Hawkeye Fans Are Freaking Out About That Episode 5 Bathroom Scene
Episode 4 of "Hawkeye" saw the titular hero being chased down by a masked assassin, who was revealed by episode's end to by none other than Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), sister of Natasha Romanov (Scarlett Johansson) and fan-favorite character from 2021's "Black Widow" film. Episode 5 kicks off with a bit more of Yelena's backstory — specifically, following her on her mission to free all Black Widows across the world from the mind control that had haunted her and Natasha for years.
Yelena and two other Widows spend some time in a lavishly furnished apartment, discussing her mission, and fondly conversing about Natasha. It's clear Yelena still misses her sister immensely, for after a moment she excuses herself to the bathroom to keep her composure. As silly as it might seem, this short trip to the bathroom becomes one of the most harrowing scenes in the entire series, and has had fans losing their minds ever since the episode was released.
Episode 5's title "Ronin" references the alter ego Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) donned during the five-year span after Thanos snapped half the world away — which is fitting, since the bathroom scene flashes back to that exact moment of the snap.
Yelena has the worst bathroom break in history
Yelena is in the bathroom for no more than five seconds, but we watch as she is snapped away to dust, and then suddenly rematerialized in a completely new environment: the walls are repainted, the furniture is different, and the Widow who lived in the apartment now has a husband and adopted child sitting quietly in the living room. Five seconds for Yelena was five years in the real world, and not only did she lose five years of her life to the snap, but during that time she also lost her sister.
The scene is gut-wrenching for Yelena, but even more excruciating for fans who know what the five-year gap means for Yelena — especially since the first words out of her mouth were about the sister she didn't even know was gone. Fans were devastated by the reveal. "When she came back she immediately went to look for [Natasha] because she didn't want her to worry.. I can't.." a fan named @flospumpkin tweeted. Another fan with the Twitter handle @shawntyolsen wrote, "CAN I JUST HUG HER??? IMAGINE GOING IN THE BATHROOM... AND WHEN YOU COME BACK YOUR SISTER IS GONE."
Others praised the scene for its direction and visual effects, like @prob_an_idiot who tweeted, "The bathroom scene??? The artistry behind the CGI??? And we get this for $5/mo??????????" It's certainly a powerful way to begin an episode, and continues Disney's reputation of delivering cinema-style drama on the silver screen.