Overall Thoughts: Latest Marvel series is a low-key, refreshing (if imperfect) break from more cinematic excursions.
NOTE: Being a TV show, I'm breaking this series down into short reviews of each episode, followed by a few paragraphs of overview. Please keep in mind that there will be mild spoilers throughout, but I will be doing my best to avoid some of the major spoilers.
Episode 1 - Never Meet Your Heroes
In this pilot episode, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) is sent back home following a college accident. Upon stumbling upon her Mom's fiancee's auction, she finds the suit that once belonged to the notorious Ronin. Meanwhile, Clint Barton (a.k.a. Hawkeye; Jeremy Renner) is in New York City for a Christmas trip with his three kids. When footage of Kate in the Ronin suit gets on the news, Clint tracks her down to see who else might be on her tail.
The pacing for this title episode is a little on the slow side. But, Kate's character is introduced solidly through an engaging "connect the dots" opening scene, along with some animated credits. Steinfeld is also great casting, bringing honesty and sincerity to her character. Vera Farmiga is also solid as Kate's Mom. The overall plot set-up is fairly limited, though it leaves off at a spot that keeps you ready for what comes next. The episode's one action scene is entertaining.
Meanwhile, the idea of a Steve Rogers Broadway musical and its' execution here is as interesting and cheesy as it sounds (the song, "I Can Do This All Day", written by Mary Poppins Returns lyricists Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, is OK).
In the end, this is a pretty solid (if feeling a little long) opening episode.
Grade: B
Episode 2 - Hide and Seek
Following Clint tracking down and meeting Kate, the duo immediately find themselves on the run from a mysterious gang (with a grudge against Ronin) called the Tracksuits. Meanwhile, Kate begins to suspect that her Mom's new fiancee might have more on his agenda than it appears.
Episode 2 - Hide and Seek
Following Clint tracking down and meeting Kate, the duo immediately find themselves on the run from a mysterious gang (with a grudge against Ronin) called the Tracksuits. Meanwhile, Kate begins to suspect that her Mom's new fiancee might have more on his agenda than it appears.
Steinfeld and Renner have solid chemistry together, and the stakes rise a bit from the first episode. However, overall set-up and pacing remain on the slow side. Meanwhile, Lucky the Pizza Dog is an adorable addition, though he seems limited in terms of screentime. A couple of solid action scenes and a few intriguing developments keep the episode moving in mostly positive directions. On another entertaining note, a scene where Hawkeye interacts with a few members of a live action role playing guild is one of the most memorable moments in the show.
So, ultimately, Hide and Seek keeps things pretty consistent from Episode 1.
Grade: B+
Episode 3 - Echoes
In this episode, Clint and Kate find themselves captured by Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox), a Tracksuit head who wants to get back at Ronin for murdering her father. Following an interrogation, the duo escape and plan to investigate Kate's family's house for any clues regarding a mysterious murder.
In this episode, Clint and Kate find themselves captured by Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox), a Tracksuit head who wants to get back at Ronin for murdering her father. Following an interrogation, the duo escape and plan to investigate Kate's family's house for any clues regarding a mysterious murder.
This episode dedicates some time to getting to know Maya and her backstory, while setting up for a very entertaining chase scene (to Christmas music, ooh la la. And done in one long shot, even more cool!). As Maya, Cox does really well, and the character's background and challenges are inspiring. Overall, the pacing improves here, and there are some very entertaining and hysterical bits with the dialog. There's also a few inspired uses of visual effects and callbacks to previous Avengers movies. On the downside, the plot is a bit more scattershot here as a result of dedicating more time to Maya's backstory.
But, Echoes, especially on second watch, definitely does a solid job raising the excitement and intrigue of the series' stakes.
Grade: A-
Episode 4 - Partners, Am I Right?
Following a run-in with Kate's mom and fiancee, Clint and Kate continue to search for clues on a mysterious murder and also try to settle business with Ronin's old adversaries. After staying in NYC longer than anticipated, Kate also attempts to cheer Clint up with holiday sweaters and Christmas movies. Finally, another assassin enters the field heck-bent on taking down Clint.
The episode advances the plot and mystery forward at a fairly slow pace, while inserting a couple of solid twists to the overall proceedings. There's also a couple of solid, heartwarming moments and a few hysterical scenes. A few callbacks to Hawkeye's history with Black Widow are also emotionally effective. And the reveal of Yelena Belova at the end brings extra tension and cliffhanger-level suspense to the proceedings.
At just over a half hour without credits, this is the shortest of the series' 6 episodes. That keeps the pacing mostly at an alright rhythm.
Grade: B+
Episode 5 - Ronin
This episode addresses the gap in years for Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) since the events of Black Widow (which took place back in 2017-2018 in the MCU timeline). Meanwhile, Yelena tracks down Kate and discusses her intentions to kill Clint. Meanwhile, Clint attempts to track down Maya as Ronin to attempt to get things straight with her, while the duo works to figure out the main villain behind the murder and the Tracksuits' re-emergence.
This episode addresses the gap in years for Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) since the events of Black Widow (which took place back in 2017-2018 in the MCU timeline). Meanwhile, Yelena tracks down Kate and discusses her intentions to kill Clint. Meanwhile, Clint attempts to track down Maya as Ronin to attempt to get things straight with her, while the duo works to figure out the main villain behind the murder and the Tracksuits' re-emergence.
It is awesome to see Florence Pugh again as Yelena, and she continues to prove that her character is the breakout star of this new phase. She's entertaining, fun and hilarious, and its' nice to see that her edginess was not an issue here like it was in the movie. Her moments with Steinfeld are terrific. There's a couple of suspenseful moments and the opening scene is great. But overall, this episode was pretty talky. There are a couple of great surprises at the end, however.
In the end, this episode sets up the finale pretty well, but it could have been a little shorter and quicker-paced.
Grade: B+
Episode 6 - So, This is Christmas?
In the season finale, Clint and Kate launch a plan to solve their mystery once and for all, beating multiple antagonists in the process.
In the season finale, Clint and Kate launch a plan to solve their mystery once and for all, beating multiple antagonists in the process.
The action in this movie was pretty impressive, and the way they brought everything together story-wise was seamless and terrific. Several callbacks and references to MCU's past. A new villain that impresses (but has too little to do unfortunately). New York City at Christmastime gets the spotlight in a way that's entertaining, fun, and unexpected as well. A handful of surprises. There's a few emotional moments that earn their tugs on the heartstrings. The trick arrows are terrific. And the ending wraps things up in a very nice little bow, in a very happy ending suitable for the holidays.
As a finale, Hawkeye might be my favorite season finale yet. It breaks the curse for "not as good" finales for MCU Disney+ shows. It's a miracle!
Grade: A-
Overall Review
Besides WandaVision, Hawkeye was the other Marvel show I was highly anticipating. I have really enjoyed Jeremy Renner's character in the MCU, and the plotline and early images from last year felt like it would be a low-key departure from the cinematic feel of what Marvel has done before. The trailer revealing the NYC Christmas setting had me even more excited.
And I have to say, overall, Hawkeye lives up to most of the expectations I gave it. It's an intriguing mystery with some pretty interesting stakes. The series also does a really nice job balancing between Clint's development as a character following the loss of Black Widow and Kate's development as she becomes a superhero in her own right. Finally, the "connect the dots" moments are among the strongest I've seen to date for a MCU film or TV show.
The series does make a couple of missteps, however. The pacing is pretty slow in about half of the episodes. The revealed major villain is sadly given little to do. And, the series nearly falters by having one too many characters. If I were Marvel, I might would have kept Maya Lopez (a.k.a. Echo, and she will be getting her own spin-off!) to one episode. No disrespect intended at how important she is as a character, it almost made things a bit convoluted as time went on.
However, (very) thankfully, the studio doesn't make the same mistake they made with Falcon and Winter Soldier's finale. The finale here does impress and gives all of its' characters satisfying ends to their arcs. Looking back at the series as a whole, it's not the instant, trippy classic that is WandaVision, and doesn't have as many great surprises as Loki does. But, it's simpler, holiday season-filled, character-driven pleasantries make Hawkeye (especially its' fantastic finale) a worthy addition to the MCU's fast-growing series of stories and characters.
However, (very) thankfully, the studio doesn't make the same mistake they made with Falcon and Winter Soldier's finale. The finale here does impress and gives all of its' characters satisfying ends to their arcs. Looking back at the series as a whole, it's not the instant, trippy classic that is WandaVision, and doesn't have as many great surprises as Loki does. But, it's simpler, holiday season-filled, character-driven pleasantries make Hawkeye (especially its' fantastic finale) a worthy addition to the MCU's fast-growing series of stories and characters.
And maybe it'll be something to rewatch next Christmas? Just maybe.
Overall Grade: B+
