Thunderbolts #22

[iamrman]

The Thunderbolts barely have time to process the idea of Hawkeye leading the team when Hercules arrives seeking vengeance.

Comments

[zachbeacon]

Atlas’s moment of selfless heroism would probably mean more if I knew this was the last time that someone he nearly beat to death comes back for revenge.

Spoilers: It won’t be.


I guess I’ll save my thoughts on the cliffhanger until next time.


I think this might still be a weaker version of Hercules (he was petty diminished in Heroes for Hire) but it is still impressive how well Jolt is doing here. She doesn’t usually get credit for being a powerhouse but we’ve seen her cause some pain to some real threats (and Cyclone).

[dan_ingram]

Man, beat a guy almost to death and suddenly you're a bad guy.

What a world, huh?

[phantomfo]

These were the days when the Avengers, and Hawkeye in particular, still had strong feelings against killing people.

[mazway_75]

Also another turn left off is Hawkeye telling the team the Commision of Superhuman Affairs has given them a possible pardon if they prove themselves...and it turns out Hawk was lying through his teeth on that. Great start, Clint.

[lbd_nytetrayn]

Huh, why did he do that?

[zachbeacon]

Clint is a "better to ask for forgiveness than permission" type of guy. That mindset tends to serve him well when he's on someone else's team but runs into problems when he's leading one.

He thinks he can reform them and get the public on their side...

(Which mostly works... eventually)

...while giving the 'Bolts hope that they have a future... via lies.

(Which works about as well as you'd think)

[scorntx]

Clint apparently had a brain fart moment and thought if he went to Henry Gyrich and asked nicely, Gyrich would be amenable.

Spoiler alert: He wasn't.
(Though, actually by Gyrich standards his response was pretty calm and reasoned.)

[lbd_nytetrayn]

So, what happens next time Herc and Hawkeye cross paths?

[zachbeacon]

I'm not sure this ever gets addressed. I don't think they even interact again until after Bendis ruins Hawkeye.

We will be seeing another former Champion soon, though. Maybe there were some off-panel reconciliations after the next big arc.

[zylly]

Offffff. Hawkeye’s “Avengers don’t kill” line here hits a lot harder after the -vague gestures- everything of the Bendis’s era.

There’s still a few heroes holding that line, mostly Spider-Man and the younger generation, but it’s long stopped being a sanctified line in the sand.

[thehood]

I'll never understand why Bendis was so dead set on turning Hawkeye into a killer.

[zylly]

The guy who was canonically going to throw his own wife off the team for killing! (Granted, he was being a bit pig-headed about the whole thing, but still!)

[blues32]

In fairness, Atlas just kinda knocked him out. Everyone else nearly beat him to death.