I usually do these spoiler-free, but be warned: I'm talking ALL the spoilers today! If you want the spoiler-free take before you watch this ep: WATCH IT! It's AMAZING! If you read further, remember: SPOILERS!
Oh hi there, Pull-Heads! The newest episode of #Hawkeye dropped and.. holy moly! It's even BETTER than I had hoped! So much so that I HAVE to talk spoilers! This is a RECAP instead of a simple review!
This has easily been the BEST MCU show for me, so far. Its plot isn't too small or too over the top; the characters are great, and the comedy and action are rampant! It's everything I want in my Marvel! Let's recap this phenomenal final ep! ...or is it? We were told this was a one-season series, but now Marvel is calling this episode a season finale instead of a series finale... could we be getting another season??? Let's take a look at all that happened, so we can make an educated guess ;)
The episode starts right away with Kingpin and Eleanor meeting. Eleanor tells Kingpin that before, she did everything he asked, not only to pay off the debt her deceased husband owed but to keep Kingpin happy beyond that. However, now that Kate is back home and is getting involved, she wants out of the business with Kingpin. Obviously, Kingpin doesn't like that.
And now neither does Kate because Yelena sent this meeting on video to Kate. I wonder why Yelena keeps communicating with Kate so... well? Why is she so instantly fond of Kate? Marvel, are you hinting at something or am I just wanting to see hints....
As Kate tells Clint about all this and spirals about her mother working with Kingpin, Clint gets her to focus by calling Kate his partner, FINALLY, and insisting that they are gonna work through all this. They WILL figure this out!
Next, there's a great tension-filled scene with Kingpin, Echo, and Kazi. Echo is clearly trying to gracefully bow out of the business as well, and even if this interaction looks peaceful and kind, it's clear it isn't. Kingpin is NOT down with Echo leaving. But... he loves her like family and even tells her such. He may be the Kingpin, but betrayal by the family is worst to him. So bad that even he can't commit it until it feels justified. He’s basically mob Vin Diesel…
Clint and Kate continue to bond. Kate tells him about the first time she saw him and how much that inspired her.
“You showed me that being a hero isn’t just for people that can fly… it’s for anyone who’s brave enough to do what’s right, no matter the cost”
I’m sorry, I know that's supposed to be really endearing for Kate to say to Clint, but I think Kate should be idolizing Steve Rogers/Sam Wilson rather than Clint Barton if that’s what she’s learned... oops?
As the episode keeps on truckin, I just gotta say, the score for this ep is great- the upbeat holiday music is magnificent in setting the tone right before all the action starts at the holiday party. And guess what? THE ACTION IS A COMING FOLKS. You know how you know that?
Well, there are many ways one would know that, but we ESPECIALLY know that from the second that Yelena walks on screen. HELLLOOO MAAM
As mentioned earlier, Kingpin is NOT happy about Eleanor trying to leave, soooo... he sends Kazi to take her out at the holiday party. As the chaos breaks out and Kazi tries to snipe Eleanor (and now Clint too, because why not?) at the holiday party, I'm having a great time because... well, Yelena is just standing there. and. I can't explain it, but this is peak comedy to me!
As Clint, Kate, and the LARPers (I guess they fully recruited them??) try to get everyone out of the party and to safety, Kate spots Yelena and meets her at the elevator. The comedy continues and I am having the BEST time. Give these two a show together, Marvel!
Kate follows Yelena into the elevator, even at Yelena's belay. Kate tries to hit the other elevator buttons to prevent Yelena from ending up on floor 12, where Clint is, but Yelena doesn't allow it. At least, till Kate bamboozles her with her costume underneath her coat and ends up hitting ALL the elevator buttons! CHAOS!
Yelena gets off on the next floor and Kate follows her. They proceed to fight a bit, and by the end of it, they are basically both complimenting each other on their fighting and Kate is basically asking Yelena out on a date.
When Yelena says "I'm sorry, I can't help it" her voice drops like 3 octaves, into an incredibly flirty sounding tone, and I swear it's the gayest thing I've ever heard. oh my goddddddd I'm trying not to clown, but these fantastic actresses are NOT making it easy!!
If you can't already tell, there is SO much simple but quality comedy in this episode and I’m loving it!
Eventually, Yelena gets away from Kate and continues to chase down Clint, while Kate jumps out the window and falls.... too far down. But that's okay, now she can help deal with the Tracksuit guys that just showed up on the ground, while Clint deals with Kazi and a few other guys!
Did I mention I love the comedy this ep? Man, y'all are gonna get tired of me saying it. Kate ends up fighting the Tracksuit guy that she gave advice to a few episodes ago, and the writers haven't forgotten to keep up with their own tracks!
I can't wait till Hailee Steinfield is leading the MCU with Brie Larson. ANYWAYSSSSSSSSS
(I know I just made like 1000 fanboys mad with that statement, oh well, I said what I said)
People continue trying to get out of the building and the LARPers that are helping Clint and Kate out decide... IT'S THEIR TIME! THIS IS THEIR MOMENT! LARPers, ASSEMBLE INTO FULL GEAR! Utterly hilarious- god bless nerds!
Oh, and in between all this, Clint got himself stuck in the Christmas tree, and Kate had to get him out.
Once Clint is down, Kate and him meet up on the ice rink, and we get BOTH costume reveals! Clint wore the suit Kate made him, YESSS!
Some of the best action of the episode happens here- it had me feeling like I was in a video game for a bit, with all the trick arrows! You'll have to see it to believe it! Insomniac Games, open-world Hawkeye video game when??
Eventually, Kate finds out from one of the LARPers where her mom is and decides to go after her. Clint stays behind to deal with more of the Tracksuits. Kazi shows up too, but.... he doesn't fight Clint....
BECAUSE ITS THE SCENE WE’VE BEEN WAITING FOR. Or, at least, that I've been waiting for!! Yelena finally catches up to Clint and confronts him about Natasha’s death. In between punches, kicks, and blows, Clint tries to insist Natasha sacrificed herself and that no one killed her, but Yelena can't believe it. She doesn't WANT to believe it. She wants someone to blame. And, honestly, Natasha may not be my sister, but I'm with her.
As Yelena continues to wail on Clint, Kate meets up with her mom and, well, finds Kingpin there trying to talk her out of leaving. Kate is NOT having it and ends up shooting him with MULTIPLE arrows, but NONE of them harm him. Cause he's, ya know, Kingpin.
I gotta say, as someone who didn't watch Daredevil enough to see Kingpin there, it was so cool seeing Kingpin here in all his glory. But I also gotta say... Kingpin could've EASILY killed Kate here. EASILY. But, even as they fight, and he gets annoyed with her arrows and such, he never actually tries to kill her. He just tries to get her out of his way enough to go to Eleanor. Why is that? Why doesn't he even attempt to kill her or anything? He really must see Eleanor as an asset, and possible family too, because the only reason I can think of is that he knows if he kills Kate, Eleanor would NEVER be okay with that.
And Eleanor shines that truth here, as she runs into Kingpin with a car. Even for a tank-like character like him, that's gotta hurt!
Next thing we know, Echo has shown up and she is dealing with Kazi instead of Clint. Echo insists that she and Kazi should leave together, but Kazi knows he can't leave the life he's in now. It's too late for him. With that said, Echo has no choice but to kill him and does.
Kate is still fighting Kingpin, even after he's hit with Eleanor's car, and she won't even let him leave! She's so stubborn and I absolutely love it. Again, it's fascinating how Kingpin doesn't pacify her so easily- he's supposed to be an indestructible tank, basically, right? And he just lets her get in all these hits. I guess he's still indestructible, even if he's taking lots of hits, right? Either way, Kate eventually takes him out with explosive arrows, and even he gets hit hard with explosions, so I'll take it!
After Kingpin is pacified, Kate runs back to her mom. Her mom insists that all that she's done was just an unfortunate inconvenience, but Kate doesn't buy it. She knows her mom is in too deep, so she turns her into the police. I actually really loved this moment. Kate didn't just decide her mom was the worst person ever or call her evil, but she knew her mom needed to be held accountable for her actions. It's poetic, considering her mom seemed to think Kate didn't understand what accountability truly meant. This was a FANTASTIC moment for Kate. She was able to understand the nuance of "I love my mom, and I can tell her that, but I can also admit she's made poor choices and she's got to be held accountable". I love it!!
And here it is, folks. Natasha stans, huddle up, and hug each other because you gonna need it. Just as Yelena is getting ready to finish Clint off, he does the noise. He makes the secret whistle sound that Yelena and Natasha shared. And everything comes out. What really happened, how sad Yelena truly is about losing her sister... all of it.
Clint apologies and Yelena seems to accept it. Eventually, Yelena lets Clint go and takes her leave. I wonder when, where, and how we will see her next, now that her story connected to Natasha is done? I'M READY MARVEL
So, after all this, where's Kingpin? Some little explosion didn't kill him, right?
Well, absolutely not dear reader, absolutely not! He is alive but struggling and, well... Echo finds him. and she's not struggling like he is. And nor is her gun.
Well, she shot him. It happened off camera so I don't BELIEVE he’s not gone. But damn… Kingpin really didn’t seem like shit for most of this episode. Almost.. Weak. What’s up with that? Is he gonna come back with a vengeance? Honestly, I hope he does, and he damn well should!
Clint ends up taking Kate with him to his house to see his family on Christmas! So cute! The family greets Kate and Lucky with open arms!
Clint greets his wife with THE WATCH! THE WATCH!! WHAT IS THIS WATCH ALL ABOUT?
PULL-HEADS: IT TURNS OUT THE WATCH WAS CLINT'S WIFE’S?? SHE WAS AN AGENT OF SHIELD??
That's right folks, the watch was Laura Barton's and it's got a nice Shield logo on it with the number 19. She was one of Coulson's peeps! Is she Mockingbird, as many as theorized? We still don't know, but that theory is looking more pretty now!
And that's it folks! We end the ep with Kate running through potential superhero names with Clint, and after denying all the horrible ones that she's pitched, Clint ends the episode with "Hey, I have an idea..."
LET HER TAKE OVER FOR YOU AS HAWKEYE, CLINT!! DO IT!!!!
For those of you that have been dying for an end-credits scene in this series, it's here! There is an end-credits scene! If you were looking for a scene like in the end credits of the films with more hints to the future, you won't get it, but if you're looking for more holiday spirit and felt like something was missing in episode 1... here it is folks! MORE ROGERS THE MUSICAL!!
All in all, I absolutely LOVED Hawkeye, and I KNOW there are Easter Eggs I missed! What did you think of the ep? What Easter Eggs did I miss? Do you think we will get a season 2? If so, when? Is Laura Barton Mockingbird? Come chat with me on Twitter @FriendlyNBHDBi! I'd LOVE to hear all your thoughts, hot takes, and theories!
You can find Lauren, Your Friendly Neighborhood Bi, here
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