Captain America 9, Hawkeye Annual 1

Captain America 9
Remender (w) and Romita Jr. and Janson w/ Hanna and Palmer (a) and White (c)

Sharon has arrived in Dimension Z, telling Cap that everything that's happened must be false memories or some other manner of brain manipulation; he can't have been here ten years because she followed right behind him through the portal. Everything, this now included, sends Cap a little off the deep end. He's dealt with a lot already this series and now, bruised and beaten with his adopted son apparently dead, shot by the woman he loves, while she tells him that it was all a dream seems too much to bear. Still, he's Captain America so even at his lowest he stands and, instead of leaving with Sharon immediately, demands they go save Jet, who is still working to free the Phrox.

Plenty happens in this issue, no less the idea, planted into Cap's head, that this may have all been a dream. He will not believe it but Sharon is adamant. Whether she truly believes it or if she thinks this is the fastest way to get Steve standing is debatable (though the first instinct, if she did follow just moments behind Steve, is obviously to believe that this isn't real, Sharon's certainly seen enough in her time to accept it as real), but the revelation that it could have been a dream really floors Steve. Still, his mantra of "always stand up" kicks back in and he manages to revive himself enough to keep moving and to attack Zola on Jet's behalf. There's more interesting stuff with Jet that rings up more questions about her character and what she's working for but one of the most interesting parts to me is the way that Remender has played this whole arc nicely into Uncanny Avengers. We were told in that book that Cap has just returned from Dimension Z, which no one else knows, and that plays into why he's so on edge. At first, there's a real sense that his anger at Logan is driven by what Logan's done, then the first instinct after you learn this is post-Dimension Z is that Steve's just been through a lot and he takes it out on Logan. However, knowing what we know about this series and about what made him so mad at Logan, we can really start to see deeper into what's happened with Steve. He's mad at logan because Logan killed a child who was bred to be evil but was still only a child. Remind you of anyone? It certainly should and it gives us pause as to how he's going to react to Sharon with this attitude. Another solid issue. The conclusion of this first arc comes next issue and the fallout will probably come with it.

Hawkeye Annual 1
Fraction (w) and Pulido (a) and Hollingsworth (c)

Annuals, for those unaware, tend to be given to popular books at Marvel and are generally a double-size issue that may or may not be pertinent to the story at hand. You don't want to assume that everyone buying the series will buy the annual so you don't want to load it with too much giant stuff but you also want to give everyone a good read and a read that falls within the scope of the book that spawned the annual, especially since annuals tend to be more expensive. This one is 4.99 instead of Hawkeye's typical 2.99 (I believe it's still one of the 2.99 books; it might be 3.99 and I'm too far away to look at old issues right now. Well I could. But I won't. Could I look it up on the internet? Yup. But we're really already taking too much time from the review). With that in mind, you should buy this book despite its cost and its possibility to be skipped (I'm not sure it is really possible to be skipped at this point but I think you could gain just about everything you need to gain for the future out of past issues and future issues. Hard to say as I, too, am not in the future). This annual focuses on Kate Bishop, the Lady Hawkguy, the Hawkeye, the Young Avenger, and so on, and her travel westward. She's done with Clint and his desire to push everyone away when he needs them most and she refuses to be dragged down by him. With Lucky in tow, she drives out to California, happy to get away for at least a little bit and desperate to figure out who she wants to be in this world. However, she's not the only person interested in her identity (perfect segue); Madame Masque, who Kate royally pissed off back in Hawkeyes 4 and 5, has had her ear to the ground all this time, waiting for Katie Kate to resurface. Now Kate has to get away from a solid Marvel villain as well as the people she actually cares about, though frankly Madame Masque is the more threatening in that situation.

This is a phenomenal issue with a lot of fun energy from Kate, some good twists and turns, and a great emotional core to it that gives us a lot of background into Kate's life as well as her motivations for doing what she does. Kate's been around in the Marvel Universe for a while now but she's still something of a mystery, in truth. I think, because she's been here so long and she's so personable, it's easy to forget that we don't know all that much about her. Maybe it's because there's not much to know; she doesn't have a hugely tragic background like Spider-Man or Iron Fist (guys, his mom was eaten by wolves practically in front of him). Her mother died and her father is a powerful business man who remarried someone not much older than Kate. He seems to be a good enough guy (he had been, if I'm remembering right, more overprotective in the original Young Avengers books than he seems to be in this one) but he's not a terribly interesting character nor a terribly interesting backdrop for the drama we crave from our superheroes. So where does the mystery come in? It's the question of why for Kate, and a little bit the question of how. They're, of course, interconnected and well explained here. The truth is, beyond this explanation, you don't necessarily need much. Heroes don't need to have a harrowing story behind them; they need to be heroes. Still, it's nice to have Fraction know that and, instead of trying to spice up Kate's past with darkness that she had to overcome, highlight the aspects of Kate that make her who she is. Great issue. Pulido's art is decidedly a switch from Aja's and gives the book a completely different feel. I can't quite put my finger on what I'm thinking of when I see it but it reminds me of an older time in comics. It's pretty gorgeous and there are some really great moments with it. Spend the five dollars, dudes. It's worth it.