Hawkeye #12

by kanchilr1 on July 10, 2013

The Team
Artist Matt Fraction Writer Francesco Francavilla 


Hawkeye 12 is a big twist in the formula that already has no structure. It shows readers how fragmented this narrative can get at times. while in an issue or two this will certainly tie back together in the whole story, for now this is one of the most confusing installments in the title. The story revolves around Clint’s long lost brother Barney Barton coming to town. It is certainly interesting how underutilized the younger brother is, considering the whole Marvel Universe and how integral Hawkeye is to the team. Writer Matt Fraction should get some major kudos for digging into the strange past of the Barton family and finding what makes a character tick. An interesting aspect of the Avengers develops when realizing how many of them come from broken homes. The bigger one in question being Captain America himself. Steve Rogers practically had to support his entire family. As discovered in this installment of the series the man who literally cannot stop doing good had a bad childhood. Deeper parts of the personality of Barton can be inferred here, this is one of the best things that Fraction does as Clint lives and breathes off of the page.

In a similar manner to his brother, Barney Barton is down on his luck but seemingly even a little worse. He is almost a slightly darker mirror of what could have been. Hopefully in the future Fraction will trace back the roots of Hawkeye even further into his first appearances. This bold issue is good but puzzling when exactly it takes place due to some of the other issues of the series. Usually in the title we will get a small scene of something that briefly happened in another comic. The story about brothers contained in these pages are touching, but still feels unfinished by the creators. It will be interesting to see where this plot thread goes when the brothers eventually reunite. The best part about this tale is how it is a unique mix of both plot and character. There is no single genre that can be shoehorned into this book.

Francesco Francavilla really delivers an emotional story just right. He is a bit of a renaissance artist as he delivers inks, colors, and pencils to this comic. Francesco really understands the use of color to enhance emotion in a story. The use of the orange color tone on the last page really shows that he understands how utilize his retro inspired artwork to the fullest. Another really nice small gesture was where he decided to sign his name on the last page. Little touches such as this one are which makes this comic great. The shading of the buttons in the payphones was another case of the attention to detail that really sets the atmosphere of the comic.

Overall this another solid installment of the series, even though it does not quite reach some of the amazing heights of the other episodes in the series. Francesco has delivered another very great set of pages to the series here as well. While this may seem slightly disappointing coming off of the pizza dog issue, there are definitely great things to come for this book.

Our Score:

7/10

A Look Inside