【I Am a Plaything】

Marvel's Hawkeyeisn't a perfect show,I Am a Plaything in part because we still don't know who the villain is. But the end of episode 2 introduces a new character who could make things very, veryinteresting.

The episode ends on a closeup of actor Alaqua Cox, listed in the show's credits as Maya Lopez. And for Marvel Comics' readers, Maya Lopez a.k.a. Echo is a familiar name indeed. 

The deaf Native American character features in a number of comics and crosses over with established MCU characters as well as others fans hope to see on-screen in the coming years. A standalone breakout series is already in the works. Her character reveal is a nice twist at the end of the episode, after Clint assumes the gang that kidnapped him is led by a man sitting up in the shadows.

Marvel's comics run deep and rarely make it to the MCU in the same form, so let's focus on some key connections to Hawkeyeand a certain other Marvel show; Echo first appeared in a Daredevil comic in 1999, and her character goes on to fall in love with Matt Murdock while working to destroy his masked vigilante alter ego. Much like Nebula in the current MCU, she was raised by a major Marvel villain — Wilson Fisk a.k.a. Kingpin — but eventually turned on him. 

Though Fisk appeared in Netflix's Daredevilseries and Sony's Into the Spider-verse, this fan favorite has yet to make an MCU debut. A week before the premiere, Daredevilactor Vincent D'Onofrio actually tweeted his anticipation of Hawkeye, sending Marvel fans into a frenzy.

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The other crucial thread linking Echo to Hawkeyeis that in the comics, she wore the Ronin suit. She works with and against characters from across Marvel comics (and gets brainwashed for a while) but she's the one who actually passes on the Ronin legacy to Clint Barton to begin with. 

We don't know how MCU Clint ended up donning the suit for his murder sprees in Avengers: Endgame, but it's fair to assume he didn't hand weave it the day after Thanos' snap and immediately start killing people. In the five years between Infinity Warand Endgamehe becamethe Ronin, which means he could have stolen or inherited that identity from Maya or anyone else.

We know from the first two episodes of Hawkeyethat Ronin has unfinished business with the "Tracksuit Mafia" — or at least, they have unfinished business with him — and Clint himself says that the suit has enemies. Hawkeyewill also bring in Yelena (Florence Pugh), who blames Clint for the death of her sister-figure, via Val (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who appears to be assembling some kind of team. 

Basically Ronin is not on anyone's Nice List this holiday, probably including Maya's, and the rest of Hawkeyewill probably not be the restful holiday Mr. Barton had hoped they would be.

Playing coy with the villain isn't necessarily a bad strategy. We didn't fully know the antagonists of WandaVision, Falcon and the Winter Soldier, or Lokiuntil later episodes,and sometimes not until the finale itself. WandaVisionset up a psychological thriller as it unraveled Wanda's sitcom reality; Lokiwas focused on the TVA and the Timekeepers as it led us toward He Who Remains. 

Only TFATWSled us on a serpentine quest that feels similar to Hawkeyeafter its first two episodes, a similarity noted in Mashable's review of the show. So far, both shows also have women in leading villainous roles, a move we fully support and can't wait to watch in action.

Maya/Echo's role in Hawkeyecould go a number of ways, but she's the perfect character to introduce for potentially widening the MCU. Kate's introduction builds to growing excitement for the possibility of Young Avengers. Disney also already confirmed a Secret Invasioncrossover, which includes Maya in the comics. There are a lot of possibilities for this character, and they're all amazing.

Hawkeyeis now streaming on Disney+.