Hawkeye is nothing new. But it's nice to watch it

On November 24, the new superhero series Hawkeye was launched on the Disney + streaming service. It is dedicated to another character from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, who was not allowed to reveal himself in full-length films.

Initially, this project raised doubts: in the Avengers team, the hero of Jeremy Renner often seemed the most unnecessary, since he did not possess any super powers, and used a simple bow as a weapon. And even the character himself joked on this topic back in "Age of Ultron".

But in the end, they approached Hawkeye very wisely: this is a down-to-earth story that does not aim at global problems and saving the world. In addition, the authors managed to show charming heroes. But judging by the first series, the project has problems with the warhead.

Heroes fight common criminals

As a child, Kate Bishop (Hayley Steinfield) watched an alien attack on New York and was very impressed by the forces of archer Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) - Hawkeye. Since then, the girl decided to take up martial arts and shooting in order to protect loved ones in case of danger.

Nowadays, Kate is witnessing a crime. When fighting villains, she dons the Rhonin costume that Barton once wore. She is noticed by Hawkeye himself. And now the young heroine wants her idol to train her and help her deal with the murder of a friend. But the mentor himself is not delighted with this idea: he planned to retire and celebrate Christmas with his family.

Excluding numerous references to the MCU and a lighter tone of narration, Hawkeye is more like superhero projects Netflixthan previous Disney + series. In The Falcon and the Winter Soldier they fought a global terrorist network, Loki generally talked about many parallel worlds, and the Wanda / Vision project flirted with the theme of fake reality.

Here, Barton and Bishop face common bandits. Then, judging by the final of the film “Black Widow", They will have to meet with the former mercenary Elena Belova (Florence Pugh). This is similar to the series, for example, with "Daredevil", in which the hero fought against crime in his area. And this move is very logical: without the support of other Avengers, Hawkeye certainly should not save the world.

In addition, the realism of the plot helps to get rid of the problems with far-fetched turns and weak special effects. Still serial projects Marvel there is not enough scope and beauty to compete with full-length films.

But the fights are awkward

Alas, in terms of staging the action "Hawkeye" has nothing to brag about. First of all, it is surprising that in the initial episodes, practically no one uses a bow. Although both main characters adore this particular weapon, they will only show a few shots in 2 hours.

More often, the authors focus on hand-to-hand combat. And they fail again. The fights look as unnatural as possible, or even completely awkward: sometimes it is noticeable that in fights the heroes do not touch each other, the movements are slow, and the ragged editing makes it difficult to follow what is happening. Still the legendary one-shot sceneMarvel's Daredevil | Hallway Fight Scene / YouTube from "Daredevil" will remain unrivaled.

The heroes are nice to watch

The shortcomings of the action can almost always be compensated for by the chemistry between the characters. And in this regard, the cast perfectly fulfills their roles. Jeremy Renner, already in the later films of the cinematic universe, created for himself the image of a tired hero who wants to retire. Here he continues the theme, adding to this also family scenes: Barton's relationship with children seemed to come from an excellent Christmas comedy.

In general, the atmosphere of the holiday perfectly complements what is happening. On the one hand, it brightens the action and allows more jokes to be inserted. On the other hand, it creates an excellent contrast: criminals do not have days off.

And if no one doubted Renner's talent, then Hayley Steinfield is a newcomer to the MCU. But it is her charm that becomes one of the main advantages of the new project. The actress gives her character funny features. She did the same in “Bumblebee", And in the TV series" Dickinson ". But since Steinfield is very much going to play a purposeful, but a little confused teenager, I absolutely do not want to accuse her of self-repetition.

And when Bishop and Barton meet, chemistry instantly arises between the characters. They constantly argue and joke, and therefore the teamwork of the characters looks funny.

But cinematic references are boring

Of course, the series is inscribed in the general on-screen world of Marvel, and longtime fans of movie comics will watch it. But the authors of the project so obtrusively remind of all previous events that sometimes they simply interfere with the narration.

Even the opening scene with young Kate is a nod to The Avengers, showing the famous battle with the invaders again. But it was already repeated in the "Final" and mentioned in "Loki». Later, Barton watches a musical about the same events - by the way, a very funny scene in its absurdity. Of course, he remembers Natasha Romanoff - his deceased best friend. And when they show Rhonin's costume, they return to the aftermath of Infinity War for a while.

Each of these references looks good. But there are too many of them for two episodes, and this turns an independent story into a fan service. Although, perhaps, the authors will move further away from such a load.

In the first episodes, Hawkeye looks, no matter how trite, just another Marvel project on Disney +. As in all previous works, it has weak action and too many references. But the show is still a pleasure to watch. Most likely, charming protagonists will show a more successful buddy-movie than “Falcon and the Winter Soldier", And a realistic story will hook those who are tired of the aliens, the gods and the salvation of the world. And the atmosphere of the holiday will fall into the theme of autumn and winter evenings.