Since her debut in 2005, Kate Bishop has become one of the most iconic Marvel characters and a fan favorite. Now, Kate Bishop is about to get introduced to an even wider audience as she is set to make her Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in the Disney+ Hawkeye series and be portrayed by popular actress Hailee Steinfeld.
Beyond that, she is also expected to join the MCU's incarnation of the Young Avengers, which will further spotlight her character. Kate Bishop has been in hundreds of comics. While all are enjoyable, there are a few that are the best when looking to truly get to know the character's history, personality, and relationships.
10 Astonishing Ant-Man (2015) #6
Astonishing Ant-Man (2015) #6, by Nick Spencer, Annapaola Martello, and Jordan Boyd, is a comic that focuses on the friendship between Cassie Lang and Kate Bishop. Cassie Lang and Kate Bishop first met right before they became superheroes, and then joined the Young Avengers together. In the issue, Cassie is struggling with no longer being powered and Kate comes to visit her. Kate and Cassie are expected to meet in the MCU soon so this is a great read to get to know their dynamic.
9 West Coast Avengers (2018)
The West Coast Avengers have a rich history in the Marvel Universe. One of the founding members of this team was Clint Barton, a character Kate Bishop has a close relationship with. Kate Bishop is the leader of the newest version of this team, which originates in West Coast Avengers (2018), by Kelly Thompson, Stefano Caselli, and Triona Tree Farrell.
During this series, the Masters of Evil form a west coast division and Kate's mom Eleanor plays a pivotal role in that storyline.
8 All-New Hawkeye (2015)
All-New Hawkeye (2015), by Jeff Lemire, Ramón Pérez, and Ian Herring, is another Hawkeye title that features both Kate Bishop and Clint Barton. In the five-issue series, Kate and Clint team-up to help rescue children who are being used as weapons, but have some disagreements on how the situation should be handled. This is the first time we see the two's partnership stressed. We also see an alternate reality future teased at the end of the final issue.
7 All-New Hawkeye (2016)
All-New Hawkeye (2016) is another must-read series for Kate Bishop fans by Jeff Lemire, Ramón Pérez, and Ian Herring. It is a direct sequel to All-New Hawkeye (2015), done by the same creative team, and depicts scenes from the past, present, and future. It explores Kate's life after deciding to be independent of Clint for a while and how this affects their friendship. This series is also important because it tells the story of the first time a young Kate saw and felt inspired by her future mentor, Clint Barton.
6 Young Avengers (2005)
Young Avengers (2005), by Allan Heinberg, Jim Cheung, John Dell, and Justin Ponsor, is the series where Kate Bishop makes her comics debut. She first appeared in the first issue of the series, where the Iron Lad, Patriot, Hulkling, and Wiccan stopped some criminals at her sister's wedding.
Then, Kate took the moniker of Hawkeye and joined the team. This series has great writing and sets Kate Bishop up as one of the best new characters of the to 2000s.
5 Young Avengers (2013)
Young Avengers (2013) is the series that features the second version of the Young Avengers team, and its creative team is Kieron Gillen, Jamie McKelvie, Matt Wilson, and Mike Norton. This series introduced a new love interest for Kate, Noh-Varr aka Marvel Boy. It also had the first meeting of America Chavez and Kate Bishop, a friendship that was very positively received by fans and has become one of Marvel's classic superhero duos. It also furthered her development with the other members of the team she met prior.
4 Young Avengers Presents: Hawkeye
Young Avengers Presents is a series that spotlighted each member of the original Young Avengers. Issue number 6, also called Young Avengers Presents: Hawkeye, focuses on Kate Bishop. It was written by Matt Fraction, while Alan Davis, Mark Farmer, and Paul Mounts contributed to the art. This issue is where Kate Bishop meets Clint Barton, her inspiration and the original Hawkeye, for the first time. The interaction in this comic is what led to one of the best mentor-mentee relationships in Marvel Comics.
3 Generations: Hawkeye & Hawkeye
Like many Marvel characters, Kate Bishop is a legacy hero. Her mentor is Clint Barton, and the two have had lots of interactions over the last few years. In the Generations: Hawkeye and Hawkeye one-shot, by Kelly Thompson, Stefano Raffaele, and Digikore, Kate Bishop travels back in time to when Clint Barton was young. At this point, the two had not met yet so Clint seeing another Hawkeye took him off guard. The two then teamed up to fight several classic Hawkeye villains.
2 Hawkeye (2016)
Hawkeye (2016), by Kelly Thompson, Leonardo Romero, and Jordie Bellaire, is Kate Bishop's very first solo comic series. It takes place in Los Angeles where Kate is working as a private investigator at Hawkeye Investigations. She is joined by her dog Lucky, and a new supporting cast that includes new superheroes, Fuse and Alloy. Other familiar faces show up as well, like Clint Barton and Madame Masque. This is a great entry point for new Kate fans to get a feel for who she is.
1 Hawkeye (2012)
Hawkeye (2012), by Matt Fraction, David Aja, and Matt Hollingsworth, is one of the most popular Marvel comics to have come out in the last fifteen years. It is so well-liked that is one of the main inspirations for the Disney+ Hawkeye series. The comic features both Hawkeyes, Kate Bishop and Clint Barton, in lead roles. It also introduces Madame Masque as a villain in Kate Bishop's rogue's gallery, and the first appearance of Lucky the Pizza Dog.