Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: avengers, Clint Barton, generations, hawkeye, HRL, kate bishop, kelly thompson, legacy, Marvel Comics, stefano raffaele, vanishing point, young avengers

Marvel Generations: Hawkeye And Hawkeye, A Perfect Pairing

This one slipped past me somehow. I'm sad; this was the Generations one-shot I was most looking forward too, and I somehow missed it when the week it was released.

In any case, Kate Bishop finds Clint Barton locked in a deadly competition of the best marksmen in the world. After convincing young Hawkeye to trust her, the two must cooperate to survive this lethal game, assure no one else dies, and discover who is behind this melee.

Kate Bishop and Clint Barton have such an amazing mentor-apprentice relationship, and it's near-impossible to tire of their rapport. They're both impulsive smartasses, but Kate is more capable of forethought than the elder Hawkeye. She is more skilled at not putting her foot in her mouth.

It's also worth mentioning that Clint Barton is among my three favorite Marvel heroes, specifically because of these qualities.

He also has one of my all-time favorite costumes, and I'm eternally frustrated that it's been jettisoned in favor of a t-shirt, sunglasses, and cargo pants. So, seeing the classic Hawkeye comic in action once more is a real treat.

The dialogue between Clint and Kate is fantastic, and, even though Clint does not know her apprentice and friend yet, their back-and-forth here is as enjoyable as it ever was. The menagerie of rouges who parade through, like Bullseye, Boomerang, and Taskmaster, while none really receive much panel time, is still pretty cool.

Clint's old mentor, the Swordsman, shows up, too. I won't say what his role is, but you can make your own assumptions from there.

The lesson that Kate learns is not dramatic, but it does make sense for she and Clint. (Spoiler) She essentially learns to accept Clint Barton warts-and-all, and that they do need one another sometimes. She also learns that there is a reason he is the way it is, but the fact that he is this good is in itself a miracle.

This, in part, is the result of her meeting the Swordsman, but she doesn't really see him long enough to warrant this enlightenment. That is a bit of a flaw, but it still mostly works.

Stefano Raffaele's artwork is really damn good. His style is highly detailed, clean, and expressive. He's great at depicting action and body language. I love this work, and I hope he does more for Marvel in the future.

Digikore's color work is nothing to sneeze at, either. It shows a prowess in shading and color temperatures. The world of Generation: Hawkeye has a lot of vibrancy and life because of Digikore's work.

Generations: Hawkeye is a really fun and endearing meeting between Kate Bishop and a young Clint Barton. Their dialogue is endlessly entertaining, the art is fantastic, and the story is creative. Give it a read. You won't be disappointed.

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