A Man Called Hawk

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.

I enjoyed the TV series Spencer For Hire and Avery Brooks as Hawk. When he came out with his own show I though that was amazing. The episodes that I saw I enjoyed very much but they could have been better, may be if the show had been on longer they would have gotten the chance to iron out all the wrinkles. All the TV shows of the past 10 to 20 years is now on DVD and and I think it would be a good idea to put A Man Called Hawk on DVD for those of us who enjoy Avery Brooks as an actor. I'm sure there are a lot of people who would enjoy seeing Mr Brooks A Man Called Hawk on DVD. I wonder if anyone knows who we could talk to about have this put on DVD. Wht do you think

I have watched all of (Spenser: For Hire) episodes. It was nice. Yes, not quite (Magnum), but it got its own good - not too long - time. And most of the attraction came from that formula of the lead (Spenser) and his very strange friend (Hawk); where one is a private detective and the other is an ex-killer! And one (Robert Urich) is romantic intellectual guy, and one (Avery Brooks) is rough violent man whose coming from the streets.

It was similar to an angel and a devil that fight together for the noble case. Or it was some kind of metaphor for the forever discrepant; good and evil sides in the human being, through a show that teamed them up for the realization of one ideal purpose, where every side helps the other by using its own special way. So the irony between the 2 different men and their styles was captivating. However, the way how their friendship went despite their differences was even more captivating.

The secret of how Hawk stole the show was simple, due to the spirit of the role itself, and its distinguished disposition. I mean his way of talking, famous words (naughty naughty ah ha!), preferred style in clothing, sunglasses, long silver pistol.. etc. And I mean also the way he was appearing from the shadows suddenly to save Spenser in so many memorable ways; that rare kind of the bodyguard trained in hell, or that angel who looks more like a devil; all of that made Hawk one of its kind partner, the tough protecting friend that any one dreams of, and the powerful guardian angel that everybody wants.

Hawk was no Dirty Harry; he wasn't a cop or loves any, and he was less funnier. Hawk was dark, mysterious, and not predictable at all. Put in that mix the strong performance of (Avery Brooks), and how original the character was in the 1980s, and you'll easily understand the lasting magic of this character after nearly 20 years of its appearance for the very first time.

It made also its own mark on other shows. For example, you can clearly notice that with the relationship between agent Mulder (David Duchovny) and Mr. X (Steven Williams) in the second season of (The X Files) 1994, 9 years after the beginning of Spenser.

So, surely, there were some good reasons to make an independent show for Hawk one year after (Spenser) was canceled. But the formula this time wasn't the same!

Mainly, the other half is not here; Spencer is in Boston and Mr. Hawk went to Washington! I know life goes on, but not that way, because here you won't find any friend for The Good Old Friend. Yes, Hawk is that loner, but I think the writers didn't compensate the absence of Spencer being not here or there. That was a shock, maybe a slight one.

But despite whatever it might have had of whatever defects, the real shock was that the producers didn't give the time for such a show to progress. And I believe, like everybody else, that there was plenty of potential in it.

Was it bad luck? Well, I don't believe in luck. So it could be the foolishness and the rashness of the bossy producers who gave a lot to nonsense shows, with absolute nothing to show, putting them on air, for years and years, to present the same nothing, or the bad nothing, over and over again. And the list of that kind is endless.

After that, (Avery Brooks) got some wonderful roles in TV and cinema. But I think none was as exceptional or popular as Hawk which I call the most evil good hero ever, even if he lasted for 3 seasons in a show, 13 episodes in another, and appeared in all the 4 Spenser TV movies from 1993 till 1995.

PS: I'll never ever forget his line in one episode of (A Man Called Hawk) when he was telling a young man who he was watching over: "Wherever, whenever, I'll be there for you" WAW.. honestly, who needs more?!.. And he wasn't even a superhero!!

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.

I remember meeting Bill Yates and Travis Clark after the first season of Hawk wrapped. Clark was also working CBS' "Tour of Duty" and seemed to be a rising star on the horizon. I wonder where he is today?

Perhaps Hawk was ahead of its time. Tour of Duty faded quickly also -- but now we have Steven Bochco's family-made "Over There" series. Perhaps Hawk was ahead of its time but could also come back in some form?

Of course, positioning Hawk against the powerhouse Cosby Show was another bad move. A wonderful news show featuring Linda Ellerbee was also slaughtered by the Huxtables, and Hawk was also no match.

Would be great to see this on DVD -- especially in memory of the late Moses Gunn who was the metaphysical "old man" character (and later joined Avery Brooks as his father in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine).

My favorite part about AMCH was that Hawk got to escape from being Spencer's second banana and gain his own cache. He was Afrocentric without being militant. Strong without being obnoxious. Before his time, perhaps?

With today's emphasis on gangsta rappers, a strong man with the sophistication of Hawk may be lost as a protagonist for future television or film roles. At least, we should have a DVD release for the true fans to enjoy.