The Shadow, The Hawk and The Skull

Very weak illustration in terms of execution (pardon the pun).  I think a better sense of drama would have been achieved if the damsel looked more frightened and there were some kind of background rather than a large splotch of purple.  The one thing that appeals to me is The Skull since he reminds me of the Jim Carrey character "The Mask".  All things lead back to The Shadow.
I have not read the story but it would be interesting to find out who The Hawk is in this triumvirate of pulp.  It almost seems that it could have been a crossover event along the lines of The Shadow, Doc Savage and The Avenger.  Now that would have been fun.