NEVER MEET YOUR HEROES/HIDE AND SEEK
Our adventure into the MCU continues, and with a familiar foe. The first two episodes of Hawkeye sets up this series perfectly, introducing us to a bunch of new characters integrating them into this world with ease. The series feels grounded, much more than the recent series' we've had, almost going back to the Netflix show feel.
Written by Elliot Lines
Hawkeye begins with a flashback of 2012, we all know where this is taking us, to the battle of New York. But you get a different perspective of scenes we know so well. It shows a young Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) listening on her parents conversation when the battle breaks out. This is totally new perspective of this battle and a cool way to look into Kate Bishops "origins", and why she became who she was.
The show very quick introduces us to Kate, it sets up her character as skilled but reckless from the off. She clearly is talented but doesn't think about how her actions could affect others or even herself, this is clearly pointed at with her mum Eleanor Bishop (Vera Farmiga) telling her "kids and rich people think they're invincible, you've always been both". All the new characters that have been introduced have have an air of mystery surrounding them, it's anyone's guess at this point who or what is going on.
Hawkeye does well at keeping the seriousness to a minimum level. The character dynamic between Clint and Kate seems fun and even the fight scenes have a bit of fun incorporated into them, like Hawkeye catching and throwing back a molotov cocktail. With the show set at christmas, this is something that will need to be done throughout, just to give it that lighter ambiance.
It feels like a bit of fresh air to have this more grounded show. Loki and Wandavision was great, but this approach is welcome. Stepping away from all the fantastical side, Hawkeye feels like it could fit right in with the likes of Daredevil (which subsequently, everyone loved).