A Show of Hands

Hawkeye has been on the run from his old foes after a bounty has been put on his head.[1] With poison running through his system, the archer has been on the run all night. Climbing up onto a nearby rooftop, Clint runs right into his former mentor, Trickshot. At first, the archer believes that Tricky is also after the bounty. However, his former mentor saves Clint’s life when the Death Throw’s Knick-Knack tries to sneak up behind him. Too weak to move on his own anymore, Hawkeye is helped down to an alleyway.

There, Trickshot patches up Hawkeye’s wounds. While he is working, Trickshot explains that the bounty isn’t on Clint’s life, but rather an the amputation of his right arm. However, put the price on his head wants the famous archer to live the rest of his life without being able to fire a bow and arrow ever again. When word got to Trickshot he decided to come to his former mentor’s rescue. However, Clint doesn’t buy this explanation as Trickshot tried to kill him during their last encounter.[2] While Trickshot is playing lookout, Hawkeye sneaks away before hearing Trickshot theorize that the man who put the bounty on his head probably planted a tracking device on Clint.

Ducking into the sewers, Clint tries to get away but is ambushed by Razor-Fist. The assassin isn’t really interested in collecting the bounty and actually wants to kill Hawkeye because it would boost his reputation. Hawkeye struggles to defend himself, but ultimately defeats Razor-Fist by using a putty arrow to stick his opponent’s razor blades together.

However, further down the tunnel Hawkeye is eventually surrounded by the Brothers Grimm, Mad-Dog, Bobcat, Bullet Biker, and the Death-Throws. They are all joined by Crossfire, who reveals that he is the one behind putting the bounty on Hawkeye’s arm.[3]

Recurring Characters

Hawkeye, Trickshot, Crossfire, Razor-Fist, Brothers Grimm, Bobcat, Bullet Biker, Mad-Dog, Death Throws (Ringleader, Bombshell, Oddball, Tenpin, Knicknack),

Continuity Notes

1. Hawkeye has been on the run from crooks who want to cash in on this bounty since Avengers Spotlight #22.

2. Trickshot taught Clint everything he knows about archery when he was just a kid. Later on, Trickshot was diagnosed with cancer and tried to fight Hawkeye to the death. Rather than kill his former teacher, Clint promised to help him try and beat the cancer that was eating away at him. This was all covered in Solo Avengers #1-5. Next issue we learn that Trickshot’s cancer had gone into remission since then.

3. Crossfire wants revenge against Hawkeye after the archer foiled his previous scheme. See Hawkeye #1-4.

Waste Not, Want Not

The super-heroine known as Firebird has been abducted by a group of aliens who are trying to determine the source of her powers. They subject her to a probe and dig through her memories to learn the truth. First, they pull up the her most recent memories of when they first captured her while she was dealing with a fire at Yosemite National Park.

Digging back further, they learn that she was briefly associated with the West Coast Avengers, and how -- while briefly operating under the name of La Espirita — she talked Hank Pym out of committing suicide.[1] From here, they learn that Firebird believed her powers to be divinely given to her by God and decide to dig deeper into her memories to find out exactly how she came to believe this.[2]

They pull up a memory from 1.9 years earlier, when Bonita Juarez was returning home with her priest, Father Mendiguez. The Father had to break the unfortunate news to Bonita that the church could not continue funding her education in social work. Upset by this, Bonita demanded to be let out so she could walk the rest of the way home alone.

However, she soon finds herself lost in the desert in the middle of the night and cursing herself for acting so foolishly. That’s when a meteor fell out of the sky and crashed right in front of her. Curious, she approached the flaming rock and was blasted by cold flames as when she got too close. Concluding their probe, the aliens confirm that this was how Bonita got her powers as Firebird and realize that it is their fault.

By this time, Firebird has been able to use her power to break free from her bonds and demand to know what why she has been abducted. The leader of the aliens explains that they are part of an organization called the Society of Higher Interstellar Education and Logistical Development, or SHIELD for short (but, you know, not that SHIELD). They explain that they were responsible for Bonita obtaining her powers and that it was caused by accident.

Hearing how the meteor gave her power was due to one of the aliens improperly disposing of chemical waste angers Firebird who is furious that her powers actually did not come from a divine source. However, this anger soon turns into shame and embarrassment over her own hubris. However, the leader of SHIELD tells Bonita that although her powers were not intentionally given to her, they are great powers indeed and offers to help her learn the full potential of her abilities.

Firebird eventually learns that her powers actually allow her to manipulate all forms of heat energy, giving her a greater range of skills an abilities. Returned to Earth, Bonita finds new purpose for her power and while she accepts that her god didn’t have a direct hand in giving her these amazing abilities she can’t help but think that perhaps it was still part of his grand scheme of things.

Recurring Characters

Firebird

Continuity Notes

1. Some facts about Firebird off the top:

   • Firebird spent an extended period of time with the West Coast Avengers in the hopes that they would invite her to join their team. Ultimately, they chose to recruit the Thing and she left them shortly thereafter. See West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #4-10.

   • She later returned to Avengers Compound as La Espirita and convinced Hank out of committing suicide in West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #17-23. This time around, she decided that she didn’t want to join the WCA and left the group in issue #25.

   • One of the aliens confirms how the Avengers have fought the Kree in the past. This is true, however, this was years before the west coast branch was formed. Their most notable clash with that race happened during the Kree/Skrull War in Avengers #89-97.

2. It is stated here that Bonita her powers about 1.9 years prior to this story. This would predate her first appearance in Incredible Hulk #265, where she was already Firebird. She first recounted her origins in West Coast Avengers (vol. 2) #4. That said, the Hulk story was published in November, 1981 and this story in November, 1989. Per the Sliding Timescale, the Hulk story happened around the start of “Year Six” of the Modern Age, while this story takes around the start of “Year Eight”, making this assessment of time (one year and 9 months) more or less accurate and should be considered factual.