“Hawkeye” Episode 5 Recap and Review: Russian Home Cooking with Yelena

by Rob LoAlbo

“Add just a dash of Sriracha with a pinch of vengeance!”

All photos courtesy of Marvel Studios

In carrying on the tradition of having a show entitled Hawkeye and then not having a lot of scenes with Hawkeye (“Now eventually you do plan to have dinosaurs on your dinosaur tour, right?”), we get a Yelena focused episode, something that we figured was going to happen when she showed her pouty mug at the end of last episode. What we weren’t prepared for was just how much of a national treasure Florence Pugh is and how her scenes with “Kate Bishop'' crackle with life and comic energy. 

Full spoilers ahead for episode 5 of Yelena Hawkeye!

“So, funny story, this one time I met a guy whose skull was red…”

Throwing us back to 2018 when Widows were face gassing each other with Red Dust to recover from Dreykov’s mind control (That sounds so super James Bondy when I write it out like that, doesn’t it?), Yelena breaks into a friend’s house to carry on the mission. After, she excuses herself from the room and we get a really cool firsthand point of view of what it looks like to be Thanos-snapped away, something that is more discombobulating and sudden than anything. Losing five years of her life, she’s angry that she missed out on her NYC Carrie Bradshaw bus tour, or something like that, and has a conversation sorta like this:

 I need to find Natasha; can you help me find Natasha?

Um, yeah…about that.

Apparently five years gone means she didn’t see Endgame in a movie theater. Now, Natasha is dead and she blames Clint for it AND she was hired to kill him. Two motives for the price of one!

On the other side of the city, the nurturing Eleanor (You sit on a throne of lies!) nurses back to health the badly injured Kate, a factor we haven’t seen much of in the MCU. I’m always amazed that despite violent fisticuffs, no one experiences much pain or injury amongst the Avenging crew, so it’s refreshing to see not only a frozen margarita strapped Clint icing his old man aches but also a cut up Kate with consistent wounds throughout the show. The last time I saw this much attention to harm detail was back in Netflix’s street-level Daredevil show where Matt Murdock was consistently living well beyond his physical means. (You really need to check out the three seasons of the show, especially with how it seems to be canon now.) 

‘Tis but a scratch

And now that we have confirmation that mom is as duplicitous as we thought she was, these scenes speak strongly to Vera Farmiga’s ability to radiate motherly care in the face of collusion evidence with “the big guy.” She’s so natural in tending to Kate’s wounds that you really do believe every word that comes out of her mouth despite her ill intentions, even when throwing (good guy?) Jack under the crosstown bus just to keep up her cover. I’m really looking forward to next week to see how she’s going to play that one off.

Go Ninja, Go Ninja, GO: Go Ninja, Go Ninja, GO!

As for Maya, she’s also nursing some wounds and isn’t ready to let go of what Ronin did to her father. She wants him dead but isn’t aware that Ronin killing her father is much more complicated than it seems. Kazi, for reasons, wasn’t there that night. Could he have known it was coming? Was he tipped off? Was his tracksuit just getting laundered? Again, next week. This week, it’s all about tending to our wounds and rebuilding our water-soaked fire-damaged apartment.

Our heroes pair off, one with Grills for some Pizza Dog love, the other with Yelena for some character development and hot sauce. Lots of hot sauce. Pugh tears into the role, showing abilities that Black Widow–-a much lesser MCU property—only hinted at, and adroitly chews boxed macaroni and cheese and scenery now that she’s got some much better dialogue with which to work. She’s also found a soulmate with Steinfeld, clearly two of the top actresses in their age group. They barb each other, which really means Yelena wields most of the power here, and girl-bond over NYC landmarks. Pugh’s guttural laugh and consistent adherence to both character and accent (looking at you, Wanda…) makes for such a unique Marvel portrayal that I really can’t wait for the inevitable Yelena movie. For now, I’ll more than settle for the Kate Bishop and Yelena Show.

“Bro, did you see last night’s episode of ‘Kate Bishop and Yelena Show’? Bro, it was off the hook, bro.”

Which brings us to something we’ve been sorely denied up until now: hardcore Ronin action! We finally get to see the hidden ninja do his thing, taking out bros left and right. It’s what he’s got to do to end whatever “this” is (which somehow includes the watch, but still unclear on that front). Linda, again, knows exactly what “this” all means with “the big guy” so off Clint “goes” to kick “tracksuit” ass. (I’m “now” being “told” that I’m “using” quotation marks “improperly.”) Up until now, we’ve never really seen just how ruthless Clint is with a blade, so he’s terrifically frightening when we see him battle it out with Maya. But he’s not here to end her (she’s still got an upcoming series!). He reveals his identity to her only to plant seeds of doubt in her mind about her boss, that the one who wanted her father dead is actually at the top of her own company. This little bit of info spirals Maya, which I’m guessing will also pay off next week somehow, especially with Kazi stuttering out a weak answer regarding his knowledge and participation. 

“Oh…so THAT’S why we called it Fat Man Used Cars. That makes sense now.”

But who’s got the big reveal this week? (No, not you Jack. We’ll buy your aw-shucks routine for another week.) It’s Yelena who outs both Eleanor Bishop and Kingpin as the brains and brawn (beauty and the beast?) behind hiring her! It’s unclear as to why Eleanor wants Clint dead (Overly protective of Kate? Fed up with Jack? A shared affinity for boxed mac and cheese?), but they’re the one empowering Yelena in her thirst for revenge. And just like that…Netflix Marvel is officially in the game! Kingpin will dance tonight (or next week)! It’s not Krampus who’s coming to steal your Christmas cheer; it’s Vincent D'Onofrio!

You gotta give it to Hawkeye: just like the character, we all counted the show out at the beginning, but with each week, it’s grown more engaging and entertaining. With what is clearly the best Christmas soundtrack this side of Sinatra and Bing Crosby, the show is stealing our hearts as the Christmas window for Clint and his family is closing in on him. I’m happy to report that unlike its Disney+ predecessors, this show has paid off in every anticipated way imaginable, which only makes me more nervous for next week’s quality control. Fingers crossed that everyone gets what they want, or deserve, this Christmas.

Next week: How the Kingpin Stole Christmas

Star City Rating: 4 out of 5