Mark Millar and Steve McNiven's Old Man Logan centered on the titular mutant who was no longer in his prime, so it stands to reason that he would be the best part of the series. And while it's true that most of the story is devoted to Logan and his antics, the fact is he wouldn't have gotten anywhere were it not for his good old friend, Clint Barton, AKA the Avenger known as Hawkeye. In fact, Hawkeye plays such an important role that were it not for him, there wouldn't have been much of a story at all.

Marvel Comics recently announced a 12-issue prequel series to Old Man Logan, which will be titled Old Man HawkeyeWhile the series, by Ethan Sacks and Marco Checchetto, isn't slated to arrive until January 2018, by looking back at Wolverine #66-72, it's easy to see why Marvel green lit the project, and why fans should be genuinely excited by it.

Hawkeye Is Blind?

In the Old Man Logan reality, Hawkeye, a master archer, has gone blind. While this would probably sideline even the greatest archer who ever drew a bow, it's little more than a minor inconvenience to a man who, despite having no superpowers, was once an Avenger who fought alongside the likes of Thor.

When you've honed your archery skills to the point that you can fight alongside a green rage monster, losing your eyesight isn't going to be the end of your career. Plus, while he may not be able to see his targets, he is perfectly capable of hearing them.

Now, were it anyone else, only being able to hear an enemy would likely result in an arrow somehow being shot into their own foot. But this is Clint Barton -- listening is all he needs to take out anyone who poses a threat.

Not only can the former Avenger fire his bow straight and true with just the right amount of sound to guide him, he doesn't even let his inability to see hinder his love of driving. Granted, he and Logan were driving cross-country in the Spider-Mobile, which has the ability to stick to walls among other things, which made things a little less crashable -- not that Barton would have let anyone else drive, even if that weren't the case.

Hawkeye Will Do The Right Thing, No Matter What

When Hawkeye finds Wolverine, he has just been beaten to a pulp by the Hulk's kids and his healing factor is taking some time to get working. The purpose of his visit is to enlist Logan's aid in escorting him across the country to New Babylon (currently known as Washington, D.C.) to deliver a briefcase, the contents of which are kept secret.

Because Logan is in deep to the Hulk, and Hawkeye is offering some serious compensation, he agrees to leave his family at the farm and trek across the country with Barton. As we previously mentioned, Barton takes the wheel of the Spider-Mobile, and they get going.

Along the way, they come into contact with some familiar and some not-so-familiar characters, which we will get to shortly. Jumping ahead, the pair makes it to New Babylon to rendezvous with members of the resistance movement, who are intent on overthrowing the Red Skull. The idea is that if they can build a foothold in the East Coast of the former United States by removing the Red Skull, they can then push Westward and take over the nation from the supervillains and their successors.

When they arrive, it is finally revealed that Hawkeye had been moving 99 vials of the Super Soldier Serum with the goal of creating new soldiers who could take the fight to the Skull and his compatriots. His only demand for compensation after foregoing any money is that he be administered a vial of the Serum. Asked if he is kidding, he insists that "The Red Skull killed my friends" and pushes his demands.

Unfortunately, it turns out the resistance is nothing more than undercover Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., under the employ of the Red Skull, and they immediately fire off about 40 rounds into Logan before executing Hawkeye. That's it. It's the end of his part of the story... or is it?

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Logan Takes Up Hawkeye's Mantle

After Hawkeye is killed, his and Logan's bodies are taken to the White House to be gifted to the Red Skull so he may keep them as trophies. Logan's healing factor may be slower than it was in his prime, but that can't keep a good mutant down forever. As expected, he eventually comes to and gets into it with the Skull.

As the two are battling, Logan gains the advantage and forces his opponent to the ground. The Skull derides him saying he won't kill him because he knows that Logan won't pop his claws anymore. Succumbing to this realization doesn't stop Logan -- who doesn't pop his claws. No, he grabs Captain America's shield and decapitates the Red Skull, thus fulfilling Hawkeye's mission.

Though he died, Hawkeye played a crucial role in the story. We can surmise that Logan would have eventually popped his claws and dealt with the Hulk and his family had they fulfilled their threat to kill his wife and daughter. That places the entire adventure Hawkeye and Logan have across the country into scrutiny -- was it necessary for the story? It's likely the proverbial excrement was going to hit the air conditioning between Logan and the Hulk, regardless of Barton's role in the proceedings. What Hawkeye actually did was to help Logan learn to forgive himself. That wouldn't have been possible had he remained and ended up battling the Hulk -- he needed to confront the Red Skull and kill him in Hawkeye's name in order to rediscover his calling, which was that of a superhero.

This is exemplified with the final images of the series. After killing the Hulk and all of his clan, save for one infant child, Logan picks up the little boy and takes him away. Logan could have slaughtered them all and returned to his previous life as a dirt farmer, but instead, he chose the heroic role. He took the child and literally rode off into the sunset, suggesting a better future not only for himself, but also for the young Hulk he took with him. Were it not for Hawkeye and his drive to return to the life of a superhero, with his quest to remove the Red Skull from the planet, Wolverine's destruction of the Hulk's clan could have been little more than a revenge story. Instead, it was a revenge story capped with the promise of more to come, and for that, we have Clint Barton to thank.

Hawkeye's Back Story Demands A Prequel Series

Their journey across the former United States began on the West Coast, on Logan's farm. They then head to Hammer Falls (formerly Las Vegas), which is so named due to the presence of Mjolnir. The hammer had been resting in the same place since it fell during the battles that wiped out all of the superheroes. It is in Vegas that we get a glimpse into the life of Hawkeye between the events that brought the villains to power and the present day.

In Hammer Falls, the pair meet up with a woman named Tania Parker. There isn't a lot of detail provided, but we learn that she is the youngest daughter of Peter Parker, though it isn't clear who her mother was. Not only did Tania and Barton used to be married, they have a daughter named Ashley Barton who is currently being held by the Kingpin after her attempt to remove him from power and take over his holdings failed.

Learning of his daughter's predicament, Barton and Logan's journey is diverted to her rescue. They succeed, whichs brings Kingpin back to see what was going on. Shortly after opening the door, he is decapitated by Ashley, who swings a shotgun through his neck. Upon seeing her father who came to rescue her, she decides to prove her ruthlessness as the new Kingpin by killing him. Logan is able to rescue him at the last minute, but she sends her new flock of goons after them.

This entire scenario reveals a complicated, decades-long backstory we never get to see. We got to see what happened to Logan and can surmise what he had been up to since he killed the X-Men, but there is a huge gap left in regard to Hawkeye -- a gap we'll finally see filled when Old Man Hakweye arrives next year.