Down the rabbit hole: A year reading comics

Three days after seeing Captain America: The Winter Soldier, I discovered Hawkeye upon the recommendations of friends. I am forever indebted to Matt Fraction and his Hawkguy run—it was the first comic I ever read seriously. It seems fitting, if not bittersweet, that the last issue is currently slotted to come out exactly one year after I started reading the series. (Although, with Hawkeye’s irregular publishing schedule, that could change at a moment’s notice.)

Hawkeye is nothing like what I imagined comics were. For one, I always pictured far more spangly outfits and dudes in spandex. Hawkeye has neither.

Clint Barton is a regular guy, kind of beat up and kind of a loser, but with a good heart and considerable archery skills. Fraction skirts over-the-top heroics in favor of giving us a hero who spends a significant amount of time trying to keep his head above water. Hawkeye is a comic about trying to find your place, and that constant feeling of maybe being in over your head—two things that I, as a college student, find scarily relatable. I couldn’t have asked for a better series to start with.

From then on, finding new things to read happened naturally. Reading comics was less about simply trying something new and more of a natural and seemingly inevitable progression of my interests in writing and art. I was familiar with the comic book movie genre, but not the comics behind them—by that point I had seen and loved The Avengers, Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger.

When I moved back home after the end of my junior year, I immersed myself in the stories behind the films. I binge-bought graphic novels. I read Watchmen, which was everything I hoped it would be and nothing that I expected. I read Captain America Vol. 5, which broke my heart and turned me into a staunch Cap defender. I read a slew of recommendations that took me through the end of the summer and turned me on to some amazing writers.

In October, mostly by fortuitous happenstance, I had the opportunity to go to New York Comic Con, which introduced me to some of the great books Image is publishing, as well as a few creators.

(Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to articulate how important Hawkeye was to me upon meeting Matt Fraction, but it was

still an incredible experience. And I got this incredible Hawkeye sweater from WeLoveFine, which you can kind of see in the picture.) I left NYCC dazed and happy, with a million memories I hope to never let go.

Where am I going with this? I don’t mean for this post to be a braggy list of, “look what I have read and done,” because all things considered, I have so much more to read and learn.

This is my roundabout, a long-winded love letter to comics and what they have come to mean for me. Wednesdays are a little slice of happiness in weeks that are otherwise busy and sometimes hellishly full of class, work, and assignments. I appreciate the writing and intriguing visual aspect of the storytelling. I enjoy the sense of community—having something to talk about with friends who share my interests or the guy at the comic book shop when I pick up my pulls. Even if I don’t know writers and artists personally, I like that they’re also part of that community.

One of the other things I love about comics is that there’s something for everyone, whether you’re interested more in art or story or both. There are superheroes, yes, but there are also fantasy adventures and westerns and galactic reimaginings of classic literature and biographic graphic novels. There are stories about gods and stories about Death herself. If you can think of it, it probably exists, and if it doesn’t, maybe it’s something you should write.

The first issue of All-New Hawkeye comes out tomorrow (I jumped the gun a little on this post) and I feel like year one has come full circle. While I’m sad to see Matt Fraction’s run come to an end soon, the series will always have a place in my heart and on my shelf, and I look forward to reading and expanding my library in the months to come.

Hawkeye can be read digitally through Marvel or Comixology. It has also been collected in trade paperbacks, available in most comic book stores or through Amazon.

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