Yelena’s Vest In Hawkeye: Plot Hole Or Insult To Black Widow?

Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Hawkeye episode 5!

Hawkeye episode 5, “Ronin,” features the return of Yelena Belova’s beloved utility vest, but did it create a plot hole, or was it an insult to the character’s arc in Black Widow? Florence Pugh made her MCU return as Yelena during her brief encounter with Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) and Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) in Hawkeye episode 4. With an assignment to kill Clint, Yelena isn’t letting anything get in her way, especially if fulfilling the mission means avenging the death of her sister, Natasha Romanoff. However, episode 5 finally shed light on Yelena’s whereabouts after the events of Black Widow.

After reuniting with her adopted sister Nat to take down the Red Room, Yelena vowed to use a special antidote to free the remaining Black Widows from Dreykov’s (Ray Winstone) control. Upon being freed herself, Yelena memorably made her first big personal purchase: a vest with several useful pockets. She proudly wore the vest over her field outfit. Though Nat teased her about the piece of apparel, Yelena eventually gave Nat the vest as a parting gift. Nat, of course, wore the vest over her suit in Avengers: Infinity War while fighting Thanos and his army in Wakanda. This realization made Nat’s Infinity War appearance more meaningful due to the dedicated connection she kept with her sister.

At the start of Hawkeye episode 5, “Ronin,” the timeline flashed back to 2018 when Yelena and another former agent were tracking down the mind-controlled Black Widows. The pair targeted a woman in a remote mansion as Yelena was shown wearing her white Black Widow outfit equipped with a vest on top. Shortly after, Yelena fell victim to Thanos’ Snap, meaning this mission took place as Nat and the other Avengers failed to stop Thanos in Wakanda. Yelena’s possession of the vest in Hawkeye may seem like a plot hole considering Nat was wearing the piece of attire at that same moment. However, upon closer inspection, the vest Yelena wore in Hawkeye was not the same one seen in Black Widow and Infinity War. While it’s not a plot hole, the new vest seems like an insult to the events of Black Widow.

Despite their initial differences caused by the Red Room separation, Yelena and Nat were closer than ever by the end of Black Widow. They may not have been working together, but the pair clearly formed a strong bond. Yelena gave Nat the vest as a gift to symbolize their recent reunion and strengthened connection. Nat wore it with pride on the battlefield as if she had brought a piece of her sister for extra strength and protection. Rather than move on to something new, Yelena bought a new vest, which was slightly different but very similar to the original. In doing so, it takes away from the special gesture because, in the end, Yelena just replaced the vest by buying a different one.

Though the new vest seen in Hawkeye slightly dampened the significance of the original from Black Widow, it doesn’t lessen how much Yelena cares for Nat. Her whole character arc in the Disney+ series revolves around hunting Clint for what happened to her sister. She doesn’t know the full truth just yet, but Yelena would go to great lengths for her family, blood relatives or not. The vest may not be as important, but getting to the bottom of Nat’s death is very much still the priority.

New episodes of Hawkeye air Wednesdays on Disney+.

About The Author

Kara Hedash
(1744 Articles Published)

Kara Hedash is a features editor and writer for Screen Rant. From time to time, she dives into the world’s most popular franchises but Kara primarily focuses on evergreen topics. The fact that she gets to write about The Office regularly is like a dream come true. Before joining Screen Rant, Kara served as a contributor for Movie Pilot and had work published on The Mary Sue and Reel Honey. After graduating college, writing began as a part-time hobby for Kara but it quickly turned into a career. She loves binging a new series and watching movies ranging from Hollywood blockbusters to hidden indie gems. She also has a soft spot for horror ever since she started watching it at too young of an age. Her favorite Avenger is Thor and her favorite Disney princess is Leia Organa. When Kara’s not busy writing, you can find her doing yoga or hanging out with Gritty.

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