Hawkeye
Year: 2021
Created by: Jonathan Igla
Starring: Jeremy Renner & Hailee Steinfeld
Episodes: 6
BBFC: 12
Published: 24/12/21
Created by: Jonathan Igla
Starring: Jeremy Renner & Hailee Steinfeld
Episodes: 6
BBFC: 12
Published: 24/12/21
If I were to ask you to describe Hawkeye as seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, I’m sure it might be hard for you to think of anything other than ‘the guy with the bow’; and I don’t blame you either because much like Hulk and Black Widow, Hawkeye has been criminally overlooked in the MCU since his introduction in 2011’s Thor. But thanks to Disney+ his time has finally come to show the world exactly what he’s made of…and thankfully he’s more than just the guy with the bow.
One year after the Avengers reversed the effects of the Infinity Stones, Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) is finally enjoying some downtime with his family…albeit whilst dealing with the experiences of travelling to an alien world and losing his closest friend, Natasha Romanoff, in the process.
After being saved by Hawkeye as a child during Loki’s attack on New York, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) has trained herself as an archer and wants to help people just like her hero. But when Kate ends up in the possession of the Ronin suit that Clint once donned, she becomes the target of Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox), mistaking Kate for the real Ronin.
Needing to destroy the suit, and feeling a sense of obligation to Kate, Clint steps back into the superhero line of work just in time to save Christmas.
One year after the Avengers reversed the effects of the Infinity Stones, Clint Barton/Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) is finally enjoying some downtime with his family…albeit whilst dealing with the experiences of travelling to an alien world and losing his closest friend, Natasha Romanoff, in the process.
After being saved by Hawkeye as a child during Loki’s attack on New York, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) has trained herself as an archer and wants to help people just like her hero. But when Kate ends up in the possession of the Ronin suit that Clint once donned, she becomes the target of Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox), mistaking Kate for the real Ronin.
Needing to destroy the suit, and feeling a sense of obligation to Kate, Clint steps back into the superhero line of work just in time to save Christmas.
Hawkeye is everything that the Black Widow film should have been. It presents Clint in a light we haven’t seen him in before and allows Renner to finally get his teeth sunk into the character he has been playing for a decade. We get insight into Clint’s personal life, his views on the world, and how he even came into the line of work he’s in. Plus, we get to see a paternal side to him as he looks over Kate, and reluctantly helps mould her into a better hero.
The real star of the show however is Kate. She is the main character of the whole story, and Steinfeld brings her usual high calibre performance with her. She’s charming, witty, and not to be messed with. In fact, she reminds me a lot of Tony Stark, just without the incalculable wealth and fame. The chemistry between her and Renner is the heart and soul of the show, and regardless of how interested you are in Marvel I think you’ll really connect with the relationship these two share.
Some mild spoilers here, but then again not really as Disney didn’t hold back with its social media posts about this character’s appearance once it happened. Yenela Belova (Florence Pugh) crops up for the last two episodes of the show. Having only recently joined the MCU in Black Widow, Pugh quickly became a fan favourite thanks to her excellent performance. Her short time in Hawkeye is extremely memorable and I hope we get a series surrounding Yelena and Kate sometime soon as the two characters suit each other so well. Like Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, the two are opposites in a lot of ways but mesh together so well to create the show’s most memorable moments.
I do feel like a broken record saying this though, why is there not more time being spent on establishing what the world is like following the blip? The show makes several tentative references to what moving on from such an event is like, as well as giving us insight of what it is like to be snapped out of existence for five years and the confusion it brings. But similar to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Hawkeye doesn’t fully commit to any of the times it tries to address what’s happening in the wider world.
Also, aside from being set at Christmas, the show lacks any real visual pop. It feels similar to the Russo Brothers’ outings in the MCU with bland colour palettes and camera angles that are more efficient than interesting. It can make the show a little dull at times, but thankfully this doesn’t drag the show down too much thanks to the outstanding performances.
Hawkeye is one of the better Disney+ MCU series. Whilst it doesn’t reach the same illustrious genre bending heights of WandaVision, it does at least present an entertaining show that delivers entirely on what it set out to do. You don’t feel shortchanged by Hawkeye and you will finish the show fulfilled and entertained. Clint Barton is finally a fleshed-out person, and Kate Bishop is an excellent addition to the Avengers roster. I hope to see more like this in the future.
The real star of the show however is Kate. She is the main character of the whole story, and Steinfeld brings her usual high calibre performance with her. She’s charming, witty, and not to be messed with. In fact, she reminds me a lot of Tony Stark, just without the incalculable wealth and fame. The chemistry between her and Renner is the heart and soul of the show, and regardless of how interested you are in Marvel I think you’ll really connect with the relationship these two share.
Some mild spoilers here, but then again not really as Disney didn’t hold back with its social media posts about this character’s appearance once it happened. Yenela Belova (Florence Pugh) crops up for the last two episodes of the show. Having only recently joined the MCU in Black Widow, Pugh quickly became a fan favourite thanks to her excellent performance. Her short time in Hawkeye is extremely memorable and I hope we get a series surrounding Yelena and Kate sometime soon as the two characters suit each other so well. Like Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, the two are opposites in a lot of ways but mesh together so well to create the show’s most memorable moments.
I do feel like a broken record saying this though, why is there not more time being spent on establishing what the world is like following the blip? The show makes several tentative references to what moving on from such an event is like, as well as giving us insight of what it is like to be snapped out of existence for five years and the confusion it brings. But similar to The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Hawkeye doesn’t fully commit to any of the times it tries to address what’s happening in the wider world.
Also, aside from being set at Christmas, the show lacks any real visual pop. It feels similar to the Russo Brothers’ outings in the MCU with bland colour palettes and camera angles that are more efficient than interesting. It can make the show a little dull at times, but thankfully this doesn’t drag the show down too much thanks to the outstanding performances.
Hawkeye is one of the better Disney+ MCU series. Whilst it doesn’t reach the same illustrious genre bending heights of WandaVision, it does at least present an entertaining show that delivers entirely on what it set out to do. You don’t feel shortchanged by Hawkeye and you will finish the show fulfilled and entertained. Clint Barton is finally a fleshed-out person, and Kate Bishop is an excellent addition to the Avengers roster. I hope to see more like this in the future.