The Hawkeye TV show on Disney+ promises to properly complete Black Widow‘s story in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Played by Scarlett Johansson, Black Widow’s story has mostly been developed in the background of the MCU. Her motives as a superhero were best explored in The Avengers, when she used the truth – that she has red in her ledger, and she wants to clear it up – to manipulate Loki. This quest for redemption ultimately led her to sacrifice herself in Avengers: Endgame, allowing the Avengers to acquire the Soul Stone and reverse the snap.
Unfortunately Avengers: Endgame utterly failed Black Widow. Her death felt almost arbitrary, and many viewers were incensed at the decision not to give her a funeral. Marvel has attempted to defend the absence of Black Widow’s funeral, with co-writer Christopher Markus insisting it didn’t feel appropriate. “Tony gets a funeral,” he explained. “Natasha doesn’t. That’s partly because Tony’s this massive public figure and she’s been a cipher the whole time. It wasn’t necessarily honest to the character to give her a funeral.” The problem was, however, compounded in Spider-Man: Far From Home, when the entire world seemed to be mourning Iron Man and nobody cared about Black Widow.
It’s now becoming clear the Hawkeye Disney+ TV series will properly complete Black Widow’s story. This makes sense on a character level, because Hawkeye was the Avenger who was closest to Nat. He first met Black Widow when he was sent on a SHIELD mission to take her out, and he made a very different call. The two worked together for years, becoming such close friends that Clint named his son Nathaniel after her. In Avengers: Endgame, both he and Black Widow were willing to sacrifice themselves for the Soul Stone, and Natasha died in his stead. Set photos have confirmed Hawkeye is set in 2025, meaning time will have blunted the edge of Clint Barton’s grief, but it will still be there.
It’s also now known that Hawkeye will also feature Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova, which makes this all the more poignant. In the comics, Yelena Belova took over as Black Widow when the original was believed to be deceased, and the MCU is expected to follow a similar direction. No doubt an encounter between Yelena and Clint will be deeply emotional; one represents Natasha’s old family, and the other the one she found in SHIELD and the Avengers. It’s possible this meeting will be the reason Yelena dedicates herself to giving her “sister” a legacy.
That theme of legacy is clearly central to Marvel & Disney+’s Hawkeye. It is principally an exploration of Clint Barton’s legacy, featuring characters who took up both the Hawkeye and Ronin personas in the comics; but it is also Black Widow’s legacy, for those two characters are so tightly bound together in the MCU. Hopefully Hawkeye will at last give Black Widow‘s story the conclusion she deserves.
Originally from https://screenrant.com/hawkeye-show-black-widow-natasha-family-story-complete/