Hawkeye has set up a lot of new and interesting characters during the six episodes, we got the Larpers, Jack, Eleanor, Maya and Kate. I really hope we see Jack again; Tony Dalton was so charismatic whenever he was on the screen. Tony Dalton is most known for his role on Better Call Saul where he plays the villainous Lalo Salamanca. The show used his familiarity as a villain to mislead audiences in the early episodes of Hawkeye. To me it became obvious that Jack was not a sinister character, but more of a spoiled fool. In the finale it was good to see Jack be a hero, we saw him use a sword to fight off the Tracksuit Mafia. I think it is fair to say that the episode while not the most emotional, was very entertaining and I thought it did a great job with the action. After the emotional roller coaster of Spider-Man: No Way Home, the Hawkeye finale gave viewers a cozy blanket to get comfortable with and keep us warm. Hawkeye is very much in the mold of phase one of the MCU, it had action, heart and humor; but I think Hawkeye was an improvement on the quality of phase one. Hawkeye was a fresh addition to the Disney Plus series catalogue, it was the happiest show they have made so far. Loki, WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier were all so heavy, they were great shows, but they were not fun shows. Hawkeye was always the least interesting Avenger, and now the series has given him more depth and purpose.
'SO THIS IS CHRISTMAS?' RECAP
We open on a meeting between Wilson Fisk (Kingpin) and Eleanor Bishop, Eleanor wants to no longer work with Kingpin. Eleanor thinks that now that her daughter is involved, she wants out to keep her daughter safe, she blackmails Kingpin for her freedom. This meeting was recorded by Yelena and sent to Kate who shows it to Clint. Kate is horrified to learn that her mother was responsible for Armand's death, framing Jack and who knows what else. Clint tells Kate that they need to protect Eleanor, he says the Kingpin will not let Eleanor leave alive. We now join a meeting between Maya, Kazi and Kingpin; Maya wants to leave revenge behind and take some time away to clear her head. Kingpin agrees and he tells her that he loves her, and she responds that she loves him too. Kingpin gets mad that Eleanor is leaving and that an Avenger is closing in on them; he says that people need to be reminded that the city belongs to him. Clint and Kate know they will need more of arsenal for that night, so Clint says they need to make more trick arrows. In a montage we see Clint showing Kate how to make the trick arrows, Clint gives Kate a speech about the sacrifices of being a hero. Kate tells Clint that when she was a kid she saw the invasion in New York, and that she saw him during the battle. Kate tells Clint that what he did gave her the belief that anything can be achieved. We see the Tracksuit Mafia driving towards the Christmas party that Eleanor is attending that evening.
Clint and Kate arrive at the party before Eleanor, they have gotten the Larpers to pose as waiters in case they need backup. Jack is at the party, and he is walking around with a sword on his hip, we see Kazi is in a building across from the party with a sniper rifle. Yelena arrives at the party, but nobody notices her. Eleanor finally arrives and Kates pulls her mother aside to tell her she knows what her mother did, Eleanor says Kate's father owed the Kingpin money and that after he died, she worked for the Kingpin to pay off the debt. Kazi sees Clint and attempts to shoot him, he misses, and Clint has the Larpers evacuate the party. Kate, Eleanor and Jack are interrupted by the gunfire, so Kate leaves them to help Clint. Kate spots Yelena who is following Clint, they end up in the same elevator where Kate attempts to slow Yelena down in her attempt to get Clint. They fight with Yelena winning and jumping out of the building to go after Clint who is trying to stop Kazi. Clint shoots an arrow that releases gas causing Kazi to leave the building he was in. Yelena attempts to shoot Clint but misses and ends up on the street, Clint then has to fight off the Tracksuit Mafia who entered the building. Clint disposes of them easily and when Kazi arrives he is also no match for Clint.
Kate follows Yelena down to the street, though on the street Kate starts fighting members of the Tracksuit Mafia and eventually gets assistance from Jack and his sword. Clint is forced to jump out a window and he lands in the Christmas tree in front of Rockefeller Center. Kate helps Clint out of the tree by shooting the tree with the acid arrows causing it to topple onto the Rockefeller Centre skating rink. We see Maya go home where she starts to pack up her things, she looks at a picture of her, her dad and Kazi who has his arm around her, and she leaves. Kate goes to the rink to give Clint backup while they are surrounded by the Tracksuit Mafia who vastly out number them. Clint and Kate start using the trick arrows to great effect until they took down all of the attackers. A van drives at them but Kate uses the Pym arrow to cause the van to shrink where it is quickly snatched from the ground by an owl. Kate and Clint are forced to split up as the Larpers have found Kate's mom and Kazi has arrived to kill Clint who is jumped by Yelena before he can stop Kazi. Kazi is about to shoot Clint when Maya arrives and starts fighting him, she is mad that he betrayed her father. Maya is also trying to convince him to leave his criminal life behind and go with her, Kazi says that this is his life. Kazi tells her that this is his life, and it was never supposed to be hers, despite not wanting to hurt he still has orders to follow. Kazi says it is too late for him, he can't walk in both worlds, he charges Maya. Maya stabs him, she holds him in her arms as he passes; but before he goes, he warns her that Kingpin will come after her and that she needs to run.
Yelena and Clint fight on the ice, Clint tries to explain that Natasha sacrificed herself, but Yelena calls him a liar and attacks him. Meanwhile Eleanor is attempting to leave in her car, but she is stopped by Kingpin who rips the door off of the car. Kate distracts Kingpin long enough for her mother to hit Kingpin with her car. Yelena keeps attacking Clint who is just protecting himself and not attacking her back. Kingpin keeps hitting Kate and telling her stay out of this, but she keeps getting up and going after him. Eventually Kate sets off a bunch of trick arrows at the same time that knock Kingpin out as Kate goes to her mother. Eleanor tells Kate they will put this behind them and everything will go back to normal. Kate has her mother arrested for what she did, Eleanor is mad that her daughter betrayed her. Clint meanwhile has his hands full with Yelena until he does the whistle that Yelena and Natasha used as children. The secret whistle proves to Yelena that Clint was truly close to Natasha, Clint tells Yelena that Natasha only ever wanted Yelena to be safe. Yelena is jealous that Clint got so much time with Natasha, Yelena wishes she was there with them so she could have stopped Natasha. Clint says nothing was going to stop Natasha once she made up her mind. Yelena says she misses Natasha so much and Clint says he misses her too. Yelena helps Clint to his feet; he says he is sorry for her loss and Yelena walks away in tears.
The cops arrive for Kingpin, but he managed to escape until Maya finds him, she points a gun at him, and we cut away but we hear a gunshot. Clint makes it back home for Christmas, but he is not alone as Kate and Lucky have joined him. Kate meets Clint's family and spends Christmas with them, Clint gives his wife back her watch. The watch belong to Laura seems to prove that at some point she was an agent of S.H.I.E.LD. and that is where she likely met Clint. Clint brings her outside where she lights the Ronin suit on fire, and Kate runs potential names for her hero name by Clint looking for his approval. The season/series ends with a different post-credit scene showing the full song and dance number Save the City which we saw briefly in episode one.
FINAL THOUGHTS ON SEASON ONE OF HAWKEYE
My title of the conclusion is a tad presumptuous that there will be a second season, there was no cliff-hanger and no confirmation from Disney that a second season is even planned. The lack of communication from Marvel makes me think that this could have been the limited series it said it was. That said we will see more of these characters at some point, we will for sure see more Kate Bishop and Yelena, but Clint it is hard to say for certain. I am sure Jeremy Renner would be up for more appearances, but with Marvel pushing for a new set of Avengers more of Clint is not a sure thing. If we do see more of Clint, I think it will be as a supporting character and he will be used as a mentor to Kate. Though I do hope that we learn more of Laura Barton's past, the show has shown that Laura is not just a simple housewife. Laura Barton had a past as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., this was likely where she met Clint. I would be interested in a series (likely animated) where we learn about her time as an agent, in the show she seemed quite adept at spy craft, and she seemed unafraid for Clint's safety. I'm guessing Laura has seen Clint do more dangerous things than take on the Tracksuit Mafia, if he needed help, I am sure she would jump into action.
I'm happy to be right about both Jack and Eleanor, in the first episode we were meant to feel that Jack was shady, and Eleanor was a protective mother. In the finale we learn that Jack was just a patsy and that Eleanor had been working for/with the Kingpin for some time. Eleanor's reasons were just simply excuses, she only pulled away from the Kingpin after her daughter became too involved in things. When Kate had her mother arrested, it did seem cold on Kate's part, but it also proved that Kate is indeed a hero. I wonder if Kate's betrayal will turn her mother against her, I am also curious (and I am sure we will learn more eventually) about what Eleanor was doing for Kingpin. I know Marvel has confirmed that the Kingpin in Hawkeye is the same character from Daredevil, but I wonder if they will retcon some of his past. Jack was always charming, and where we were meant to believe he was hiding things we learned that he was just simply a fool. I really enjoyed the performance given by Tony Dalton, he was fantastic, and I hope between Better Call Saul and Hawkeye he gets more offers. For a second, I believed we were going to get a scene of Jack participating in Larping event, I do think he would love it.
The use of the trick arrows was really well done in this episode, and I especially liked that the Tracksuit Mafia was no real match for Clint and Kate. The only thing the Tracksuit Mafia had going for them was numbers, even Kazi was overly arrogant when he fought Clint and was defeated rather easily. The fight between Kazi and Maya was sad for me, I got confirmation for what I had theorized that Kazi and Maya were a couple, but it was tough to see that she had to kill him. Maya has been through a lot, from see her father killed to being betrayed by her boyfriend and her uncle (Kingpin). I now can see how there will be a show for her in the near future, though I am unsure if she has powers. I was impressed by the acting by both Maya and Kazi in the fight scene, you could feel that despite how much he wished he could follow her Kazi was just in too deep. Despite Kazi being a bad guy and a loser, I kind of liked him and I wish he had not died. I also do not believe we have seen the last of Kingpin, we heard a shot and never saw him again. I choose to believe that she either shot and wounded him, or she beside his head. D'Onofrio really brought it in this episode, I thought his scenes with Eleanor and Maya were both fantastic. D'Onofrio's take on Kingpin has always been different; he plays Kingpin as a man teetering on the brink of losing cool. Kingpin in D'Onofrio's hands is someone whom you do not want to make mad as he can turn on you so quick. It is obvious that he loves Maya, but as soon as she leaves, he is shaking in rage at the thought of losing Eleanor and Maya. I really hope Marvel can find a way give D'Onofrio more work, and soon.
The fight between Clint and Yelena was also good because you could see that both were holding back. Clint understands her pain and you know that a part of him wishes that Natasha had lived, and he died. Clint is remorseful of his actions as Ronin, he now has an even better understanding of how Natasha felt after she joined S.H.I.E.L.D. (he too now has a lot of red on his ledger). The final scene between Yelena and Clint was not as emotional as I would have hoped, the actor did their best, but the scene felt off. I also did not think that the final scene between Kate and Eleanor was that great either, I saw some people on criticizing the director choice for the episode. Apparently, the series was had two sets of directors who each did three episodes. I wonder if the directors were switched if the finale who have resonated better on an emotional level. The action was great, but I felt let down by the Yelena and Clint scene. I thought that scene should have had the audience in tears, but I felt that way the scene was handled was fumbled slightly.
I thought the season/series as a whole was incredibly enjoyable and I hope that we will get a second season. I thought the change in style for the show was a smart decision since all the previous shows were more dramatic and the films bookending Hawkeye (Eternals and Spider-Man: No Way Home) were also emotional. Hawkeye's lighter tone was a welcome change in the tone of the Disney Plus series. The emotional core of the series was strong as both Renner and Steinfeld delivered solid performances. The finale while a lot of fun did fumble the wrap up to the Yelena and Eleanor, the show was on an upward trajectory until the finale where it leveled off. I am going to give the finale an 8/10, it would have been a 9 or a 10 if it had landed the Yelena and Eleanor storylines better. The show featured an excellent cast, great action, fun banter and a great reveal in Vincent D'Onofrio's return as Kingpin. There is going to be a great future for Kate and Yelena based on their dynamic together, I can see Clint being a mentor of sort to both of them. Marvel did a great job of casting to get Steinfeld and Pugh into the MCU, they are both such amazing performers that I feel confident that the next phase of Avengers is in safe hands.
Thank you for reading and please let me know what you thought Hawkeye.
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