Hawk survives but lapses into a coma. General Joseph Colton returns to fill in for Hawk as commander of the team. While in a coma, Hawk has a dream that he was finally retiring and settling down with his wife Carolee, who in reality was long dead. He then visits Cobra Commander in prison, and the two argue before Cobra Commander moves from the shadows to reveal Hawk's face. When Hawk wakes up, he learns that he has an unretractable bullet lodged in his spine, which has left him paralyzed below the waist. This experience makes him a bit crazed, intensifying his hatred for Cobra Commander. Unknown to Hawk, it was not Cobra Commander that shot him, for Zartan had switched places with the Commander shortly before the incident.