Hawkeye #15 – Review

By: Matt Fraction (story), David Aja (art), Matt Hollingsworth (colors)

The Story: Get morning coffee.  Check.  Do crossword.  Check.  Defeat hitman…?

The Review: Much as I’ve enjoyed this series, I’ve always felt one of its biggest failings was the lack of an overarching plot.  Fraction definitely seems like he knows where he’s going, but his narrative has been distractible and meandering, making sudden jumps in time and perspective, giving you information in such a fractured way that it took months for us to learn what would ordinarily take a few issues.

And for what?  Mostly for Fraction to experiment with his storytelling and kill time with witty, random asides.  Indeed, the Kate-centric issues have been about almost nothing else.  Fruitful and entertaining as many of these experiments and asides have been, you would have preferred a speedier resolution to this whole deal with the Bro Gang, or Tracksuits, or Titushki, or whatever they actually call themselves.

The problem with the Bro Gang is aside from their comical mannerisms, they don’t really bring much else to the table.  They are one-gag characters, limited entirely to their catchphrase; they are the Target Lady (“Approved!”) of antagonists.  Plus, it doesn’t help that Fraction has had to di.umb them down to make them suitable opponents for Clint to pass his time on.  I mean, really, after all the irritation he’s caused them, they catch him with pants literally down and they still let him do one last “magic trick?”  It’s a funny scene, but it also makes you doubt that they were really capable of seizing all property in a three-block span for a major development deal.

And that, as it turns out, is the main thrust of Hawkeye’s personal war with the Bro Gang, which makes you a tad suspicious that this whole storyline is merely an elaborate cover for Fraction to attack the injustices of urban tenancy.  But even if that was true, this twist in the plot is a very effective one, throwing everyone’s motivations, especially Clint, in an entirely different light.  While Clint would like to focus on the good intentions behind his takeover of his apartment building, Jess remarks wearily, “It’s not that simple, Clint.”

“Yeah, but it should be,” he insists.  His overtly juvenile response is a sign that Fraction doesn’t necessarily support his idealistic position.  Obviously, forcing people to leave their homes is an insensitive, even cruel thing to do, but it’s not illegal, nor is it even immoral, depending on the circumstances.  In trying to right what he sees as an immediate wrong, Clint not only mires himself in bigger trouble (i.e., Grills’ death, Simone and her kids being taken hostage), he limits his options and undermines the purpose of costumed vigilantism.  Jess sensibly points out that Clint can’t expect to rely on the Avengers for help just because his illegal actions have made going to the police impossible or uncomfortable.

This is a complicated dilemma Clint has mired himself in, which is a testament to his essential humanity.  It’s hard to think of any other Marvel superhero who could get into this kind of mess, much less pay for it the way Clint does at the end of the issue.  Although his recovery is ultimately assured, it’ll be interesting to see how he delivers himself and his fellow tenants from the vengeance of the Bro Gang and their big gun, Kazu (Kazi?).  Will Clint actually think things through, or will he continue to trust to chance and karma to back up his impulsiveness?

It’s easy to see how elegant and beautiful Aja’s work is, but it’s much harder to pin down its exact appeal.  Though I compare him frequently to Cliff Chiang, it’s obvious in comparing the two that Aja is even more subtle, with less flair for the dramatic, than Chiang.  He has a way of breaking down moments into even smaller moments, all to give the issue’s suspense even more room to build.  He’ll take what other artists would render in one panel (Kazu rising from the table and taking off his glasses) and turn it into three (Kazu’s furrowed reaction, taking off and inspecting his glasses, then standing up with both hands firmly on the table), just to drive home the significance of that moment.

Conclusion: A solid issue that finally pushes the series to where it should have been months ago.

Grade: B

– Minhquan Nguyen

Some Musings: – Now the switch in #16 and #15 is clear: there’s no way Fraction could leave us on a last page like that and then force us to deal with Kate’s misadventure with a facsimile of an ex-Beach Boy.

– Is it wrong of me to hope that the old lady traitor in the building strokes to death?