What's up with Hawkeye #22?
Issue #21 was finally released in April 2015, five months after #20. And there were several lapses in the comics prior to that. Now instead of releasing (forever delayed) #22, Marvel Comics goes ahead and releases an "All-New" Hawkeye series? FAIL.
Who hires these bozos? You can't meet a deadline? Writer? Artist? Editor? Etc.? Did Kevin Smith write this book? Hello? Anyone home?
Tell ya what, Marvel, you can keep Hawkeye #22. My collection ended with #21.
With the Avengers movies riding a huge financial wave, you'd think they'd want to capitalize on one of the main characters by producing a consistent series. By the way, it also helps that when you have a Hawkeye comic, that you include that superhero (the Clint Barton version) instead of focusing on the "other" (lame) Hawkeye (Kate Bishop). And just why can't she get her own moniker anyway? So, Marvel, you can keep All-New Hawkeye, too, because I'm not buying into it when you can't even include the main character in his own book.
I've always loved Hawkeye and was a HUGE fan of him during the West Coast Avengers days, so I was excited when he was included in the silver screen version of the Avengers and got his own series. Sadly, while Marvel Studios seems to know what to do with Hawkeye, it seems Marvel Comics doesn't.
Why was the 2012 Hawkeye series canceled by Marvel Comics? I'll tell you why: it sucked.
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| Pizza Dog |
Don't get me wrong; when the series first started, Matt Fraction and David Aja did a fantastic job. I even hailed it in a previous review. Sadly, it quickly went to the dogs. (And I don't just mean Pizza Dog.)
Pizza Dog himself was a great addition to the Hawkeye supporting cast. Who wasn't? "Hawkeye" Kate Bishop. I'm pretty sure the reason Marvel gave Hawkeye his own series was due to his popularity in a tiny movie called The Avengers. I don't recall ever seeing Kate Bishop in the movie.
Shown above, the series originally promised us Clint Barton (a.k.a. Hawkeye) and his life outside of the Avengers. Sadly, the series quickly became about some teenage chick that Fraction apparently has fantasies about who would never ever warrant her own book. Heck, she can't even sustain a team book (Young Avengers). That's how crappy her character is. And do we even need a second Hawkeye? Why not just call her Speedy or something?
Surprisingly, that wasn't the worst thing about the series. Yes, I'm talking about issue #17. The summary for that book is as follows:
Who could forget that time when Clint Barton let his neighbor's kids
watched a holiday cartoon at his place? At long last, this issue is
pretty much the cartoon they all watch.
And they are correct. Not only are we subjected to Kate Bishop instead of Clint Barton, but now we're given a joke for our $2.99. It had to be one of the worst comics I've ever read in 30 years. With issue #18, the story returned to -- you guessed it -- Kate Bishop.
And THAT, my friends, is why this series was canceled. Who wants to continue reading this garbage?
Now Marvel (or is that Marvel NOW!?) is putting out the All-New Hawkeye in 2015, restarting the series with #1. Naturally, that's not uncommon nowadays for Marvel (sigh...), and it's probably meant to coincide with the release of the next Avengers movie.
In the first issue's summary, we're told that we'll be getting "a fresh new look into the life of everyone's favorite Avenger." Then the next sentence starts, "With Kate Bishop, his trusted ward and protégé back at his side..." I guess Marvel hasn't learned their lesson. Have you? I have. I won't be spending $3.99 now for a series that still can't get it right.
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| Hawkeye #2 (2012) |
Long before Hawkeye was a popular movie character played by Jeremy Renner, he was one of my favorite comic book characters. It's not every guy who can pull off wearing purple. I loved the West Coast Avengers so much more than the regular Avengers (wait, was I the only one?) and he was a big part why. I also enjoyed his dynamic with Mockingbird. Although Marvel will deny it, it was obvious that Hawkeye and Mockingbird were modeled after DC's Green Arrow and Black Canary, but they felt like a totally different couple.
After numerous mini-series and short-lived attempts a couple of monthly series, with his popularity surging from the Avengers movie, Hawkeye finally gets his own solo monthly comic book series. Again. (Hey, to be a success and be his longest running series EVER, it only has to last more than eight issues.)
Immediately by looking at the covers, you can tell that this is a different Hawkeye. They have a retro-mod look to them. The letters are all in lower case. The colors are minimal, but there is that predominance of Hawkeye's signature color, purple. I wasn't sure, though, how David Aja's minimalist cover art would translate to an entire comic. And, upon starting the first issue of the series, I seriously had my doubts. The art seemed too rough and rudimentary. However, after reading the first two issues, I really think it works. And I love the heavy use and different shades of purple.
The issues introduce Hawkeye with the promise that the series will be about his non-Avengers adventures:
I hope that the writer, Matt Fraction, keeps this promise. Hawkeye is a strong enough character that he doesn't need his teammates always stopping by. He doesn't need crossovers. He has stories that can be told without intertwining them with other series. So far, with the first two issues, Fraction has kept his promise. Hawkeye's biggest worry has been taking care of the other residents in his apartment building from the big, evil landlord. Let's hope that he continues to deal with these more human issues and interactions. And, of course, canine issues (Clint adopts an injured dog that he rescues).
Kudos to the start of what I hope will be an 9+ issue series!
