Hawk

Someone made the comment that with all the stuff out on DVD that there should be some release of "Hawk's" 13 episodes. I wish I'd known the show would be yanked off the air so quickly. I had an old front-loading VCR and could have -- should have -- videotaped it. As it is, I have one episode on tape somewhere, and I'm rummaging through my old VHS tapes to find it. If they EVER rerun "A Man Called Hawk" on TV again, I won't make the same mistake. However, my fear is that the show will never make it on usual roundup of "old-show" viewing such as "TV Land" or "Nick at Night" or any of the other cable networks. "BET" ran it for a hot minute but it didn't last long; they are too stuck on comedies and music videos. "USA" recently flipped the script on the old "Kojak" series and updated the Telly Savalas character with Ving Rhames. Although it's a stretch to hear Ving say "Who loves you baby?" while smacking on a lollipop, some of the same qualities that made "Hawk" memorable are also evident in this show: smooth, intelligent, in charge,smart dresser, and smart dialogue. You can bet that this time I'm videotaping the new "Kojak," but man I'd like to get my hands on a "Hawk" DVD collection.

I grew up during the 1950s and 60s; therefore, I am familiar with black action heroes like Woody Strode's Sergeant Rutledge, Richard Rountree's John Shaft, Robert Hooks' Mr. T (in the movie "Trouble Man"), Greg Morris's Barney Collier (on TV's "Mission Impossible"), Clarence Williams' Linc Hayes (on TV's "The Mod Squad"), etc. So, I can say with some experience that Avery Brooks' portrayal of "A Man Called Hawk" was the ultimate incarnation black male urban suavity. As much as we loved (and needed) the John Shaft image, Hawk took it to a whole new level. Hawk was like Shaft on steroids...and freely independent, too! He was the total package, and Avery Brooks brought him to life with genuine suspension of disbelief. It was the perfect dream. I was afraid OF and FOR Hawk because I knew he would not compromise.

THE HAWK was then and still is now THE BEST. The only reason I actually enjoyed SPENSER: FOR HIRE was just so I could see THE HAWK in action, doing his thing as only he could. Avery Brooks will always be one of my favorite actors simply because of his portrayal of this unique character - which I refer to as my #1 Superhero. HAWK had it all - the look, the style, the dialogue, the weapon, the Street Savvy, and the cool to handle ANYTHING that came his way. I grew up during the late 70's and early 80's so I wasn't a part of the 70's blaxplotation that made Shaft a star. But to me THE HAWK will always be my Shaft. I only got to watch A Man Called HAWK once and I hope one day I'll be able to get a chance to see Mr. Brooks in action as THE HAWK either on Video or DVD release.

Not that I'm surprised, but after all these years and TV show releases of the worst kind, No One Has Seen Fit to Put HAWK on DVD. Let's face it. This was a Black oriented show and the natural assumption is that Blacks and other minorities can/should watch and appreciate any show staring White males BUT the opposite requires special attention. Let's drop the double standard and make this show available to anyone who wants to see it. Hawk could have been better. Unfortunately it wasn't on long enough to take it's own course. Washington,DC as a location was OK but to have remained in Boston would have added an extra boost to the plot environment especially from a racial stand point. I guess we'll never know.

I don't buy the theory that Hawk was canceled because white audiences "weren't ready for a strong, serious black lead". As a white teen in the late 80's/early 90's, I liked the show a lot. Unfortunately, history tells us there were also plenty of "white" shows which suffered cruel treatment at the hands of clueless, egotistical TV executives who wouldn't know a good show if it came up and bit them on the ass.

"Hawk" had great potential, and certainly was on a par with a number of other similarly-themed detective/police shows of the time. Avery Brooks portrayed the hard-edged, scowling Hawk with just the right balance of menace and charm.

You look at some of the garbage on TV today and wonder why a show of this caliber got an early hook. Fortunately, the very underrated TVOne station is re-running episodes of this show.