Hawkeye #13

   There are a few comics out there where the creative team is playing on a different level from the rest of the industry.

   You see it sometimes from smaller publishers, but rarely from the big boys.

   Hawkeye is one of the exceptions to the rule.

   Writer Matt Fraction is creating a different story here, focusing more on the very human (and very fallible) Clint Barton. We rarely (if ever) see examples of super-heroics, though we often see the painful aftermath.

   This issue, for example, takes us into the heartbreaking story of a death in the loose-knit family that lives in the apartment building that Clint manages and protects (sorta kinda).

   It also features the return of someone near and dear to Clint (when he's not busy hating him, of course).

   But you have to pay attention, and it helps if you've read the other issues in the series. This one weaves around and through events in recent issues and the annual, for example.

   The art by David Aja is wonderful stuff - moody, gritty, humorous - the perfect use of the nine-panel grid.

   If you're passing up Hawkeye, you're missing out on something rare - a truly original comic. Highly recommended!

Grade: A

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