Hawkeye Episode 4 Recap: A Watch, Wife Barton, and an Assassin

Hawkeye episode 4 — out now on Disney+ and Disney+ Hotstar — kicked off the second half of the new Marvel Cinematic Universe miniseries by driving into a higher gear. There was more intrigue in general around female characters this episode. Hawkeye episode 4 introduced the Black Widow character that we were promised last December — and then set up at the end of the Black Widow movie earlier this year. Florence Pugh returned as the wise-cracking super spy Yelena Belova, though she didn’t get any words in on Hawkeye episode 4. The new Hawkeye episode also teased a possibly complicated past for Hawkeye’s wife Laura Barton (Linda Cardellini) who seems much more interested in certain items than she ought to be.

At the same time, Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox) who got so much attention in Hawkeye episode 3 was virtually non-existent on Hawkeye episode 4. That said, Hawkeye episode 4 had a bit more for Kate’s mother Eleanor Bishop (Vera Farmiga) who is likely hiding something. Hawkeye episode 4 also confirmed Jack Duquesne’s (Tony Dalton) bad guy status, further distancing him from his Marvel Comics counterpart. We also didn’t get any more of the “Uncle” who was teased in Hawkeye episode 3, disappointing fans desperately wanting to see the return of Kingpin/ Wilson Fisk — if that is even going to happen.

Hawkeye episode 4 — titled “Partners, Am I Right?”, directed by Bert & Bertie, and written by Erin Cancino and Heather Quinn — picks up right where we left off in Hawkeye episode 3. The very dramatic ending with Jack Duquesne (Dalton) pointing the Ronin sword at Hawkeye/ Clint Barton’s (Jeremy Renner) face is very quickly played for laughs. Fitting for a Marvel series that has prioritised goofiness over sincerity from the beginning. Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) and her mother Eleanor (Farmiga) follow them into the room very soon — so much for an empty apartment, Kate — and that diffuses the tension all around. Eleanor knows Clint is an Avenger, and Jack naturally lowers the sword.

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Tony Dalton as Jack Duquesne, Vera Farmiga as Eleanor Bishop in Hawkeye episode 4
Photo Credit: Disney/Marvel Studios

Then at a dinner table, Jack and Eleanor try to figure out why Kate is friends with an Avenger. Kate very enthusiastically says they are working on a case together as partners. Clint doesn’t like to use the friends or partners them — but yes, they are working together, he concedes.

This is pretty much the dynamic from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: not friends, not partners, but co-workers. Eleanor is naturally worried and as she walks Clint towards the elevator in Hawkeye episode 4, she expresses concerns about Kate’s wellbeing. You have kids right, Eleanor says, bringing in the parent-children dynamic. Clint says while he can’t drop the case, he is going to protect her daughter.

In the elevator, Clint texts his wife Laura Barton to look up “Sloan LTD”, the name of the company that Kate found in Hawkeye episode 3 that was attached to Kazi (Fra Fee). Meanwhile, Eleanor calls someone — Hawkeye episode 4 doesn’t tell us who — expresses more concern on a voicemail and asks them to call her back.

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Out on the New York streets in Hawkeye episode 4, Laura (Cardellini) calls Clint and tells him that Sloan is a front for Tracksuit. They were speaking Russian when she called — Laura has also discovered that the Sloan CEO is none other Jack (who doesn’t give Sloan employees a day off). Clint figures Jack is laundering money for the Tracksuit Mafia. This is huge as it confirms Kate’s suspicion about Jack — and confirms Jack’s status as a bad guy on Hawkeye.

Laura then enquires about Clint’s wellbeing, asks him to take care of his body, and — switches to German so the kids won’t know what they are talking about — wonders if something else is missing from the Avengers compound. You mean like the Rolex, Clint notes. This is the watch that Kazi and Co were after in Hawkeye episode 1. Why is Laura bringing up the Rolex and also speaking in German? Does Laura have a field agent past that we don’t know about?

Back at the Bishop apartment in Hawkeye episode 4, Kate is lying on the sofa while Eleanor talks to Jack about when Kate’s admiration for Clint began. Eleanor is still very worried, and Jack walks aways to make her tea. Kate tries to bring up the Jack topic again with her mother, but she wants her to help with the Bishop company holiday party. Kate is not interested at all. As Jack returns, he serenades Eleanor with a dance — which finally causes Kate to smile at them for the first time. As Jack destroys another pithy quote, the Bishops have a laugh about how Jack always uses aphorisms wrong.

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Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton in Hawkeye episode 4
Photo Credit: Disney/Marvel Studios

Clint meanwhile is following his wife’s advice and icing himself. To its credit, Hawkeye is serious about showing us the damage superheroes take, and how they need to rest and recover. Kate bursts in with holiday cheer (she has Christmas movies, pizza and more). Clint tells her Jack’s shady truth. We launch into an extended montage, as Kate notes that they are going to celebrate and plan at the same time. They talk more about trick arrows — Kate wonders why there aren’t any boomerang arrows. Clint then shows off a trick with a coin and then teaches Kate how to do it. They are basically hanging and bonding — it’s a nicely crafted Hawkeye episode 4 scene overall, I admit.

It gets a bit serious after Kate asks Clint about the best shot he ever took. Clint offhandedly says that it was the one he never took, but then regrets blurting it out. He hesitates but after prodding from Kate, tells her how he met Natasha. He was sent to take her out but he could see she wanted out. Clint is really emotional, given he lost her in Avengers: Endgame. Kate wonders if Clint lost his family in the Blip, and after he says yes, she broaches the topic she already seems to have figured out in her head. Kate gets Clint to admit he’s Ronin in Hawkeye episode 4, which became more and more obvious really as he kept spending time away from his family to protect Kate.

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As Kate heads for bed, Clint has nightmares about his time as Ronin and losing Black Widow/ Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) on Vormir, as he nods off in Hawkeye episode 4.

In the morning, Clint tells Kate that he is going to see Kazi — and wants her to track down the trick arrows they lost in that Hawkeye episode 3 car chase across New York. They are in a NYPD facility, Clint has discovered, thanks to a tracker. The LARPers can help, Clint says, they have cop members.

Kate goes to LARPers and they agree to help her if she makes it worth their while. Meanwhile, Clint tries to reason with Kazi in Hawkeye episode 4. You need to convince Maya to stop hunting Ronin — it will get her killed. This is your final warning, Clint says.

As Clint arrives back at the apartment, he discovers that Kate has gotten the LARPers heavily involved. She is trying out costumes they have designed for LARPing. Kate then promises them more material for new costumes — as long as they design two for the both of them. Clint is not pleased with how far Kate is taking it in Hawkeye episode 4 — he’s just a grumpy dad — and he finds a way to get them out of there after getting a text from Laura. The Rolex tracker is still active at a New York location.

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Hailee Steinfeld as Kate Bishop (right) in Hawkeye episode 4
Photo Credit: Disney/Marvel Studios

The bow-and-arrow duo leave with the trick arrows that the LARPers nicely stole for them — and reach the darkened apartment where the watch is pinging. Clint gives Kate tips on why he chose this spot, but she has other ideas and has already left his side. Kate doesn’t even follow Clint’s plan and just walks in through the front door in Hawkeye episode 4. She breaks into the flat, disables some strobe lights with purple goo arrows, before finding the watch. Turns out the person is keeping tabs on Clint, as they have details of his family on a nearby notepad. By then, Clint has figured out what the strobe lights are for — but it’s too late.

Maya Lopez (Cox), the Tracksuit Mafia chief from Hawkeye episode 3, has arrived back at her apartment. Clint is confused for a few seconds though because he is also dealing with someone at the rooftop lookout. Kate assures him that she’s dealing with Maya — which to be fair isn’t going very well. In between saving himself, Clint attaches a cable to Maya’s balcony which Kate then uses to zipline across to the roof in Hawkeye episode 4. There, the duo try to take on the suited opponent, but they pull a gun on Kate. Just then, Maya ziplines in and crashes into them, launching herself into a fight she didn’t really need to.

Turns out, the person in black has some gadgets of their own — which will strike a chord for Marvel fans. They temporarily knock down Maya, and take Kate out of the action by tying her to a cable and throwing her off the roof. For a brief moment in Hawkeye episode 4. Clint goes through the same emotions that he did with Natasha in Endgame, thinking that Kate is gone. But as he reaches the edge, he realises that Kate is hanging from a line. Instead of pulling her up though, Clint cuts her down as the Christmas lights break her fall, and tells her to get out of there. But Kate being Kate, she returns to help him.

In the ensuing chaos in Hawkeye episode 4, Kate lands an arrow in Maya’s shoulder and before she can fire another, Maya takes off. The suited enemy loses their gun to Kate as it tossed down a stairwell, but then outsmarts Clint in fisticuffs. Not before he unmasks her though — the person in the suit is Yelena Belova (Pugh), the sister-figure to Natasha who had been duped into taking a contract on Clint in the Black Widow post-credits scene. But with Kate aiming an arrow straight for her head, Yelena takes off.

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Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova in Hawkeye episode 4
Photo Credit: Disney/Marvel Studios

Kate wonders who that was, to which Clint says that she doesn’t want to know. Yes I do, if we’re going to work together, Kate protests. But Clint is in no mood to entertain Kate’s ambition. “Someone has hired a Black Widow assassin. This has gotten very real very quickly,” Clint then adds. Kate says she understands the risk that comes with the job, but Clint says he is not going to involve her no matter what. “Go home Kate,” Clint barks at her. This is clearly stemming from his fears around how he lost Nat — and Eleanor’s request earlier in Hawkeye episode 4 to keep Kate out of it. After all, Kate is just a kid, and Hawkeye naturally feels protective around her.

I suppose we will be seeing more of Yelena in Hawkeye episode 5, releasing Wednesday, December 15.

Hawkeye episode 4 is now streaming on Disney+ and Disney+ Hotstar. New episodes release every Wednesday around 1:30pm IST/ 12am PT.

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