Seen In: Avengers #502 Following the disastrous run of Avengers comics in the 90s, fans of Earth's Mightiest Heroes finally got a bright spot at the end of the decade in the form of writer Kurt Busiek, who, alongside classic Avengers artist George Perez, breathed new life into the team. Telling stories that remained true to the heart of the Avengers, while still being innovative, entertaining and accessible for new readers, Busiek's run ranks as one of the best comic runs in Marvel history. It was followed by a shorter, but still great run by Geoff Johns. Then, Marvel hired Brian Michael Bendis to treat decades of Avengers history as toilet paper. As his opening salvo, Bendis wrote Avengers: Disassembled, a pointless exercise in schlock storytelling that saw several Avengers killed by the Scarlet Witch, who had gone insane for absolutely no logical reason other than Bendis needed some shocking twist to explain all the nonsense going on in the story. Perhaps the dumbest death of all came in the form of Hawkeye. A stray blast from a Kree soldier hit Hawkeye's quiver and it lit a fuse on one of his explosive trick arrows. Hawkeye then grabbed a Kree with a jetpack and flew them both into one of the Kree ships, blowing himself up along with the soldier and the ship. So...let's get this straight. Hawkeye is wearing a quiver, which can be removed from his body. The arrows stored in his quiver can also be easily removed. He has enough time to grab a soldier, activate that soldier's jetpack, and fly them into a ship that has to be quite a distance above given that this battle is occurring in the heart of New York City. Why not just take off the quiver? Or why not pull the arrow out and shoot it at something, say the ship you sacrificed yourself for no reason?
Percival Constantine is the author of several novels and short stories, including the Vanguard superhero series, and regularly writes and comments on movies, comics, and other pop culture. More information can be found at his website, PercivalConstantine.com
