete control of his Darkhawk form and combines both body and mind, he can unveil the shear epicness that he can reach.
Though Darkhawk is a dangerous combatant, in the MCU, he's not likely to even know of the full potential of his suit. Perhaps we can see a few moments of him losing control, allowing his A.I. to enter a berserk state, causing death and destruction around him. One occasion can be when he's about to break into a facility of Bazen's, he losses control and brutally murders several armed criminals, followed by him beating down two capable Avengers, leave only as Darkhawk began to regain control. The last incident would be at the end, where he loses control again and beats the living hell out of his friends.
Honestly, it would be better to show his full potential in future movies, whether it's his own or in other movies. Whence he takes complete control of his Darkhawk form and combines both body and mind, he can unveil the shear epicness that he can reach.
How Do We Make Powell Interesting?
As he's the son of both a cop and an assistant district attorney, Chris would likely be influenced by a lawful approach to dealing justice. In addition, we can start him as a police recruit or even a rookie cop. As such, the idea of using his new powers as a vigilante would make some moral questioning, whether using his abilities to do good without respect to the law is better than doing good with limits but following the law.
As the movie goes on, we can begin to see conflict within Chris' duality as both Christopher Powell and the Darkhawk. The lines begin to blur as Chris is pushed more into dedicating his life more to vigilantism and pushing his friends and family away. Once Chris begins to see what he's becoming (especually when he sees that his Darkhawk persona is literally trying to overtake him), he can attempt to separate himself from it, wanting to be his real self, not a persona of going to far.
Darkhawk's recent comics have done quite a bit to make him likable and relatable, compared to his rather bland character in his initial run.
Who Would Play Him?
This is where things can get interesting. The various depictions of Powell has shown him to be of a tan skin tone with dark hair and dark eyes. In my opinion, we can easily portray Powell as Latino. This fits as his father is shown to feature similar features of dark hair and tan skin. This does make it a little harder as his mother is consistently portrayed as being lighter toned and a redhead, but it's quite possible that Chris adopts more of his father's traits. By this idea, we have the option of having an actor of Latino decent.
When it comes to portraying the Darkhawk itself, I believe we need to make it as physical and real as possible. In the comics, there's notable size differences between Chris and Darkhawk (especually when he was a teen, only 5'9", compared to the android's 6'1"). Keeping with this, we have Darkhawk portrayed by a stunt-man with martial-arts training. For the Darkhawk's appearance, we utilize a highly detailed costume that looks great without hampering the stunt-man's capabilities. We can then implement CGI to add extra details that would make the costume too cumbersome. Simply put, we make Darkhawk as real as possible and then bolster it with digital effects.
Who Are The Villains?
As with several hero movies, we need a villain that's close to the hero, whether's is a long-term friend (Obadiah Stane in Iron Man), a family member (Loki in Thor) or connected in some other means (Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming). With others, the villain is simply a force that opposes the hero but we get to know them (Wilson Fisk in Daredevil). Simply put, there's many kinds of villains there can be for a movie. Let's try getting a little of both:
Big-Bad Villain: Phillipe Bazin / Crime-Master
Phillipe Bazin is a crime lord who operates through Queens, New York. He has an interest in things that are alien and supernatural. Though he lacks any powers or an ambition to put himself in death's path, his resources are vast enough to enlist some superhuman/super-suited criminals. He would find Darkhawk to be his biggest threat to his operations and would inevitably seek the hero's demise. His biggest connection is that he would bribe a number of cops to protect his operations, one of them being Chris' father.
In the comics, Bazin has largely vanished and hasn't been doing a whole lot of nothing for years. However, as he's Darkhawk's first villain, using Bazin as a driving antagonist for a Darkhawk flick is pretty fair. He can also be connected to Christopher's father, as Bazin has paid off a plethora of cops in his efforts, including Chris' father. In general, having a rather human but intelligent villain can be interesting to play with. Perhaps his efforts are being ruined by Darkhawk, and so Bazin decided to have Darkhawk eliminated.
For making Bazin more worth-while, he has a number of children. Perhaps Bazin attempts to keep his criminal life and his personal life separate (much like the Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming), having moments that actually seem fatherly, like reading one of his kids a bedtime story and looking over his daughter. It can be made even more blurred as he's established as a "man of the people," fighting politically to help the city of New York and its people, especially its youths and doing much good for the welfare of the common man. However, his actions as a crime lord can reach despicable levels, especially as he's willing to torture and murder people, as well as pin blame on those who could threaten his operations. It's possible that the reason for him living these dual lives is due to him being unable to leave his criminal life, without suffering repercussions from other groups upon him and his family. This creates a degree of duality in him, as he may not completely enjoy his crime-lord secret life but willing to keep it up so as to keep it up for his and his family's sake.
To make things more logical for him balancing his crime life and his personal life, we can have him use the alias of Crime-Master. In the comics, Crime-Master is an identity of various normal human criminals, primarily of the mastermind variety. Because several characters have taken up the mantel, it's not much of a stretch to have Bazin use the identity of Crime-Master so as to distinct his criminal profession from his civilian life. This can further strike upon the theme of duality and which side you're one when you've fallen down.
Note: We may need to change the Crime-Master name to something less laughably obvious. Perhaps simply "Master," possibly in another language.
When it comes to acting, we need an actor with stature and experience in playing both human, fatherly characters and ruthless gangster characters. Surprisingly, I see Vince Vau playing this character; though he's best known for his comedic roles, his performance in True Detectives has shown he can be talented, likable, serious, and intimidating.
Andrea Haggard was the subject of a power-educing procedure funded by Phillipe Bazin himself. The procedure was a success, granting Andrea magnetokinesis, and leading to her alias of Lodestone. She would then work for Bazin in battling Darkhawk until the crime-lord's fall from power, where she found work with the Masters of Evil. Her magnetokinesis allows her to move and manipulate metals with her will, including the iron in people's blood, as well as levitate herself. Her biggest weaknesses is her mental instability and her reliance on her gear in controlling her powers.
For the MCU, we can simplify her origins; rather than being a mutate by scientific means, we can utilize the preexisting presence of the Inhumans. Not only would this make things less complicated, it would also confirm the Inhumans in the MCU (without acknowledging the sh*tty Inhuman show). She can be hired by Bazin to help protect his operations and can face off against Darkhawk in a fight or two. She can be used as an example of superhuman psychopathy, where she has a complete disregard for normal people, or she could be an exciting fight for Darkhawk. Alternatively, she could be used as one of the few people to successfully stop Darkhawk, leading to Bazin to keeping her (for the big fight against the heroes).
For an actress, we should have someone who knows how to act violent, psychopathic and enjoys causing chaos. She should also be fine with being bald and crazy.
Formerly agents of A.I.M., the Seekers are a team of mercenaries who utilize super suits that allow them to take on a variety of superheroes. They've started as minor baddies for Iron Man and Spider-Woman, but they've also tasseled with Spider-Man, Venom, the Human Torch, and of course, Darkhawk. Members include Sonic (features a built-in sonic cannon that creates blasts of deadly sonic disruptions), Chain Lighting (utilizes a chain weapons that can channel electricity), Grasp (wears a gauntlet that also channels electricity, as well as launch missiles), Fireball (sole female, generates blasts of intense thermal energy), Laserworks (utilizes laser weaponry), and an unnamed member.
As A.I.M. had been established to be more biology-based and defunct in Iron Man 3, it would make more sense for the Seekers to be former Hydra agents utilizing tech copied from Stark, now working as mercenaries. Bazin is a very wealthy man who wants Darkhawk out of the picture, so it's possible that he would hire the Seekers to take on Darkhawk, especially after Darkhawk went berserk on one of his facilities. The team can make for a challenge for Darkhawk but can also give Chris can get some assistance. I see a number of them retreating back to Bazin, leading them to being tracked back and them partaking in Bazin's last stand.
For interest, we can make the sixth member Savage Steel, another original villain for Darkhawk, though we could give them a different name... "Iron-Head?" After Darkhawk and his companions are able to overtake the team, Savage Steel's suit can get hacked and he gets pulled out of the suit. From there, we can have James Zafar, the comic's pilot, can take the suit for his own and use it in helping Darkhawk in the end conflict.
In the comics, Bazin has largely vanished and hasn't been doing a whole lot of nothing for years. However, as he's Darkhawk's first villain, using Bazin as a driving antagonist for a Darkhawk flick is pretty fair. He can also be connected to Christopher's father, as Bazin has paid off a plethora of cops in his efforts, including Chris' father. In general, having a rather human but intelligent villain can be interesting to play with. Perhaps his efforts are being ruined by Darkhawk, and so Bazin decided to have Darkhawk eliminated.
For making Bazin more worth-while, he has a number of children. Perhaps Bazin attempts to keep his criminal life and his personal life separate (much like the Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming), having moments that actually seem fatherly, like reading one of his kids a bedtime story and looking over his daughter. It can be made even more blurred as he's established as a "man of the people," fighting politically to help the city of New York and its people, especially its youths and doing much good for the welfare of the common man. However, his actions as a crime lord can reach despicable levels, especially as he's willing to torture and murder people, as well as pin blame on those who could threaten his operations. It's possible that the reason for him living these dual lives is due to him being unable to leave his criminal life, without suffering repercussions from other groups upon him and his family. This creates a degree of duality in him, as he may not completely enjoy his crime-lord secret life but willing to keep it up so as to keep it up for his and his family's sake.
To make things more logical for him balancing his crime life and his personal life, we can have him use the alias of Crime-Master. In the comics, Crime-Master is an identity of various normal human criminals, primarily of the mastermind variety. Because several characters have taken up the mantel, it's not much of a stretch to have Bazin use the identity of Crime-Master so as to distinct his criminal profession from his civilian life. This can further strike upon the theme of duality and which side you're one when you've fallen down.
Note: We may need to change the Crime-Master name to something less laughably obvious. Perhaps simply "Master," possibly in another language.
When it comes to acting, we need an actor with stature and experience in playing both human, fatherly characters and ruthless gangster characters. Surprisingly, I see Vince Vau playing this character; though he's best known for his comedic roles, his performance in True Detectives has shown he can be talented, likable, serious, and intimidating.
Super-Henchman: Lodestone
Andrea Haggard was the subject of a power-educing procedure funded by Phillipe Bazin himself. The procedure was a success, granting Andrea magnetokinesis, and leading to her alias of Lodestone. She would then work for Bazin in battling Darkhawk until the crime-lord's fall from power, where she found work with the Masters of Evil. Her magnetokinesis allows her to move and manipulate metals with her will, including the iron in people's blood, as well as levitate herself. Her biggest weaknesses is her mental instability and her reliance on her gear in controlling her powers.
For the MCU, we can simplify her origins; rather than being a mutate by scientific means, we can utilize the preexisting presence of the Inhumans. Not only would this make things less complicated, it would also confirm the Inhumans in the MCU (without acknowledging the sh*tty Inhuman show). She can be hired by Bazin to help protect his operations and can face off against Darkhawk in a fight or two. She can be used as an example of superhuman psychopathy, where she has a complete disregard for normal people, or she could be an exciting fight for Darkhawk. Alternatively, she could be used as one of the few people to successfully stop Darkhawk, leading to Bazin to keeping her (for the big fight against the heroes).
For an actress, we should have someone who knows how to act violent, psychopathic and enjoys causing chaos. She should also be fine with being bald and crazy.
Super-Suited Mercs: The Seekers
MIGHTY MORPHING POWER SEEKERS!
Formerly agents of A.I.M., the Seekers are a team of mercenaries who utilize super suits that allow them to take on a variety of superheroes. They've started as minor baddies for Iron Man and Spider-Woman, but they've also tasseled with Spider-Man, Venom, the Human Torch, and of course, Darkhawk. Members include Sonic (features a built-in sonic cannon that creates blasts of deadly sonic disruptions), Chain Lighting (utilizes a chain weapons that can channel electricity), Grasp (wears a gauntlet that also channels electricity, as well as launch missiles), Fireball (sole female, generates blasts of intense thermal energy), Laserworks (utilizes laser weaponry), and an unnamed member.
As A.I.M. had been established to be more biology-based and defunct in Iron Man 3, it would make more sense for the Seekers to be former Hydra agents utilizing tech copied from Stark, now working as mercenaries. Bazin is a very wealthy man who wants Darkhawk out of the picture, so it's possible that he would hire the Seekers to take on Darkhawk, especially after Darkhawk went berserk on one of his facilities. The team can make for a challenge for Darkhawk but can also give Chris can get some assistance. I see a number of them retreating back to Bazin, leading them to being tracked back and them partaking in Bazin's last stand.
For interest, we can make the sixth member Savage Steel, another original villain for Darkhawk, though we could give them a different name... "Iron-Head?" After Darkhawk and his companions are able to overtake the team, Savage Steel's suit can get hacked and he gets pulled out of the suit. From there, we can have James Zafar, the comic's pilot, can take the suit for his own and use it in helping Darkhawk in the end conflict.
The Twist Villains: The "Evilhawk" and the "Overhawk"
BEHOLD! SOME RATHER FORGETTABLE CHARACTERS!
The origins of the amulet was initially conceived to be a commission from the alien crime lord Dargin Bokk, who wielded his own that allowed him to take the form of the Evilhawk. Another android is the Overhawk, a hulking monstrosity. However, the actual history of Darkhawk's android body had been changed greatly: Darkhawk is one of the Raptors, unique and ancient androids developed by the Shi'ar as assassins and protectors of the Shi'ar's evolution. The Evilhakw and the Overhawk had been reduced to being hallucinations of Powell, induced by his inability to comprehend the Datasong and the AI attempting to take over Powell.
Its this nature of being fake and only in Powell's mind that makes these two interesting to implement in a Darkhawk film. The Evilhawk is a mysterious entity that frequently assaults Darkhawk, while allowing his minion (which somewhat resembles the Overhawk) to wreak havoc. Whenever this happens, the Evilhawk pulls him far away (into the sky or into a forest) while the Overhawk causes havoc in his place. Strangely, the Overhawk leaves a trace of its existence but there's none left by the Evilhawk.
<The Following Consists of Possible Twist, and thus Spoilers>
At the end of everything, Darkhawk faces off the Evilhawk once and for all. At that time, his allies are forced to face off against the Overhawk, which proves to be FAR too much for them. Darkhawk and Evilhawk's fight causes great destruction around him, giving him visions of those he cares for dead around him. Despite this, Darkhawk is able to overtake the Evilhawk and destroy it. Under the Evilhawk's helmet, however, resembles Chris' own face. This sight causes a strange influx of information and visions to occur, resulting in his systems "rebooting" and upgrading. After he reboots, he finds himself clutching one of his companions by the throat, while others are severely injured. Chris realizes that he, this whole time, was the Overhawk and that the Evilhawk was really just a delusion. He would reach further into the AI and discover that the Evilhawk was really a vestige of the AI's prime directive combined with the copied personalities of past armor users (Kree militarism, Skrull domination, Shi'ar dedication). It appeared as a hostile entity to Chris in hallucinations while the android body took on its Overhawk form and went berserk. Though he was able overcome the hostile AI and retain full control now, Chris can't risk the possibility of losing control, making him question his own powers.
<End of Possible Spoilers>
When it comes to getting an actor, we need someone with a strong and possibly aggressive voice, especially as it's mostly likely to be presented in the physical world as a stunt-man in a suit or CGI blended with practical effects.
Other Possible Villains:
- Hammer Drones: As seen in Iron Man 2, Ivan Vanko created a great bundle of drones for Hammer Tech, only for him to have complete control over them and have them go AWOL and attempt to kill Tony Stark. Though it appears they were all destroyed when they self destructed, it remains unknown what happened to Ivan's blue-prints.
- It's possible that his blueprints survived and found themselves in the hands of a particular enterprise. If Bazin's resources are great enough, he could possibly purchase some of these drones to help defend his operations after Darkhawk began to ruin his efforts. They can be used in the major battle between Darkhawk and his companions against Bazin and his mercenaries.
Who Would The Supporting Characters Be
Ever good movie needs good supporting characters, to help develop the main protagonist as well as the plot. Sometimes, the supporting characters can be even more intriguing than even the main protagonist and villain.
Miranda Cruz
Miranda Cruz is a relatively new introduction to Darkhawk's comics. After Christopher has gotten more mature and eventually took up a carrier in legit law enforcement, he would meet and date one Miranda Cruz, who he would later become engaged to. Not much of her character has been revealed, but there's quite a bit of potential to be had with this character, so I hope they do something interesting with her.
For the MCU, Miranda's rather open possibility allows for some interesting stuff to be done. I do see her as the love interest (though more as a girlfriend, not fiancee quite yet) but present her as a moral compass for Chris. Miranda discovers Powell's secret but chooses to support him. Their relationship can suffer bumps as Chris develops anger management issues, due to his use of the amulet, leading to a break up. Once Chris realizes the truth of the amulet, he can go to Miranda for help, leading to her helping him resolve his issues. From there, the two can rekindle their relationship.
Though she lacks any powers, she can be presented as rather brave and strong willed, enough to stand up to Chris when the amulet is turning him aggressive. Likewise, she can be smart and logical, as she knows to be wary of him when he comes to her for help after their break-up. Lastly, she's going to need to be empathetic and caring, enough so to recognize when Chris really does need her help and she ultimately helps him through it.
Miranda is already fit for a Hispanic or Latino actress; she's presented as tan, dark haired and her last name is Cruz, which is Spanish in origin. It makes sense to have her be around the same age as Chris.
Grace Powell
Aunt May may be good looking, but Grace is a real Mother I'd Love... Flirting with?
Grace Powell is Christopher's mother, as well as an assistant district attorney. She's prove n herself in the past to be capable and strong willed. She's even saved her son (while he was Darkhawk) on one occasion.
Much in a way to Aunt May and other parental figures, Grace would be a carrying and protective figure for Christ, even when he's old enough to take care of himself. At the same time, as an assistant district attorney, Grace would also give a good moral compass for Chris and give him a reason to ask questions on what he should do with his power. She could be part of the DA's investigation in the Master and ends up being aid to Darkhawk's own operations to take down the syndicate.
For an actress, I see a mature woman, not only for experience but also to match the image of a mother of a young adult and possibly two teens. However, we can still present her as appealing looking. If the MCU can give us Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, we can have a mature but attractive actress for Grace. Also, we're never given an age of when Grace and Mike were when they had Chris.
For an actress, I see a mature woman, not only for experience but also to match the image of a mother of a young adult and possibly two teens. However, we can still present her as appealing looking. If the MCU can give us Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, we can have a mature but attractive actress for Grace. Also, we're never given an age of when Grace and Mike were when they had Chris.
Mike Powell
Micheal Powell is Christopher's father and a former cop of the NYPD. Though he's a man of good intent, Mike has made some bad decisions as a cop. He was part of a cabal of cops who wanted a better means of taking on crime, and accepted bribes from Bazin as a means to finance the Cabal's efforts. However, his good intent got the better of him and he decided to break off when the other cops wanted to use their efforts to eliminate criminals permanently. He would suffer a number of difficult events, including a near-death experience, but Mike is a good man at heart and is one of the few people who know of Christopher's secret.
In my opinion, Mike should follow some aspects of the comics, such as being a former cop, but change other things. Perhaps Mike had been framed for crime actually perpetrated by the Master's syndicate, leading to Mike being imprisoned. After Darkhawk brings down Bazin, certain information is revealed to the public of Bazin's activities, including the crime that Mike was framed for. With Mike's name cleared, he is able to leave prison and properly reunite time with his family.
I believe that Mike could/should be portrayed by a Latino actor, allowing Chris to also be portrayed by a Latino actor to match.
Razor
Razor is the AI connected to Darkhawk's armor. Prior to Chris obtaining his amulet, Razor would take over any humanoid that wears the amulet and transform into the Raptor. When Chris obtained it and transformed, his human mind and physiology was completely unknown to the Raptor, allowing Chris to retain control and access its various capabilities. Overtime, Chris' good nature and heroism made an impact on Razor, giving it a moral consciousness and empathy unseen in other raptors. Razor would merge their bodies and eventually, their minds to unleash the full potential of Darkhawk.
For the MCU, Razor may not have obtained its empathy and heroism from Chris, but from previous human hosts, though none of them were able to get the Raptor to properly reconfigure its data and processing to accommodate complete control by the host. When Chris first goes into Darkhawk, the AI had already been split between the good side, represented by the warrior, and the evil side, represented by its previous lives. The "good" side can function as a mentor and guide for Darkhawk, but unable to fully access all its capabilities due to the conflict between the good and bad sides of the AI. In the end, after Chris is able to overcome the evil side's influence, Razor is able to properly reconfigure itself and properly permit full control to Chris. Despite this, this can create a fission between Chris and Razor due to Chris' experience and the two practically have a falling out.
St. Johnny
Luke, go to the Dagobah System... oh, and CHANGE? YOU GOT CHANGE?
St. Johnny is a rather strange character in the Darkhawk mythos; his first appearance was as a homeless man who met Powell before he obtained the amulet. Afterwards, the homeless man would reveal himself to be some-kind-of alien-robot guy who would serve as a mentor for Darkhawk. Much of his history was changed due to Darkhawk discovering the actual history of his amulet and with it, much of St. Johnny's character not possible, but his existence prior to Darkhawk's mind-freak meant that he isn't completely fake.
For the MCU, I see St. Johnny as the individual who provides Powell the amulet. St. Johnny may be an individual who'd been serving as the "keeper" of the amulet, holding onto it since the last user and giving it to Chris as a successor. He can be the one who reveals the name of the "spirit" in the amulet as the Darkhawk. He can continue moving along the film, being the one to help bring back Chris' trust in the Amulet, as St. Johnny tells him that the "spirit" of the amulet has finally found peace, never to be evil.
James Zafar / Savage Steel
I'm telling you, he's TOTALLY not Iron Mongol!
Savage Steel is not a single individual but a suit and identity shared by multiple people; James Zafar is the most recognized user but it's also used by Harry Lennox, Johnny Leone and Paul Trent. The suit was commissioned by a cabal of cops, consisting of the suit users and Mike Powell, who desired a means to fight crime, even if it meant doing shady stuff to get the money for it. This group would cooperate with Bazin by taking his bribes and they ignore his operations. Mike wouldn't go along with this any more but the suit was already built. The suit provides superhuman strength, armor to surpass a tank, flight capabilities, and an assortment of weapons. Darkhawk had dealt with Savage Steel on multiple occasions, eventually revealing the crooked cops and forcing upon their discharging from the police force and arrest. James Zafar would later return as Savage Steel, but use a newly improved Savage Steel armor to fight terrorism.
For the MCU, I see things done differently with Savage Steel and the cops who used the suit. I believe that James Zafar and Mike Powell are the only individuals of the cabal to appear, and instead of being dedicated to fighting crime more effectively, Zafar left the force and instead works as a private detective, showing that his intents are still good. As Darkhawk can only do so much in his battle against a criminal syndicate, he can enlist the assistance of Zafar to help provide Darkhawk with information he can scrounge up on the Master's syndicate. The Savage Steel, on the other hand, may instead be the sixth member of the Seekers, but after some of them were taken down and the other retreated, Zafar is able to get the Savage Steel suit for himself, helping Darkhawk in taking down Bazin.
This one is interesting. In the comics, Zafar is typically portrayed as a black man, so that's an option. However, if we want to get extra detailed, the last name of Zafar is Arabic, meaning "victory". If we want to play to the name, we can portray James Zafar as being Middle-Eastern. It would make more sense for his last name, and we can present an Arabic character in the MCU. Now, there is the already existing (and dearly-beloved) character Ms. Marvel, who is of Middle-Eastern decent and a Muslim. In addition, there's Dinah Madani from the Punisher Netflix series, who's an Iranian-American. Still, Zafar can be portrayed not as being Muslim. There is also Zoroastrianism, an ancient monotheistic religion that's still being practiced to this day, and there's next to zero representation of them in super-hero comics or movies (the closest he have in comics is Zarathustra, but... no). Still, if we don't want to deal with that, we can stick with what the comics do and have him as black.
Robert Rider
Robert Rider is the little brother of Richard Rider, better known as the cosmic hero Nova. Though Robert was always the smarter of the two brothers but Robert always looked up to his older brother. At some point, Robert was given a portion of the Nova power and made a member of the Nova Corp. In the comics, Robert was a good friend of Darkhawk, fitting as Darkhawk had been a good teammate with Richard during their time with the New Warriors. However, Robert wouldn't stay on the side of good and would be brainwashed by the Fraternity of Raptors to become a fellow Raptor, becoming a dangerous opponent for Nova and the Guardians of the Galaxy.
MCU wise, I see Robert as a relatively normal character, serving as a friends to Christopher. Perhaps their friendship partially stems from Christopher's previous friendship to Robert's older brother, Richard, who disappeared some years ago (when he became Nova). His presence in the MCU can be explored upon in future iterations.
Like before, I can see just about anybody in this role. I don't don't have a name to call upon in this one.
Marcus Stone and Code: Blue
Marcus Stone is a police lieutenant and leader of Code: Blue, NYPD's response team for taking down superhuman criminals. He's been around for several years and has been major assistance to the likes of Spider-Man and Thunderstrike. He's still around and been heading Code: Blue for a long time.
Though Stone and Code: Blue wouldn't likely be a super-important for Darkhawk's first venture, I feel we can very easily cover establishing Code: Blue's existence, especially after all the superhuman villains acting around in New York alone. Perhaps the team is attempting to apprehend the assailant of a brutal beat-down of an Avenger, as well as the one who slaughtered a building full of criminals (both of which being Darkhawk when the armor went berserk). Outside of Code: Blue, we can have Stone as an individual we see during Chris' time in the police academy.
As with the character, it'd be weird to have him portrayed as anything but black. There's several actors who can pull off the look and personality.
Paladin
Paladin is a relatively minor character in the Marvel comics universe, not even having his own comic series. We've never even gotten his real name. Despite this, he's done quite a bit in the comics, both as a good guy and a bad guy. He's also played several heel turns (betraying the Avengers) and face turns (betraying Osborn's Thunderbolts). He's tagged teamed with various super heroes and taken on several villains. It helps that h has superhuman strength, speed, durability, agility and stamina. When he's not being a mercenary, Paladin finds work as a private investigator.
It's Paladin's profession as a private investigator that makes him a possible side character for Darkhawk. When Darkhawk prioritizes on bringing down a criminal syndicate, he's going to need help and private eyes are good at finding info. We've mentioned James Zafar, but he has his limits, so it's possible that Darkhawk has to get an additional bit of help, in the form of the enigmatic Paladin. However, fitting to Paladin's tendencies to being on both sides, it's possible to have Paladin as antagonistic, opposing old Darkhawk for payment... but fitting to his heel-face turns, Paladin could change sides to assist Darkhawk in bringing down Master.
SPIDER-MAN!
SPIDER MAN! SPIDER MAN! CAN DO WHATEVER A SPIDER CAN!
Everyone here should already know of Spider-Man. In the comics, Spidy and Darkhawk have teamed up on several occasions, which makes sense since both come from Queens, New York. He's served as a mentor figure for Darkhawk (along with a number of new heroes in the 90's) and the two are good friends.
Though I do believe that the two should be good friends prior to Darkhawk's own film, several things should be changed. As mentioned before, we should use an older Christopher, older than Peter, and have him training to be a police officer. I see him being good friends to Peter prior to his obtaining of the Raptor armor. Once Chris obtains the artifact, he gets to be friends with Spider-Man, as both do their super-hero work within Queens, and even get to team up towards the end.
Netflix's Marvel Heroes
There's also the various supporting characters in the series. There's Karen Page, a reporter and close friend to both Matt and Frank. There's Foggy Nelson, Matt's best friend and former partner in their law firm Nelson and Murdock. There's Clare Temple, a former nurse and close ally and friend for several of the Manhattan defenders, particularly Luke Cage. There's Patrica Walker, Jessica's adoptive sister and (former) best friend, who seeks to do good and believes greatness of Jessica. There's Misty Knight, a hard-boiled detective in Harlem with a strong sense of justice. There's Detective Sgt. Brett Mahoney, a good-willed cop that works for the N.Y.P.D., particularly in Hell's Kitchen. Lastly, the most beloved of them all, there's Turk Barret, the small-time criminal in Hell's Kitchen who you just gotta love.
For a Darkhawk movie, we can feature one or a few of the many Netflix Original heroes, not necessarily being of massive importance, but as minor yet interesting additions. Perhaps Grace knew Matt Murdock while Matt and Foggy were trying to find work, as well as being the ones to help Mike Powell once it's revealed that he was framed or even bringing down Bazin. Perhaps Darkhawk attempts to enlist Jessica Jones to help him in his investigation on the Master's operations; she denies his request, but upon seeing how close the Master's activities are to her, she decides to cooperate and is able to dig up information for Darkhawk. Perhaps a target Darkhawk is trailing leads him through Harlem, which forces Luke to take action and ultimately help Darkhawk. Perhaps Frank has been doing his own work in bringing down the syndicate, leading to an encounter between the two that leads to a contesting of morals and beliefs but leaves Darkhawk questioning how far should he be going. The same can be done with some of the side the characters; one that comes to mind is Karen Page using her talents to help Darkhawk get information on the Master's operations. Chris can also always interrogate Turk for information.
The biggest benefit of having her in this movie would be confirming the presence of the Netflix originals to the MCU. None of the shows have had a reference in the movies, even though the shows fully recognized the events of the movies and their impacts. Having Matt, Jessica, Luke or Frank, or any of their many great supporting characters, in a legit movie means that they're not simply "extended universe" and have an existence in the whole.
Other Possible Characters
- Bazin's Children: Phillipe Bazin has three children: his daughter Allegra (not the allergy medication), his son Broderick and his other son Andrew. Allegra was the most resistant of her father's activities, developing a desire to bring down his operations but too afraid until Darkhawk started to ruin Phillipe's work. Brodrick was psychotic and frequently carries a switch blade. Nothing is known of Andrew.
- I see Bazin's kids as minor characters that show Bazin's aptitude at being a caring father. Allegra can be the "rebellious" daughter. Brodrick can be the twisted kid with issues. Andrew can simply be a young child whom Bazin cares for, perhaps reading a story for him at night.
- Previous Darkhawk-Users: Due to Chris unable to properly connect to the Datasong, he had suffered several hallucinations and false memories. Among them was the false history of the Darkhawk armor: the crime lord Dargin Bokk had several alien scientists (some bribed, others forced) create a series of Darkhawk suits for Bokk to use in his criminal enterprise. However, things went sour and most all of the scientists were killed. The scientists included Mondu, Ocsh, Byron, Mandeja, Graczia and Kig. After Chris discovered that his knowledge of his suit was predominately false, it's most likely that these individuals are also false.
- Though I don't think we should even try delving into the false Darkhawk origins, I feel we can still use their names: rather than scientists and crime lord designing the Darkhawk armor, they're previous users of the Darkhawk armor; they can partially appear as representations of his armor's AI conflicting with Chris and itself. Their species can be changed to more cannon alien species (Kree, Skrull, Shi'ar), with a few being human (particularly the most previous ones, including Byron).
- An Avenger or Two To Beat Up: We all know the Avengers.
- What's the primary use of two of these heroes? Simple: To get their ass kicked. They should be particularly mighty individuals, allowing us to use them in the same way as Hercules and The Thing in the comics: to show how dangerous a new threat it is. No-matter which hero we go with, for the story, the heroes are doing patrols over the city when Darkhawk (while under control of the AI and in a different configuration from its base) attacks them as it designates them as a major threats. Its hyper-adaptive and reconfiguration capabilities allows him to bring the heroes to near death before it's forced to leave (as Chris finally gains control of the armor).
Who's In The Background?
The Fraternity of Raptors
Wait, now there's brightly colored Raptor Armors? I already made a Power Rangers joke!
The Fraternity of Raptors are a product of the Shi'ar, created as protectors for the Shi'ar Empire through various measures. They are willing to do anything to complete their goals, including assassination, infiltration and eradication of all possible enemies. Simply put, the Raptors are willing to commit evil for their cause. They would be decommissioned for nearly 60 centuries, until they were reactivated and would return to their duties. Their efforts have brought upon many horrific acts, including the assassination of Lilandra Neramani, former empress of the Shi'ar Empire, as to help the current Shi'ar Emperor Vulkan. They have tasseled with the Guardians of the Galaxy, the Nova Corps, and of course, Darkhawk himself.
For Darkhawk's first stand-alone film, I seek the Fraternity of Raptors as more background than focus. Perhaps the Evilhawk embodies what the Fraternity are meant to be: cruel and efficent, with no concern for the lives of lesser beings. Once Darkhawk regains control and even buries/hides his amulet, the Fraternity have already begun their return.
It's also possible to introduce the Fraternity before Darkhawk, possible in the background of another MCU flick of the cosmic scale, like Guardians of the Galaxy.
Shi'ar Empire
The Shi'ar area species of alien humanoids that evolved from avians, i.e. birds, in comparisons to humans evolving from apes. The Shi'ar empire is classified as a class III society, having great reach across the galaxy and access of energy and technology far exceeding human capabilities. The most important aspect of the Shi'ar Empire have for Darkhawk is that they were the creators of the Fraternity of Raptors.
For the MCU, it's possible that the Shi'ar is can be portrayed as establishing an isolationist policy, keeping them secret for a long time, explaining why they haven't been talked about in previous installments. However, it makes sense that they'd
Richard Rider / Nova and the Nova Corps
Richard Rider would become the superhero Nova when he was imbued with the power of the Nova Force, an incredible cosmic force great enough for Nova to match the Silver Surfer in cosmic power. He would become a member of the Nova Corps, a cosmic, intergalactic police force dedicated to protecting the world from intergalactic threats.
For the MCU, I see Richard being a close friend to Christopher during his younger years. This can serve as a connection for Christopher and Robert, Richard's little brother. He at some point disappeared, when he was empowered by the Nova Force, and pulled away by the Nova Corps to help fight a great intergalactic threat. In my opinion, Richard should be introduced as Nova before Christopher does as Darkhawk, especially as the MCU already established the Nova Corps.
For future portions of the MCU, I can see Richard coming back down, discovering Christopher is in possession of a Raptor Armor, creating some extra tension between the two, despite their friendship.
Where Would This Movie Be Set?
Location is something to consider in every superhero movie. Captain America: The First Avenger primarily existed in Europe, fitting to its setting in WWII and primarily combating Hydra (which derived from the Nazis). Spider-Man: Homecoming was primarily set in Queens, New York, as that's Spider-Man's home. So, what would be the settings be for Darkhawk? Let's take some looks:
Queens, New York
If there's any location that should be the main setting for a Darkhawk film, it should be Queens, New York. This is the birthplace of Christopher Powell and the primary place he protects as Darkhawk. Additional benefits of having it set in Queens is the opportunity to feature Spider-Man as a side character.
This part of New York is also known for its diversity, especially as Hispanics/Latinos make up over one fourth of the population demographic. This makes it more reasonable to present Christopher as Latino.
New York's Other Boroughs
Tough the majority of this movie should be set in Queens, I do recognize that the rest of New York will inevitably need to be used, predominantly Manhattan. Perhaps Darkhawk has to travel to Manhattan to take down one of the Master's operations. There can also be parts of Brooklyn, The Bronx and Staten Island.The Datasong
The Datasong isn't a conventional physical location. It's more of a location of digital information. The Raptors are all connected to it and provides them with information from the past, in the form of memories and connection to other digital sources, as well as predicting the future. Chris once tried connecting to this but it had severe side-effects to his psyche, namely in the form of hallucinations and false information.
I believe the Datasong can be used much the same; Chris, when working to understand his Raptor Armor more, tries to connect to the Datasong but it proves too much for his mind. He first disregards it as causing nothing but head aches, but it secretly causes more problems to him, particularly with his new connection to the Evilhawk.
Afterwords, the Datasong can play a more important role in future installments (if we get any). Once Chris is able to better connect to the Datasong, he learns to use it for a variety of functions, from looking into the past for information to predicting the most probably future from known information.
Null Space and the Tree of Shadows
Null Space is a unique pocket dimension connected and is home to the Tree of Shadows. Its origin has largely been lost to time but it is a key connection to the Fraternity of Raptors. Explaining the full nature of Null Space is beyond my ability.
For the MCU, Null Space and the Tree of Shadows isn't something we should linger long in but at least get knowledge of. Perhaps Chris gets pulled in briefly, showing the vastness of it and how many of these Raptor Armors there really are. It could be at the end, when Darkhawk is attempting to regain control of his armor and briefly awakens in the Tree of Shadows in Null Space, before returning to the main universe.
Like the Datasong, Null Space and the Tree of Shadows may feature a bigger function in future installments (if we get any).
What Time Would This Be Set In?
For the most part, I see this being set in the current date. While the Darkhawk character has his origins in the 90's, it would be rather stupid to feature a superhero of incredible power in the past and not have anyone know about them. Now, there is the benefit of Darkhawk having a talent of being obscured and keeping himself in the shadows, away from the public eye. As such, he could easily pull off existing in the past without many records of him.
However, the biggest reasons of having the movie in the current era is A) characters won't be heavily aged by the modern date, and B) allows for intereaction with other MCU characters. Darkhawk has a history with teaming up with Spider-Man, so having him exist alongside Spider-Man would be possible. In addition, if the first Darkhawk flick were to be set in the 90's, his interaction with the main MCU timeline would be well over 20 years later. This way, we can keep the cast as they are.
We don't have to completely ignore Darkhawk's origins as a 90's character: If Chris wasn't the first person to use the Amulet, perhaps there was one user from 1991, who did the same thing as Chris was doing now. However, something happened that forced him to give up, leading to St. Johnny, the keeper of the amulet, to find another new user.
We don't have to completely ignore Darkhawk's origins as a 90's character: If Chris wasn't the first person to use the Amulet, perhaps there was one user from 1991, who did the same thing as Chris was doing now. However, something happened that forced him to give up, leading to St. Johnny, the keeper of the amulet, to find another new user.
How Does It All Go?
This is the most variable question of them all. Really, a Darkhawk stand-alone can go any number of questions. It's all dependent on how Marvel Studios decides to do it. This is just my idea on how it happens:
Christopher Powell is a cadet at the NYPD police academy, hoping to follow in his father's and mother's footsteps. His mother, Grace Powell, is an assistant district attorney while still taking care of her family, while his father, Mike Powell, is a former cop but now serving time for a crime he never committed. Meanwhile, DA's office and the police force are trying to find leads to a long-running crime syndicate, ran by the enigmatic Master (secretly by Phillipe Bazen), but are unable to. Chris lives on his own with his girlfriend Miranda Cruz, whose working on her own future. Chris is good friends with Peter Parker, whose secretly Spiderman, and has good relations with his father's old partner James Zafar. One night, while out on the town, Chris walks upon a beating of a homeless man (St. Johnny), which Chris takes action and stops the attackers. Chris takes Johnny to a hospital but not before Johnny slips a object onto Chris' person: a strange crystal amulet.
When Chris returns home and examines the amulet, he gets an influx of information. He then gets contacted by an unknown individual on the phone, leading to him traveling through the city to a more lifeless part of time. After Chris' travels, he meets a mysterious individual (secretly the good part of Razor), who attempts to take him somewhere safe but Powell is grabbed by an unknown armored individual (The Evilhawk) and flown up above the clouds. From there, a pulse ruptures from the amulet, knocking back the Evilhawk, who drops Powell from sky-high. The amulet activates, transforming Chris into his own armored form. He is able to fly down carefully, in time to witness a crime in action. Chris, using his new abilities, makes short work of the criminals, and makes the revelation that he can use these powers as an edge against crime. He returns home but is seen by Miranda Cruz before he can return to being human. She recovers from her shock and even sees this as something new and exciting. Powell eventually returns to the hospital to meet with St. Johnny for information, who calls the "spirit" in the amulet the "Darkhawk," giving Chris his new superhero name.
He decides to go out and fight crime, particularly in taking down the Master's syndicate by night while continuing to be a police cadet in the day. He enlists the help of James Zafar to get info on the Master's operations, followed by including some other investigators, including Paladin (and possibly Jessica Jones and Karen Page). While Darkhawk is chasing down a caravan of heavy weaponry belonging to the syndicate, the criminals attempt to take down Darkhawk with the weapons. This leads to Spider-Man joining in to assist Darkhawk, as well as a rocket/RPG to go off coarse and hit a structure. Darkhawk and Spider-Man are forced to ditch the chase and help save some lives put in jeopardy. After several attacks by Darkhawk on his operations and seeing how the syndicate is not able to handle him properly, the Master decides to hire some super-criminals, particularly an Inhuman with magnetokinesis called Lodestone, to assist in protecting his operations. A fight with Lodestone proves to be a difficulty for Darkhawk but is able to overcome her capabilities.
Overtime, Christopher begins to have changes in his personality: he becomes more aggressive and more prone to fits of anger and violence, leading to him brutalizing criminals. He also begins to suffer from nightmarish visions of "possible futures." His increased aggression brings great tension between him and Miranda, leading to her leaving him. Just before Darkhawk's assault on one of the Master's warehouses, he is attacked and dragged away again by the Evilhawk, who battle in the sky around skyscrapers. Meanwhile, the Evilhawk's minion (the Overhawk) goes into the warehouse and slaughters everyone there, followed by a brutal beating of two patrolling Avengers. Once Darkhawk and the Evilhawk's fight is over, Darkhawk crashes into the same warehouse, seeing the carnage that the Overhawk has done, along with the two horribly wounded Avengers.
After the brutal attack, Bazin decides to go on the offensive to eliminate the assailant for good, whom he believes is Darkhawk. He hires a group of super-suited mercenaries called the Seekers to hunt down Darkhawk and bring him back alive or dead. The team go out, find Darkhawk over the city and attack him. Though he's able to hold his own, he's ultimately overwhelmed by the team until the intervention of Spider-Man, Paladin and James Zafar (and possibly one of the Defenders). Two members (particularly Savage Steel) are taken out while the others retreat, but not before Spider-Man attaching his tracking-spider on one of them. From there, the heroes are able to track the Seekers. The team tie up the defeated Seekers and head out, but not before Zafar decides to take the Savage Steel armor for himself.
They reach the Master's primary base of operations, break through his recently bolstered defenses (possibly including some illegal Hammer Drones) and take down his mercenaries, including the remaining Seeker members and Lodestone. Once they reach the Master in his bomb-shelter/panic room, they uncover his identity as as Phillipe Bazin. Surprisingly, Bazin would rather they end his days here, willing to accept death for his atrocities, as well as wanting to spare his children the brunt of his sins. Darkhawk begins to contiplate this option, even as his allies demand that he has no right to take another's life (though Paladin gives his argument for killing Bazin). In the mist of the arguing, the Evilhawk attacks and pulls Darkhawk away while the Overhawk battles against Darkhawk's allies. Darkhawk and Evilhawk's battle leads them to crashing hard in the middle of Queens, destroying several buildings. The fight intensifies until Darkhawk is able to get the upper-hand, ripping off the Evilhawk's energy core and blasting the body.
He looks upon the Evilhawk's body, noticing that under the Evilhawk's helmet is Powell's own face. He then begins to have visions of his friends and family dead in the ruble around him, followed by an influx of information through his mind. His consciousness then appears within another dimension (Null Space) as he's within a giant crystal hanging from a gargantuan tree (Tree of Shadows) as other crystals hang, while the AI is "re-configuring" itself before bringing him back. He discovers that he's grabbing Spider-Man by the throat while his allies are laid out, leading to him to realize that he was the Overhawk attacking his companions. Not only this, Chris realizes that he was the Overhawk that murdered Bazen's men and nearly murdered those two Avengers. In reality, the Evilhawk wasn't real but a manifestation of the AI's former prime directive mixed with the minds of past users, causing Darkhawk to suffer hallucinations of battling the Evilhawk while the manifestation takes partial control of Darkhawk's body and cause it to go aggressive and hostile. The manifestation was also the reason for Christopher's increased aggression and anger management issues.
This revelation leads to Christopher to lose his trust in the amulet, even though the AI explains that it has been cleaned of its previous issues and Chris should never face any more issues of control. He goes to Miranda for help and comfort, which she initially looks at with caution but realizes his genuine terror. They ultimately go out to find the man who gave Chris the amulet in the first place, the homeless St. Johnny, to take back the amulet. To their surprise, Johnny confirms to them that the AI in the amulet is telling the truth, that the "spirit" has been "cleansed" and free from the evil, and lets them keep it. From there, Chris decides to keep it and only use it in dire need. Over the next few weeks, Bazin reveals much of his operations in a deal to protect his family, including the framing of Mike Powell, leading to Mike's release from prison. In addition, Chris rekindles his relationship with Miranda, getting back to dating. He's also actively going out to help the families of criminals he had killed when his armor went ballistic, intending to repent for the damage he couldn't control. Chris eventually succeeds in becoming a police officer, with the support of his mother, father and Miranda, whom he proposes to.
For a mid/post-credit sequence, we can implement seeds for future villains, preferably one of alien/cosmic origins. It's really up to Marvel Studios to decide which villain they implement. If they're really ambitious or confident on Darkhawk's character, they could even show the rise (return) of the Fraternity of Raptors: A group of alien archaeologists uncover an ancient buried bunker/crashed spaceship of Shi'ar origins. Inside, one archaeologist finds an amulet of the same design as Darkhawk's amulet. Upon touching it, the archaeologist immedietly transforms into an android near identical to Darkhawk but of different colors, primarily with its visor being blue (Talon). From there, the Fraternity of Raptors begin their return.
What Happens Next?
Before we can get this, we need to make the first one good.
Really, the biggest thing about the ending of this is to create a stand-alone story that may only be one story, rather than shoving a new franchise into people's faces and demanding they accept his importance. This way, if people have no interest in Darkhawk returning, we can simply leave it there. However, it also leaves it open to the possibility that people do want more of him.
If people do want more Darkhawk movies, we can build up Chris leaning on having faith in the amulet once more; perhaps a major event occurs and Chris is met by St. Johnny, having the amulet on him, and gives Chris the amulet so as to transform into Darkhawk and save the day.
A cool thing that could be done is have future films have different styles and tones fitting to a particular anima/manga.
- The first film (the one this blog is mostly about) is most akin to the darker animes, with Bio Booster Armor Guyver and the 2007 Skull Man: Though the movie would start more positive, it grows darker as Chris becomes more accustomed to being Darkhawk. In addition, the similarities between Darkhawk and Guyver are striking, especially in their (original) origins of being teenagers who obtain their respective devices that allow them to transform, and especially in how their most powerful attack is an energy beam fired from their chest.
- The second film can be done more akin to more sentai (Japanese Superhero Genre), such as Cyborg 009 and Power Rangers: Darkhawk is forced to come back to battle a major threat to the world, whether it's an intergalactic destroyer of worlds (Devos the Devastator), an secret society or organization that threatens the people of Earth and other worlds (Fraternity of Raptors) or something else of that caliber (Xemnu the Titan?). There's plenty of teaming up with other heroes, all the while uncover the truth of Darkhawk's origins.
- A third film could be done akin to more cosmic and epic tales, such as Dragon Ball Z and Gundum: Chris/Darkhawk is forced to face off against the (true) Fraternity of Raptors, finding himself in a sever uphill battle that brings him to near death, before pushing himself to the limit and discovering his full potential. There's lots of martial-art combat, energy beams and explosive impacts. Also, with his full potential found, he can go full mecha and become a giant robot.
In addition, future films can focus on different themes:
- The first film ultimately delves upon the idea of duality, being to different people and when one life begins to overtake another. It also gives the theme of acknowledgment, with Chris having to recognize what he is in the end.
- The second film would instead focus on individuality, as Chris may need to prove himself to be his own being and hero, showing himself as being unique and different from the systematic monsters that are the Fraternity of Raptors. It can also give use the theme of acceptance, with Chris accepting who he and Darkhawk are and being confident in themselves.
- The third film would then focus on the idea of unity, where Chris must unify himself with Razor (the AI within the amulet) to form a bond more powerful than before. Lastly, it can also give us the theme of ascension, as his unity with Razor allows him to surpass himself to become a better hero, one that he can accept himself as.
Much like the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, as well as Infinity Countdown: Darkhawk miniseries and several cosmic comic series, we can implement obscure intergalactic characters in a variety of ways. Here's a few that can be used:
- Death's Head: A giant robotic warrior created through both magic and science, Death's Head travels throughout time-space-universe as a "Galactic Peacekeeping Agent," which is a fancy he uses for being a bounty hunter and assassin. He can be used as an initial antagonist that's working for the real villains, but he can change sides when the villains double-cross him or he finds it more lucrative working for the good-guys than the bad-guys.
- Spaceknights: Originating from the planet Galador, the Spaceknights are cybernetic warriors dedicated to combating the Dire Wraiths, who derived from the Skrulls. With some adjustments to their backstory, it's possible to have the Spaceknights exist as the enemy of Fraternity of Raptors but vanished in history like the Fraternity. While Darkhawk is battling the Fraternity, they can resurface as initial opponents until they realized he's on their side and ultimatly aid him in his battle.
- Stellaris: The sole survivor of the Celestial's eradication of her people, Stellaris declared revenge upon the Celestials. She wears a "living suit" of armor, which is of Celestial origins, allowing her to combat Celestials. I see her more as a character for Guardians of the Galaxy, but she could easily be used in a Darkhawk sequel, coming to earth to hunt down a Celestial threat on Earth that forces Christopher to become Darkhawk again.
Outside of his own movies, we can feature Chris as a cop in a number of movies. Once he returns to being Darkhawk and having to go out to take down the Fraternity of Raptors, he can partake with a variety of cosmic heroes. In particular, he can be a character in a Guardians of the Galaxy film, possibly in conjunction with the Shi'ar, Starjammers and the Nova Corps.
What did you guys like? Did I miss any other details? Am I just being crazy or do I have a decent idea here? Leave some comments below or wherever I post the blog on (Facebook, Twitter, etc.).
