Eliza Gwin
Staff Writer
In 2020, COVID-19 was a Marvel fan’s worst enemy. It was the first year in a decade with no new Marvel releases, but 2021 has been one of the most exciting years yet for Marvel fans. Hawkeye is the fifth Marvel series released by Disney+ this year, and fans approve. Hawkeye received a 94% from Rotten Tomatoes, making it the highest-rated Marvel series of 2021.
Hawkeye airs every Wednesday on Disney+. The show will have six episodes total and released its finale episode on December 22.
Hawkeye follows the story of Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), a teenage upper-class New Yorker who lost her father in The Battle of New York portrayed in the 2012 film The Avengers. Bishop finds herself with vengeful enemies after stealing and wearing the suit of an infamous assassin, The Ronin. Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) and Bishop are thrown into a dangerous adventure and unlikely friendship as Barton struggles between choosing to aid Kate or spend Christmastime with his family.
Sophomore and Marvel fan Christina Comar shared her thoughts on the hit TV show: “I love the Christmas theme. I’m so intrigued by what’s gonna happen next.” She enjoyed it more than Marvel’s previous Disney+ series, Loki. “I thought Loki was missing something.” Hawkeye seems to have captured that “something” that Loki didn’t have. “You can tell Hailee Steinfeld is doing a great job of capturing the character and her emotions and her backstory. Her character and Hawkeye are a really good duo,” Christina said.
Sophomore Gryphon Magnus enjoys Hawkeye but has criticisms about the plot. “My real problem is the pacing… feel as if not a lot has happened. I just feel like they’re not telling as big of a story as they could’ve.” Magnus appreciates more content with Clint Barton in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe), as he has not previously had a solo film or TV series. “I’m loving the storyline with Ronin, it adds a lot of depth to [Clint Barton], but as for [Renner’s] performance, I think he just knows who Hawkeye is and is content with that.” Renner has played Clint Barton for over 10 years, and Hawkeye embraces the hardships and character development that Barton dealt with throughout the MCU.
Marvel’s 2021 film Black Widow left fans with high anticipation after the ending hinted that Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) and Hawkeye’s stories will integrate. The end of episode 4 of Hawkeye gave fans a brief glimpse of Yelena and her role in the show. Episode 5 featured more of her character and an exciting plot twist. The final episode aired on December 22 and left fans wanting more Bishop + Barton content in the MCU.
Photo by IndieWire
