Clint Barton: Hawkeye Appreciation 2020

[Matternativ]

To be honest Clint, I thought that was your problem.

I know right?

[Dermie]

Happy Valentine's Day!

Remember when Clint met Cupid?

valentines-hawkeye1.jpg

Hawkeye earned the respect of one of the most famous archers in mythology!

valentines-hawkeye2.jpg

I wonder if Clint still has that arrow of Cupid's around somewhere? Could make an interesting/amusing plot point if he ended up making use of THAT in his arsenal in some story!

[Matternativ]

Happy Valentine's Day!

Remember when Clint met Cupid?

valentines-hawkeye1.jpg

Hawkeye earned the respect of one of the most famous archers in mythology!

valentines-hawkeye2.jpg

I wonder if Clint still has that arrow of Cupid's around somewhere? Could make an interesting/amusing plot point if he ended up making use of THAT in his arsenal in some story!

Can't wait for Crossbones or whoever he shoots to fall madly in love with him.

[Frontier]

Happy Valentine's Day!

Remember when Clint met Cupid?

valentines-hawkeye1.jpg

Hawkeye earned the respect of one of the most famous archers in mythology!

valentines-hawkeye2.jpg

I wonder if Clint still has that arrow of Cupid's around somewhere? Could make an interesting/amusing plot point if he ended up making use of THAT in his arsenal in some story!

Even the Goddess Artemis is sporting his colors:

[hawkeyefan]

Finally picked up 2 & 3. I liked both issues. Overall, this series is solid. The best take on Clint in some time.

I like the guest stars. It reconnects him to the Avengers and that world a bit. Plus, Clint’s never really had a supporting cast that’s stuck around, so it makes sense that you have to rely on other superheroes as part of his cast. Linda/Night Nurse is a great addition, and I’m sure we’ll see her again. Bryce may have potential, too.

I liked the use of the tech. It makes sense that Hawkeye would know about this kind of stuff, and be able to get his hands on it. I like that Clint’s bending the rules here. I prefer when he’s written that way instead of being the uber moralist.

Hopefully, the series continues or is followed by another, because it’s a fun book. And Otto Schmidt’s artwork is excellent. He does great characterization, solid storytelling, and it’s dynamic and kinetic. Very good.

[Matternativ]

I like the quick guest appearances a lot is well although I hope some, like Nat maybe, show up again for a more substantial role.
And the appearance of Cap in issue 5 has got me hooked to the point were I almost resent the fact that we have to deal with Daredevil first. Almost ;D

[hawkeyefan]

Yeah, certain characters seem to warrant a more persistent role...Nat being one of those, for sure. Mockingbird and Cap both seem like good choices to appear more than once, too. I like that one panel of Bobbi’s appearance that we’ve seen so far....where Clint comments on his ex-wife being all caring and stuff. I hope that’s the dynamic they maintain there.

[tliscord]

Finally picked up 2 & 3. I liked both issues. Overall, this series is solid. The best take on Clint in some time.

I like the guest stars. It reconnects him to the Avengers and that world a bit. Plus, Clint’s never really had a supporting cast that’s stuck around, so it makes sense that you have to rely on other superheroes as part of his cast. Linda/Night Nurse is a great addition, and I’m sure we’ll see her again. Bryce may have potential, too.

I liked the use of the tech. It makes sense that Hawkeye would know about this kind of stuff, and be able to get his hands on it. I like that Clint’s bending the rules here. I prefer when he’s written that way instead of being the uber moralist.

Hopefully, the series continues or is followed by another, because it’s a fun book. And Otto Schmidt’s artwork is excellent. He does great characterization, solid storytelling, and it’s dynamic and kinetic. Very good.

I agree. Picked this series out and really enjoyed it. Nothing excites me about past-Hawkeye except for Fraction’s phenomenal run. I mean how great was that? And really totally out of left field. Best Clint run ever.
I did like him as Goliath lo those many years ago but until Fraction came along actually found him kind of insipid. That series completely changed my mind, and I’m getting a similar feel here.
That said, not interested in a Nat/Clint hook up ... too over that, and makes no sense. Linda works, and always a fan of Bobbie. She’d be a great addition.

[Frontier]

Yeah, certain characters seem to warrant a more persistent role...Nat being one of those, for sure. Mockingbird and Cap both seem like good choices to appear more than once, too. I like that one panel of Bobbi’s appearance that we’ve seen so far....where Clint comments on his ex-wife being all caring and stuff. I hope that’s the dynamic they maintain there.

I think Bobbi cares although not in the way Clint said in the image.

[OOTCS]

I think Bobbi cares although not in the way Clint said in the image.

You mean that she screws things up? I think that's supposed to be tongue-in-cheek, like that she screws up his pity parties by caring about him. Like when they first met and he was just going to sit in a vat of acid because he was so depressed, or in Secret Empire when he wanted to let the Hulk kill him, etc. She screws up his more self-destructive "plans."

[Frontier]

You mean that she screws things up? I think that's supposed to be tongue-in-cheek, like that she screws up his pity parties by caring about him. Like when they first met and he was just going to sit in a vat of acid because he was so depressed, or in Secret Empire when he wanted to let the Hulk kill him, etc. She screws up his more self-destructive "plans."

I took it to be saying she involves herself too much in her partner (Clint) and worries about them to the point of putting strain on the relationship, which seemed like more of a Clint thing, but that's a valid read on it.

[Zaresh]

Darn it. I've been so caught by work that I hadn't had the chance to read issue #3 yet. So I get that the book is still running pretty strong? I want this book to not lose his gas too soon.

[Dermie]

Sorry I'm late to the discussion -- I meant to post my thoughts on the issue last week but just didn't find the time.

Given that the issue is now a week old, I am going to drop the spoiler tags now, so for anyone who hasn't read it yet SPOILERS BELOW for issue #3!!!

I've gone back through the past two issues and re-confirmed for myself that there has not been anyone killed by Ronin, so I do feel a bit better about that now. Not sure where I had gotten the impression that Ronin was killing people...might have been a misreading of something in an interview or solicit, not sure. In any case, the behaviour is still not exactly in-character for Clint, with him putting federal agents/ex-SHIELD agents into hospital with serious injuries, and setting off explosions that could injure civilians if Spider-Man hadn't contained it, etc. So I am still looking forward to an explanation for why Clint is taking things so far. Is he really THIS obsessed with taking down The Hood, and if so why? What makes Parker and his activities worthy of Clint going to extremes that in the past would have been out of bounds to his moral compass?

Or...has his moral compass been pushed so many times in recent years (stuff he did while with the T-Bolts; his damaged emotional state in the wake of "Disassembled" leading to his original stint as Ronin and wanting to kill Osborn; his time with Bobbi's WCA that led her to break up with him for his own good; killing Bruce Banner, etc) that some of his old lines have started to blur?

So we have our explanation and it's actually the kind of "weird tech" solution I was partially expecting.
And Spidey already broke it.

Probably for the best. Monkeying with time rarely ends well. The LMD idea is a better idea. Hell, using his stolen money to hire Taskmaster to do it would be a safer idea than using stolen time travel tech!

Either way: I liked that the Mask Censorship is back.

Absolutely! The "hawk block" may be the best legacy the Fraction run has left us!

What I liked even more however is that it's acknowledged by a character in the story that Clint plays dumb.

Agreed! That was absolutely appreciated. I have to say that I felt a lot better about Clint's portrayal overall in this issue than I did last issue.

I liked seeing Natasha, but this book is crammed with guest stars who don't do anything aside from banter with Clint for a couple of pages and then disappear. Although I can't complain, because it gives me a chance to see how Otto renders them all so wonderfully.

I've noticed this seems to be a common element in Rosenberg books -- he loves to cram in as many cameos and guest appearances as he can. Some of them only get a few lines. Some get no dialogue at all, but they at least get to be seen on-panel. I've noticed it in his SECRET WARRIORS, his PUNISHER, his UNCANNY X-MEN, etc. It has its pros and cons. On the one hand, like you said its great to get to see all those characters--especially the ones who don't get seen often and may have been left in comics limbo for months or years until he gave them that cameo. On the other hand, it can sometimes be frustrating if you'd like to see some of those characters get a bit of a meatier role rather than a blink-and-you'll-miss-it.

As for the Widow, I was agreeing with Clint's "screw you Natasha" by the end of the scene. She was coming across as something of a jerk here.

Bryce is fun, and the Friends reference ("Pivot!") made me laugh out loud.

I am enjoying Bryce as well, and agreed on the Friends reference.

Night Nurse...I actually expected her to stick around until issue five. If this is really the last we're seeing of her here, then I don't think she was used to her full potential. She appeared in a handful of panels each issue, and only in the role of "Clint's girlfriend," as opposed to Linda Carter, Night Nurse. Her job was only mentioned offhand, we never got to see anything unique about her, like, for example, her steel spine and the way she stands up to bad guys despite not being a fighter...it feels like her role could have been played by almost any other woman in the Marvel universe and it wouldn't have changed the story. In fact, in his internal narrative, Clint never refers to her by name, only as "my girlfriend." It's possible that she'll come back and play a bigger part in the story, but we haven't learned anything about their relationship to explain why she would bother. I was amused by her going right from, "I think I'm falling in love with you" to dumping Clint in four seconds flat after finding out that he did something reckless and impulsive. He totally deserved it, don't get me wrong, but...who exactly did she think she was falling in love with? How long has he been keeping up the illusion that he isn't exactly the type of person who would do this sort of thing, and how long did he think he could continue keeping it up?

I'm not convinced we're done with Linda. Even Clint doesn't technically know for sure if they're over -- his narration caption is "I guess I'm single again". One might have guessed that earlier in the issue too though, when she stormed out and threw her keys to his apartment back at him. So if she really does think she's falling in love with him, she may yet give him another chance.

I do agree that she seemed a little manic with the "I think I love you" and then storming off again--after having already stormed off once a few pages before. One panel she's angry and suspicious of what he's up to, and the next panel she's apologizing and hoping he's not mad at her. I think she might have some issues of her own to sort out here.

Its true that we really haven't seen enough of their relationship yet to be as invested in it as I think the story wants us to be. They got together off-panel before the book started, and with the whole "who's Ronin" mystery and The Hood's side of the story, and the various guest spots and cameos, there just has not been a lot of panel time to develop the Clint/Linda relationship. Linda says she think she loves him and my immediate reaction was "really?! How long have you been dating?" We just haven't been given a reason yet to care about this relationship, so neither the "I love you" or the apparent break-up really had that much impact.

Given that Linda has appeared in public as Clint's girlfriend (at the charity fundraiser last issue), when/if The Hood figures out Clint is Ronin we may end up seeing Linda back in the story in a "damsel in distress" role. Not necessarily improvement for Linda in terms of her portrayal in the series...but it might end up giving the relationship a bit more significance to the story at least.

Daredevil! I'm thinking, in theory, Matt might not have figured out that Clint is Ronin; maybe he just thinks that Hawkeye is poking his nose into a Maggia crime scene for whatever reason. Except that even if so, Clint doesn't know that Matt doesn't know, so he would probably say something that gives it away within the first few seconds. Or, you know, maybe Natasha already told him.

With Matt's radar sense, wouldn't he already "see" the silhouette of Clint's costume and recognize it as the Ronin suit? I guess we'll find out next issue.

A few more thoughts....

I loved the cameo by Aimee -- my favourite surviving member of Clint's apartment building residents (the lesbian bike messenger). She should go back to the pink hair though; it suited her better.

I have been known to say to friends in the past that "naked Clint Barton makes anything better" -- and this issue proves the rule. The whole scene with Clint's naked LMD was a lot of fun, and between that and Linda's topless scene there was some excellent equal opportunity ogling going on with this issue. They just need to remember that the "hawk block" is meant primarily for frontal nudity. The Fraction run actually tried to push the envelope a few times with how much of Clint's butt they could get away with showing on-panel.

I liked that there was a reference to Gyrich as the guy hiring the security for the government facility Clint stole the LMD from. Its just a nice little continuity touch as one of Marvel's main government officials -- and the fact that Gyrich and Clint have a hostile history adds an extra layer to Clint robbing a facility that he is apparently responsible for.

Not sure why Clint seemed surprised that Bryce was familiar with the fact that Clint dated Black Widow. They were a serious item back in the day and were in the public eye -- their relationship was public knowledge.

As for Nick Fury knowing what Clint's junk looks like....well, let's remember that he has slept with at least three former SHIELD agents (Tasha, Bobbi and Jessica Drew). Leaving aside any body scans or cloning tissue samples or anything that SHIELD may have secretly taken over the years, they could have just had one of those agents fill out a detailed report...

The Hood seems unusually short-tempered in this story. This is two issues in a row where he has gone ahead and killed people that his men were supposed to interrogate about Ronin before they had a chance to interrogate them. I wonder if this is a sign of his demon side's influence, or his human side being stupid, immature and impatient.

All in all, a really fun issue and I am glad that I am feeling better about Clint's portrayal again. I'm looking forward to seeing what's in store next issue!

[OOTCS]

I liked that there was a reference to Gyrich as the guy hiring the security for the government facility Clint stole the LMD from. Its just a nice little continuity touch as one of Marvel's main government officials -- and the fact that Gyrich and Clint have a hostile history adds an extra layer to Clint robbing a facility that he is apparently responsible for.

I noticed the Gyrich reference but didn't quite catch the significance. I like that idea of Clint pulling one over on him, though.

As for Nick Fury knowing what Clint's junk looks like....well, let's remember that he has slept with at least three former SHIELD agents (Tasha, Bobbi and Jessica Drew). Leaving aside any body scans or cloning tissue samples or anything that SHIELD may have secretly taken over the years, they could have just had one of those agents fill out a detailed report...

I thought of this too, and I'm really glad they didn't use that explanation. Sometimes writers go for the easy joke at the expense of taste, and that would have been too sleazy for me.

[Zaresh]

I've finally caught up with Freefall. I think I'm falling in love with this run. Both art and writing are getting better and better with each new issue, and I'm dying to know how it follows. I'm actually dying thinking about how long I've to wait to see this trade in Spanish. It's so fun, and entertaining, and yet it still has some seriousness to it... It's pretty much what I want in a comic with Clint as the main character, to be honest. Kind of reminds me of the Scarlet Spider run by Yost (except for the obvious differences between Clint and Kaine).