Tag: Marvel Studios

EXCLUSIVE: ‘Hawkeye’s Piotr Adamczyk Talks Bringing the Tracksuit Mafia to Life and Kevin Feige’s Set Visit

Hawkeye’s two-episode premiere introduced us to a couple of new characters in the Marvel Cinematic universe. In addition to Kate Bishop and Jack Duquesne, we have been introduced to the hilariously adorable Tracksuit Mafia, which consists of Eastern Europeans who call everyone “bro” a lot. One of its most prominent members was Tomas played by Piotr Adamczyk. In an exclusive interview, he shared some insight into what it was like being on set, especially when Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige visited.

He was on the set. It was very special for us. He talked to everyone, so I had a chance to talk to him, and I was also surprised that for him this mafia, tracksuit mafia, is an important element. He even told us that it was a very significant element of the story.
Piotr Adamczyk

It highlights one of the reasons for Marvel Studios’ success is that Kevin Feige and the rest of the producers are comic geeks and care about properly adapting certain comic book elements. The Tracksuit Mafia was an iconic part of the comic My Life as a Weapon, and it’s no surprise that Feige‘s meticulous attention to this aspect is being taken to reflect them well in the series. Yet, Adamczyk highlights that it was a very different experience on set:

We didn’t feel like that at that time, because we were mainly the group that was waiting to be needed, maybe they would use us. We were often on the set but not always working. Working on the set, especially of such a big, big-budget production, is waiting, especially if you’re not Jeremy Renner. But yes, it was an exceptional conversation, very uplifting. This is also a man who, with such a huge presence, is always in a hat, in sneakers, this is just a regular guy you can talk to casually.
Piotr Adamczyk

As Adamczyk highlights, a lot of working on these kinds of projects is waiting. Actors are around for specific scenes and with the Tracksuit Mafia’s presence throughout the story, they might have to wait around quite a bit. So, it’s great to see how approachable Feige is for cast members of any kind to chat with him. There’s a lot of care put into these projects by the various teams involved with the production.

November 26, 2021
REVIEW: ‘Hawkeye’ Episode 2 – Hide and Seek

The second episode of Hawkeye slowly builds on the foundation that the premiere set, but it still lacks any kind of intensity or hook to reel anything in. Clint and Kate are actually together now, but their relationship is, so far, mostly distant and cold. This isn’t surprising given Clint’s lack of interest in Kate personally and simply focused on his own personal mission. Plus, it’s realistic given the fact that the two very different archers just met, but it just hasn’t yet sparked anything overly persuasive about the two’s central dynamic.

While the capability of their chemistry is certainly there, it’s a stretch to say that we are currently experiencing it. Frankly, they do not share an abundant amount of screen time and when they do Kate is mostly on a fangirl, awkwardly-trying-to-impress level with Clint. Now that the two are in a significant predicament together, though, the stage is set for the banter and the natural relationship to take off. Kate’s inherent confidence—as highlighted by her dramatic crashing entrance into the tracksuit mafia’s warehouse—as well as Hailee Steinfeld’s obvious ability to bring the character to life, is poised to bring much of what’s needed to the table. But Hawkeye has yet to actually demonstrate it can pull their relationship off.

The episode is heavily focused on Kate’s hunch that Jacques is responsible for his uncle’s death and, probably more importantly, involved in a major underground criminal scheme. While Kate’s investigation and Jacques’ role in the overall story are likely key elements of the series, this episode spends too much time here. Yes, Kate’s character and primary drive has to be developed properly, there’s no argument about that. Plus, the narrative is clearly pulling from a lot of different and brand-new sources, and Episode 1 proved that this might be a significant burden for Hawkeye. But it’s currently coming at the cost of forcing a slow, lukewarm, and fairly mundane first couple of episodes needing to be redeemed and probably carried by the remaining four.

Clint’s side quest, while similarly dry and lacking much emotion or intensity, is still a bit more interesting. Notably, we get to see Clint take part in some LARPing in order to get the Ronin suit back. It’s silly, but it’s different. So far with Clint, it feels like the series is playing some version of “What Do the Avengers Do When They’re Not Being Superheroes?” Jeremy Renner definitely plays Clint low-key still, but if the audience looks at the character through the lens of a relatively washed-up, middle-aged, traumatized, exhausted, and “please let me go home” energy, Renner’s performance and Clint’s character is on point. As a side note, we’re introduced to a LARPer named Grills—anyone familiar with the Fraction and Aja Hawkeye run knows he might be significant.

The Tracksuit Mafia has a bit more spotlight this time around, and the “bros” are now proving to be the strongest comedic element of the series as of yet. Ronin’s past with the criminal group is particularly interesting, given the fact that the mafia at this point seems relatively goofy and low-level. The importance for Clint to settle things with them almost comes across as trivial—the globe-trotting organized crime murdering vigilante is hung up on…a group called the “Tracksuit Mafia”. Surely, there must be more behind the scenes, although Clint doesn’t seem to know exactly what. But the final moments of the episode peels back some of the menial tracksuit face.

The episode ends on by far the most intriguing note with the Alaqua Cox Echo reveal. Despite the fact that she almost exclusively does nothing, her presence—combined with the extra oomph of the cinematography and music—is presence at its finest. That short moment represents the punch and grip Hawkeye needs. It also teases that the series can pull it off, and perhaps the coming episodes will truly take everything up a notch. It’s more than suggested that a more aggressive storyline involving the Tracksuit Mafia (and likely more) is to come, but we are certainly not there quite yet.

November 25, 2021
REVIEW: ‘Hawkeye’ Episode 1 – Never Meet Your Heroes

Hawkeye was always poised to bring the multiverse’s focus back to “normal”. A story surrounding two non-superpowered archers taking on street-level organized crime is undoubtedly a far cry from most of Phase Four’s entries, particularly the previous four running up to it. The series is certainly a back-to-basics return to form and it is too early to tell if that will be Hawkeye’s greatest weapon or chink in its armor.

The nature of the show could raise plenty of questions and invoke compelling human themes in times of vast cosmic and reality expansion. For example, can a project that feels like it could belong in Phase One or Two be successful or viable in the MCU’s current context? How will the MCU handle the very different passing down of another major mantle in the face of the upcoming onslaught of legacy heroes in the franchise? What does the series want to say about the mantle’s legacy versus Clint Barton’s? While no single episode could answer any of those questions, the premiere of Hawkeye didn’t really seem to acknowledge any of it. Instead, it felt generic and somewhat empty, doing mostly surface-level work that might be indistinguishable from previous New York-centric and street-level Marvel TV shows.

Episode 1 feels like the primer of all primers. We catch up with Clint Barton, who we last saw going through the time travel and universe-threatening wringer of Avengers: Endgame. While Hawkeye may have always been the “lame Avenger,” Clint was given some of the most substantial off-screen narrative of any character, so it feels natural to get individual time with him. Clint is with his kids, enjoying New York before Christmas about two years after the events of Endgame. Depending on what you’re looking for from Clint Barton after all this time, you might feel a bit underwhelmed by Jeremy Renner’s performance. He is fairly one-note, cynical, dismissive, and simply tired. But look a little deeper, and it’s fair to say that Renner is playing Clint skillfully. Clint is all of those things, and the idea that a man that has gone through nearly every Avengers ordeal plus his own Blip trauma would be much more than a shell of a human being is somewhat absurd.

Still, the stormy gray cloud hanging over Clint, and the series, is his stint as the crime-hunting, murdering vigilante Ronin during the five years that his family—along with half of the universe—was gone. Despite this major player of a concept, Episode 1 treats it fairly flippantly. It’s there, it’s what brings him and Kate together eventually, but it’s just…there. The series has plenty to go to flesh it out more aggressively if it chooses to do so. To not would seem to waste and off-handedly play off one of the character’s biggest arcs (though like most of his arcs, it’s mostly off-screen). There is a rumbling in this episode of how Clint views himself both as Clint Barton and Hawkeye. There are multiple moments where he is recognized by the general public, and he seems uncomfortable with the attention but surprisingly comfortable with the superhero identity. He isn’t second-guessing his worth as a hero, but he isn’t thinking about it much either. It seems predictable that his inner workings will be exposed more vibrantly throughout the series, but right now we are very much still at the starting line.

The episode spends maybe most of its time introducing and priming Hailee Steinfeld’s newcomer, Kate Bishop. The episode starts with Kate rather than Clint, and we see a very quick but well-established origin story for the young archer. The rest of her time in the episode is spent on her finding herself witnessing her mother Eleanor’s (played by Vera Farmiga) new fiancé Jacques Duquesne (played by Tony Dalton) participate in some underground criminal organization. The episode spends an interestingly large amount of time on Kate snooping around the basement of the high society gala where a black-market auction is taking place, mostly staring at the event through shelved wine bottles. Eventually, the auction is attacked and Kate dons the Ronin suit that had been up for grabs to try and take on the tracksuit mafia that invades the joint.

There, we see some of her physical skills come into play. But it feels like we are still lacking in some of her personality. Kate undoubtedly has personality, but the drudging focus on setting up an underlying criminal plot—in the form of mostly Kate being resentful and skeptical of Jacques and watching very generic crime play out in front of her. Her relationship with her mother is also set up to be something more interesting down the line, but it also lacks spark right now. Her bell/clock tower destruction and a few of her quips served to highlight her character, but she was often lost in the otherwise standard and so far forgettable crime plot that Hawkeyeseems to be laying out for the audience with a heavy hand.

Ultimately, Kate masquerading as Ronin for the evening leads Clint to find her to retrieve the suit. The fact that Clint springs into action so quickly at the first sighting of a presumed Ronin sighting speaks to, hopefully, some of his stronger emotions on the issue yet to come. It is in the last seconds of the episode that Clint and Kate actually meet one another. The arguably slow pace of their pairing is to be expected and is probably necessary given the need to establish a new character and re-establish a known but often overlooked one. Still, considering the rest of the episode felt a bit flat and not particularly noteworthy, it was a bit of a disappointment for the credits to roll right after the truly exciting moment.

The premiere of Hawkeye establishes that the series is taking the superhero game back to its basics. With that comes ample potential, both positive and negative. The series is in a prime position to do some phenomenal character work and tell a story that is both literally and figuratively grounded. It could be a refreshing note for the MCU and perhaps triumphantly usher in more of the “ordinary” heroes and stories once again. Still, the series has the potential to be generic—so far, there is little plot despite spending a great deal of time on it this episode, and the plot that exists isn’t anything noteworthy yet. Episode 1 shows too little a bit too uneventfully, but it clearly is meant to be a starting point and a foundation for the main characters and the ensuing adversarial plot pieces down the line. Only time will tell if “ordinary” will simply fall flat as being just that, or if it will manage to carve out a satisfying and memorable piece of the MCU pie.

November 24, 2021
‘Hawkeye’ Found Its Anchor Point in Hailee Steinfeld

Will she or won’t she? Until Murphy’s Multiverse got the first look at Hailee Steinfeld on the set of Hawkeye last year, nobody knew if the actress was really going to play Kate Bishop or not. Now we know and it’s clear that Hailee Steinfield is a good representation of the Kate Bishop in the comics, so good, in fact, she’s not only an anchor point for this series but could be one for the future of the whole MCU.

Through the first two episodes of Hawkeye, Hailee Steinfield portrays Kate Bishop as a determined, outgoing, 22 year old. She has grown up idolizing Hawkeye because he saved her life in the battle of New York. Ever since then, she has been protective of her mother. Over the course of the first two episodes, you see Kate openly reject any attempts by her mom’s fiance, Jacque Duquesne, to bond with her while attempting to force herself into Clint’s life.

While her relationship with Clint is very similar in the comics, the death of her father is a change to the story that allows for her to connect with Clint on an even deeper level. If the Battle of New York would have never happened and her father wouldn’t have died, she wouldn’t have gotten so into archery and self-defense. The absence of her father has left her searching for someone to fill that role. While Jacque is all to happy to force himself into the role, Kate is more interested in forcing herself into that relationship with Clint. Daughters seek the acceptance of their fathers, but they don’t just want to be accepted without reason; they want to prove that they are worth accepting. This is what we see from Kate in the first two episodes: the refusal of one father figure’s empty gestures, in exchange for having to prove to Clint that she is worth accepting. Steinfeld is super believable in both those relationships, to the point where she could almost be playing two different characters.

Steinfeld’s talents as an actress allow this to resonate with the audience. There is a subtleness to her hatred towards Jacque even though she loves her mother. On the other hand, there is an over eagerness to her attempts to make Clint like her. In the first two episodes of the show, Hailee presents a character that is funny and outgoing. Even though her mom warned her to stay out of trouble, Kate’s stubbornness has gotten her into exactly that kind of trouble, which ironically involves her mom’s fiance and his family. Her stubborn determination led her into the scene of the murder of Armond and right into the crosshairs of the Tracksuit Mafia. In the end of episode two, Kate is in some serious trouble and we will have to wait and see if her personality traits will do anything other than get her in deeper and deeper trouble.

Even though her story has been changed from the comics, the stubborn determination the character has in the show comes straight from the pages of the Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung’s Young Avengers and Matt Fraction and David Aja’s Hawkeye. In the Young Avengers Kate is always trying to help people and get things done efficiently. In Hawkeye, she is always curious and wanting to learn something new. Almost from the moment they meet, Hailee portrays the character as trying to learn from Clint, much to the displeasure of her unwilling mentor. In doing so she nails one after another of Kate’s key character traits. Steinfeld was a great choice for this role because, in my own opinion, she is very likeable and has a wide range of talents. I am looking forward to seeing Steinfeld continue to bring Kate to life in the MCU and become a key player in it.

November 24, 2021
‘Hawkeye’ Gives the MCU Its Own Stormtroopers in the Loveable, Laughable Tracksuit Mafia

In Star Wars, George Lucas introduced audiences to the Stormtroopers. Faceless, uniformed goons who accept their (literal) marching orders from their unseen overlord without question. When we first see them board the Tantive IV, they’re presented in overwhelming numbers and, since they’re accompanied by Vader, seem pretty terrifying. Over time, however, they’ve become so well-known in pop culture for their ineptitude (especially when it comes to shooting) that they were the butt of a meta joke in an episode of The Mandalorian. Whatever Lucas’s original plans, Stormtroopers have become weak-minded canon fodder for the heroes of the Star Wars universe, falling for every trick in the book and only mildly threatening because there seems to be no end to how many of them can be marched out.

Whether intentionally or by happy accident, Marvel Studios newest Disney Plus streaming series, Hawkeye, has introduced a group of similarly buffoonish foot soldiers to the MCU in the Tracksuit Mafia and, over the first two episodes, the delivers HEAVY Stormtrooper vibes. The parallels are astounding. Similar to the Stormtroopers, they explode onto the scene in a terrifying fashion as they rob the basement black market auction…and they do so as faceless, uniformed goons. Even in large numbers, the Tracksuits can’t handle Kate Bishop and are only successful in their quest for the enigmatic watch by accident-and that doesn’t even go well for them. Their next attempt to catch Kate ends with them taking another ass-beating at the hands of both Bishop and Barton but it’s not until their Molotov assault on Kate’s loft that we see their ineptitude on full display and it only gets worse from there. Clint’s conversation with the Bros following his “capture” reveals that much like the Stormtroopers, they’re none to bright, much to the frustration of Hawkeye.

Through two episodes, the Tracksuits have accomplished absolutely nothing of note…other than to become absolutely loveable for their stupidity. Hats off to the group of actors, led by Aleks Paunovic, Piotr Adamczyk and Carlos Navarro, for bringing the Tracksuits to the screen straight from the pages of Matt Fraction and David Aja’s epic run. Their interactions with the Hawkeyes and each other, both during the fire bombing and “interrogation” scenes, deliver an ignorance-is-bliss type of humor that will continue to be low-hanging fruit for the remainder of the series. As they botch their jobs and argue among themselves in their matchy-matchy tracksuits, the lack of indistinct personalities, which Barton mentions himself as he’s begging to talk to their boss, only strengthens them as Stormtrooper analogues: it doesn’t matter who is who, bro, they are all equally as useless as the next one.

Thankfully, it seems we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg with these loveable idiots. Trailers and TV spots have show that a future episode will bring the iconic car chase from the comic run to life, meaning we’ll get to see Kate unleash all manner of trick arrows on the Tracksuits and we’ll never know which ones are getting flipped off a bridge or crashing into concrete. And at no point in time will anyone ever believe Clint and Kate are in any real danger. One after another, the legion of Tracksuits will serve as cannon fodder for the Hawkeyes, only to be replaced by another Bro as they follow the marching orders of their unseen overlord. And let’s be honest, that’s who we’re really hoping to see anyway. Until then, here’s to the Tracksuits, Bro, the Stormtroopers of the MCU, Bro.

November 24, 2021
‘Hawkeye’: Rogers the Musical Brings Magical Meta to the MCU

The MCU has become self-aware. The opening episode of Hawkeye brings the Avenging Archer and his children to the Big Apple for what we can assume is maybe opening week of Rogers the Musical, a stage show dedicated to the life of Clint’s friend and fellow Avengers, Steve Rogers. The musical itself isn’t important to the plot of the show other than being the plot device that brings Clint to New York and getting him involved with Kate Bishop and the Tracksuit Mafia. It is, however, important in that it represents a fabulously funny step forward for the MCU: it’s learned to laugh at itself.

In a wonderful bit of meta humor, the musical reenacts the Battle of New York (in song form!) and puts, at its center, one of the real internets most memed MCU moment: Captain America’s “I can do this all day.” The musical gives each of the Avengers their moment to shine, even putting Ant-Man who, as Clint points out was NOT there, a moment in the spotlight, but its shining moment is when the actors who plays Cap belts out the character’s signature line. Hulk’s smash moment comes in a close second, but for the creators of Hawkeye to put one of Rogers core traits at the center of the musical and use it for a laugh shows that they are deeply connected with their fandom.

To be fair, this isn’t the first time the line has been used for a laugh. Avengers: Endgame saw one Steve say the line to the other which led to a light moment. This feels different, however, as it’s not a moment between Caps. It’s a great meta moment because once you’re done laughing at it, you immediately think, “Wait a minute! He never said that at the Battle of New York. And how’d they know he said that anyway?” and that, folks, is the joke. Turning the Battle of New York, the moment the Avengers came together as Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, into the plot of a musical that gives an historically inaccurate representation while one of those Avengers sits in the audience is the kind of laugh that can’t be built in a day. It’s the kind of laugh that only long-time fans of the MCU are going to truly get; it’s so layered and nuanced that the fan who is watching Hawkeye because they like Hailee Steinfeld would need a 20-minute long lecture from a friend to explain why it was funny in the first place; it’s the kind of laugh that lands hardest because it’s the world’s most successful franchise laughing at itself.

The MCU has become self-aware and if this is the type occasional meta humor fans can expect to see, then Feige has transitioned from MCU overlord to MCU memelord, cementing himself as The One-Above-All.

November 24, 2021
‘Hawkeye’ Episodes 1 and 2 Primer

Fans should be excited to see these first two episodes of Hawkeye because we haven’t seen Clint since Avengers: Endgame. The show is placed two years after the end of Endgame. Infinity War and Endgame were very hard on Clint. First, he lost his family due to the Snap. Then, he lost his mind and started killing criminals while taking on the identity of Ronin. Finally, in Endgame he lost his best friend. It would be nice for him to have a relaxing holiday with his family, but we all know that’s not going to happen.

The series will introduce Kate Bishop, a member of the Young Avengers in the comics and Clint’s partner in the Matt Fraction and David Aja Hawkeye run. Kate, played by Hailee Steinfeld, has the potential to be a big part of the future of the MCU. The show will also introduce The Tracksuit Mafia, who you may know as the “Bros” in the comics (they just go around saying “Bro” all of the time, Bro). It is also introducing Echo to MCU, played by Alaqua Cox. Echo is a great character and, in the comics, is the adopted daughter of a character who is rumored to show up, but we’ll save that for later.

Arlyn’s Assumptions

If you remember, Yelena Belova from Black Widow is also going to enter into the mix. She was told that Hawkeye killed Natasha and she is coming after him. Even though she was given some bad info and that she and Clint will get off to a rough start, I think they’ll eventually become friends once Clint explains to her what Nat really did. If you did not know Jacque Duquesne, Clint’s mentor in the comics, is also in the show. Maybe he will still have some loose ends with Clint that could explain those fancy sword skills Clint showed off in Endgame. And rumor has it that Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin, is lurking in the shadows as the big boss behind the organized crime in New York, like the Tracksuits. As I hinted above, Fisk has a big role in Echo’s life and obviously would hint at other characters showing up soon as well. There’s really a lot going on here and a lot to sort out. Let’s get started!

November 23, 2021
REVIEW: ‘Hawkeye’ Misses The Spirit Of The Comic But Is On Target With Its Cast

The Marvel Studios adaptation of the celebrated Matt Fraction and David Aja comic doesn’t quite live up to the comic’s panache and ends up abbreviated in more ways than one. Omitted from the show are two of the comic most vibrant traits: the quaint slice-of-life window peering into the life of an Avenger and the unique aesthetic crafted by Aja. Despite this, the show manages to stay fun thanks to a solid cast.

As the premise goes, Clint Barton’s stint as the mass-murdering Ronin is a secret known only to the Avengers. So when Ronin memorabilia hits the black market, Clint is drawn into the orbit of the underworld where Kate Bishop has been doing some heroic sleuthing of her own. When their paths intersect, Marvel Cinematic Universe history is made as one of comics’ greatest partnerships comes to life in front of your very eyes.

There’s really not much left to be desired from the nuts and bolts of Hawkeye’s mechanisms, apart from the hope of seeing a certain crime lord behind the curtain, as the first two episodes repeat the same hypotheses over and over that you’ll be no further from the first clue Kate Bishop finds by the time the credits roll an entire later. Perhaps by no coincidence, writer Jonathan Igla and director Rhys Thomas wanted to evoke the Marvel-Netflix shows’ signature trudge.

Hawkeye is the first Marvel Studios TV show to look wholly unremarkable. Gone is the ambition of Loki’s otherwordly design and WandaVision‘s retro aesthetic. Even as grounded in real-world architecture Falcon and the Winter Soldier was, the show compensated for the blandness of its concrete and steel sets by elevating the action sequences. Hawkeye has neither of those, failing to look even as remotely interesting as some of the Marvel-Netflix shows did. The fights don’t look memorable. The compositions looks wildly uninspired making it quite possibly the show’s biggest misfire, a massive step down from the self-contained world David Aja made so iconic. The show nonetheless and deservedly pays homage to Aja’s work in its credits sequences but it doesn’t make the show’s lack of any aesthetic any less glaring.

Just like the Netflix shows, Hawkeye hits the mark in assembling a fantastic ensemble. Newcomers Vera Farmiga and Tony Dalton add a very vicious sexiness to the otherwise homely and wholesome dynamic brought on by leads Renner and Steinfeld. Farmiga plays Eleanor Bishop, a New York socialite with some obvious skeletons in her closet. Her performance is deliciously sassy and quickly proves to be a great foil for Steinfeld’s own brand of snark.

Dalton is Jacques Duquesne, a character known to Silver Age readers as the fallen Avenger Swordsman. Better Call Saul fans familiar with Dalton as Lalo Salamanca may quickly brush off his MCU debut as the same character and for good reason: Dalton doesn’t really drop the slimy grin Lalo for a distinctly new performance. Yet the way he commands a scene with a mere grin highlights his gravitas. He brings a playful impishness to every moment that’s adjunct to the real darkness underneath. It’s a familiar schtick but works consistently no less.

The titular archer finally gets his name on the marquee, a novelty that is smartly channeled into the character’s own pathos. Seeing your family vanish into thin air, turning into a mass murderer, journeying to the edge of the universe only to see your best friend die in your place is never good for one’s mental health and Hawkeye peels those layers for Clint Barton in various ways. He pities himself for not being as celebrated as his colleagues on the team yet is dismissive of respect given to him. His legacy as an Avenger is soured on a deep level for him because of his actions as Ronin.

Renner portrays this modern-day Barton as someone on the brink of collapse. It’s a performance so subdued that you might think Renner isn’t putting in the work but it’s also reflective of the deepness of trauma and PTSD. Trauma is, oftentimes, invisible and forcibly buried under layers of disguises, and the way Renner underlines all of Barton’s wholesome facades with pain is so fascinating to watch. So while the performance is lacking the whimsy of how Fraction’s own vision of Barton, it’s also not without weight and merit.

Sometimes, a project just needs one person to bring the magic and elevate it to the next level. For the 2011 Hawkeye run, it’s David Aja, whose minimalist yet innovative eye for sequential storytelling gave the comic its distinct personality. Without Aja, the comic would not be the success it is. For this year’s Hawkeye series, a loose adaptation of the said comic, it’s Hailee Steinfeld who brings the magic, allowing the show to rise above its restraint.

Hawkeye wastes no time in positing the POV of Kate Bishop as the focal point of the show, opening with a prologue that would make all the Marvel-Netflix shows filled with envy as the Battle of New York, or as those shows would eye-rollingly call it, The Incident, is on full display in all its horrific glory. The incident serves as the impetus for Kate Bishop’s eventual path to becoming the self-proclaimed World’s Greatest Archer, instilling in her a sense of stubborn determination that Steinfeld proudly wears in her performance.

Steinfeld is a godsend in the role, turning in a charming performance that would’ve turned her into an overnight sensation if True Grit didn’t already do that. Her take on Kate Bishop is wonderfully her own yet already like feels like the blueprint of all the Kate comics before her. Her Kate is frisky and brings a warmness that dyes the somber performance of Renner with color, making their dynamic feel alive. There’s also a staunch fierceness to the way Steinfeld portrays some of Kate’s rougher edges that allows her to be contentious but never abrasive. Kevin Feige and co. have stated that an adaptation of the Fraction/Aja line was always in the pipeline but Steinfeld’s performance proves that this project wouldn’t work without her.

Hawkeye won’t make the same level of impact the Fraction/Aja comic did when it first hit shelves. But the stellar cast and allure of seeing a certain Marvel villain behind the curtains of this otherwise pedestrian crime story will make this a worthwhile watch for any fan.

November 23, 2021
Jeremy Renner Says a ‘Hawkeye’ Adaptation Has Been in the Works for a Decade

Iron Man. Hulk. Thor. Captain America. Black Widow. Each and every one of the original MCU Avengers has led at least one solo project…except Hawkeye. That all changes tomorrow when the Marvel Studios Disney Plus streaming series Hawkeye kicks off with a two-episode debut.

Star Jeremy Renner has been on board as the Avenging Archer since 2011’s Thor and was pretty vocal about the treatment his character received in 2012’s Avengers. The character started to take on a bigger role beginning in Avengers: Age of Ultron and was given plenty to do in both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame and it was during the filming of the latter that discussions about the project that became the Hawkeye series began. However, according to Renner, a Hawkeye project has been in the works significantly longer than that.

“I think there [were] ideas of adapting it initially, but it was 11 years ago,” said Renner in an interview with Jimmy Fallon. “I remember one of my first thoughts in like 2010, 2011, was like, I don’t want to be 50 in tights! No one wants to see me at 50 in tights.“

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-e3pgY5oPs

As it turns out, the decision to wait to go ahead with the project might end up being one of the best choices Marvel Studios has made. The comic upon which the series is based, Matt Fraction and David Aja’s Hawkeye, wasn’t published until 2012 and it’s the relationship that Clint has in that run with Kate Bishop that is central to the Disney Plus series. Renner and co-star Hailee Steinfeld, who plays Bishop, are both stand-outs in the series which will complete its 5-week run on December 22nd.

November 23, 2021
Things We’d Like to See in an ‘Eternals’ Sequel

Marvel Studios Eternals is just over one-third of the way through its 45-day theatrical run and as divisive as the film has proven to be with critics and audiences, it introduced some massive ideas and left the door open to a potential sequel. Should Marvel Studios chose to further explore these characters through an direct sequel, there are plenty of intriguing, comic-based possibilities for Eternals 2.

Eternals: The Fourth Host

The ending of Eternals saw Arishem return to Earth and scoop up its remaining Eternals (Sersi, Kingo and Phastos) in order to use their memories to judge whether or not the lives of the humans they protected were worth the life of Tiamut. This was, of course, a debate even among the Eternals themselves, with some taking the side of the Celestial. The idea of Arishem judging the fitness and survival of the inhabitants of Earth is actually part of the grand Celestial plan in the comics and seems a certainty to be explored in the sequel. In the comics, after the Celestials have finished genetically engineering the species of a planet, they return over time for a series of four tests, called Hosts. The Fourth Host is the final test and is followed by a judgement. A direct sequel could deal with the aftermath of the decisions of Sersi’s factions of Eternals and see the heroes and gods that protect Earth gear up for war against the massive Celestials. It would be a spectacle, no doubt, but one that’s perhaps best saved for another larger-than-a-planet sized threat.

Eternals: Casus Belli

Key to the plot of Eternals is that the Eternals have been on countless missions before and had their memories wiped by their creators, the Celestials. When we see the World Forge, we get the idea that there are legions of other Eternals we don’t meet in this film. We also discover that the Eternals were designed to replace the Deviants after the latter evolved beyond the control of the Celestials. What we don’t know, however, is how many attempts the Celestials needed to create the current model of Eternals and what could have gone wrong in the meantime. We already know that Arishem isn’t a reliable narrator, so there’s no reason to believe he’s told us everything. There ARE other Eternals out there and, as Starfox indicated, they might not all be the type of characters our heroes want to find.

Ironically enough, one such Eternal, Uranos, is making his return to the pages of Kieron Gillen’s current run on Eternals. Uranos (now called Uranos the Undying) wanted to defy the orders of his Celestial makers and use his power to rule over the humans rather than protect them. As an antagonist in the sequel, he would make for not only a worthy foe for the Eternals of the present day, but also allow Chloe Zhao to continue to tell expand what fans know about the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His wish to defy his orders put him at odds with his “brother”, Kronos, and set off an Eternal Civil War that lead to Eternals colonizing other areas of the galaxy. Uranos’ story could serve as a perfect bridge between what we already know (including how Eternals came to inhabit Titan) and what else we need to know.

Eternals: Schism

Speaking of Titan, introducing Eros, a son of Titan in the film’s mid-credit scene could be the first step in us heading back to there in a sequel. Of course, Titan is in pretty rough shape so much like the original film or like the pitch above, part of this film would have to take place in the past. However, heading back to Titan could resolve one of the problems people had with the first film: the Eternals being artificial beings.

During what was known as the Second Age of the Eternals, a great rift formed between the “sons” of one of the oldest and most powerful Eternals, Kronos. Those sons, Zuras and A’lars, both became leaders of factions of their society with very different beliefs. Zuras and his followers held fast to their beliefs that they would do the jobs given to them by the Celestials and that, despite their power and ability to do so, no new Eternals should ever be created. A’lars and his followers believed that simply because they had the ability to do so, they should continue to create new Eternals, both biologically and artificially. This schism caused another great war which A’lars lost; however, A’lars was allowed by his brother to relocate and continue his experiments. A’lars chose Titan, where he met another Eternals, Sui-San. The two successfully reproduced two children: Eros and Thanos. And the rest is history.

A sequel following this plot could tell the story of Titan through flashbacks while also introducing the sentient supercomputer I.S.A.A.C. and the artificial Titans he created at A’lars will: Elysius, Stellarax, Dionysys and Lord Gaea. These character could serve as primary antagonists for the modern day Eternals while also revealing more about A’lars progeny, including the Mad Titan.

November 23, 2021