Victor Fries or Clint Barton? A barrage of cold or a swarm of arrows? Would Batman's classic villain trap the Avenger in a layer of ice or would the Marvel hero claim the victory with some oh-so-cool trick arrows. That's right, Hawkeye got the word "cool." You're welcome, people who were desperately hoping there aren't any obvious Freeze puns in here. These two squared off in a large warehouse -- a location which gives both characters a great amount of cover. What happens next, though? Who has the better advantages? Are there any disadvantages? The Comic Vine community has been thinking about this fight since Monday and according to the voters, Hawkeye wins!
The poll wasn't very kind to the villain. He earned just 38% of the votes and Hawkeye received support from 59% of the voters. Only 3% think this one is too close to call. So, what advantages did Hawkeye bring to the fight that would justify a solid lead? The biggest selling point is the dude has a whole lot of variety in his quiver and he sure is accurate with his assortment of projectiles.
Much of Freeze's armor could protect him from Clint's standard arrows, but they could still be used to disable the foe's primary weapon and even tag his arms. Considering how quickly things will escalate, it's not difficult to believe Clint will attempt to use trick arrows as he stays on the move. Some may not immediately defeat the villain, but they're absolutely capable of stunning him and having Freeze vulnerable for even just a few extra seconds could really boost Clint's odds. As you can see above, we also know an electric arrow would do the trick -- it's just a matter of whether Clint would resort to using that before it's too late. Still, the possibility exists! Given the location, using explosives could be a little difficult, but if he's given the opportunity to do so and he sees just how tough his opponent is (which is likely), it's definitely possible. Now, let's take some time to see what the community had to say about this match.
MisterWhisper
Let's look at this objectively:
ARMOR:
Hawkeye and Freeze both wear armor, but also Hawkeye's armor will not keep him from being frozen, and Freeze's armor covers mostly just his head and even that is not a 100% defense adjacent some of Hawkeye's arrows.
Armor is a wash.
LOCATION:
A locked warehouse plays to Freeze's ability to chill the environment, but it also plays well for Hawkeye to get off a sneak attack.
This puts Hawkeye kind of under a time limit, so I will give a Freeze a small advantage.
Small Advantage to Freeze.
WEAPONS:
Freeze can set fog banks, Freeze large areas, or fire a tighter beam. Hawkeyes has so many different trick arrows, his quiver is like a Batman utility belt. High explosives, sonics, armor piercing, or even a flying boxing glove.
Hawkeye gets the advantage here due to much greater versatility, and also because he does not need direct line of sight to use his weapon, a ricochet shot is not uncommon for him, also Hawkeye has various vision modes to see through the fog built into both the sight of his bow and his mask.
Significant advantage to Hawkeye
STATS:
Fairly simple, Freeze is a bit stronger, Hawkeye is a good bit faster/agile. To a lesser degree Hawkeye also has better sense of sight, but honestly I do not think it will matter.
Slight advantage to Hawkeye.
SKILLS:
This is where things take a drastic turn. Freeze is a competent fighter, and a decent shot. Hawkeye is a MUCH better fighter, and a MUCH better shot, and he does not even really need line of sight if knows where the target is.
Huge advantage to Hawkeye.
All in all, this just stacks up to be a win for Hawkeye, 7 maybe even 8 times out of 10.
NimaMindTricks
I will give Mr. Freeze the slight majority.
The big reason I give Freeze the win is due to the fact this fight is taking place in a locked warehouse. Due to it being a closed setting, this gives Freeze ample room to effect the area via shrouding it in mist and freezing his surroundings, which in his New 52 incarnation, he does not even have to shoot his gun in order to do so.
Many people are citing Arsenal's victory over Freeze as proof positive that fellow archer, Hawkeye, will take this win handily. I feel that point is irrelevant since there was context behind it. But nevertheless, Hawkeye's trick arrows are dangerous, but deciding on which arrow he would use is speculation. On the other hand, we know that Freeze will be freezing up the place and trying to freeze Hawkeye. Mr. Freeze has been able to tag Batman and he even tagged Nightwing without shooting his gun - he froze the ground by touching it, which immediately engulfed Nightwing. Freeze was able able to react and momentarily match a close range blast from Starfire. This tells me that Freeze has what it takes to react to Hawkeye's arrows. He also has the durability to take Hawkeye's explosive arrows, as he was able to take a near point blank fire blast from an angry Heatwave.
The longer this battle goes on, the worse it is for Hawkeye, as the temperature in the locked down warehouse continues to drop, and Freeze continues to shroud the area with mist, freeze the environment, and create walls of thick ice.
As far as direct combat is concerned, all it would take for Freeze to end this battle is to freeze Hawkeye's bow and/or quiver - nullifying Hawkeye's range advantage completely. Even if that does not happen, the fact remains that Hawkeye will have to continuously reload each arrow shot, as Freeze is firing off continuous beams of ice and covering the warehouse with mist. Due to Freeze's morals, we know firing ice directly at Hawkeye will do definite damage, kill, or incapacitate Hawkeye. As I mentioned with Hawkeye, it is up in the air whether or not he can definitely take Freeze out with whatever speculated trick arrow he decides to use and if they would actually do any damage -- between Freeze's durability, the arrows Freeze shoots out of the air, the arrows that are blocked from the walls of ice, and the arrows that miss due to the ice mist and/or Freeze dodging them due to detecting Hawkeye's heat signatures. As for Freeze losing his suit due to an EMP, he was able to freeze a room full of scientists with an ice breath in his New 52 premiere without his suit on. The purpose of his cryo-suit is so he can go wherever he wants and regulate his own body temperature. In the scenario I've presented here, a locked down facility filled with ice he has already dispersed, is the perfect environment for Freeze to survive with or without his suit if it were to be shut down.
Hawkeye is clearly the better in hand to hand combat, but the chances of him charging in and taking Freeze one on one after Freeze has done so much environmental disruption in his favor plus having various range attacks outside of just his gun (i.e. his New 52 powers + freeze grenade), is slim to none. Ultimately, we have to keep in mind this is a first time random encounter which typically favors a smart, dangerous, ruthless, and unpredictable villain like Freeze. The 2nd round (if there is one), may not favor him as much, which is why I give Mr. Freeze a slim majority win.
kameo
Hawkeye
Pro's
-Agility
-Versatility
-Mobility
-H2H Skill
-Veteran Shield Agent
-Member of the Avengers
-Amazing Marksmanship
Con's
-Not stronger than Mr.Freeze
-Has to reload after every shot while all Freeze has to do is shoot his continuous beam
-Doesn't have armor like Mr.Freeze
Hawkeye will win against freeze as long as he fights smart like Batman, with out armor he's vulnerable to attacks but he has his agility to make up for it and serves as his primary defense
As long as Hawkeye keeps evading the ice beam he can take out Freeze in short work thanks to the versatility of his trick arrows and the fact all he needs is one placed arrow to take out Freeze's most dangerous weapon.
DigitalShooter9
Interesting fight.. I'll take Mr. Freeze in this one.
For starters this fight will mainly consist of a projectile battle. The chance of it turning into a close quarters brawl is very very slim. That being said, I see Victor taking a win more often than not thanks to the effectiveness of his cold gun and the durability advantage provided by his suit. Clint is no doubt more accurate with his arrows and the trick arrows will cause great trouble for Victor, but his suit has shown feats suggesting that it is bulletproof and durable enough to handle a couple of Hawkeye's arrows. Freeze usually give's Batman trouble with his cold gun, so it is likely Hawkeye can't avoid the cold blasts for long.
Now unlike Victor, Hawkeye doesn't have the luxury to tank the opposition's projectiles. One cold blast will be devastating for Clint, especially if Victor shoots his arrow or bow, getting them covered in ice and rendering them useless. Victor pretty much needs to get one good blast in to incapacitate Clint. Unfortunately Clint doesn't have anything that can allow him to tank a devastative cold blast. For Vic, his suit can protect him from Arrows for some time.
I also feel Victor can use his Cold gun creatively in counter to Hawkeye's trick arrows. He can use it to make the floor beneath Clint slippery, making aiming a hassle or he can just create extra cover for himself. I feel like Victor is better equipped all around for Clint and will gain a noticeable majority over him in this battle of the week.
Ofcourse, there is always a possibility that Hawkeye gets a lucky shot in with the perfect trick arrow, such as using a boomerang arrow to knock Freeze's gun out of his hand or using an explosive arrows that can give him a win, but in this situation, Victor just has a larger chance of gaining the majority.
Mr. Freeze wins 8/10...
LlehDevil
Giving this to Hawkeye.
Not only is Hawkeye's aim at least 95 % accurate, his equipment is much, much more versatile, he's faster, much more agile, a lot more maneuverable and has better reflexes. He's been trained by SHIELD for a good part of his life. With the experience he's had, it'll be easier making tactics for himself for on-the-spot scenarios such as these.
The only real advantages Freeze has on Clint is the durability of his suit and environmental advantage he has because of the enclosed location.
Freeze's suit is bullet proof but he has a big weakness that stands out, which is his arms that are exposed. This will stand out and make it easy for Hawkeye to disarm him from his ice guns, which is really the only thing that Hawkeye should worry about in this battle.
The main elements that'll grant Hawkeye his win will be his maneuverability, speed & agility, the versatility of his equipment, Freeze's exposed arms and his aim.
Not only this, the starting distance is 100 ft. apart, endowing Clint with even further opportunities until closure.
BlackLegRaph
I will be going with Mr. Freeze here.
The distance and the cover makes this a prolonged match, and I do not see either being disarmed right off the bat. Expanding on the cover, Victor has the ability to create more cover for himself, and every use of his gun creates less cover for Hawkeye and makes the area more dangerous for him. I do not see this getting close quarters combat where Hawkeye is the superior fighter, but even then Freeze has shown the ability to detect presence by heat, so a stealth attack has little chance of working for Clint.
In terms of weaponry, Clint's arsenal is more versatile, but Freeze's gun is more dangerous in that it will force Clint to keep moving and also gives him less than optimal conditions to get off shots. Freeze has the higher durability and will be able to tank regular arrows, but one good blast is all Freeze needs to immobilize Hawkeye.
Of course, nothing is set in stone (or ice), so I give this to Freeze 8 times out of 10.
Wells_the_geek
It's simple. Hawkeye has better aim, is a more skilled fighter, and has more tricks up his sleeve. Mr Freeze's gun could easily be taken out by Hawkeye's use of explosives and his impeccable aim. Mr Freeze's armor could also be destroyed in an explosion. Overall, Hawkeye would most likely win, but it would be a very destructive and fun to watch battle.
Owie
Both have options to win, both could take the other out in one hit...I like the strategy of Freeze icing over the whole warehouse, slowly boxing Clint in. And I think his guns ability to shoot a continuous beam is a real advantage.
While Hawkeye is probably the better dodger and has better aim. His arrows may have a wider area effect than any of Freeze's weapons.
Too close to call?
D9000
After much thought and inner monologue I’ve decided to vote for Mr. Freeze as the victor (pun so intended) in this battle. Initially I thought Hawkeye would score a quick win but the more I pull apart the scenario the more I notice that Mr. Freeze actually has a lot of his own tricks.
First let’s consider Hawkeye and what he brings to the table; he’s in peak human physical condition plus he hangs with the Avengers so we know he can Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive and Dodge all day long. His strength and endurance are definitely high but not super human or enhanced in any way, neither are his senses. His sight would be his strongest sense though. His real versatility comes from the trick arrows in his quiver (hate that word). Without prep it’s fair to say he wouldn’t have anything specifically strong against an ice villain so he’s probably got explosives, some kind of electricity arrow and a bunch of non-lethal tools like glue or zip-lines, and we know he’s got lots of pointy arrows. Being a generous person I’d put his total number of arrows at 30-40. A lot of people have also mentioned an EMP arrow. To me this doesn’t sound like standard gear but for the sake of argument lets say he has one and it could shut down Mr. Freeze’s gun, but not his suit.
Now consider Mr. Freeze. We know he has his fancy Ice Gun, with seemingly limitless ammo and no reloading required, plus several Ice Grenades. At first I thought that was it but he’s got quite a few tricks that aren’t dependant on weapons at all. What I’ve learned from this forum is that he can freeze very quickly with his touch. Not just other people but also the environment as well. He can also disperse a useful mist to reduce visibility and apparently he can sense other people by their body heat. Add to that enhanced strength and durability and you’ve got a pretty versatile villain.
Now, on to the battle. Obviously they’ll both have the same initial reaction, which is to blast away with their weapons. It’d be easy to say that Hawkeye hits his mark from the start but given the blast radius and size of the Ice Gun beam I think it’s more than likely that his first volley would get frozen in mid-air or potentially bounce off the armored parts of Mr. Freeze. When this first attack fails Hawkeye would need to move quickly to avoid getting frozen solid so he’ll be running and jumping all around while Mr. Freeze lets loose with his Ice Gun. This has the added effect of turning the warehouse into an inhospitable icebox. This is the point where Hawkeye will need to start pulling out trick arrows. Most non-lethal arrows will be pointless like glue so the explosives would likely be the first to come out. However, by this time there would be a lot of cover created by the Ice Gun as well as a lot of natural cover for Mr. Freeze to hide behind. If he ever felt exposed he could use an Ice Grenade to create a quick wall. Not only that but seeing that his enemy is an archer Mr. Freeze would definitely fill the warehouse with his mist right away, making it (IMO) impossible for Hawkeye to shoot with accuracy. Explosives could knock Mr. Freeze down but his enhanced durability will keep him fighting. This is when the EMP arrow would likely be used IF it has a large blast radius. So lets say Mr. Freeze is disarmed of his Ice Gun, I still don’t think this battle is over. As I said, by now the warehouse would be a frozen wasteland with sub-zero temps and filled with mist. Without the ability to take an accurate shot Hawkeye would have to go into stealth mode and hunt around for Mr. Freeze. I think at this juncture it’s more than likely that Mr. Freeze would actually notice Hawkeye first with his heat sensing ability. I doubt he’s very stealthy so he couldn’t sneak up on Hawkeye but if he’s smart (and we know he is) he’d just play possum and let Hawkeye get close enough to use his Ice Touch and turn Hawkeye into an (insert ice pun here).
Gregg Katzman
Wow, I feel like Freeze didn't receive the kind of support he deserves in the poll. Is he as agile or accurate as Clint? Of course not, but the cover-heavy and restrictive setting helps balance that and I saw multiple comments implying Freeze is basically useless if Hawkeye gets an arrow in the gun. That would certainly help the Avenger's odds, but it wouldn't render Freeze useless. The guy can still freeze via touch (he's had no problem wrecking goons in unarmed combat or touching the floor and making ice travel towards his enemy), has several ice grenades (which Batman only escaped because of heat weapons), and his ability to detect Clint based on his heat signature eliminates any chances of sneaking up on the guy. Even when his shots miss, they'll still impact the environment and Freeze doesn't always need to connect to take the advantage. We've seen him create massive walls and other structures to trap his opponents or protect himself. He can also fill the location with mist, a move that would obviously hinder Clint's sight.
The archer can of course drop Victor with some well-placed explosive arrows, but this isn't a foe who's easy to bring down. He praised being able to withstand being hit by a speeding Batmobile, withstood a blast from Heat Wave, and held his own against the Birds of Prey, Batwoman, and Nightwing and Robin. The biggest game changer would be Clint tagging him with an electric arrow, but there's no guarantee he'd use that before trying other and less effective options, and meanwhile, every attack Freeze does can be seriously harmful and they'll continue to limit Clint's paths.
I can see either taking a win, but if I was forced to pick a side, I'd probably choose Victor. Clint has the means to put him down, but it won't be easy and there's just no guarantee he'll use an electric arrow before Freeze eventually connects with one of his weapons.
Hawkeye has taken the win, but that doesn't mean the debate is over! Feel free to continue the discussion below, Viners.