Hawkeye Preview
"You Survived. Half The Planet Didn't. They Got Thanos. You Get Me" - Ronin (Hawkeye)
(Spoiler Warning for Thor, Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Endgame, and Black Widow!)
Time for a new Disney+ series! Hawkeye is set to premiere on November 24th. Today, I’ll be looking back at Clint Barton’s time in the MCU. It will only be a summary of what has happened in live-action movies. Like many characters who have had a Disney+ series, Hawkeye had little screentime in the MCU but had an impact on fans. I’m sure this series will be like The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which means it will be a bit more grounded. The big event in Phase 4 is the multiverse, and I don’t think that would be necessary for this show. In my final thoughts, I’ll discuss what I am looking forward to in this series. Let’s get into it!
Thor (2011)
Clint Barton, also known as Hawkeye, had a brief appearance in the first Thor movie. At this point, he was working for SHIELD. He was ordered to keep an eye from above on Thor, who had broken into their compound. He awaited an order from Phil Coulson but never took the shot.
Marvel’s The Avengers (2012)
Hawkeye had a much bigger role in the first Avengers movie. He was present when Loki first appeared through the Tesseract. He saved Fury before he was put under mind control by Loki’s scepter. Under Loki’s control, Hawkeye helped steal Iridium and other materials that were needed to stabilize the Tessaract. Later on, Hawkeye attacked the helicarrier that the heroes were on. He used a hacker arrow to damage the helicarrier’s system but took cover because of Fury and Maria Hill shooting at him. As he tried to find a hideout, he was confronted by Black Widow. She bested him. Natasha looked over him while he recovered from the mind control. At the Battle of New York, Hawkeye started on the ground fighting off the Chitauri army. Once the Avengers finally came together, Hawkeye was put on a rooftop to help have eyes on the area. He helped Black Widow lose Loki by using an explosive arrow. The Avengers were successful in beating Loki and the Chitauri army. Barton and the others were at Central Park to witness Loki and Thor return to Asgard via the Tesseract.
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
The action started quickly as Hawkeye and the other Avengers were trying to retrieve Loki’s Scepter again. Hawkeye was taking out bunkers, but one he couldn’t get. Hawkeye was the first to encounter a Maximoff twin, Pietro. His focus went to the twin, and he didn’t realize that the bunker was still there. Unfortunately, he is shot and injured badly. He is treated rapidly by Dr. Cho and was able to attend an Avengers party. The party ended with Ultron attacking the members. There was an awesome moment of Hawkeye throwing Captain America’s shield to him. After their first confrontation with Ultron, the Avengers tried to find out where he would be going next. On Ulysses Klaue’s ship, everyone is given a “nightmare” by Wanda Maximoff except Hawkeye. They were unsuccessful in getting a hold of Ultron and the twins, so Hawkeye took them to his home. We were introduced to his family; Laura, his wife, and his kids. Laura and Clint share a lovely moment about his importance to the team. It may seem like they don’t need him, but they do. Before leaving his home, he promised his wife that this would be his last mission. Hawkeye flew the Quinjet to Seoul and spotted Ultron. He dropped Black Widow so she could assist the others. She got Ultron’s cradle on the Quinjet but was taken. Hawkeye spent the rest of his time trying to find her location while the other looked over the cradle. He eventually found her. The final battle against Ultron started then. He fought off every Ultron Sentry he could. His most important contribution was helping Wanda decide whether or not she should fight. His words definitely helped her. In the final moments, Hawkeye nearly died rescuing a child. He was saved by Pietro. He reunited with his family and named his newly born after Natasha and Pietro; he retired after the battle.
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Turns out Barton had a short retirement. In the divided Avengers, he was on Cap’s side. Hawkeye was sent by Captain America to rescue Wanda from the Avengers compound. Vision tried to stop them. Hawkeye didn’t stand a chance against him, but Wanda bought them some time to leave. Barton made his way to Berlin to meet Cap and the others while picking up Ant-Man, Scott Lang. During the clash between Avengers, he fought against Iron Man, Black Widow, and Black Panther. He was the one that stated that some of them would have to lose this battle for the others to win the bigger battle. The remaining heroes that stayed to fight were later sent to the Raft and deemed criminals. They would be eventually broken out of prison by Cap and co. Barton made a deal with the FBI and retired again, so he could be with his family. He was put on house arrest and ordered to follow the Accords.
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Since he was on house arrest, he didn’t participate in the events of Avengers: Infinity War. During the snap, he lost his family. It made him because his alias in the comics named Ronin for five years. He targeted criminals who weren’t snapped since he was angry that his family was dusted. Natasha found him in Japan and told him they had a chance to bring everyone back. In preparation for the time heist, he tried the Quantum realm suit and gave it a test run. His test run was successful since he made it to the past and heard his daughter. The time heist was ready to begin. His job was to retrieve the Soul Stone in Vormir with Natasha. Hawkeye and Black Widow landed on Vormir and met with Red Skull. He had doubts about the sacrifice that had to be made but learned it was true. In one of the most emotional moments of the MCU, Barton and Nat fought for the sacrifice. In the end, Nat made the ultimate sacrifice. He lost his closest best friend. He retrieved the Soul Stone, and the Avengers tried to snap everyone back. Hawkeye received a phone call from Laura confirming the snap worked. Not long after, Thanos attacked the compound. Hawkeye had eyes on the Nano Gaunlet and fought off Outriders. He handed the Nano Gaunlet to 2014 Nebula by mistake but got it back shortly after. Hawkeye kept the Nano Gaunlet during Battle of Earth until he passed it on to Black Panther. Hawkeye and others defeated Thanos and his army. He reunited with family and attended Stark’s funeral. Wanda and Barton shared a nice moment during the funeral; he assured her that Vision and Natasha knew they won.
Introducing Kate Bishop
Kate Bishop is another well-known archer in Marvel Comics. It had been confirmed about a year ago that she would be in the new Hawkeye series, so let’s just take a little look at her comic run. Kate’s first appearance was in Young Avengers, published in 2005. She learned her skills by learning self-defense and archery. Kate and the Young Avengers helped take down Kang. They were offered training from the Avengers but declined. The Young Avengers would still work together; they would aid the Avengers again in a Kree/Skrull War. Cap offered her Hawkeye’s name and his bows after the battle. Kate Bishop fought by Barton’s side in the 2015 comic run titled Hawkeye. It was written by Matt Fraction and art done by David Aja. From what I heard, it is one of the best Hawkeye comic runs. Kate received her first solo comic run titled Hawkeye in 2016. It was written by Kelly Thompson and art done by Julian Totino Tedesco.
Final thoughts
I’m going into this series with few expectations. When it was first announced in 2019, I didn’t care much because I wasn’t a big Hawkeye fan. I did like when he became Ronin because it added more flare to the character. It wasn’t until Kate Bishop was confirmed to appear that I got some interest in the show. I read some comics that had Kate Bishop, and so far, she is pretty cool. I’m guessing that she will be taking on the mantle of Hawkeye as she did in the comics. The series will be Barton teaching Kate how to be the best version of herself. I’m hoping to see more of Barton’s time as Ronin. It was only teased in Avengers: Endgame. With the end credit scene of Black Widow, we know that Yelena will have to appear in the show at some point. She is going to want revenge since Val told her Barton is the reason for Nat’s death. I’m excited to see her again because she was incredible in Black Widow. We also know that Maya Lopez, Echo, will be in the series too. She is a deaf Native American character who is an assassin who later becomes a hero. Echo is known to have a handprint of her face to remind her of what she has lost. Her first appearance in Marvel Comics was in 1999. It was in Daredevil issue #9. She was also Ronin before Barton was in the comics. Maybe we will see The Hand in the series? I don’t know; those can be the main villains in the series. She is the adoptive daughter of Wilson Fisk, aka Kingpin. I really hope this is a chance to introduce Fisk to the MCU. I want Vincent D'Onofrio to play him since he did an amazing job in Daredevil. This may be a chance to bring in Matt Murdock as well. Since she has been an antagonist for Daredevil in the comics. There is no doubt that I want Charlie Cox to play him too. I think that would be too much, but you never know. All and all, I’m expecting a grounded and enjoyable show. Maybe I’ll end up liking Hawkeye by the end.
Hello there! I’m happy you took the time out of your day to read my post, though. Remember if you have any questions or want to have a discussion, leave a comment! Next week, I will be talking about Hawkeye episode one! Since they are releasing two episodes at once, I will try my best to get two newsletters out next week. Stick around and find out! Happy days and take care!