Marvel’s long-awaited Hawkeye series recently began streaming on Disney+, finally giving Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) a chance to shine. The show explores the underrated hero as he takes a young protégé, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), under his wing while fighting off a theatrical mob of tracksuit-wearing criminals. And frankly, all Clint wants to do is get home to his family in time for Christmas. Hawkeye’s first two episodes were filled with adorable dogs, mysterious characters, and enough quips to last the entire holiday season. Each episode also featured their own unique animated title sequences, informing not just about the crew behind the show, but also giving a deeper look into the characters and story of Hawkeye.
Both credit sequences play obvious homage to the 2012 run of Hawkeye by Matt Fraction and David Aja, with the art style and color palette of the montages acting as a sort of pseudo-replication of Aja’s iconic artistic work on the comics. The credits are also filled to the brim with tons of nods to the comics. If you've been wondering about all the secrets hidden within Hawkeye's end credits, you've come to the perfect place.
Episode 1 Credits
After a hair-raising cold opening that retold the Avengers’ Battle of New York from Kate Bishop’s point of view, Hawkeye's first episode jumps straight into an animated credits sequence. Backed by an inspiring orchestra score, viewers are treated to Kate’s purple-coated journey to becoming the world’s best archer (according to her, at least). The sequence not only informs about the cast of the series, but also fills the gaps between 2012’s Avengers and Hawkeye.
The credits open to a minimalist animation of a young Kate picking up her first bow. She tries to shoot, but misses the bullseye on each shot. As we watch Kate grow older, we see her become more successful with her weapon of choice. Kate expands her athletics with glimpses of her practicing fencing, martial arts, and gymnastics. Like with her archery, Kate is first seen performing poorly, but as time goes on, the archer becomes a champion at everything she tries.
Visually, we can see Kate’s transformation through various looks at her trophy shelf. When we first see it, the shelf is empty, but as she improves at each of her sports, the shelf fills with awards until it is overflowing—showing that Kate is finally ready for the events of the TV show. Next, Kate graduates to practicing her superhero skills throughout New York City, before flashing to a Hawkeye logo straight out of Fraction’s 2012 run.
The credits don’t just show what Kate’s been up to, they also introduce audiences to important aspects of the character. When Kate begins archery as a child, she isn’t particularly good at it. Nor is she good at gymnastics, or fencing, or martial arts. But, by the end of the credits she has become the athlete viewers see throughout the series. This is a perfect illustration of one of Kate’s biggest attributes: determination. Kate was not born a perfect archer, or a perfect anything. Instead, she works at the things that are important to her until she is the best.
There is another notable detail found in the credits: Kate’s mother, Eleanor. At the start of Kate’s training, Eleanor is seen constantly at her side. Always accompanying her daughter during her downfalls. Interestingly though, by the time Kate masters archery, Eleanor is nowhere to be found. While exactly what this means is unclear, it could represent the failing relationship between Kate and Eleanor. While the pair were shown to never be particularly close, their relationship was especially strained by the appearance of Eleanor’s new fiancé. Eleanor’s sudden disappearance from the credits could refer to this struggle between the two.
Episode 2 Credits
While the pilot’s credits are driven by storytelling, Episode 2’s credits are ruled by aesthetics. Like the one before it, this episode’s credit sequence utilizes a purple and orange color scheme and a minimal animation style inspired by Aja’s art style. Though the sequence is meant to be stylish, there are still tons of easter eggs to look out for.
Unlike the first episode’s opening credits, Episode 2’s credit sequence comes at the very end of the episode, accompanied by the stylish music that played during the final scene (“Christmas Island” by Depeche Mode - highly recommend.). We can see various shots of Clint and Kate working together to take down the show's baddies, The Tracksuit Mafia, as well as some adorable looks at the word’s best boy, Lucky the Pizza Dog. Speckled throughout the credits are general Christmas-themed Hawkeye imagery, like arrows shooting through Christmas lights and presents wrapped in bow-and-arrow patterned paper. We also get a look at some different artifacts that were featured throughout the first two episodes. We can see Clint (and Kate’s) Ronin sword being unsheathed before quickly turning into the image of a moving subway train, as well as the first aid supplies bought by the Hawkeyes during the episode.
What’s really special about the sequence, though, is its direct references to the comics. While the entire style of the end credits can be considered a reference to the show’s comic inspiration, there are some specific glimpses of items that comic book fans are sure to recognize. Towards the beginning of the credits, we see an old car driving down a snowy road. This is the same 1970 Dodge Challenger that Clint purchased in Hawkeye Vol. 4, #3. In the comics, the car was stolen by the Tracksuit Mafia, causing Clint and Kate to go on a car chase throughout the streets of New York City.
Later in the credits, we can see two purple mugs with the letter “M” engraved on them. These are the exact mugs that Kate holds in the second issue of Hawkeye Vol. 4, right down to the font adorning the cup. Even some of the more obscure stylistic elements of the comics can be found in the credits sequence, such as the clips of Kate and Clint being framed by an arrow of whitespace. This is extremely similar to the cover of Hawkeye Vol. 4 #6, which shows Clint aiming his bow while also surrounded by an arrow of whitespace.