'Hawkeye' episode-3 review: Sleek action, charismatic villain hit bull's eye
Following a lukewarm episode 1 and 2, the Disney+ Hotstar show Hawkeye dropped its third episode today. And as you have it, this one completely captures your attention and does not let it waver even for a second. Intense action sequences, comic relief, heartwarming moments, and a cliffhanger, we get them all. Maya Lopez aka superhero Echo also shows up. Here's our review.
Antagonist Maya Lopez was introduced at episode 2's ending
To recap, Hawkeye captured how Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) and Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) come together while running from the enemies of Barton's pre-Avengers: Endgame alias, Ronin. The second episode ended with the duo being held by the Tracksuit Mafia. While we saw a woman (Lopez, played by Alaqua Cox) as the head of the group, we get her introduction here.
Backstory: Ronin aka Hawkeye had killed Lopez's father
The episode opens in 2007 with a young Lopez trying to cope at school. She is deaf but can't attend school for the hearing-impaired because of their financial condition. So she grows up "watching" others to learn to survive in a world that mostly doesn't know sign language. But her world comes crashing down when she witnesses Ronin killing her father, Tracksuit Mafia head.
Car chase sequence with trick arrows wins this round
So, now Lopez and her gang are after our heroes, given both have ties to "the Ronin." Apart from her backstory, we get some cool trick arrow shooting in this. The intense car chase sequence as Father Christmas plays in the background is amusing. Like the previous episodes, Tracksuit Mafia, except the top players, continue to serve as comic relief.
Lopez is superhero Echo as per Marvel Comics
Lopez's entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe is exciting because she's superhero Echo in the comics. Brought up by Marvel supervillain Kingpin, she thinks Daredevil is her father's killer and tries to kill him. She turns good only after realizing Kingpin was the actual murderer.
Is Kingpin going to enter series as main antagonist?
As it happened in the comics, here too we get a mention of some "uncle" who operates above Lopez. Fans are giddy anticipating Kingpin's entry into the series. Verdict: A great comeback from the opening episodes, this one won me over. It gets 4.5/5. I can't wait for the fourth episode to drop next Wednesday. All three episodes are streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
