WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Avengers #60, on sale now from Marvel Comics.
Avengers #60, by Mark Russell, Greg Land, Jay Leisten, David Curiel and VC's Cory Petit, sees Earth's Mightiest Heroes getting judged -- and Clint Barton/Hawkeye comes out just fine.
The issue is a tie-in to "Judgment Day," which recently saw a Celestial named Progenitor giving humanity 24 hours to prove its worth to avoid extermination. Avengers #60 opens with Barton encountering Progenitor in the form of Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow for judgment in a diner. Barton questions the standards by which Progenitor might judge humanity and then walks away. However, the being follows him and says he'll be compared on his ability to bring joy and meaning to a mailbox.
As the day goes on, Barton stops William Cross/Crossfire and interacts with several other people, including New York City mayor Luke Cage. In the end, Progenitor admits that what's right is often subjective and that Barton has grown, "which, apparently, a mailbox cannot do." Barton thus succeeds because he's better than an inanimate blue box. Still, Progenitor ends up determining that humanity as a whole failed its test.
What Is Judgment Day?
Marvel's big event of the summer, A.X.E.: Judgment Day kicked off with Druig, the Prime Eternal, attempting to wipe out mutantkind due to their genetic deviancy and launched an attack on Krakoa. The Avengers and a group of rogue Eternals stood against Druig's plans and ended up awakening Progenitor. However, things did not proceed as planned, and the Celestial began judging humanity. Hawkeye is far from the only character undergoing such judgment, as in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man, Peter Parker will be forced to face with Gwen Stacy, his former love interest who died due to the actions of the Green Goblin.
Created by Stan Lee and Don Heck, Hawkeye debuted in 1964's Tales of Suspense #57 and is an expert marksman. Originally, Hawkeye started out as a villain. However, he soon reformed and has remained a key hero in the Marvel Universe ever since, even becoming a member of various versions of the Avengers.
On sale now from Marvel Comics, Avengers #60 features a main cover from Javier Garrón and David Curiel, with a variant by Nuri Durr. The next installment in the series, Avengers #61, hits shelves on Oct. 19.
Source: Marvel Comics