Posted in: Disney+, Marvel, streaming, TV | Tagged: black widow, Clint Barton, disney, hawkeye, kate bishop, marvel

Hawkeye Episode 5 Moves MCU in Daring New Direction (SPOILERS)

Published Wed, 15 Dec 2021 07:47:13 -0600

So not only is this a big week for Marvel Studios' MCU film & streaming sides, it's also supposed to be a big week for fans of Netflix's Daredevil series. By now, you've heard the rumors & rumblings about who will and won't be coming over to the MCU proper, and where they may or may not show up. And with this week bringing early review for Spider-Man: No Way Home as well as a penultimate episode of the Jeremy Renner (Clint Barton) & Hailee Steinfeld (Kate Bishop)-starring Hawkeye with its rumored "big guy" reveal. When it comes to the former, we'll leave that to the fine folks in our Film channel to do the heavy lifting. But for the latter, that falls into our wheelhouse so we're taking a look at what went down as well as a quick look at what it could all mean. So with that being said, consider the "MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!" sign officially on and an image spoiler buffer in place because if you don't want to know then you best turn back now…

Okay, before we get to the stuff we know you're here for, a personal side note? As much as folks are going to focus on the obvious, the biggest highlight of the episode for me was the time we got to see Kate and Yelena spend together. Personal, intimate, down-to-earth, and a side of the super-heroing life we don't get to see enough of on the MCU film side. But back to the "dun-dun-DUUUUN!" stuff. Towards the end of the episode, Clint decides to go full-on Ronin and set up a meeting with Maya (Alaqua Cox). Needless to say, she doesn't come alone… but since we're talking Ronin Clint, that really doesn't matter a whole lot. But after besting Maya, Clint takes off his Ronin mask to show his face… and to let Maya know that this all ends now. To further punctuate his point, Clint reveals to her that it was the season's "big guy" that's been getting everyone trembling who wanted her dad dead. Not taking too well to that news, Maya still looks to put down Clint but not before a narrow save from Kate. Now, this is where we get our ten-ton intel so… once again… MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!

Taking some time at Grills' (Clayton English) apartment to process everything, Kate receives a text message from Yelena that confirms what we've been speculating about for weeks but still has that "oh shit" quality to it. In the image, Kate's mom Eleanor (Vera Farmiga) is seen meeting with none other than Wilson Fisk aka Kingpin (played by Vincent D'Onofrio, of Netflix's Daredevil fame). So if you're thinking that it was actually Eleanor who hired the Black Widow hit on Clint, you would be right (and possibly as big of a shocker if not more). As for what the confirmation of D'Onofrio's Kingpin means big picture? Well, the possibilities are pretty endless. With D'Onofrio in play and all that positive talk going on about Charlie Cox aka Matt Murdock lately, it would appear we're getting some integration of the Netflix MCU into the proper MCU (like that end credits tune?). That said, I'm expecting there to be a "shaving away" of certain things in that it won't exactly be the Netflix series' full canon coming along for the ride. As for where they could end up, it definitely makes Disney+'s Tatiana Maslany-starring She-Hulk a top contender. But honestly, you could have Cox's Murdock and D'Onofrio's Kingpin play a role of some type in any number of series coming down the line- from Secret Wars to Armor Wars. Now let's see what our multiverse-jumping wall-crawler has to say about all of this…