Captain America and Namor #635.1: This issue is odd. Given that this title started as essentially one prolonged .1 issue, detailing the war-time stories of Captain America and Bucky, the whole concept of a .1 issue for it seems bizarre. But, beyond that, this story covers ground that we've recent covered elsewhere in similar books. The Thule Society was a major part of "Fear Itself" and the whole "secret society working to a mysterious end" business has been the subject of "Secret Avengers" for the better part of its existence. Therefore, even though the Covenant isn't the same thing as the Shadow Council from "Secret Avengers," this issue feels like the red-headed step-child produced from a marriage of that title with "Fear Itself." If you couldn't tell, I don't mean that as a compliment. Bunn tries to give us a meditation on Cap and Namor's early relationship, but it gets lost in the noise related to whatever scheme exactly Namor prevents the Thule Society from putting into effect here. Unfortunately, since it's a .1 issue, it's clear that we haven't heard the last of the Covenant. Maybe it's time to cancel this title...
Hawkeye #2: As anyone reading this blog for a while knows, I'm a huge "Young Avengers" fan. As such, I could hardly keep from squealing when I saw Kate Bishop hanging in Clint Barton's kitchen. (I was also thrilled to see Lucky, who seems like he's getting a hang of important canine responsibilities like lounging around the place.) Fraction immediately develops an engaging dynamic between Clint and Kate. It definitely has some mild sexual tension (accentuated by Kate's leading comment on Clint's remark that he's not interested in dating her), but it's mostly fueled by a lot of mutual respect and an easy sense of humor about their different backgrounds. In other words, I think that she'll prove to be an excellent foil for Hawkeye.
As in the first issue, Fraction also excels in using small moments to show characterization. I loved Clint talking to his spilled coffee like it's a real person, because it displays the goofiness about Clint that he tried to hide underneath his cool exterior (or, at least, his concept of a cool exterior). Similarly, his flustered attempt at explaining to Kate that he always screws up his romantic relationships shows a vulnerability that we don't often see from Clint. In fact, unfortunately, most authors show Clint's driving motivation as insecurity. Those stories never feel right to me, because an ordinary guy who manages to hold his own among a team of super-powered heroes isn't a guy who wastes a lot of time feeling insecure. The best stories about Clint are the ones that instead focus on his vulnerability, where he's occasionally hijacked by his emotions, be it saving a dog from gangsters or buying a building for his neighbors. Fraction really gets that and it's why he's showing us the most engaging Clint that I've seen in ages.
I'm intrigued by where Fraction is going with the revelation that this series may have a thread that runs through it. He seems to be showing Hawkeye building some sort of international enemy list. Given the details that we see on the last page, it seems like Clint has been collecting information on a lot of criminal activity for some time. However, Fraction leaves it unclear how Clint got that intelligence. In this issue alone, he occasionally glides over some important details, like how Clint connected the hobo signs that signified that something bad was going to happen imminently with the opening of the new hotel that hosted as a gathering of the criminal underworld. If we're going to have these "Winter Soldier with a laugh track" kind of stories (and I support that approach entirely), we're going to need to know how exactly Hawk is getting his information, if the "Winter Soldier" part is going to be just as strong as the "laugh track" part. Fraction seems to want us to believe that Hawk just put two plus two together all by himself, but I didn't see anything that would've led him to connect the hobo signs to the hotel opening. He might've been lucky this time, but he's not going to be lucky every time. (Plus, doesn't it seem crazy that the crime circus would try to rob from powerful criminals? I thought that they were going to rob from a collection of rich people, an occurrence seems to happen weekly in places like Gotham. But, why would you rob the Kingpin? Fraction probably should've clarified that, and whether this event tied into his overarching plan.) In these early days, the charm and wit are certainly more important as Fraction establishes a tempo for the series, but it can only last so long.
Now, the art. Aja is amazing here. We again get a goofy and handsome Clint, conveyed in spectacular detail made all the more amazing by Aja's sparse lines. Hollingsworth gets a lot of credit for that, particularly since he's somehow managed to make the yellow of Hawkeye's hair distinctive to him alone. But, both Aja and Hollingsworth also puts time and effort into different elements, like showing the different positions of Kate's mouth over the course of several panels as she talks to Clint. It was a totally unnecessary sequences, but one that made you realize that you were reading something special. Aja also has an amazing sense of kinetics: I don't think that I've ever seen a better action sequence than the three panels where Hawkeye grabs Kate, she turns in his grip to fire off an arrow, and then they leap through the window. Amazing stuff.
All in all, another strong issue that's a joy to read, just because it's the Hawkeye that I've always wanted to see but rarely got. I'm in for the long haul.
Secret Avengers #30: I'll admit that the art saved this issue for me. In the moments where I just couldn't read anymore about the Crown of This or the Crown of That or where I wondered just how many negotiations books Taskmaster had bought in "Business" sections at airport bookstores, I was at least able to think, "Ooo, pretty." Writing-wise, though, it's a pretty unremarkable issue. We learn that the crowns merge together into some sort of mega-crown, but Remender doesn't tell us why the merged crown would be more powerful than the individual crows; in fact, I'm not sure that we entirely know what the crowns themselves actually do or why each one is different from the other ones. Also, somewhat predictably, Max Fury is unable to use the mega-crown since, presumably, he doesn't have a soul, so it falls to Taskmaster to serve as the near-god. But, again, despite Max and Taskmaster talking about the Abyss coming to Earth, we still don't really know what it is or why the crowns gain one access to it. Honestly? After 30 issues, I can't say I care anymore about this plot line that I did when it was first introduced, even if the names and faces on both sides of the fight have changed.
Winter Soldier #9: Holy crap. I was on the edge of my seat for most of this issue. During Natasha's fight with Sitwell, I was really worried that he would wind up dead! So, then, I was relieved when James saved him by "freeing" Natasha. But, now, I'm worried all over again, since it appears that Natasha is on a rampage on the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier! (The cover of the next issue showing Bucky standing over a sheet-draped corpse doesn't help.) This fear shows how well Brubaker has done in constructing Sitwell's character piece-by-piece, building off the conversation that he had with Bucky in the diner last issue. He could be just focusing on Bucky and Natasha, but he's taken the time to make Sitwell into a character in his own right, and it's a better book for it.
Looking at the issue as a whole, Brubaker does a great job of building this tension by not just hurling us into the action, but starting by showing us Bucky impatiently waiting for the next clue that would send them to Leo and Natasha. You get the sense throughout the issue that Bucky and Sitwell are just barely able to keep pace with Leo, a definite problem since it's also clear that Leo is merely playing with them. When he actually gets serious, it's going to be plenty ugly, something that it seems like we're going to see next issue. Finally, in terms of the art, Lark and Breitweiser deliver another beautiful book. Bucky is intense and sexy as always, and the scene of him taking off his mask and reminding Natasha of who he is beautifully drawn. They also manage to hold that emotion when they show a "freed" Natasha resting her head on James' shoulder. You can actually see the relief on his face; I don't know how they did it, but, man, I just hope they never leave this title ever.
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