Set during the holidays, Hawkeye plays into its theme in a number of subdued ways, both physically and emotionally. In the finale of this six-episode series, the Christmas tree is almost the third main character. Because, after all, a Christmas tree stands before everyone and everything else. If I were an overly sappy person who loves corny metaphors, I’d say that the tree is a beacon of hope (and light) for those who look up at it, much like a lighthouse would for the boats below. In the dark of night, it’s always there. But then suddenly, the tree falls. Oh, and the tree also happens to be the tree—you know, the one smack dab in the middle of Rockefeller Center. In the series’ short run, it has established a pretty solid following and has been received extremely well, with a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and an overall feeling from fans that the series is just nailing everything perfectly. The rapport between Barton and Bishop is natural, as it never seems like a forced pairing between the two. Sure, they’re very different in terms of their personalities, but each person’s differences end up elevating the other. In this episode specifically, it’s easy to tell that Barton doesn’t view Bishop as just some girl who’s good at shooting arrows—there’s more to her than that. In that sense, he begins to view her more so as an equal rather than as a kid. https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=fzc7020_106_mp_v002_wr_20210913_fc9922b2 Marvel Studios 2021 https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=fzc7020_106_mp_v002_wr_20210913_fc9922b2 Following a Kingpin tease in the episode prior, it was clear that the infamous villain would be playing a major role in the finale, and though that was indeed true, there were a few other characters who ended up taking a bit of his spotlight. For one, it turns out that Kate Bishop’s mother, Eleanor, was behind getting Yelena Belova to take out Clint Barton, as well as being the mastermind behind Jack Duquesne’s framed arrest and Armand Duquesne’s murder. Her fate ends up coming to a head at her holiday party in Rockefeller Center, where chaos breaks out after Kazi takes a sniper rifle to the glass windows in an attempt to kill Barton. With all of the hullabaloo, Yelena has a very child-like fight (that is beautifully shot) with Kate Bishop in an effort to find Barton. As this is going on, Barton flees the building but ends up in the middle of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. He also encounters an adorable owl nesting right next to him. With Barton still stuck, Bishop fires a few arrows which take down the entire tree, including Barton, leaving both of them face down on the ice rink below to be greeted by the Tracksuit gang. https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=6f81d2272285ad0c5f809d05e2a275d2_4096x2730_17e13481 Chuck Zlotnick / Marvel Studios 2021 https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=6f81d2272285ad0c5f809d05e2a275d2_4096x2730_17e13481 Bishop aids Barton in fighting off the Tracksuits, which was really only possible with the help of their carefully-labeled trick arrows. Though Yelena ends up tracking Barton down at the rink, the two have a heart-to-heart about Black Widow that ends up mending their relationship. On the other side of things, the face-off between Hawkeye and Kingpin that we had all been waiting for never actually happened—alternatively, Bishop took on the colossal Kingpin by herself. Given their physical statures, it seemed obvious that Kingpin would probably end up snapping Bishop like a pencil, but instead, he snapped her arsenal of trick arrows into pieces, which was almost just as bad as the former. https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=7cf0994bd5a22db820d4a3e967636c46_4096x2730_eb4b3cd5 Chuck Zlotnick / Marvel Studios 2021 https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=7cf0994bd5a22db820d4a3e967636c46_4096x2730_eb4b3cd5 However, with the “trick” part of the arrows unharmed, Bishop takes this as an opportunity to nail down the coin flip trick that Barton taught her. Except this time, she flicks a piece of metal onto one of the arrows, setting off a chain reaction that ultimately leads to a massive explosion under Kingpin. Though he ends up later surviving, Maya puts an end to things by shooting him as he limps down a side street. However, the camera pans away before the gunshot is heard, hinting that Kingpin may have not met his demise just yet. As for Maya’s plot, she ends up killing Kazi after figuring out that he and Kingpin were behind the death of her father. Now that she’s gotten justice for her father, it’ll be interesting to see where her plotline heads in the (possible) next season or in her spin-off series. https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=fzc3230_106_comp_v003_85962da9 Marvel Studios 2021 https://dmedmedia.disney.com/disney-plus/hawkeye/ep-6?image_id=fzc3230_106_comp_v003_85962da9 As Bishop tries to come up with a proper superhero name for herself back with Barton at his house on Christmas, he has a suggestion, but the series ends just in time to cut to black. Given that ending, it’s clear that a second season will be in the works. Though it would’ve been nice to have a few more episodes in a greedy sense, there’s no feeling that because it was a very limited series, major things were left out. Despite its short season, everything was as it should’ve been—there was nothing extraneous that might have been included had the series been extended to 10 or more episodes. It’s a brief snapshot in time, and with Barton and Bishop’s growing relationship, Season 2 is bound to bring an even heightened bond between the two as Bishop’s mother is now in jail, leaving her without a parent figure in her life. Now that all six episodes are up on Disney Plus, be sure to check out the series as it comes just in time for the holidays. ‘Hawkeye’ Is a Well-Balanced Look at One Of The Most Overlooked Avengers 10 Superhero Movies We Can’t Wait to See in 2022 Meet The Eternals, the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Newest Team

“So, This Is Christmas?”: A Closer Look at the Season Finale of ‘Hawkeye’