Follow the Arrow

[setsuled]

Would you believe it? A major MCU character is teamed up with a young apprentice, poised to take his place in future films and--get this--it's a girl! Yeah, actually, that's gotten a bit repetitive, a bit fast. In this case, though, it's Hawkeye, a character no-one really cares about, and the replacement is played by Hailee Steinfeld, a talented actress. Certainly better than Jeremy Renner so, for once, it's a big upgrade.



I've only just seen the first two episodes--the third might be up by the time you see this--because I dragged my heels for a week. I've never managed to muster enthusiasm for Hawkeye in any of the movies and these MCU shows have been about 35% peaks and 65% valleys, in terms of quality. But I finally got around to Hawkeye last night and I'm glad I did. It's by far the most enjoyable premiere episode of any of the Disney+ MCU shows, partly because it aims pretty low. Kate Bishop (Steinfeld) is a spoiled rich kid, something I suspect the writers can identify with, whose close-up experience with the Battle of New York left a lasting impression. Years later, she's grown into an expert markswoman.



Meanwhile, Clint (Renner), whose name is tragically shown in all caps at one point "CLINT" with the L and I too close together, is just trying to have Christmas with his kids. Kate gets mixed up in some trouble involving his old Ronin suit and he finds he has to clean up the mess. Along the way, the two have some nifty father/daughter chemistry. But Steinfeld's quite good on her own and the best sequence so far is a swanky dinner party in which she sneaks downstairs dressed as a waiter. The combination of drama and comedy culminates in an action sequence that's good for how clumsy the girl is. So many fight scenes try to show the hero being flawless and unstoppable. It adds so much tension when she's fumbling around. Not to mention credibility.

The first episode, written by Jonathan Igla, is a cosy Christmas romp. The writing quality dips drastically in the second episode, written by Elisa Climent, as we follow Clint on a stupidly conceived and composed sidequest amongst a group of Larpers. But even that second episode has a nice, low-key vibe. It doesn't try too hard, which I think, in the end, was the problem with Loki.

Hawkeye is available on Disney+.

Comments

[alexcat]

I've pretty much had enough of your snarky reviews. Leaving this community. I thought it would be fun but so far, nope.

[chase_acow]

Listen I am right there with you! Their attempts to sound smart while tearing down shows that we're here because we like got old so fast for me during Falcon and Winter Soldier. That's completely skipping over the casual racism they showed over and over. They never seem to want to engage with anybody, and I honestly just can't stand them.

I thought about leaving the community so I wouldn't have to look at the crappy screenshots they posted. But then, I found out how to block them so I'd never see their posts when I was logged in. I used this tumblr post to copy/paste some code into the CSS field of customizing your journal.

I logged out to look to see if they'd posted about Hawkeye because I'm the worst, I guess? That blurb above the cut was too much though. I checked out the comments because I was curious. I hope this helps! If you need any help, pls ask, and I hope you stick around!

[alexcat]

I signed back up... thanks!

[setsuled]

I like Marvel and I like the MCU and I truly go into these shows with an open mind. But I refuse to decide I'm going to like something before I've seen it and I write criticisms under the believe that other Marvel fans are just as capable of being disappointed as I am and are looking for a sympathetic voice. I've seen enough of the internet to know such people exist.

That's completely skipping over the casual racism they showed over and over.

Maybe you're thinking of someone else because I haven't shown any racism.

They never seem to want to engage with anybody, and I honestly just can't stand them.

I'm happy to engage but I work ten hours a day and get about two hours for the internet. So I can't get to everything. And if you randomly accuse me of racism you're going to make it seem like there's no point talking to you.

[fueschgast]

Please tag your posts.

[setsuled]

With what?

[fueschgast]

Honestly, apart from the show tag I don't know. I don't run this comm, I only help out and not even very well, so I don't know if "episode reaction" is the fitting tag. That might just be meant for the posts where everyone gets to comment with their review.

[yourlibrarian]

I had a similar reaction to the LARPers subplot. I enjoyed the musical concept much more, especially because it gave insight into how the world was reacting to the world changing events and the people at the center of it. Whereas the LARP bit (not to mention a firefighter stealing something from a victim's household!) just seemed like disconnected fan service.

[setsuled]

The musical was fun, I agree, and at the same time it was a good way to show how Clint was processing events from the movies.