Synopsis / Summary / Plot
In the last few issues Hawkeye (Kate Bishop)'s quest to find out whether her father really did kill her mother merged with Hawkeye (Clint Barton)'s need to stop time-villain Eden Vale from killing him in revenge for her young daughter dying when he led rebels during Secret Empire. And both stories wound up involving Kate's long-time foe Madame Masque who had given Derek Bishop a clone body with a super-powered voice that could control people. Last issue they rescued him from her and planned to use his voice against their foes. But before they could act Vale and her 3 time-grabbed supervillains plus Masque and her army of minions turned up outside Hawkeye Investigations.
Now the Hawkeyes try to hold the door shut but Lady Bullseye sends a shuriken through the glass. So Kate frees her father's bonds and gag and they take him up onto the (fairly low) roof. The duo fire various arrows at the mob including a magnesium flare arrow that temporarily blinds Swordsman and a fishnets arrow that tangles up Lady B. In reply Boomerang throws a sonic 'rang at them, so they leap down to continue the fight hand-to-hand. Boomer throws a shatterang which Clint-eye uses his bow to bat away while Kate-eye's next arrow covers the villain in black guck. The 2-sworded Swordsman attacks and Barton defends himself with an adamantium arrow and ducking until his old mentor disarms him, so he kicks him in the stomach instead. Lady Bullseye has a knife to Kate's throat but suddenly Mr Bishop joins in from the roof and sends the villainess to sleep.
However all the explosions have weakened the parapet of Moe's Pizza. Small chunks start to fall as a sleepy little girl walks out carrying a Lockjaw stuffed toy. Kate dives and pushes her out of the way as a much larger chunk drops towards her. She thinks she's had it but someone holds the masonry up on his back. And it's her boyfriend Johnny Watts who thinks it's the right time to reveal he has a superpower (and his arms have turned to stone). But there's no time to discuss this as Kate wades back in to help Clint. And she tells him it's time for a change of strategy ...
... as she tries to talk Eden down. She reminds her that she wants to punish Barton for his rebellion against the bad guys in the Secret Empire event which left her daughter dead as collateral damage. But this fight here now almost killed another little girl. Masque tells Vale not to listen and promises that she can give her back her daughter. Kate changes tack and leaves Clint to pretend to surrender and then play on Eden's sympathy by telling her that *he* lost someone too. Meanwhile Kate slides down an overhead cable and through an open window in the building behind the pair of villainesses. Masque urges Vale to shoot Barton and get it over with.
Then Kate smashes through glass doors behind them and grabs Eden's metal case full of blood samples that she needs to pull people through time, threatening to blow it up with an explosive arrow. And she tells her that Masque's offer is only a clone which *won't* really be her daughter. Eden begs her not to do it because 1 of the samples is the last bit she has of her daughter Lucy's blood. Kate asks why she didn't just use it to save her daughter by bringing her through time, like she did for Kate's mum before sending her back again (#13-14). Eden has to admit that the result is only temporary, and when she uses it that will be the last time she'll see Lucy. And of course this means that her promise to bring Kate's mom back permanently (#14) was a lie.
Madame Masque is fed up with all this and grabs Vale's gun to kill Kate herself. But Barton hits her in the back with a suction line arrow and drags her away. Eden gives up and sends her 3 supervillains back in time. Kate refuses to give her back the case full of villain blood samples but does give her Lucy's vial. And Eden uses it for a last reunion with Lucy.
Clint staggers up and says someone hit him on the back of the head and Masque got away. He also tells Kate that her dad saved him a few times but he's gone now too. Kate's pals Mikka Nguyen, Quinn and Ramone Watts join her, Clint and Johnny. Detective Rivera leads a police squad to arrest the minions, completing the regular cast of this series for its last issue.
And in the shadows Masque confers with the mystery woman from last issue who is confirmed as Kate's mother Eleanor Bishop, who tells MM for the last time to get out of the clone of her daughter. Masque agrees because it turned out not to have any superpowers after all.