Old Man Hawkeye #1

By Ethan Sacks, Marco Checchetto, Andres Mossa

Old Man Hawkeye is the latest solo series featuring older versions of the characters we know and love set in a dark future following a super villain uprising that led to the death of most superheroes and a changing nature of the world. We’ve had, most famously, Old Man Logan, but Marvel has also released Deadpool vs. Old Man Logan, and an older version of Kamala Khan Who will join the Exiles under the pen of Saladin Ahmed. So, with more older characters being added to the mix, an older Hawkeye represents an interesting possibility. He doesn’t have superpowers, his skill set being merely good with a bow and arrow, and in a world where old alliances aren’t always what they were, things make for a very interesting read.



Hawkeye was one of the more unlikely choices for an “Old Man” book especially when the Old Man Logan series is held in such high regard, but the book itself is rewarding. It’s essentially a prequel to Mark Millar and Steve McNiven’s series and the Hawkeye we see here is a bit younger, and his journey towards that point will no doubt be exciting to follow. Sacks skilfully manages to write Hawkeye well as a character; someone who knows that he’s starting to lose his sight, the one thing that is the most important to him. The fact that it looks like this book is so far balancing character development with action is really paying off, with plenty of emotional moments mixed in with high-octane fight sequences.

The desolate and bleak tone of Old Man Hawkeye fits the book really well. It’s familiar to that of the movie Logan in terms of design, and the book almost feels like a western in places. The artwork from Marco Checchetto and Andres Mossa, on pencils and colors respectively, is spot on with both painting an incredibly atmospheric picture that really immerses you in the landscape and the world that is on display here.

Checchetto’s pencils portray Hawkeye as a man who knows he’s coming to the end and time is running out, and he wants to go on one last mission of revenge. There’s a couple of cameos from various characters and a flashback that reveals what happened to the mother of his child, who herself is a rebellious teenager who hasn’t exactly followed her father’s superhero habits. The facial expressions in the characters and their reactions to various events is fantastic. Mossa’s colors really help flesh them out as well, making them believable and right at home in the context of the universe this book is taking place in.

Old Man Hawkeye is a book to keep an eye on. It might be too early to tell whether or not it will have the payoff that readers are hoping it might, but from the first issue, there are promising signs ahead indeed. If you’re a fan of Clint or of Old Man Logan, or someone curious to see more about the people who inhabit a world like this, look no further.