Marvel Studios’ just finished its fifth Disney+ series with Hawkeye, and if reception is to be believed, it seems that it could end the year as one of the fans’ favorite projects of 2021. On top of centering around Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton for the first time, the show also introduced Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop to the MCU stage—and she knocked it out of the park.
Many viewers claim that the show’s finale is easily one of the best out of all Disney+ shows. Clint finally got to put his Ronin history to bed, Kate survived a confrontation with Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin, and both Hawkeyes are now happily partners.
One of the biggest reveals of the episode came at the end of the episode when Linda Cardellini’s Laura Barton flipped over her newly re-acquired Rolex—revealing a SHIELD insignia with the number 19 etched on the back.
Many fans will know that to be a reference to the comics character Bobbi Morse, aka Mockingbird, a former SHIELD agent, and wife to Hawkeye.
While all that information went unsaid, what does it all mean for the character’s MCU future?
The Mystery of Laura's Rolex
In an interview with Marvel, Hawkeye director Rhys Thomas commented that Agent 19 Rolex has set the fanbase ablaze and what It means for the future of Linda Cardellini’s Laura Barton.
The director mentioned how that reference is an example of “what’s exciting about the Marvel Cinematic Universe:”
“That's what's exciting about the Marvel Cinematic Universe… It's Marvel, and the comics are so deep. It's a universe. What I love is that these ideas could get introduced as we were sort of prepping the show.”
Thomas noted how there’s “obviously a desire” to expand her backstory and that the payoff "hopefully promises more of" Agent 19 in the MCU's future:
“We've seen her over these years as his wife, and there was obviously a desire [to expand her backstory]… we should know more about her. There's more to her than just staying at home with the kids. It was a fun little thing to tease out over the season and again a nice little payoff that hopefully promises more of a character planted at the end.”
Laura Barton's MCU Future
One of the first observations fans had was the potential contradiction that the reference has for Agents of SHIELD. The canonicity of the show has long been in question, with no concrete answer available to this day.
In the ABC series, Bobbi Morse, aka Mockingbird, is portrayed by Adrianne Palicki and played a key role over a couple of seasons. Does this Rolex confirm that SHIELD isn't canon?
It doesn't, but what It does seemingly confirm is that Marvel Studios may be interested in giving Laura Barton’s character some stuff to do in the future. She’s been around for six years now, since Age of Ultron, so it's about time she gets fleshed out some more.
It certainly looks like the perfect starting point for the second season that fans are actively crossing their fingers for.
Hawkeye is streaming in its entirety exclusively on Disney+
