'Hawkeye' Series Premiere Recap: 'Never Meet Your Heroes' - Pajiba

During those five years when half of Earth’s population was snapped out of existence, including the wife and children of Clint Barton, a.k.a.

Hawkeye, Clint gave himself the new identity ‘Ronin’ and declared war on every criminal organization he could find.

THE STORY SO FAR: After being suspended from school for using her archery skills to do a prank that results in the destruction of a clock tower/bell tower on campus, Kate Bishop goes back home to New York for Christmas.

Meanwhile, Clint is spending time in New York with his three kids (his oldest daughter, Lila, is played by Ava Russo, daughter of Joe Russo, who co-directed Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame, and who played the nameless gay person at Captain America’s grief counseling session in Endgame), and when he sees news footage of Kate dressed as Ronin, he immediately tracks her down to find out what is going on and why she has adopted his former identity.

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT THIS EPISODE?: The opening scene, in which we’re introduced to Kate as a child and we witness the Battle of New York from her perspective and how terrifying it must have been to see the Chitauri and their gigantic Leviathans flying through Manhattan.

WHAT’S NOT SO GOOD ABOUT THIS EPISODE: Whenever the episode focuses on anyone else other than Kate, it becomes less interesting to watch, as Clint and his family aren’t given much to really hold our attention!

Despite the Christmas setting, the show’s tone and visual style don’t make Hawkeye look or feel any different from any of the other Marvel shows on Disney Plus, and considering how the Matt Fraction/David Aja run of Hawkeye the comic-book series was critically acclaimed and won several Eisner awards for its phenomenal artwork and for giving Clint some impressive characterization to show readers what he and his life are like outside of fighting alongside The Avengers, it’s rather disappointing.

Despite the fact that the episode opens in 2012 and shows us the Battle Of New York from Kate’s perspective, the only Avenger that we see onscreen during the actual battle is Hawkeye.

Mainly because seeing him in action is what inspires Kate to start all of her training so she could be just like him, but also because, as Kenan Thompson said to Samuel L.

ANY EASTER EGGS WE SHOULD WATCH OUT FOR?: A theory that’s gathering some steam is that Eleanor Bishop is actually Madame Masque, and that she’ll be revealed to be a villain who will make life even more difficult for both Clint and Kate before the season ends.

ANY FAN THEORIES SPREADING LIKE WILDFIRE ACROSS THE INTERNET BECAUSE OF THIS EPISODE?: A theory that’s gathering some steam is that Eleanor Bishop is actually Madame Masque, and that she’ll be revealed to be a villain who will make life even more difficult for both Clint and Kate before the season ends.

Another theory is that Derek, Eleanor’s husband and Kate’s father, didn’t die at the hands of the Chitauri during the Battle Of New York, but was actually killed by Eleanor, who pretended that he died that way in order to get the insurance, pay off all debts, and keep their penthouse for her and for Kate?

TO SUM IT ALL UP: It’s very understandable that most of this episode is focused on introducing Kate Bishop and having us get to know her, as her character is expected to be an important part of the MCU in years to come.

None of that changes the fact that it feels less like a show with and about Clint Barton, and more like a backdoor pilot that is more focused on introducing Kate and setting her up for her own adventures in her own movies and/or television shows.

Considering how a lot of Marvel fans aren’t entirely fond of Jeremy Renner or Clint Barton, the response to Hailee Steinfeld as Kate getting a lot more screen time will mostly be “That ain’t no problem, that ain’t no problem,” especially since her performance is the best and most enjoyable thing about this show so far.

She’s wonderful and a pleasure to watch as we see Kate walking into many a situation like “How the hell did I even end up here, and what am I going to do next?” whether it’s having to be reunited with Jack after coming home, discovering that he and Eleanor have been secretly engaged, going toe-to-toe with a bunch of gangsters, or finding the dead body of her future stepfather’s uncle

This episode of Hawkeye has been brought to you by “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” by Adona…