Hawkeye, Vol. 4: Rio Bravo

Hawkeye, Vol. 4: Rio Bravo by Matt Fraction
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Clint Barton is Hawkeye, the Avenger with the bow and arrow. He is now currently dog-less and partner-less.

17 - Clint watches the Winter Friends with Simone and her kids.

This was a fill-in issue with Chris Eliopolis on art. The events of the Winter Friends cartoon reflect the events of Clint and Kate so far in the series. I didn't really care for this one.

12 - Clint's brother Barney, aka Trick Shot, comes to town.

Some of Hawkeye's childhood is revealed, as well as some differences between Clint and Barney. I'm guessing Barney will fill Kate's shoes while she's out in LA.

13 - Clint has to tell Grills' dad about his death and goes to his funeral.

Clint is at a low point when Kate leaves town and his brother moves in. The Russian bros are still at it. I'm curious to see how Clint's relationships develop from here with the new status quo.

15 - The Russians really want Clint's building. Too bad his pants are around his ankles.

Barney proves his worth. The ending sure was a jaw-dropper. How the hell is this going to pan out?

19 - Clint is now deaf and Barney is all shot up. The storm is coming!

I loved this issue, the way Clint's deafness is expressed in the art, the flashbacks to Clint and Barney's youth. Everything. This is the best issue since Hawkeye volume 2, in my opinion.

21 - The Battle of Bed-Stuy is here!

Holy shit, that was brutal. Clint rallies the tenants of the building and the Russians arrive in full swing. The ending was a cruel cliffhanger. Have I driven home the point of how much I've enjoyed this series?

22 - The Final Bow is here. The stolen safe from way back when is back and so is Cherry.

The cavalry arrives in the form of Kate and pizza dog. Things are finally settled with the Russians. So it goes.

Closing Thoughts: If the series had to end, I'm glad Fraction and Aja chose to end it here. While I preferred the first half of their run to the second, this ranks right up there with Starman and Gotham Central as one of my favorite runs of all time. 4 out of 5 stars for this volume, a 4.5 for the series as a whole. Now to try to fill the Hawkeye-shaped void in my life.

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