Hawkeye Took up the Ronin Mantle After Losing His Family During the Snap
By Leila KozmaDec. 2 2021, Published 10:05 a.m. ET
Season 1, Episode 3 of Hawkeye sheds more light on Echo's (Alaqua Cox) background story. As the vengeance-hungry leader of the Tracksuit Mafia, she is looking to teach Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner), a previous owner of the Ronin mantle, a lesson.
So, why did Clint adopt the Ronin mantle in the first place? How come he crossed paths with Echo's late father, and why does the whole incident rub Echo the wrong way?
So, how did Hawkeye become Ronin? How does Echo come into the story?
Technically, the first MCU character to put on the slick and stylish disguise is no other than Echo (aka Maya Lopez). She first took up the mantle upon joining Captain America and the New Avengers at Daredevil's suggestion in the 2004 comic book, New Avengers #11.
The second to develop an interest in the Ronin identity is Clint Barton. After losing his whole family to the Snap — remember the bit where Thanos (Josh Brolin) destroyed half of the population of the Earth with the snap of a finger after assembling the Infinity Gauntlet in Avengers: Infinity War? — Clint puts on the Ronin disguise and launches Ronin's Campaign.
While still grappling with the grief of losing his family, Clint (aka Ronin) announces a international revenge mission against the criminals who somehow managed to survive the Snap. The quest takes him to Tokyo, where he engages in heated fights with Yakuza leaders before accidentally bumping into Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) in the 2019 Avengers: Endgame. According to Season 1 of Hawkeye, this is how he ends up killing Echo's dad.
The victims of the Snap are promptly resurrected during the Blip, the reverse-Snap carried out by Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) in Avengers: Endgame. The same can't be said for Echo's dad though.
In Hawkeye, it is Kate Bishop who gets her hands on Clint's long-abandoned Ronin cloak at an underground auction selling superhero memorabilia. Instead of dressing as her hero, she goes for the Ronin mantle — which is bound to get her into a considerable amount of trouble.
And let's not forget that Kate's stepdad, Jack Duquesne (Tony Dalton) has a sword fetish — which also extends to Ronin's sword.
As a fan theory has it, Echo might try to get her hands on the Ronin mantle in 'Hawkeye.'
Echo, the antagonist in Hawkeye and the main character of the forthcoming Echo, was the first person to get her hands on the Ronin mantle. This led some fans to believe that she might attempt to revisit the long-gone chapter in her past and put on the suit once again.
With Kate lacking the experience required to handle the superhero suit and Clint growing increasingly tired of the business of being a superhero, Echo does make for a strong candidate to take over the Ronin identity.
"Would be cool if Echo got to keep the Ronin suit when Hawkeye ends. She was Ronin for a little while in the comics," tweeted @NerdsPitch.
New episodes of Hawkeye premiere every Wednesday on Disney Plus.
