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SilverHawks

SilverHawks is an American superhero animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass Productions and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. The animation was provided by Japanese studio Pacific Animation Corporation. In total, 65 episodes were made. It was created as a space-based equivalent of their previous series ThunderCats.

As was the case with ThunderCats, there was also a SilverHawks comic book series published by Marvel Comics under the imprint Star Comics.

Plot

The series is set in the 29th century, in the fictional Limbo Galaxy. A bionic space enforcer called Commander Stargazer recruited the SilverHawks, heroes who are "partly metal, partly real", to fight the evil Mon*Star, an escaped alien crime boss who transforms into an enormous armor-plated creature with the help of Limbo's Moonstar. Joining Mon*Star in his villainy is an intergalactic mob consisting of Yes-Man, Buzz-Saw, Mumbo-Jumbo, Windhammer, Mo-Lec-U-Lar, Poker-Face, Hardware, and "the musical madness of" Melodia.

Quicksilver (formerly Jonathan Quick) leads the SilverHawks, with his metal bird companion Tally-Hawk at his side. Twins Emily and Will Hart became Steelheart and Steelwill, the SilverHawks's technician and strongman respectively. Country-singing Bluegrass piloted the team's ship, the Maraj. Rounding out the group is a youngster "from the planet of the mimes", named "The Copper Kidd" and usually called "Kidd" for short, a mathematical genius who speaks in whistles and computerized tones. The SilverHawks' bionic bodies are covered by a full-body close-fitting metal armor that only exposes the face and an arm, the armor is equipped with a retractile protective mask, retractable under-arm wings (except Bluegrass), thrusters on their heels, and laser-weapons in their shoulders.

Characters

Silverhawks

Main Silverhawks

  • Commander Stargazer (voiced by Bob McFadden) is a tough and grizzled police officer with bionic capabilities. Older than the other SilverHawks, he longs to return to Earth for either a vacation or for retirement. Stargazer chiefly serves as the SilverHawks "eyes and ears", keeping them apprised of their current situation. His armor covers the upper left portion of his head as well as his body, and his left eye has been replaced by a telescopic lens.
  • Quicksilver / Captain Jonathan Quick (voiced by Peter Newman) is the former head of Interplanetary Force H and the field leader of the SilverHawks. Known for his quick reflexes and thinking, Quicksilver is an accomplished tactician and athlete.
  • Bluegrass (voiced by Larry Kenney) is second-in-command of the SilverHawks and the chief pilot of the group as well as a cowboy at heart. Bluegrass is the only active SilverHawk who is incapable of flight. He uses his weapon/instrument (portrayed in the toyline as his weapon-bird with the name Sideman) and his lasso. Bluegrass has an interface with the Maraj's piloting system, which he has affectionately dubbed "Hot Licks".
  • Steelheart/Sergeant Emily Hart and Steelwill/Sergeant Will Hart (voiced by Maggie Wheeler and Bob McFadden) are fraternal twin siblings who had artificial hearts implanted during their transformation. Steelheart and Steelwill are the "gearheads" of the team. Due to an empathic bond, when one sibling feels something, the other feels it as well. Physically, they are the strongest members of the team.
  • The Copper Kidd (vocal effects provided by Pete Cannarozzi) is the youngest member of the SilverHawks and the only one not from Earth. A mathematical genius from the Planet of the Mimes, he "speaks" in tones and whistles. A natural acrobat, the Copper Kidd wields two razor-edged discs which he throws like a Frisbee.

Minor Silverhawks

  • Hotwing (voiced by Adolph Caesar in earlier episodes, Doug Preis in later episodes) is a magician and skilled illusionist who received his powers from a mystical energy force that chose him to fight against injustice. He has to recharge these powers every 14 years or else he will die.
  • Flashback (voiced by Peter Newman) is a time-traveling Silverhawk from the far future. When he meets the 'much older' Stargazer who tells him of the fateful day the SilverHawks died, Flashback travels back in time to save them.
  • Moon Stryker (voiced by Larry Kenney) is a turquoise Silverhawk who can propel himself through space by a powerful cyclone generated from propellers that emerge from his waist. He is cocky but an expert marksman.
  • Condor (voiced by Bob McFadden) - An old ally of Stargazer who left the SilverHawks to become a private investigator before the series, but eventually returned. He wields an energy whip and uses a jetpack in place of wings.

SilverHawk's Fighting Hawks

The Fighting Hawks are hawk-like partners of the SilverHawks.

  • Tally-Hawk is Quicksilver's Fighting Hawk. Its beak can tear through metal and can shoot lasers.
  • Side Man is Bluegrass's Fighting Hawk. It can fire lasers.
  • Rayzor is Steelwill's Fighting Hawk. Its wings can cut through metal.
  • Stronghold is Steelheart's Fighting Hawk. It can lift heavy objects.
  • May-Day is Copper Kidd's Fighting Hawk. It has sonic-based abilities.
  • Sly-Bird is Stargazer's Fighting Hawk. It can photograph and record anything.
  • Gyro is Hotwing's Fighting Hawk. It has spinning abilities.
  • Backlash is Flashback's Fighting Hawk. It can travel through time.
  • Tail-Spin is Moon Stryker's Fighting Hawk.
  • Jet Stream is Condor's Fighting Hawk.

Supporting characters

  • Seymour (voiced by Peter Newman) is a space cabbie who serves as comic relief.
  • Zeek is a green bird-like alien who often accompanies Seymour on cab rides.
  • Harry is a robot who works as a bartender at a bar on the planet Fence.
  • Professor Power is a lightbulb-headed scientist who works in the Artificial Sun and controls it. He is friendly with the SilverHawks and often helps them.
  • Sanders is the governor in Bedlama, a planet similar to the Earth.
  • Monotone (voiced by Maggie Wheeler) is the computer that rules the planet Automata.
  • Grodd the Informer is an informant. He appears in episode 32 when he informs the mob of a rock that is supposed to be worth a fortune, the Savior Stone.
  • Lord Cash (voiced by Larry Kenney) is the head of Dolar, a planet with large amounts of money.
  • Gotbucks is Dolar's security chief.
  • Warden Lockup (voiced by Larry Kenney) is a prison warden with a bird-like face who is in charge of Penal Planet 10, where Limbo's criminals are kept.
  • Cell Guard #1 is an unnamed rhinoceros-like creature who works for Warden Lockup as a prison officer.
  • Cell Guard #2 is an unnamed one-wheeled robot who works for Warden Lockup as a prison officer.

Federal Interplanetary Force

The Federal Interplanetary Force is an interplanetary organization based on Earth. They are the founders of the SilverHawks.

  • General Rawlings (voiced by Larry Kenney) is the leader of the Federal Interplanetary Force
  • Professor Ghemakain is an alien who creates weapons for the SilverHawks.
  • Nurse Mabis (voiced by Maggie Wheeler) is a nurse who works for the Federal Interplanetary Force and the assistant of Professor Ghemakain.
  • Brigadier Brightlight is a high-ranking member of the Federal Interplanetary Force.

Villains

The Mob

The Mob is an organized crime group and the primary antagonists of the series that commits crimes throughout Limbo and operate from Brim*Star. They travel in three open-cab spacecraft called the Zoomer, Road Star, and Limbo Limo.

  • Mon*Star (voiced by Earl Hammond) is a wealthy alien crime boss with a feline-like body and an eyepatch (with the symbol of a black star) covering his left eye. Using the power of Limbo's Moon*Star and his Transformation Chamber, Mon*Star gains spiky armor and has his left eye restored, allowing him to channel the crimson Light Star beam. Mon*Star has a history with Stargazer and extends that animosity to the SilverHawks.
  • Sky-Runner - A giant "space-squid" that serves as Mon*Star's mode of transportation. Mon*Star's beams equip Sky-Runner with armor.
  • Yes-Man (voiced by Bob McFadden) is the personal assistant of Mon*Star who has a snake-like appearance. As a member of Mon*Star's Mob, Yes-Man operates the Transformation Chamber. Yes-Man once used the powers of the Moon*Star alongside Mon*Star, giving him increased mental abilities.
  • Hardware (voiced by Bob McFadden) is a purple creature who works as an inventor and weapons specialist for Mon*Star's Mob. He carries an oversized rucksack full of self-engineered weapons and equipment called a Roll-Up Bag.
  • Melodia (voiced by Maggie Wheeler) is a musical mistress who serves as a nemesis and counterpart to the SilverHawks' Bluegrass who wields a keytar-like "Sound Smasher". Melodia is usually seen cruising around in the Limbo Limo, causing havoc and assorted acts of terror as a diversion.
  • Windhammer (voiced by Doug Preis) is an eco-terrorist member of Mon*Star's Mob who wields a tuning fork that enables him to manipulate weather on planets and space. He has blue skin, long blonde hair, and large elf-like ears.
  • Mo-Lec-U-Lar (voiced by Doug Preis) is a shapeshifter whose primary form is a humanoid body made of spheres. He serves as the master of disguise and leading hitman of Mon*Star's Mob.
  • Buzz-Saw (voiced by Bob McFadden) is a sentient war machine with circular saw-cutting blades across his body that can be used as projectile weapons.
  • Poker-Face (voiced by Larry Kenney) is a sunglasses-wearing robot who has slot machines for eyes and carries a cane decorated with playing card suits. He is the owner of a space station called the Starship Casino, which is stationed outside of the SilverHawks' jurisdiction. Poker-Face charges Mon*Star billions of dollars for new inventive ideas against the SilverHawks.
  • Mumbo-Jumbo (voiced by Peter Newman) is a robotic Minotaur who is the muscle for Mon*Star's Mob. He is aided by his ability to "bulk up", growing larger and increasing his strength. Mumbo-Jumbo is the sworn enemy of Steelheart.
  • Timestopper (voiced by Larry Kenney) is a cocky 14-year-old delinquent with the ability to suspend all ambient motion and kinetic energy around him for one minute. He is often in the services of Mon*Star, but has no qualms about getting in his way if he is not paid.
  • Smiley is a boxer robot and old enemy of Stargazer who is the heavyweight champion of Limbo.
  • Darkbird (voiced by Peter Newman) is an evil robotic duplicate of Quicksilver created by Hardware.
The Mob's Fighting Hawks

The Mob has Fighting Hawks of their own:

  • Sky Shadow is Mon*Star Fighting Hawk. It resembles a bat and has claws on its wings.
  • Prowler is Hardware's Fighting Hawk. It resembles a dragon.
  • Volt-Ure is Mo-Lec-U-Lar's Fighting Hawk. It shares the same abilities as him as well as the ability to generate lasers.
  • Shredator is Buzz-Saw's Fighting Hawk. It has razor wings and a saw on its head.
  • Airshock is Mumbo-Jumbo's Fighting Hawk. It can transform into a hammer for his use.

Three Outlaws from Fence

They appear in many episodes and are friendly to Melodia and Poker-Face, though the three are usually betrayed by the Mob. They are often seen playing cards at the Sini*Star Diner on the planet Fence:

  • The Space Bandit is the robotic leader of the Three Outlaws.
  • Rhino (voiced by Peter Newman) is a rhinoceros-like mutant.
  • Cyclops is a one-eyed balloon-bodied creature. When shot, he loses air and flies around like a punctured balloon.

Other villains

  • Bounty Hunter is a monster with a bulldog-like face who was imprisoned by Stargazer for 200 years. He can absorb energy directed at him and use it to sustain and empower himself.
  • Zero (voiced by Peter Newman) is a long-nosed shady character who steals memories using a cattle prod-like weapon and records them on cassettes. He occasionally does business with Mon*Star's gang.
  • Rattler (voiced by Peter Newman) is Yes-Man's uncle.

Production and release

Rankin/Bass followed up their successful ThunderCats series with this series about a team of heroes in the 29th century who were given metal bodies and wings to stop organized crime in the Galaxy of Limbo. SilverHawks featured many of the same voice actors who had worked on ThunderCats, including Larry Kenney, Peter Newman, Earl Hammond, Doug Preis and Bob McFadden.

Lorimar-Telepictures was purchased by Warner Bros. in 1989, and the rights to SilverHawks are now held by Warner Bros. Television Distribution.

Reruns later aired on Cartoon Network from 2000 to 2001. The series is airing on MeTV Toons as of February 2025.

Episodes

Merchandise and other media

DVD releases

In October 2008, Warner Home Video released SilverHawks: Volume 1 on DVD in Region 1 for the first time. The 4-disc set contains the first 32 episodes of the series.

In October 2011, Warner Bros. released SilverHawks: Volume 2 on DVD in region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection. This is a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and Amazon.com. The 4-disc set contains the remaining 33 episodes of the series.

Action figures

The SilverHawks action figure collection based on the animated series was produced by Kenner and first released in 1987. LJN, the makers of the ThunderCats figures, originally were to produce the SilverHawks figures but decided to pass on the project at the last minute. Each figure was packaged with a companion bird and, similar to Kenner's Super Powers Collection toyline, had an action feature of some type. The second series of figures is harder to find than the first with Ultrasonic Quicksilver being the most difficult. The MonStar with Laser Lance, Copper Kidd with Laser Discs, and the Copper Racer vehicle were not produced but were shown in the 1988 Kenner toy catalog. The Hawk Haven Fortress was also never released, due to the high production costs it would incur. Many recurring characters were never made, including Yes-Man, Melodia and Poker-Face.

Weapon-birds

The weapon-birds are cyborg animal companions released with most of the action figures. While Tally-Hawk appeared in almost all of the episodes in the series, all other "weapon-birds" only appeared in a handful of episodes. In the episode "The Fighting Hawks", the weapon-birds for the Steel Twins were accidentally switched from the toy versions. The weapon-birds are listed below, with their toy partner's name in parentheses.

  • Tally-Hawk (Quicksilver)
  • Side Man (Bluegrass)
  • Rayzor (Steelheart)
  • Stronghold (Steelwill)
  • May-Day (Copper Kidd)
  • Sly-Bird (Stargazer)
  • Gyro (Hotwing)
  • Backlash (Flashback)
  • Tail-Spin (Moon Stryker)
  • Jet Stream (Condor)
  • Sky Shadow (Mon*Star) - a bat, rather than a bird
  • Prowler (Hardware) - a green flying dragon
  • Volt-Ure (Mo-Lec-U-Lar)
  • Shredator (Buzz-Saw)
  • Airshock (Mumbo-Jumbo)

In 2021, a new line of SilverHawks action figures were announced.

Other merchandise

Several other pieces of SilverHawks merchandise were released in the 1980s, including a board game, puzzles, bed sheets, and a plastic pencil pouch with the main characters on one side. Pajamas were also produced, which included wing flaps under the arms to more resemble the characters.

Comics

Marvel Comics' child-friendly imprint Star Comics (which also published ThunderCats) released a seven-issue series. Writers included Steve Perry, who also wrote for the animated series.

In January 2025, a new SilverHawks comic was released by Dynamite Comics.

Other appearances

Mon*Star makes a cameo appearance in the ThunderCats (2011) episode "Legacy".

Solar Opposites features a lengthy subplot that parodies the IP called SilverCops.

Reboot

As of July 2021, a NacelleVerse reboot of SilverHawks is in development.

See also

Notes

References

External links