H A W K E Y E
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Clinton Francis "Clint" Barton ♦ Ex-Avenger ♦ Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York City
C H A R A C T E R C O N C E P T:
"Okay..."
"This looks bad."
"This looks bad."
A carnie-turn-vigilante, Clint Barton was a criminal from a broken home before the intervention of Tony Stark and Natasha Romanoff. Given a second chance, Hawkeye became perhaps the most peculiar member of the Avengers - one with no superhuman abilities or equipment. Armed chiefly with nothing more than a bow and arrow, Hawkeye made a name for himself as an ordinary human fighting in league with gods and monsters. He's been a member of the core team, a West Coast Avenger, a Secret Avenger, and a Thunderbolt. He's been Hawkeye, Ronin, and Goliath. He's had as many ill-fated love affairs as he's had bloodbound nemeses.
But none of this storied history matters to the decidedly mortal Clint Barton now.
His own mundanity has caught up with him. Profoundly deaf in one ear, and partially deaf in another, he came to a mutual agreement with the Avengers to leave the team. There was arguing - mostly from his teammates - but in his mind, the world has quickly begun to outpace him. Clint is getting older, and mankind's many common enemies seem to be sharper and more powerful by the day. If even the mighty Thor and incredible Hulk can be brought to their knees by these terrible foes, what's a deaf guy with a bow going to do about it?
Henceforth, Hawkeye is now the civilian Clint Barton. He's not a superhero, and he sure as hell isn't an Avenger anymore. The closest he gets to superherodom is taking a look at leaks and faulty TV dishes for the good people in his apartment building.
However tempting that bow and arrow is.
...Well, maybe just one quick draw of the bowstring for old times' sake...
C H A R A C T E R M O T I V A T I O N S & G O A L S:
My goal is to tell a deeply personal, character-driven story about depression, imposter syndrome, and the power an ordinary person has to change the world around them for the better.
I do not intend to belittle, mock, or make a joke out of the character of Hawkeye. I think, especially in Fraction's run, that Clint is a deeply compelling character, and the fact that he shines in a world flush with wacky superheroes and larger than life, ostentatious personas is a testament to that. He's a human, like any of us: He bleeds like a human, but he fights like a human. He faces a world much bigger than him, filled with danger and wonder and terror, like we all do, and chooses to stand up to it.
Clint will struggle with feelings of inadequacy and self-loathing throughout his time in Streets of New York, and will hit some low lows, but without a doubt I intend for his story to be an optimistic, humanist one. He will learn the value he has as a person, the value of the connections he forms, and the power he has as an individual - even if he isn't swinging Odin's hammer or building suits of sci-fi armour. Even on the days he doesn't even feel like getting out of bed in the morning - and there will be a lot of those days - he'll struggle against the weight of hopelessness to make sure he does at least one good thing. And if that one good thing happens to be knocking together the heads of some Maggia goons, then so be it.
I do not intend to belittle, mock, or make a joke out of the character of Hawkeye. I think, especially in Fraction's run, that Clint is a deeply compelling character, and the fact that he shines in a world flush with wacky superheroes and larger than life, ostentatious personas is a testament to that. He's a human, like any of us: He bleeds like a human, but he fights like a human. He faces a world much bigger than him, filled with danger and wonder and terror, like we all do, and chooses to stand up to it.
Clint will struggle with feelings of inadequacy and self-loathing throughout his time in Streets of New York, and will hit some low lows, but without a doubt I intend for his story to be an optimistic, humanist one. He will learn the value he has as a person, the value of the connections he forms, and the power he has as an individual - even if he isn't swinging Odin's hammer or building suits of sci-fi armour. Even on the days he doesn't even feel like getting out of bed in the morning - and there will be a lot of those days - he'll struggle against the weight of hopelessness to make sure he does at least one good thing. And if that one good thing happens to be knocking together the heads of some Maggia goons, then so be it.
C H A R A C T E R N O T E S:
- ► Hawkeye's Bow and Arrow Quiver
The signature. Iron Man has his armour, Captain America has his shield, Thor has his hammer. Hawkeye has his bow. A custom-made, heavy-duty compound bow made of reinforced fibreglass. It does exactly what one would expect a bow to do: Insert the business end of an arrow hard and fast into the targeted surface. Where it truly earns a superheroic edge is with Clint's many "trick arrows". For when a regular old arrowhead doesn't do the job, Clint's ingenuity has led to the creation of a variety of specialised arrows for specialised jobs. These include:
► Sonic Arrow: A blunt arrow that unleashes a continuous, blaring, high-pitched squeal upon impact.
► Smokebomb Arrow: A blunt arrow that spews a cloud of thick smoke upon impact.
► Bola Arrow: A tool as old as the bow, the bola is a throwing weapon made of three weights and interconnected cords, which quickly wraps around and ensares a target when thrown. This is that in an arrow.
► Net Arrow: Like the bola arrow, but trades speed and precision for area of effect. An arrow that releases a ten foot wide cable net from the end of its blunt arrowhead.
► Electric Arrow: An arrow equipped with a taser on its blunt arrowhead.
► Flare Arrow: A blunt arrow containing a magnesium compound which ignites on impact.
► Stun Arrow: Continuing the trend of blunt arrowheads, the stun arrow is like an airborne punch. When there cannot be any risk of lethality.
► Boomerang Arrow: A variant of the stun arrow which returns to sender.
► Explosive Arrow: The big one. Highly inadvisable for use in crowded or civilian scenarios. An arrow containing plastic explosive in a blunt arrowhead that detonates on impact. Whereas Hakweye usually carries multiple copies of his trick arrows, he only carries a single explosive arrow.
► Arrow: A not-blunt arrowhead. This one just shoots things.
- ►Skills and Attributes
Naturally, Clint has unparalleled aim. His reflexes, eyesight and hand-to-eye coordination are like nothing else, to say nothing of his proficiency with his tool of choice. His senses are at the height of human ability - he has, in the past, smelled out enemies based on the faintest whiff of incense on them and managed to aim perfectly in the dark. Clint is a master archer, and practices two hours every day to hone and refine his skills.
Clint's level of physical fitness borders on Olympian, keeping his body at the peak of what is possible for an unenhanced human. Of special note is his agility and flexibility, allowing him to perform a variety of stunning acrobatic manoeuvres. He is also a well-trained martial artist, and can hold his own in fistfights. He is proficient with a variety of other weapons, as well - of note is his swordsmanship, which he receieved tutelage in from the legendary Swordsman. He can also make use of improvised weapons, and is capable of throwing small objects like cards and coins at sufficient speeds to act as projectiles.
Clint's proficiency with his hand-to-eye coordination also makes him an excellent pilot and driver.
Clint is profoundly deaf in one ear and partially deaf in the other. Though he uses hearing aids to compensate to some degree, he has learned ASL to communicate where sound fails.
- ►Dramatis Personae
Friends
Tony Stark - Billionaire genius behind the Iron Man and founding member of the Avengers. Declined to appear any further when he found out it was street level.
Kate Bishop - Also Hawkeye, at times. Massively fumbled by Marvel Boy.
Lucky the Pizza Dog - He's Lucky the Pizza Dog. Good friends with Jeff the Land Shark.
Foes
Madame Masque - Heiress to Count Nefaria's fortune in Brooklyn. Has an unhealthy fixation with Tony Stark, perhaps because he also at times has a metal face.
Kingpin - The self-described head honcho of crime in New York. Has his meaty fingers in every pie in Manhattan, which is a mental image as disturbing as his ruthless tactics.
Hammerhead - The (literally) hardheaded bigwig of the underworld in Queens.
The Owl - A ruthless crime lord who Clint would contest is not named for his wisdom.
The Circus of Crime - The rather uncreatively named criminal circus who dazzle and embezzle their crowd.
S A M P L E P O S T: