Oh, I do love Matt Fraction's Hawkeye. I confess, it's actually the only Marvel Comic I'm following right now... The design, the color! And the writing is sooo great! :)
Oh, and I'm excited about Natasha's upcoming comic series...

Edited 2013-10-30 12:58 pm (UTC)

Although they may revoke my nerd card, I have a hard time getting into comics. It's more difficult for me than either a book or a movie is, so the story and the character has to be work it. Add into it arts that makes supposedly athletic women look like twisted dolls, and I go through periods of being into comics, and periods where I don't want to see another one ever again.

I'm glad you put Name of the Rose first! It's my favorite comic of all time, for so many reasons. It's the version of Natasha I turn to when I ask "What Would Natasha Do?"

What I've seen of Fraction's Hawkeye looks amazing, but I'm waiting for my residual bitterness about Natasha not getting a solo-comic until 2014 (!) to die down before I start reading it, 'cause I want to give it a fair go.

And I haven't read Widow's Ledger before, so I will definitely check it out. Kelly Sue Deconnick is pretty amazing :)

/athletic women look like twisted dolls/ - Eh, that's really a downside of reading superhero comics, I can totally agree... *nods*
About this, have you tried Jessica Jones's Alias comic series?
Thanks to Michael Gaydos's art, Jessica has a refreshingly common appearance (here's some pics), plus the story is sooo good. It's one of my favorite series... ;)

Oooh, that looks really good. I'm going to have no money left by the end of this thread!

This amuses me because I just this last week put up the intro to comic Black Widow and Hawkeye post on the Cap Iron Man com. There is a lot of over lap in the two. Surprise surprise. :P There are some I've not read though, so I'm definitely going to have to check those out.

I'd also check out Hawkeye: Blind Spot. It has some flashbacks to things in the past, but it basically Clint being a BAMF and explains some of the set up for Hawkeye(2012.) When I read it I was like 'ohhhh.... so that is what he meant.'

If you can find Hawkeye (2003 - 2004) or have Marvel Unlimited read it! I think Matt Fraction's Hawkeye draws a lot from it on characterizations, because they both are basically Hawkeye sticking his nose where it doesn't belong and helping people who don't want help. :D He also has some pretty awesome fight scenes in it. It is the 2003 run though that pretty much set my head canon for 616!Clint's personality. Natasha shows up in the last story arc of it as well, though it isn't very Natasha/Clint since they are at cross purposes. It is also the source of all those crazy Clint on a Motorcycle panels.

I plan to eventually read the issues where the two of them together, despite the age of the comics.

Thanks for those recs!! I've only recently started reading *some* comics (Fraction Hawkeye, to be precise, for reasons) and as he is quite different from the MCU Clint I was getting interested in where all that came from. I may give those a shot.

I have a Hawkeye Ultimates book (hardcover!) that I started reading and then buried somewhere so I haven't finished it, but that looks and feels much like MCU Clint (in fact Renner said so in an interview, that this is what the MCU draws on). One of these days I will find it again!

I haven't read any Ultimates yet. Is Ultimate Hawkeye worth reading?

If you are really interested in 616!Hawkeye, I also recommend New Avengers: Reunion, which is a spin off short and not part of the main New Avengers title. I didn't rec it before because it is all about Mockingbird(his ex-wife) and him. Not exactly in the interests of the com. Until I read this I actually didn't like Mocking Bird. Mostly because of my Natasha/Clint bias I think. Which is amusing because most the time I don't let things like that color my opinion.

There is a lot of character building for both of them in the book. It is set during Dark Reign so he's Ronin at the time and really delves into Clint and Bobbi's relationship. The part I found really interesting is that it really looks at how he interacts with someone he loves. Comparison between the Clint in the flashbacks and the him in the present really shows how he's developed over the years. The book has really two plots. The obvious one is the two of them finding and stopping AIM form setting off a bomb. The other is told in a bunch of flashbacks and deals with Bobbi's experiences when she was prisoner held by the Skrulls. There is also a brief into why they were getting a divorce and Clint's reaction to her "death."

I liked the bits of the Ultimates book that I did read, but I really didn't get far enough to provide cogent commentary. What I liked was the fact that this looked and sounded like the MCU Clint and Fury, all snark, cynicism and BAMFyness. But I honestly can't say whether that would have been enough.

Thanks for the additional rec -- I may actually look for that. I know nothing about Bobbi or the Ronin period and while I'm inclined to ignore the latter in my personal fic 'verse, I have mentioned Bobbi a couple of times and really should do her the honour of meeting her, so that maybe I can give her a voice at some point.

If you're after more recent Bobbi stuff, she's on the current Secret Avengers team with Clint and Natasha.

If you like snark then definitely check out Widow Maker. There are some great lines in there between Bobbi, Clint and Natasha. Unfortunately, since it was written by two different writers it has a weird sorta tone shift in the middle and some plot threads dropped as well, but it still is worth reading just for the conversation between the three.

The downside of Ultimates is Natasha's characterisation is pretty terrible. :/ But I like Ultimates!Clint, for the most part.

The people at the comics shop are starting to recognize me, which is scary, and then last time (when they called to tell me that Hawkeye #13 was in and I left my husband and child at 8 pm to drive downtown and pick it up) I ran into a colleague. By now I am so far out of the nerd closet, you can't see the closet anymore...

Fraction Hawkeye is fabulous, in a total Hawkeye-as-car-wreck way. You just want to go and pummel him, followed by a long hug and ... well. I look forward to the Black Widow Comics, too! See what they make of her.

And thanks for the recs! :-)

I've only been to the comics store a few times to kind of scope it out, but I set up a pull list and have my baby sister pick up my stuff on Wednesdays because she's closer. Last time I went in myself to pick up my comics, the person was like, "Wait, you're not the usual one who comes to get this pull."

My sister had only come in for the comics once or twice. It was a little spooky.

You are far braver than I. :p I read all my comics digitally because a) no time to go to the shop and b) the only comics shop in town scares me.

The first comics shop I went to, it was full of dudes and they looked at me like I was an alien. Needless to say, I did not stay there long. The comics shop I go to now is a much more female friendly space, thankfully!

I've been going there for over a year now, I really should get around to setting up a pull list... I'll do it when I can pre-order Natasha's book.

Anybody reading Pretty Deadly by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Emma Rios? I got my copy last week and I've had it with me ever since because it's so majestic. I wasn't entirely sure I was going to like it, but it's hands down majestic.

I also have heard great things about Lazarus but I need to figure out where to get my hands on a copy of the first two, as my comic book store only has #3 and #4. Anybody reading that?

Is this your EVERYONE MUST READ ALL THINGS KELLY SUE post? :p

Does it include my name on the top of it and words inside it? Then it can be inferred that it is a EVERYONE MUST READ ALL THINGS KELLY SUE post. :)

I APPROVE :D

I'm reading Lazarus! It's really good, if bleak. I like that they've deliberately drawn the female protagonist as taller and more muscular than most of the male characters, with realistic body proportions. It's nice to see an athletic character who actually looks like an athlete!

Oh, dang, I didn't realize it was bleak. Hmm. Not altogether a fan of bleak. Still, I'll check out the first issue. My friend Kari on Tumblr is raving about it.

Lazarus is bleak and grim, or at least it is so far. We're only 4 issues in, so I don't know if there's going to be a tonal shift later. But it's definitely worth checking out the first few issues.

And, um, the cover of issue 4 hits all my shipping kinks. :P

I had to go to two different stores to find a copy of Pretty Deadly, it sold out so fast! I loved Emma Rios' art on Captain Marvel, so when I heard she was doing another project with Kelly Sue DeConnick I had to check it out. :D

Yeah, I kept seeing people tell me to preorder it on Tumblr, which is the only reason I was able to get a copy. I'm not entirely sure my comic store stocked it otherwise. Though I do live close to one of the stores KS always recommends, so I might have found it. Totally worth it, though, wasn't it???

The store near my house usually stocks all the things I want to read, so I haven't been preordering, but they sold out of Pretty Deadly before the end of the day it came out.

I was not as excited about it as I could have been, but I think they have a really solid set-up and Deathface Ginny sounds like she will be really cool when she starts getting more panel time.

Yes, and it is made of fantastic!

I've been reading Lazarus - issues 1-4 are a complete arc. Intriguing futuristic world type stuff. There are research notes at the back of each comic about how scientific advances have informed the story. And female lead whose body shape matches her abilities for the win.

I don't have all that much to add because YES TO ALL OF THE THINGS.

Also, Name of the Rose and Avengers Assemble 12-14 actually have a really big impact on the way I write MCU Natasha in fic. I know it's not technically the same canon, but for me it was those insights into her character that made me feel like I was finally able to get a handle on writing her when I first got into the fandom.

I haven't read any comics.. Is there a cheat sheet somwhere? Can you ladies (are we all ladies) just spill characterizations at me bc I am lazy and on a budget?

I have a completely superficial beef with the new BW comics. I also think the artwork for most women in comics is ridiculous. And this one seems I be more realistic (well all I have seen is her face but I am making assumptions). Only... She's not very striking. Just kinda average. I want Natasha to be insanely hot at all times.

Please don't shoot me for that petty thought.

Check your local library/inter-library loan. Depending on where you are and what your library has access to you can often pick up the trades to read.

Ooh, I wonder if they do. I will have to check it out. Thanks for the suggestion!

Well, 'hot' is relative. ;)

Have you seen the cover for Black Widow #2? She has realistic body proportions and her suit is zipped up, which is nice to see. In fact, all the covers for the upcoming female-led solo comics (Black Widow, Elektra, She-Hulk and Captain Marvel) have been mercifully free of T n'A poses and twisted spines, which bodes well!

Also, the Ultron tie-in makes me cry every. single. time. I read it. Without fail. It's that good.

Ooh, Widowmaker sounds really entertaining, thanks for the rec!

Thank you for the recommendations. Though I have read some Clint/Natasha comics they have always been sporadic. More recommendations always helps.

Yes to all of these recs! Although Widowmaker is daft and over the top, I still enjoyed it. The rest I love. I'd also rec the current run of Secret Avengers, which whilst it doesn't have Clint and Natasha has a couple does have them working together and close parntners, some fantastic interactions between them. Also it's heavily SHIELD, if you like Fury, Hill, Coulson, Bobbi Morse, a touch of Bruce Banner... and no prior comics knowledge required.

I'd read a bunch of graphic novels, but last year I also started reading comics, started going to comics fayres with a group of friends, and Marvel movie trips, and my first comic con... It's a slippery slope, my friends. And fun all the way down ;D

Hmm, other Clint and Natasha comics... I'm currently reading The Things They Say About Her and the Black Widow and the Marvel Girls comics aren't bad. I'm on the look out for more Black Widow than Clint comics really. Looking forward to her new one in January! Oh, and Secret Avengers: run the mission, don't get caught, save the world by Warren Ellis has some Clint and Natasha but also a Natasha time travel comic of fun.

On the Marvel front we have ladies in the Marvel Now X Men. All New X Men makes me laugh a hell of a lot. X Men Battle of the Atom is the most straight forward crossover event ever - each comic is labelled chapter 1 - 10 - and that cracks me up, complete with a touch of fantastic Maria Hill. I'm behind in the Avengers comics, but Captain Marvel and the Avengers Assemble comics written by Kelly Sue DeConnick (and, basically, everything written by this woman) are fantastic.

I've also been loving a lot of comics by Image. These are usually new things with no convoluted back issues or what have to delve into and the art is wow. Like Saga. If anyone isn't reading Saga, really, Saga. Morning Glories. Ten Grand. Lazarus. Pretty Deadly. Just getting into mind The Gap. And there is a new Sandman comic out which is a prequel. (I got Pretty Deadly, Saga, and Sandman on the same day. I may have been somewhat excited about this.)

SO. YES. Comics :)

Everyone should read Captain Marvel because CAROL DANVERS' AWESOMENESS MUST BE SHARED WITH THE WORLD. Plus I want more people to join me on the Carol Danvers/Jessica Drew ship. :P

In addition to Black Widow, Marvel is also publishing two other new female-led solo comics in 2014, Elektra and She-Hulk. The covers for Elektra are gorgeous and She-Hulk looks like it will be a lot of fun. Captain Marvel is also being relaunched, so that will be a great jumping on point, everyone!