Review by Ian Keogh

Jim Zub’s previous run on Thunderbolts was fatally compromised. That was partially due to it being a bridging series between two events, but Zub’s lack of focus also fed into There Is No High Road and No Going Back not fulfilling their promise. Also contributing was substandard art, the visual brightspots being a chapter in each volume drawn by Sean Izaakse. Izaakse doesn’t draw everything here, but when he’s away Netho Diaz maintains the quality.

The creative team might have previous with Thunderbolts, but six years earlier it was a different bunch of characters, and we’re now back with Hawkeye leading a team of relative newcomers. They’re solidly introduced over the opening chapter, which includes a sly dig at covering demographics, but greater diversity is definitely on the agenda, and always a good thing. New characters mix with old, and a man of mystery is thrown in with a secret never revealed here, but he sure does resemble a former Marvel mainstager with big guns and a hooky eye.

Hawkeye is the focus, with everyone else playing off him, which is one difference from his previous stint running a Thunderbolts team. Another is that he’s no longer in control. He’s the employed field leader of a New York branded super team with a whole host of functions in addition to battering villains. That plays into the lighter tone applied overall, with a befuddled Hawkeye great at the superhero stuff, but lacking elsewhere. Those insecurities play into the final couple of chapters where the tone becomes a little darker and while there’s no great explanation for the villain responsible, as the result is an enjoyable story it’s insignificant.

Back on Target is only a brief run, but it’s a satisfying one in which Zub makes up for the shortcomings of his earlier Thunderbolts.