Hawkeye’s Captain America Detail Confirms Steve Rogers Was The Better Hero

A Captain America detail in Hawkeye proved that Steve Rogers was truly the better hero in the MCU. Hawkeye’s trailer first showed a glimpse of Rogers: The Musical, which Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) and his kids attended while on a holiday trip in New York. Only a fraction of the fictional heroes’ performance was seen in the show’s premiere episode. But, much to the frustration of some Hawkeye viewers, the full version of the Broadway musical’s song “Save the City” was eventually featured in the mid-credits scene of its final episode. Nevertheless, the prominence of Rogers: The Musical just confirmed how the people of New York view Steve Rogers’ heroism after all these years.

Offering additional comedy in Hawkeye, the flamboyant nature of Rogers: The Musical directly contrasted Clint’s low-key personality. So, expectedly, he was annoyed at how the Avengers were portrayed during the Battle of New York, with Ant-Man mistakenly included, in particular. Aside from this anachronistic error, Rogers: The Musical also triggered Clint’s emotions upon seeing its iteration of Natasha Romanoff. If anything, the Broadway hit proved how romanticized Hawkeye’s real-life adventures were. Since the audience was unaware of the real stakes faced by the MCU heroes, Rogers: The Musical was well-received, but that might also be because of its branding.

Instead of utilizing the moniker Captain America, the in-universe musical adapted Steve Rogers’ actual name. In a post-Endgame world, this detail only confirmed how Steve was revered as the bigger and better hero in the MCU. So far, he was the only confirmed character whose entire personal life had been talked about and glamorized in detail. In an interview with Empire, “Save the City” songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman — who also worked together in the musical Hairspray — shared their vision of a full-length Rogers: The Musical. They imagined that the first act would chronicle Steve’s adventures since he got injected with the super-soldier serum, and the catchy song would mark the act-one finale. No other original Avenger had been given the same treatment, with the people of New York being interested in his life as Steve Rogers, and not simply as Captain America.

Rogers the musical has a ending problem Hawkeye

When Steve first became Captain America, he was heavily used as promotional material for war bonds during World War II. From then on, the Cap brand had only been exploited for publicity. In fact, as seen in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, the world desperately needed someone to be a replacement for Captain America. John Walker (Wyatt Russell) was unsuccessful in his run, even tarnishing the legacy of the shield by killing a Flag Smasher in broad daylight. With that, perhaps at some point, the public viewed the name Captain America negatively, and even though Sam Wilson already took on the mantle, the people were still longing to witness Steve’s life once more.

Steve's legacy appeared even beyond the Phase 4 shows, with Spider-Man: No Way Home featuring Rogers: The Musical billboards and the Statue of Liberty carrying a giant Captain America shield. Since the events of No Way Home took place before Hawkeye, these Steve Rogers tributes had probably been in place for a period of time. This detail further proved how the world saw Steve Rogers as the worthy hero that he was.

NEXT: Hawkeye Post-Credit Scene Explained