The Defenders #7
The Defenders #7 is the entry point for Hawkeye into Marvel's 'non-team,' marking his first appearance as a Defender after his departure from the Avengers and establishing a character dynamic — the cocky, wisecracking archer among brooding heavyweights like the Hulk and Namor — that writers immediately exploited in the landmark Avengers/Defenders War crossover that began just two issues later. The issue also carries structural importance as the moment the series shifted from bimonthly to monthly publication, signaling Marvel's confidence in the title's commercial and creative momentum at a pivotal point in the Bronze Age. Together with the continued presence of Valkyrie (Brunnhilde's spirit inhabiting Barbara Norriss's body, a status quo introduced in #4), issue #7 represents the stabilization of the Defenders' rotating-roster identity that would define the book for the rest of its original 152-issue run.
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The script had an unusual dual authorship: Steve Englehart plotted the full story and scripted the opening seven pages, while Len Wein completed the dialogue for the remaining twelve pages — a production arrangement documented in the Marvel Database and Grand Comics Database. Englehart was simultaneously writing The Avengers at this point, and the Hawkeye thread was a deliberate hand-off from that title: he had written Hawkeye out of the Avengers earlier in 1973, then seeded the archer's partnership with the Hulk in Incredible Hulk #166 (also August 1973 cover date), making Defenders #7 the payoff of that cross-title setup. Roy Thomas served as editor, and the cover was penciled and inked by John Romita Sr. with additional inking by Mike Esposito, while interior art was handled by the series' regular penciler Sal Buscema with Frank Bolle on inks.
Trivia · 10 facts
- First appearance of Hawkeye (Clint Barton) as a member of the Defenders; after a street-level skirmish with the team, he explains his recent troubles leaving the Avengers and asks to join.
- Script split: Steve Englehart plotted the issue and scripted pages 1–7; Len Wein scripted pages 8–19. Interior pencils by Sal Buscema, inks by Frank Bolle, colors by Glynis Wein.
- Cover penciled and inked by John Romita Sr. with additional inks by Mike Esposito; Gaspar Saladino lettered the cover.
- First appearance of Grokko, an Atlantean warrior serving as Attuma's jailer, who is defeated by Hawkeye and Valkyrie during their escape.
- Antagonists are Attuma and the Red Ghost (Ivan Kragoff), whose plan involves combining cosmic-ray science with marine biology to create a super-powered aquatic army to conquer Atlantis; Namor is brainwashed and turned against his teammates.
- This issue marks the Defenders series converting from bimonthly to monthly publication frequency.
- The story continues directly from Incredible Hulk #166 (August 1973), in which Hawkeye — freshly departed from the Avengers — had already teamed with the Hulk against Zzzax.
- Reprinted in Rampage (Marvel UK) #8 (December 1977), Essential Defenders Vol. 1 (2005), Marvel Masterworks: The Defenders Vol. 2 (2010), the Defenders Omnibus Vol. 1 (2020/2021), and Defenders Epic Collection Vol. 1: The Day of the Defenders (2022/2023).
- Hawkeye's tenure with the Defenders lasted only a few issues, ending around the time of Englehart's departure and directly feeding into the Avengers/Defenders War crossover event beginning in Defenders #9 (October 1973).
- Editor: Roy Thomas. The letters page, titled 'Defenders Dialogue,' published correspondence from readers Brian Earl Brown, Sgt. David Hull, and Curtis Collins.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Etranges Aventures #47 (1975), Rampage #8 (1977), Almanaque do Capitão América #65 (1984), Essential Defenders #1 (2005), Marvel Masterworks: The Defenders #2 (2010), Marvel Gold. Los Defensores: Cuatro Contra Los Dioses #[nn] (2012), The Defenders Omnibus #1 (2021), Defenders Epic Collection #1 (2023)
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