Out now on DVD (buy it here), the Silverhawks was an animated television series developed by Rankin/Bass and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986. In total, 65 episodes were made. It was created as a space-bound equivalent of their previous successful series, ThunderCats. A lot of the production value and silliness is the same.
The Story:
Bionic policeman Commander Stargazer recruited the SilverHawks, heroes who are "partly metal, partly real," to fight the evil Mon*Star, an escaped alien mob boss who transforms into an enormous armor-plated creature with the aid of Limbo’s Moonstar. Joining Mon*Star in his villainy is an intergalactic mob: the snakelike Yessman, the blade-armed Buzz-Saw, the "bull"-headed Mumbo-Jumbo, weather controller Windhammer, shapeshifter Mo-Lec-U-Lar, robotic card shark Pokerface, weapons-heavy Hardware, and "the musical madness of" Melodia (uses a "keytar" that fires musical notes)
Quicksilver (formerly Jonathan Quick) leads the SilverHawks, with his metal bird companion TallyHawk at his side. Twins Emily and Will Hart became Steelheart and Steelwill, the Silverhawks’ technician and strongman respectively. Country-singing Col. Bluegrass played a sonic guitar and piloted the team’s ship, the Maraj (pronounced "mirage" on the series, but given that spelling on the Kenner toy). Rounding out the group is a youngster “from the planet of the mimes,” named Copper Kidd (usually called "Kidd" for short), a mathematical genius who spoke in whistles and computerized tones. At the end of every episode, Copper Kidd was quizzed (along with the home audience) on various space facts.
Launching from their satellite base, Hawk Haven, the SilverHawks flew into battle five days a week for one season. The fictitious Galaxy of Limbo in which the series takes place apparently has an atmosphere; characters speak in space and operate "open-air" vehicles, and Windhammer's powers work even when he is not on an actual planet. There is also gravity; characters not "flying" tend to fall downward relative to whatever vehicle, satellite, or other platform with which they lost footing. However, since Silverhawks is a fantastical children's cartoon, it should not be held to high standards of realism.
Buy the Silverhawks DVD HERE
Silverhawks: Origin Story Part 1
Silverhawks: Origin Story Part 2
Silverhawks: Origin Story Part 3
Buy the Silverhawks DVD HERE