Commentary: What ‘Hawkeye’ Shows Us About Being A Superhero
by Frank Martin
One of the great questions of the Marvel Cinematic Universe centers on how Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) — a normal human being — can fight on the level of gods and super soldiers. Although it doesn’t provide a direct answer, the Disney+ Hawkeye series provides some context. It does so on two fronts. The first being the physical toll fighting as a superhero takes on Clint’s body. For the first time, it is revealed that Hawkeye is hard of hearing and has to wear a hearing aid as a result of his superhero activities. The explosions. The falls. The relentless punches and kicks. All of it takes its toll on his body. Thor and Captain America can shrug it off and recover quickly. Clint Barton has to ice every single one of his joints.
But the more striking feature is his fighting ability. For a long time, people joked, “How can a guy with a bow and arrow fight aliens and robot armies?” The answer is that Hawkeye is not just an exceptional archer, he has an extraordinary natural skill of accuracy and chooses to use a bow as opposed to a gun because it’s better suited to his abilities. But I would argue that his skill is not super human. Instead, Clint shows us that being great at something is a combination of natural ability and practice. He was trained to be as good as he is. He spent countless hours honing his skill of accuracy to be used as a weapon for whatever tools are lying around.
We see this demonstrated in his relationship with Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld). Kate has a similar natural ability and has spent her entire life improving upon it. She has yet to crack the level of being a superhero, but we see Clint nurturing her potential. Right off the top of his head, Clint knows what coins he can and cannot use as a weapon. Rather than just being able to pick up a coin and do whatever he wants with it. Clint was taught this skill, just as he is seen teaching it to Kate.
What does this mean? Superheroing is just like everything else. It’s not enough to be naturally gifted just as it’s not enough to practice endlessly. It’s a combination of both natural gift and disciplined practice that elevates one to superhero status. We will see just have to wait and see if Clint is able to help Kate get there.
Hawkeye streams Wednesdays on Disney+
