Hawkeye Review: ‘Partners, Am I Right ‘ soars on the chemistry between Jeremy Renner and Hailee Steinfeld

Partners, Am I Right takes a step back from the high octane action for some wonderful character interactions between Clint and Kate. Don’t worry The episode isn’t completely without action. There’s a great action setpiece near the end of the episode featuring Hawkeye, Kate Bishop, Maya Lopez and a mystery guest.

Partners, Am I Right is Jeremy Renner‘s best performance as Clint Barton. He lets you see the psychological weight that comes with the choices Clint’s made. Hailee Steinfeld continues to be endlessly endearing as Kate Bishop. Her decision to provide some festive cheer for Clint is one of the sweetest moments in the MCU. The family scenes involving Jack Duquesne, Eleanor Bishop and Kate make you almost want to root for them.

The episode is once again directed by Bert and Bertie. They did a masterful job in the last episode and acquit themselves well in Partners, Am I Right. Bert and Bertie nail the tone in this episode. While the action isn’t as constant as in the last episode, they clearly know how to stage a fun action scene with the right pauses to allow the audience to catch their breath.

The only issue with the episode is the fight between Maya and Kate should not have been as evenly matched. Also, the ending of the episode robs Kate of being able to make a choice. Clint makes a decision for her and doesn’t let her have the final say. Clint’s reaction is understandable given the trauma he’s experienced with Natasha’s death. I’m sure Kate will keep barrelling forward in the next episode, so there’s no damage that can’t be repaired here.

With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into the elements that stood out in Partners, Am I Right. There may be some minor spoilers. Hawkeye is available to stream on Disney Plus.

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Meet the Parents

The opening scene of the episode is a clever subversion of expectations. In the last episode, Jack held Clint at sword point. In Partners, Am I Right, Kate and Eleanor immediately show up.

The four of them have a very interesting conversation involving the unique partnership between Clint and Kate. As Clint is leaving the Bishop penthouse, Eleanor has a nice little one-on-one chat with Clint. Clint mentions that Kate is pretty good. Eleanor retorts that Natasha was great too and she still died. She asks Clint to keep Kate out of it. Clint says he can’t do that but will keep Kate safe.

After Clint leaves, he calls his wife, Laura to help with the investigation. I’m happy to see the show using Linda Cardellini more and can’t wait to see more of Laura’s backstory. Meanwhile, Kate gets to see the sweet connection her mom has with Jack. Kate and Eleanor even laugh at Jack’s mixed-up colloquialisms. The sudden warmth causes a sweet realization for Kate. Clint is alone and she’s the cause of it, but she can’t also provide some respite from the holiday blues.

Bonding in Partners, Am I Right

Kate shows up at the safehouse with ugly sweaters, Christmas movies and plenty of festive cheer. Clint is resistant, but not even a cantankerous and bruised Avenger can resist the charm of Kate.

Soon, the archers are enjoying some frozen margarita’s and discussing the merits of a boomerang arrow. Clint even teaches Kate a special coin trick. Everything about this sequence is endearing.

However, the warmth in this sequence is followed up with a moment of true pathos for Clint and Kate. In Renner’s best scene as Clint, he tells Kate about the shot he didn’t take, which spared Natasha’s life. Kate also makes the connection that Clint is Ronin. In a similar fashion to the phone call scene from the last episode, Renner is so good at trying to mask Clint’s pain. Steinfeld matches Renner in every scene. Kate’s warmth and negligence toward the dangerous situation they’re in is a fantastic contrast to Clint’s traumatic decisions in the face of seemingly impossible odds.

The duo eventually tracks down Echo’s apartment to retrieve a watch that belongs to someone Clint knows. As the episode continues, it’s fun to watch Clint pass on lessons to Kate. Equally as fun is watching Kate decide to do things differently. For example, Clint tells Kate to use her grappling hook to sneak into Echo’s apartment. Kate appreciates the help but decides to take someone into letting her into the building by offering to carry groceries.

Black Widows

Throughout the episode, Clint is haunted by Natasha’s death. As he begrudgingly begins to bond with Kate, he begins to fear a similar fate. It’s almost as if Eleanor’s words from early in the episode are etched in his mind.

In the episode’s lone action scene, Kate squares off against Maya, while Clint fights a masked black widow assassin. Kate has two close calls. The Kate-Maya fight starts in Maya’s apartment, but with the help of a zip line from Clint, Kate starts to zip across. Around the halfway point, Kate’s moment stops and she’s left hanging in the air. Eventually, a strong nudge allows her to make it to a rooftop. The other scary moment involved the black widow assassin throwing Kate off the building. Clint is able to catch her foot just in time. Clint decides to cut Kate loose.

Kate does rejoin the fight and she ends the conflict with a shockwave arrow. The mystery assailant takes off the mask to reveal her identity as Yelena Belova played once again by Florence Pugh. Kate lets Yelena escape and Clint ends their partnership. I didn’t like how Clint handled this situation. He robbed Kate of her agency in this situation. I assume the split won’t last for long. I can’t wait to see Pugh and Steinfeld onscreen together.

Partners, Am I Right Final Thoughts

Episode four is another strong episode of Hawkeye. The series continues to thrive on the chemistry between Renner and Steinfeld as Clint and Kate. Hard to believe there are only two episodes left.

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