Hawkeye episode 1 on Disney+ takes place in New York City 2012. In a rich apartment, a young Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) listens to her parents fighting. She is discovered by her father and he gives her a talk about having to go off to protect his family.
Hawkeye Episode 1 Spoilers Below
Later, Kate’s mother makes her a special lunch to cheer her up. As Kate goes to get a game of checkers from upstairs, she hears something outside. She is shocked to find the Kree are invading New York City.
Kate Bishop races around the apartment to find her mother and father but can’t seem to find them anywhere. She finds a giant hole in her home left by the Chitari forces. Kate looks out into a battle-torn New York with the Avengers Tower in the distance.
Hawkeye Saves Young Kate Bishop from the Kree
A Chitari soldier shoots an explosive arrow towards Kate. Hawkeye thankfully stops the arrow with one of his own. Kate’s mother arrives to take her out of their crumbling building.
Hawkeye episode 1 continues with Kate and her mother attending the funeral of her father. Kate’s mother restates her love for her daughter. Kate, however, believes that she needs to now be the protector of the family, asking for a bow and arrow.
In the present day, a grown-up Kate sneaks into a building at night. She speaks with her friend Greer over the phone about their bet. Kate intends to shoot a bell in the belltower with her arrow to see if it will ring if she shoots it.
Kate’s initial arrow with a tennis ball at the tip does nothing. She then switches to another arrow and fires more at the rope than the bell. She’s amazed at how well her plan worked.
Unfortunately, the bell collapses inside the tower. Kate is then confronted by police on the rooftop of the building she snuck into. Her friends ditch her.
Hawkeye Episode 1 follows Clint Barton and Family Spending Christmas Time Together
Hawkeye episode 1 now switches to Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) as he spends the holidays with his kids in New York. They are attending a Broadway musical called Rogers, based on the events of 2012’s Avengers. Clint is not very amused by the peppy musical numbers.
When he witnesses the Black Widow character on stage, however, he finds himself haunted by the past. He remember her sacrifice during Avengers: Endgame. His hearing drops but we later learn he has turned off his hearing aid.
Struggling to get used to such a musical, he exits the theater. He goes to the bathroom but is ambushed by a fan who wants a selfie. Still struggling for an escape, he leaves the building to get some air.
His daughter confronts him outside and she comforts him. His youngest and oldest son later come out. They decide to go get something to eat.
Kate, having just arrived in New York City, goes to visit her mother. She arrives at the same rich home they once occupied. Her mother is getting dressed in a fancy dress for a charity auction.
Kate’s mother informs Kate that she’s destroyed a major structure on her college campus. For punishment, Kate’s mom decides to cut up her credit card and promise another talk about the destroyed tower. Kate is somewhat silent as she says this.
Kate’s mom then tells her that young and rich people tend to think they’re invisible. Kate apologizes and her mother says she can make it up to her by coming to the charity auction. Kate agrees while also mentioning her many medals.
As Kate’s mother gets ready, Kate notices the home has some swords. When questioned about this, Kate’s mom informs her about some changes. An eccentric man called Jack enters the room with a rose.
Jack tries to impress Kate but she’s not comfortable with him. The two depart for the auction while Kate finds herself at a loss for words.
Clint is having dinner with his kids at a Chinese restaurant. Everything is going well. He then gets a call from his wife and puts her on speaker so she can talk to everybody.
They have a nice chat and end the call. Clint then starts promising to do whatever they want for Christmas. The waiter then comes with the check and shows gratitude for Clint’s work as an Avenger.
At the charity auction, Kate is cornered by the elderly Armand. He speaks about how he knew her as a child. During their conversation, Armand admits that Kate’s mother, Eleanor, seems destined to marry Jack as they are engaged.
Armand is then approached by his grandchild who says he wants to go. Before Armand departs, he insists that Kate talk with her mother about Jack. She approaches Eleanor and Jack to do just that.
Sensing the tension in the conversation, Jack leaves. Kate and Eleanor speak and Eleanor wants Kate to be happy for her. Still unsure about such a union, Kate leaves to go get some air.
On the streets of New York, she meets a one-eyed dog. He then runs off. Curious about what else may be going on at the party, Kate decides to go back inside and investigate.
She notices a bitter conversation going down between Eleanor and Armand. When Kate asks Eleanor about their tense exchange, Eleanor says it’s nothing. Kate then pursues Armand down some mysterious hallways that go through the kitchen.
Kate discovers that Armand is attending some secret meeting in the basement of the building. She infiltrates the event by posing as a waiter. A number of wealthy people assemble in the wine cellar for some gathering.
Among the crowd is Armand and Jack who feud over Eleanor’s love. The event is then revealed to be a black-market auction for relics of past Avengers events. An alien skull is the first to be sold.
Kate is discovered by the waiting staff and ventures off to hide. The auction then proceeds to sell the retractable sword of Ronin. Ronin was the title Clint took during the events of Endgame when he took on the criminal underworld as a violent assassin.
Kate finds her way back to spy on the auction. She finds that Armand and Jack are in a bidding war for the sword of Ronin. Armand wins.
The next item up for bid is Ronin’s suit. The auction is interrupted, however, by an explosion. With the auction in shambles, Jack makes his move to steal the sword and leave.
Kate Bishop Finds Barton’s Ronin Suit
A band of criminals who caused the explosion state they need to find a specific watch in 90 seconds. Kate Bishop puts on the Ronin suit in Hawkeye episode 1. She then proceeds to beat up all of the criminals swiping the valuable auction items.
While she takes on the criminals, Kate makes sure the wealthy patrons get out safely. The police arrive just as a handful of the criminals manage to get away. Kate departs as well but not before nearly being hit by a car and filmed by a passerby.
The footage of Kate in the Ronin suit makes the news. Clint watches the footage and is reminded of his time during Endgame. His look turns serious when he realizes somebody else is taking on this mantle.
Kate returns to her apartment with the one-eyed dog that followed her home. She feeds him pizza and gets GPS coordinates for the Ronin sword. She leaves the apartment but not before telling the dog not to destroy her place.
Kate, still in the Ronin outfit, secretly breaks into Armand’s home. While taking note of his butterscotch candies, she finds Armand dead on the floor. She leaves quickly when his wife enters the room.
Fleeing the scene, Kate finds herself cornered by the same criminals from the auction. Though outnumbered, Kate still attempts to fight them off. Her chances are not looking good.
After being cornered in a car, however, Clint comes to save the day. He then drags Ronin out of the car and unmasks her. He then groans at such a young person becoming the hero, stating “Oh, come on!”
Kate Bishop is shocked and excited. “You’re Hawkeye,” she says with astonishment. “Who the hell are you?” Hawkeye episode 1 then ends with a Christmas song.
Hawkeye episode 1 and 2 are now streaming on Disney+.
