The adventure continues as Kate, the best Hawkeye, tries to uncover what is happening at Resort Chapiteau! Seems like the staff are turning on Kate, and her sister Susan may know why that is. With more questions than answers, Kate’s starting to understand the value of a support network she trusts.
Hawkeye Kate Bishop #3 is available now at your local comic book shop! Spoilers below!
Writer: Marieke Nijkamp
Penciler: Enid Balám
Colour Artist: Brittany Peer
Letter: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Jahnoy Lindsay
Normally, rescuing a kidnapped little girl doesn’t result in being surrounded by mind-controlled resort guests who want to attack you. But then, being Hawkeye doesn’t involve a whole lot of normal. Kate’s vacation itinerary keeps shortening: 1. Escape the hordes. 2. Interrogate Susan about what the heck is really going on. And 3. Stop the bad guys before they hurt (or mind-control) anyone else ever again.
REVIEW – So Much for Relaxing by the Pool!
Despite saving a little girl in the last issue, Kate still has her hands full at Resort Chapiteau. But now, things are now even more tense as mind-controlled resort staff surround Kate and Susan. I continue to love the “And Then There Were None” vibes in this mini-series! And I think the pacing of this particular issue really hone in on those quiet moments within thrillers that add to building suspense. I particularly like how Marieke Nijkamp’s writing in this issue highlights how Kate and Susan are sisters. It’s more clear in this issue what some of their shared personality traits are, like determination and commitment. For example, Kate wants Susan to leave the resort for safety, but her sister refuses saying, “You’re my little sister, Katie. I can’t run off knowing that you’re in danger. I won’t see you get hurt either. Not again.” Not only are they reconnecting and bonding, but Kate is starting to understand her sister and wants to trust her. It’s heartwarming to see family members communicate!
Dynamic combat sequences bookended these quiet moments between the sisters, and Kate’s sneaking into the basement of Resort Chapiteau. Personally, I loved how dynamic and energetic Enid Balám’s artstyle illustrates Kate’s movements, especially in those two page spreads of combat. And on the note of those two-page spreads, even in those quiet moments between Kate and Susan, I personally really liked the panel composition between the sister holding hands and smaller panels framing the sides showcasing past memories. It was really effective in showing how the past and present came to face one another.
One of my favourite scenes in this issue is when Kate sneaks into the basement and she’s texting her friends’ group chat and Clint. She texts her friends asking for backup (aka, asking for help). Again, Kate’s movements are illustrated in a clear and dynamic fashion and is balanced off by text messages as narration. But I think Brittany Peer’s colouring really pulled the pencils and writing together here because Kate and Clint’s texting bubbles are coloured by different, but similar, shades of purple. This exchange evokes the humour that I love about Kate’s character. She texts Clint out of the blue to unload her thoughts, and his only replies are, “??? …????” and him asking that she be careful. These text exchanges show the mutual understanding between the two Hawkeyes, but also show Kate’s emotional growth because she’s reaching out to her support network. Whereas back in issue #1, she insisted she was fine working on her own.
This issue was fun to read. As mentioned, I really enjoyed going over those two-page spreads, following Kate’s movements in combat. But I would have preferred if this issue had leaned more into those quiet moments to further build tension with the eeriness of Resort Chapiteau, and maybe glean a bit more into Kate’s inner monologue too.
Hawkeye Kate Bishop #3 ends by revealing who is behind the Circus of Crime, aka who’s been watching Kate on the security cameras. The mystery person is Pascale Tiboldt (awesome outfit by the way!)! And apparently Lucky the Pizza Dog is also MIA?! Looking forward to the next issue!
RATING – 4/5 Pocky
Erika Chung is a fan of comics, pop culture and genre media. She’s also a grad student and her research interests are in comics, fan culture and the intersectionality of race and gender.
