Bro, ‘Hawkeye’ Premiered First 2 Episodes– Recaps & Easter Eggs

Hawkeye takes aim at the spirit of holiday action movies and the beloved comic book run. It also introduces Kate Bishop– the next Hawkeye.

The first two episodes of Hawkeye premiered on Disney+ on Wednesday, and it’s full of holiday spirit. The episode was jolly, sure, but there are some fascinating things happening, too. Let’s deck the halls with this Hawkeye recap, highlights, and easter eggs.

Past this point, there are heckin’ spoilers for episodes 1 & 2 of ‘Hawkeye’. 

As the hooded vigilante Ronin, Clint Barton executed a brutal kind of justice through the streets of New York. While doing so, he made plenty of enemies– or Ronin did.

So when Kate Bishop dons the Ronin costume to perform a rescue during a kidnapping/robbery, she’s quickly followed by the Tracksuit Mafia, a bunch of bros who Ronin has beef with. Her life is in danger and Clint needs to get rid of the Ronin once and for all.

I Can Do This All Day: The Best of Hawkeye

Right off the bat we get tickets to Rogers: The Musical. It’s a fun scene for sure, but it works in contrast to the grief and PTSD that Clint is experiencing over the loss of Natasha. The fact that we get this little diddy and some character development from Clint was a good use of screen time all around.

Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate really shines. Audiences are immediately introduces to Kate’s quick wit. Her snark shines through with quips like, “All surprises are unexpected”.

These jokes work really well alongside her “heart on your sleeve” speech about Hawkeye’s authenticity and public appearance. Kate is always quick to speak her mind, and the fencing scene shows off her impressive determination.

Read more about Kate: Who is Kate Bishop?

Clint’s LARPing experience was also a delight. The ease with which takes down his opponents was especially funny in the context of the slow-motion filming.

Not to be outshone in the comedy department, the Tracksuit Draculas were serving pure comedy gold. Their bickering and asides are sure to be as memorable as they are in the comics.

I also greatly appreciated Echo’s first and unexpected performance as the leader of the tracksuits. the speculation her appearance inspires is some top-tier fan fun, and I am here for it.

Family Dynamics

My favorite bit of the Hawkeye premiere was a little more subtle than the the comedy bits.

Apart from being a classic “Dad’s just trying to get home for Christmas” tale, there are some family dynamics in the show that aren’t always present in holiday classics.

Clint is a really engaged father. We’ve seen this before in both Age of Ultron and Infinity Saga, but it’s heartwarming to see the MCU shine a light on his interactions with each of his kids.

Meanwhile, Kate’s home-for-the-holidays alludes to a much more underrepresented Christmas holiday situation– the experience of many LGBTQ people.

Kate’s family history is full of some struggles. She was close with her father before he was killed when Thanos attacked Manhattan. Her relationship with her mother is more strained, and there’s a subtle tension to her homecoming.

Of course, it could be related to the bell tower she accidentally demolished while away at school…

But there’s a moment when her mother asks her to wear a particular red dress to a benefit the two will be attending. But Kate decides instead to arrive in a black tuxedo.

Perhaps I’m projecting. Or maybe it was an accident. But the choice to defy her mother’s choice of gendered holiday wear and the awkwardness between the two was reminiscent of many queer people’s experiences returning home for Christmas.

And of course, we can’t talk about family without mentioning the most adorable member of the Hawkeye family. That’s right, you guessed it: Lucky the Pizza Dog came home with Kate in this first episode, and I can’t wait to see him find his spot in the crime fighting lineup.

Episode Easter Eggs

Hawkeye also featured several great Easter eggs. My favorite LOL moment was the ‘Thanos was right’ graffiti.

In the comic, one of the tenants of Clint’s building is frequently outside grilling on the roof. He earns the loving nickname “Grillz”– the same name as the firefighter Cline meets in the LARP session. Replacing a roof-griller with a firefighter seems like a pretty low-key way to remind the viewers at home to be wary of fire safety this holiday season.

There were a few potential new character moments in the first two episodes of Hawkeye. But the most apparent was the step-parent appearance of Jack Duquesne (Tony Dalton).

With his still for fencing, it’s clear the character is positioned to become the villain Swordsman. In the comics, Jaques was one of Clint’s mentors– until Clint discovered that he was a criminal and the sword master tried to kill him.

The Art Was Incredible– Pay David Aja

Hawkeye has some of the most stand-out pre and post-episode artwork of any MCU series so far. And it’s no wonder– Matt Fraction, David Aja, and Matt Hollingsworth created an iconic run of comics.

The credit art certainly has Aja’s DNA all over it. Having seen the show now, I can now say with great conviction that Disney needs to pay David Aja for his creative inspiration.

Author: Danni Danger

Danni is a staff writer and editor whose expertise lies in comic books, superhero movies, science fiction/fantasy, horror, and cheesy dad jokes. They spent 8 glorious years working at Austin Books & Comics, and created content for almost 15 years. They've written for the Daily Dot and made YouTube content with the Weirdlings. Danni currently does all the things for BoLS, Screen Fanatic, and TheStreet.