While it is a well-known fact at this point that Captain America lives his life by a certain unyielding code, and those who don’t share the same ideals as him aren’t necessarily his enemies, but they are definitely people who he wishes he could change. So when he comes up against someone who is just as hard-headed as he is but in the complete opposite way there is going to be friction, and this Avenger drives Captain America consistently crazy more than any other.
In Captain America and Hawkeye #629 by Cullen Bunn and Alessandro Vitti, Barton and Rogers are in the middle of a battle against a group of armed soldiers. Initially, they have no idea who these people are, only that they seemed dangerous and so a full-on strike was their logical response. While the two of them handle the situation with little effort, the real conflict begins to rage between the Avengers themselves.
Captain America is immediately annoyed with Hawkeye as it was he who shot the first arrow against the presumed attackers. When Barton asks Rogers who these people are that they are fighting, Captain America says, “I’m not sure, Hawkeye. You started shooting before I could ask them!”. Because of Hawkeye’s impulsive nature, Captain America was forced to throw himself into battle against people he didn’t know, making him very uncomfortable as it goes against his code of only fighting those who wish to do harm, and since he didn’t have a chance to investigate the situation, he didn’t know what these soldiers’ intentions were.
This issue wasn’t the first time Captain America showed his annoyance with Hawkeye, but it was a significant moment for the two of them as Captain America completely unloaded everything about Hawkeye that got under his skin. Captain America scolds Hawkeye for never taking things seriously, and that he fights like everything is a video game. To make matters worse, Hawkeye defends himself by telling Cap that at least he isn’t some sidekick like Bucky, and Captain America nearly loses it to the point of coming dangerously close to attacking Hawkeye himself.
Whenever Captain America and Iron Man are at odds, their conflicts are way more global rather than small skirmishes, with Civil War being the most extreme example. However, Iron Man’s leadership skills, intelligence, and overall proven heroism have earned Captain America’s respect at the very least. Hawkeye, on the other hand, is not held in the same esteem as Iron Man in Captain America’s eyes, something Captain America wishes he could fix but has seemingly given up trying. Given Hawkeye’s flippant and impulsive nature which was put on full display in this issue, he has proven himself to be the one Avenger that gets under Captain America’s skin more than even Iron Man.
