It's not every day you see a normal-born human playing a major role on their own standalone film or show in the universe created by Marvel. MCU is strongly based on the characters that have either super abilities or superior technologies or are powered with magic. And there are these two characters Black Widow and Hawkeye who are just normal people who just happened to possess excellent skill and have been fighting with aliens or whatnot alongside the mighty avengers. So it's natural that they would have sidelined these two or their stories while they were expanding their universe telling the tales of the super-powered ones. That's why it's refreshing to see characters like Hawkeye on the riding wheel in storytelling.
MCU's first three tv shows were generally acclaimed like they were trying to do something different. For example, I really did enjoy the mystery box setup of Wandavision, as they were reminiscing the different decades and the famous sitcoms of that eras. It had some fantastic performances by the leads and it had an underwhelming ending leading up to the multiverse. I also did enjoy LOKI which had a huge setup with a plot of risking the entire universe which explored a more humane side of a notorious antihero Loki. While both of those were enjoyable, they had a grand scheme in terms of plotline but here in Hawkeye, it seems more of a simple but refreshing story will be told here.
Hawkeye is busy with family, planning holidays with the children. Having no plans with engaging inaction. On another corner of the city, 22-year-old Kate Bishop is practicing her Archery skills and getting scolded by principals and her mother. And she happens to be inspired by Clint Barton to pursue archery alongside Marshal art. So, long story short - they clash with each other paths in a rather unexpected way and meet some adventurous incident on the way to becoming an archery duo.
What's great about the series one might wonder after 3 episodes. I would say the storyline is not-so-serious like other world-ending MCU things, the main two leads work perfectly and a good blend of smart humor and action. Altho the show is called Hawkeye, Kate Bishop seems to be the main hero here who's uprising the audience will see. Hailee Steinfeld is effortlessly charming in her role as Kate Bishop. She acts as a fanboy of Hawkeye, kids around but also rides with him in the car shooting deadly arrows at enemies. And I never did count Jeremy Renner as a great actor, but he remains just as cool as he was for shooting arrows in his previous films. The way he adores and protects Kate like a mentor is adorable to watch.
In the first three episodes, the storyline introduced some key characters Kate Bishop, Echo, Swordsman, etc. who are actively engaged in the main story. And if the rumors are true Kingpin aka Wilson Fisk will return to the screen once again. In these three episodes, the creator showed the state of Clint's life after Endgame, how's he is coping with his loss of friends, and the whole low-key living. With Kate Bishop coming a little excitement comes within it and even though he doesn’t express much, he admits it's something he cherishes after all for that reason he accompanies Kate.
The latest episode features a great car chase scene between the Barton-Kate duo and the army of Echo. The fight scenes using the props and the archery stunts they did on that scene were an absolute treat of an eye. The use of slow-motion only elevated the fact that how much of a great marksman Hawkeye is and it's the way Kate is leading up to too. If they maintain this class of action in the following episodes, they will be sure to be remembered for that.
I have actually unclear idea about how the show will conclude. MCU shows thus far seem to bring out the fragile and rather broken side of characters which is never shown before. But here Clint is already broken, we saw him already crying over his loss, he can cope well with his family who is thankfully alive. I hope they won't go to that route and instead give Clint a meaningful story with worlds-greatest-archer-called-by-many Kate Bishop. Would love to see some wholesome arc. And to be honest, I haven't had much hope for the show itself in the first place but seems like I'm quite enjoying it so gonna keep watching and find out where it goes.