Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon

Hawkeye, Vol. 1: My Life as a Weapon by Matt Fraction
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Hawkeye is the Avenger that uses a bow and arrow. This is the stuff he does when he's not avenging.

1 - After a bad fall, Hawkeye gets out of the hospital and goes back to his neighborhood to find that the Russian mobster that owns his building has tripled the rent. Shit goes down.

Now that's how you kick off a comic series. Hawkeye is out of his league with the rest of the Avengers and he knows it. In his neighborhood, on the other hand, he's a serious bad ass. Also, pizza dog.

2 - The circus comes to town and Clint and Katie Bishop are in attendance, for it is an Evil circus.

Fraction does a good job delving into Clint's background and the formation of his partnership with Katie. Also, robbing the robbers who were robbing robbers.

3 - Clint meets a mysterious redhead in a 1970 muscle car on the way to get some tape for labeling his collection of trick arrows. Too bad the Russians are on her trail.

Okay, Russian gangsters and an issue long car chase. I haven't fallen in love with a comic series this quickly since Gotham Central.

4 and 5- SHIELD loses a mysterious tape and Clint goes to Madripoor to retrieve it before it goes up for auction.

Criminals bidding on a tape showing an Avenger apparently assassinating a dictator? Ninjas? Clint and Kate vs. an entire country? Awesome, awesome shit.

Young Avengers Presents #6 - Clint passes the torch to Kate.

I didn't really care for this one, mostly because of the jarring change in style and that it wasn't actually part of the series.

Closing Thoughts: Despite being the world's greatest marksman, Hawkeye has that underdog everyman appeal that really appeals to me. David Aja's art gives the series a unique tone and suits the action perfectly. I love that Fraction shows the everyday life of the Avenger with the least powerful abilities.

While I'm tempted to devour the entire run in rapid succession, I'm going to try to pace myself. They've never made many comics like this. Five out of Five stars.

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