One of the smoother aspects of Disney+ Day was the new Hawkeye clip, probably because it came via Good Morning America and live television demands a certain amount of—maybe not “polish”, because anything can and will go wrong at any moment, but certainly—preparation. So Jeremy Renner popped up to drop a new Hawkeye clip, which shows off Clint Barton and Kate Bishop in Times Square, where, as in real life, people dressed as superheroes pose for photos with tourists. In the world of the MCU, there is an Ant-Man guy, but no Hawkeye, which sounds about right. Scott Lang came up with the time heist, he’s probably a big deal now within that reality (it will be interesting to see if Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania bears this out). Hawkeye, meanwhile, remains nobody’s favorite.
Which is the truth Kate Bishop is delivering, that Hawkeye has a branding problem, which is why no one likes him. Honestly, given the secret family AND the secret second career as a mass murderer, I’m not sure Clint IS looking for that kind of attention, but I LIVE for Kate giving Clint the gears. As I’ve said from the beginning, Kate Bishop is the reason to care about Hawkeye. Everything we’ve seen from Hailee Steinfeld so far is incredibly promising, and since they’ve already wrecked one MCU Hawkeye, I get the feeling they’re being careful with Kate. A lot is riding on her, and Steinfeld, particularly hopes for a Young Avengers thingie somewhere down the line. That’s probably why Clint never got a good shake in the MCU. He was never a focus point for any story. But if Marvel wants the Young Avengers to make it to the screen—movie or television—they need Kate to work out. Fans have to embrace her, people have to invest in caring about her. So I will continue as I have done, and pin my hopes on the Good Hawkeye, Kate Bishop. She, at least, does not have a branding problem.
Attached - Jeremy and Hailee at the Hawkeye screening in London late last week.
