TOT: Hawkeye To Hugeguy

Anyone remember that one time Hawkeye became Goliath?

Clint Barton has been many things: Blind, deaf, a ninja, he was Captain America for an afternoon. But we all know him as Hawkeye-The Avenging Archer. He began his career as a criminal working with The Circus of Crime until he decided to turn his life around and join the second incarnation of The Avengers, consisting of two more ex-cons Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, and Captain America-the first recruit of The Avengers. As time went on Clint worked side by side with such legends as Thor, The Hulk, and Ant-Man. Formerly Ant-Man, that is. See, good ol' Hank Pym got so self-conscious (being around modern day Gods and what not) he decided to reverse his shrinking technology and become Giant-Man! However, the particles end up lasting more than four hours, and since the only doctor he could call about his enlargement is himself, he has no choice but to remain giant for a while. During this period Hank joined The Avengers again as Goliath.

During an incident when Hank wasn't Goliath and Hawkeye was battling a giant monster at a circus (just go with it) his bow breaks and he is left useless. Absolutely useless. No bow, no go. He is a waste of space. But then he runs back to Hank's lab and dons a new suit and drinks Pym Particles (that's not a euphemism) and becomes the new Goliath. He rocks the mantle for about two years until the event known as The Kree-Skrull War, a battle between two alien races for the rights to planet Earth. At the conclusion of that story Clint returns to the mantle of Hawkeye. Over four decades later Clint would ironically die battling Kree invaders and five years later his wife would be replaced with a Skrull. Figures.

Clint may not be the first Avenger you call on in a jam, but he's not useless. No matter who says so. He's a sharp shooter with a dozen teched out arrows and a former life of crime, he's got the tools he needs to be a decent crime fighter. Really, this guy should be a Hero for Hire, but he's Avenger material! Throwing a shield, being a ninja, and firing arrows may be minor contributions from Clint, but being giant? Not his element. To see a a guy so accustomed to standing back and firing arrows to instantly rely on growing giant and punching folks is just irrational. And just because he's stealing Hank Pym's gimmick doesn't mean he has to steal his mental state.

Thanks for reading.