What can I say about this perfect comic? Matt Fraction and David Aja have brought the most consistently amazing book I’ve read in a long time. It is an independent spirited main stream super hero comic. But really, it’s not a super hero comic at all. It is almost a soap opera of Clint Barton (aka Hawkeye) and his regular guy life. He owns his apartment building and he is trying to defend it from Russian mafiosos that looooove tracksuits and are all serious “bro’s”.

Aja’s art is unbelievably jawdropping. It has an instantaneous classic Golden Age comic look (or maybe even Silver Age), but with modern sensibilities. I mean, look at those costumes! Black Widow, Mockingbird and Spider-Woman have never looked so good. I LOVE seeing all of these heros in their day to day ‘off-Avengers’ time. This works with all of these street-level characters who have to have real lives. This would not work for Thor.

Have I mentioned Matt Hollingsworth’s colors? This is not something I normally notice, but the coloring in this book is so stark and gorgeous and I just want to bath in it!

Fraction captures Clint’s utter ‘guy-ness’ and lays it out on display as we watch a hero who can’t help living on the edge, to the point of self destruction. He is a normal guy, who makes normal mistakes and has normal friends. His relationship with Kate Bishop (Lady Hawkeye) is so fantastic. It rides this beautiful line of teased romance and complete take-no-bullshit best friendship. And the choice to have a Lolita poster in Kate’s bedroom… genius.

My favorite relationship that has been forged in this book is between ‘Hawkguy’ and ‘Grill, -er Gil’. They are just buddies sharing an apartment building. True friends. It is a beautiful thing.

Please read this book. Read it. You will love it. The art explodes off the page in every direction and it is a MUST. And lastly, if you, after reading everything that leads up to this issue, are not gasping from sucker-punched breath by the end of this issue… you have no heart. Damn you, Fraction!!

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