Hawkeye: Kate Bishop

With the recent departures of heroes like Captain America, Black Widow, and Spider-Man, it’s time for Marvel to turn to the next generation of heroes. Enter the new MCU’s Kate Bishop, played by Cosmo’s very own Hailee Steinfeld. She’s a young, smart, and badass hero who’s already starting to shake up the world around her. As a resurrected Hawkeye, Kate’s bringing a fresh face and attitude to the Avengers. And it seems like she’ll be a major part of the MCU for years to come.

The first thing that sets Kate apart from her predecessor is her youth. She’s a young woman who takes on the mantle of Hawkeye at the age of 20 and refuses to let it go, even when her mentor returns to prominence. Unlike the more cynical, serious version of the character who appeared in Matt Fraction and David Aja’s run, Kate is a goofier, funnier hero with an off-kilter sense of humor. She’s also a more grounded hero who’s less likely to get carried away with the grandness of superheroing, preferring to do her job right instead of worrying about how much she’s changing the world.

As the series progresses, we’ve seen Kate form her own team with a diverse group of people who work together to fight crime and save the day. They’re not without their problems, however. In particular, Kate’s cocaptain Patriot was revealed to be taking a synthetic form of Super Soldier Serum and lost a lot of his respect within the team. Despite this, the young team refuses to stop their heroism and convinces Captain America that they should continue.

While Jeremy Renner’s Clint is an important part of Kate’s story, it’s her own team that’s shaping who she is as a hero. Whether she’s texting her sister Susan about how to get past one of her trick arrows or asking for advice on what to do about a mind-controlled resort full of hero-disguised vacationers, Kate is learning to rely on her friends for support and guidance as she makes her way as a hero.

By the end of Hawkeye, we see Kate reunite with some of her Young Avengers comrades. It’s a subtle hint that the team may be getting back together for an Avengers event in the future and could mean that Kate is on her way to becoming a full-fledged member of the Young Avengers alongside other promising new heroes, such as Eli Bradley (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) and Wiccan and Speed (WandaVision).