S.H.I.E.L.D. Personnel File : BARTON, Clinton F. (Codename: HAWKEYE)
NAME: Clinton Francis “Clint” Barton
ALIAS: Hawkeye, Ronin (retired), Golden Archer (retired), Goliath (retired)
PLACE OF ORIGIN: Waverly, Iowa
MARITAL STATUS: Divorced, Barbara Morse
FAMILY: Edith Barton (mother, deceased); Harold Barton (father, deceased); Charles Bernard “Barney” Barton (brother)
OCCUPATION: marksman. member of the Avengers.
PERSONALITY:
Some people might consider Clint Barton’s personality to be a flawed one. He had a rough childhood which left him with a heap of trust issues, mostly centered around male role models. This is continually made worse by his bad luck with father-figures and relationships. Fortunately, he tends to bounce back pretty quick because he’s always expecting things to fall apart.
This borderline-unhealthy cynicism keeps things in perspective. Clint is pretty good at speaking his mind, no matter the cost. If you’re out of line or making the wrong decision, he’ll tell you. It’s one of the qualities that he is most known for amongst the Avengers.
As an Avenger, Clint has shown remarkable bravery and loyalty. He is one of the few Avengers with no real super ability. Scientifically speaking, he’s just a guy in a costume, but he fights alongside teammates who are immortal, impermeable, and nearly invincible. Occasionally, self-depreciation rears its ugly head because of this (see: Goliath), but all-in-all he’s alright with it.
Romantically speaking Clint is a train-wreck. He’s more than a little known for getting around, but he mostly goes for the many powerful women who he works with. Deep down, though, he’s a real romantic. He wants to be someone’s white knight with a bow and arrow.
HISTORY:
Clinton Barton never expected to run away to the circus. It just happened that way.
After the death of his mother and his abusive father in a car accident, Clint and his older brother Barney ran away from the boy’s home they were stuck in and signed up for life under the big-top.
It wasn’t glamorous, but it was better than sitting around and waiting for nothing good to happen for them. Clint trained hard under the tutelage of the Swordsman then Trick Shot. When Clint accidentally discovers the Swordsman’s embezzlement scheme, his own mentor nearly kills him and leaves him for dead.
Shortly thereafter, his own brother decides to leave and join the army and takes it personally when Clint won’t go with him. Instead, Clint stayed behind, loyal to Trick Shot, even through less-than-legal operations. He believed that Trick Shot wouldn’t steer him wrong.
Their partnership ended when Trick Shot knowingly lured him into apparently killing his brother in cold blood. Clint escaped, seeking refuge with another circus as a solo act where he spotted Iron Man for the first time. Inspired by his costumed-heroics, Clint donned his circus costume and tried to fight crime with his archery skills.
Unfortunately, he was mistaken for a criminal by authorities. Instead of leaping at the straight-and-narrow, Clint partnered up with then-Russian spy, Natasha Romanova (aka Black Widow). Together, they made a powerful couple both personally and professionally. But somehow, a life of criminal did not suit him. He left Natasha and sought out a better life.
It took some years and a lot of convincing before Clint, under his stage name, Hawkeye, to make it to the big time of heroics with the Avengers. He won their trust and joined alongside Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.
The Avengers presented Clint with a whole new father figure, Captain America himself, Steve Rogers. Despite all of his rebellious streaks and stubbornness, Clint warmed up to the mentorship of Steve. He proved to be a tough mentor as well as a dear friend. In fact, Clint would go so far as to call Steve and the others the closest he’s ever really had to family.
Over the years, Clint has left and come back from the Avengers more times than some people change their socks. Or at least it felt that way. He changed his identity a few times and even died once or twice. While trying to life a ‘normal’ life outside of the Avengers, Clint found Bobbi Morse. The two of them were caught up in a whirlwind relationship and were very suddenly married. Not that Clint minded. Bobbi was smart, hot, and (oh yeah) a super-spy by the name of Mockingbird.
Clint and Bobbi were kidnapped by a super-terrorist by the name of Crossfire, who tried to hypnotize them into killing each other, but they managed to escape. The only casualty was Clint’s hearing, which was reduced to nearly nothing, forcing him to wear a hearing aid for years until he was cured by Franklin Richards many years later.
Clint acted as the head of the West Coast Avengers for years, as well as the Thunderbolts. While leadership was never the ideal place for him, he did it all under the advisement of Steve Rogers. It wore on him and had its consequences, but he never backed down, much to the detriment of his marriage.
After years of marriage, Bobbi was kidnapped and raped by the Phantom Rider, but Clint believed she had simply cheated on him because she had been brainwashed and had appeared to be a willing participant. This drove them apart very quickly. Their divorce hit him hard, but he moved on to some of his fellow Avengers including the Wasp, Black Widow, Spider-woman, and Scarlet Witch.
When Scarlet Witch lost her grasp on reality, she killed her own husband, The Vision, as well as Ant-man and Hawkeye.
The next thing he knew, he woke up in a whole different life. The world was primarily populated by mutants and was ruled by Magneto and he couldn’t remember it ever being any different until Emma Frost came and, with the help of a strange girl, fixed his memories. This would have been a great thing, except that he had been dead for a year by the hands of the woman who had created this alternate world.
In the midst of a gigantic battle, Clint sought out Scarlet Witch and tried to kill her, only to be killed again by her.
But when the world was reset, so was Clint Barton. He awoke inside the Avengers Mansion with all of his confusing memories to wade through. He left the manor and his old identity as Hawkeye behind in search of answers.
What he found was Scarlet Witch without her powers or memories, as well as a new name and a new purpose. He took up the mantle of Ronin and rejoined the Avengers.
As a veteran Avenger, he’s had more friends die or retire than he’d care to remember. Most of the casualties were at the hands of their enemies, but some came from inside the fold. When his mentor, Steve Rogers, was killed by a sniper, Clint was coaxed by Tony Stark to take up the mantle, which he did for all of a day before he was set right by his own junior from the Young Avengers, Kate Bishop, and Patriot.
Since the reconciliation of the hero community after the return of Steve and the elimination of the Superhuman Registration Act, Clint has reclaimed his title as Hawkeye, been elected the leader of the regular Avengers, and was nearly killed a thousand times over. He lost his sight temporarily and continues to develop somewhat dysfunctional but mostly healthy relationship with his friends and lovers.
NOTES:
I’m going for mix movie/comics (616) verse, with a heavy emphasis on the comics. For two reasons. One, The Avengers movie isn’t out yet, which makes it hard to write for a character that’s in it. Two, because I really do love the comics.
Clint is my very first comic book character I've attempted. If you've got any suggestions or comments, please see HMD.
I’ve not been the most avid of comics readers my whole life, but I’m trying. I’ve been speed-reading as much of the recent canon as I can get my hands on. If I’m not up to date, I’ll do the research.
FURTHER READING: Marvel Database
ALIAS: Hawkeye, Ronin (retired), Golden Archer (retired), Goliath (retired)
PLACE OF ORIGIN: Waverly, Iowa
MARITAL STATUS: Divorced, Barbara Morse
FAMILY: Edith Barton (mother, deceased); Harold Barton (father, deceased); Charles Bernard “Barney” Barton (brother)
OCCUPATION: marksman. member of the Avengers.
PERSONALITY:
Some people might consider Clint Barton’s personality to be a flawed one. He had a rough childhood which left him with a heap of trust issues, mostly centered around male role models. This is continually made worse by his bad luck with father-figures and relationships. Fortunately, he tends to bounce back pretty quick because he’s always expecting things to fall apart.
This borderline-unhealthy cynicism keeps things in perspective. Clint is pretty good at speaking his mind, no matter the cost. If you’re out of line or making the wrong decision, he’ll tell you. It’s one of the qualities that he is most known for amongst the Avengers.
As an Avenger, Clint has shown remarkable bravery and loyalty. He is one of the few Avengers with no real super ability. Scientifically speaking, he’s just a guy in a costume, but he fights alongside teammates who are immortal, impermeable, and nearly invincible. Occasionally, self-depreciation rears its ugly head because of this (see: Goliath), but all-in-all he’s alright with it.
Romantically speaking Clint is a train-wreck. He’s more than a little known for getting around, but he mostly goes for the many powerful women who he works with. Deep down, though, he’s a real romantic. He wants to be someone’s white knight with a bow and arrow.
HISTORY:
Clinton Barton never expected to run away to the circus. It just happened that way.
After the death of his mother and his abusive father in a car accident, Clint and his older brother Barney ran away from the boy’s home they were stuck in and signed up for life under the big-top.
It wasn’t glamorous, but it was better than sitting around and waiting for nothing good to happen for them. Clint trained hard under the tutelage of the Swordsman then Trick Shot. When Clint accidentally discovers the Swordsman’s embezzlement scheme, his own mentor nearly kills him and leaves him for dead.
Shortly thereafter, his own brother decides to leave and join the army and takes it personally when Clint won’t go with him. Instead, Clint stayed behind, loyal to Trick Shot, even through less-than-legal operations. He believed that Trick Shot wouldn’t steer him wrong.
Their partnership ended when Trick Shot knowingly lured him into apparently killing his brother in cold blood. Clint escaped, seeking refuge with another circus as a solo act where he spotted Iron Man for the first time. Inspired by his costumed-heroics, Clint donned his circus costume and tried to fight crime with his archery skills.
Unfortunately, he was mistaken for a criminal by authorities. Instead of leaping at the straight-and-narrow, Clint partnered up with then-Russian spy, Natasha Romanova (aka Black Widow). Together, they made a powerful couple both personally and professionally. But somehow, a life of criminal did not suit him. He left Natasha and sought out a better life.
It took some years and a lot of convincing before Clint, under his stage name, Hawkeye, to make it to the big time of heroics with the Avengers. He won their trust and joined alongside Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.
The Avengers presented Clint with a whole new father figure, Captain America himself, Steve Rogers. Despite all of his rebellious streaks and stubbornness, Clint warmed up to the mentorship of Steve. He proved to be a tough mentor as well as a dear friend. In fact, Clint would go so far as to call Steve and the others the closest he’s ever really had to family.
Over the years, Clint has left and come back from the Avengers more times than some people change their socks. Or at least it felt that way. He changed his identity a few times and even died once or twice. While trying to life a ‘normal’ life outside of the Avengers, Clint found Bobbi Morse. The two of them were caught up in a whirlwind relationship and were very suddenly married. Not that Clint minded. Bobbi was smart, hot, and (oh yeah) a super-spy by the name of Mockingbird.
Clint and Bobbi were kidnapped by a super-terrorist by the name of Crossfire, who tried to hypnotize them into killing each other, but they managed to escape. The only casualty was Clint’s hearing, which was reduced to nearly nothing, forcing him to wear a hearing aid for years until he was cured by Franklin Richards many years later.
Clint acted as the head of the West Coast Avengers for years, as well as the Thunderbolts. While leadership was never the ideal place for him, he did it all under the advisement of Steve Rogers. It wore on him and had its consequences, but he never backed down, much to the detriment of his marriage.
After years of marriage, Bobbi was kidnapped and raped by the Phantom Rider, but Clint believed she had simply cheated on him because she had been brainwashed and had appeared to be a willing participant. This drove them apart very quickly. Their divorce hit him hard, but he moved on to some of his fellow Avengers including the Wasp, Black Widow, Spider-woman, and Scarlet Witch.
When Scarlet Witch lost her grasp on reality, she killed her own husband, The Vision, as well as Ant-man and Hawkeye.
The next thing he knew, he woke up in a whole different life. The world was primarily populated by mutants and was ruled by Magneto and he couldn’t remember it ever being any different until Emma Frost came and, with the help of a strange girl, fixed his memories. This would have been a great thing, except that he had been dead for a year by the hands of the woman who had created this alternate world.
In the midst of a gigantic battle, Clint sought out Scarlet Witch and tried to kill her, only to be killed again by her.
But when the world was reset, so was Clint Barton. He awoke inside the Avengers Mansion with all of his confusing memories to wade through. He left the manor and his old identity as Hawkeye behind in search of answers.
What he found was Scarlet Witch without her powers or memories, as well as a new name and a new purpose. He took up the mantle of Ronin and rejoined the Avengers.
As a veteran Avenger, he’s had more friends die or retire than he’d care to remember. Most of the casualties were at the hands of their enemies, but some came from inside the fold. When his mentor, Steve Rogers, was killed by a sniper, Clint was coaxed by Tony Stark to take up the mantle, which he did for all of a day before he was set right by his own junior from the Young Avengers, Kate Bishop, and Patriot.
Since the reconciliation of the hero community after the return of Steve and the elimination of the Superhuman Registration Act, Clint has reclaimed his title as Hawkeye, been elected the leader of the regular Avengers, and was nearly killed a thousand times over. He lost his sight temporarily and continues to develop somewhat dysfunctional but mostly healthy relationship with his friends and lovers.
NOTES:
I’m going for mix movie/comics (616) verse, with a heavy emphasis on the comics. For two reasons. One, The Avengers movie isn’t out yet, which makes it hard to write for a character that’s in it. Two, because I really do love the comics.
Clint is my very first comic book character I've attempted. If you've got any suggestions or comments, please see HMD.
I’ve not been the most avid of comics readers my whole life, but I’m trying. I’ve been speed-reading as much of the recent canon as I can get my hands on. If I’m not up to date, I’ll do the research.
FURTHER READING: Marvel Database