Ronin” takes a moment to fill in something Black Widow gaps. We go back in time to 2018 and join Yelena’s ongoing mission to free other widows around the world. It shows us what happens when she’s snatched by The Snap (that dusting doesn’t get any less disturbing) and when Yelena returns, Natasha is dead. We already know that Valentina pinned her passing on Clint, but while “Ronin” Kate tries to put a justifiable germ of doubt in Yelena’s mind about Clint’s guilt, I suspect it’s already there – if Yelena really wanted quick revenge for Natasha’s death , she probably wouldn’t need a sweet little payday from Eleanor Bishop to get the job done.
Kate’s meeting with Yelena was a treat. Their conversation went on for a while, but I could have seen Florence Pugh and Hailee Steinfeld talking honestly all day long. The actresses chew on those characters so well, and Pugh plays with Yelena’s dangerous potential as a sparkly-eyed cat playing with a terrified mouse. Will these two eventually become partners? Youngsters? Friends? Lovers? Yes, the heart of the internet wants what it wants.
Meanwhile, the sweetness of Kate and Eleanor’s relationship comes to the fore. Eleanor’s betrayal, plus the revelation that she’s in cahoots with Wilson Fisk, is likely to hit Kate pretty hard. Who can Kate really trust? Who can she believe in? Maybe she’d better shed some of her innocence to realize that a superhero’s life is almost always a heartbroken mess.
Echo, who was unexpectedly introduced to the MCU as more of a villain, also asks some tough questions; her quest to kill Ronin, now in turmoil after Clint grabbed the chessboard and threw all the pieces in the air. Maya’s right-hand man Kazi was not present the night her father was killed by Ronin because ‘Uncle’ didn’t want him to get hurt when he gave the order, so she may accidentally drift to Ronin’s side instead of his throat to go .
When we go in hawk eye In the finale, some dark truths have finally come to light and Ronin is no longer waiting in the shadows. He is part of Clint’s soul that he can never kill – a monster that he and his family must live with until his last breath, and perhaps beyond. Like Clint, Maya and Yelena are weapons manipulated by people who don’t want to get their hands dirty. Now each has to decide how long they will be used before they backfire.
The mystery of the Avengers Compound Rolex watch takes a back seat again in this episode, but that’s okay. If the breadcrumbs of Clint and Laura’s past lead to where I think they lead, Clint won’t be the only one coming home for Christmas.
