LONDON: After the cinematic bombast of recent Marvel movies “Black Widow,” “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” and “Eternals,” the ever-expanding Marvel universe returns to the small screen for “Hawkeye” — a six-part series starring the eponymous, world-weary archer, played by Jeremy Renner. Disney’s previous live-action MCU shows (the genre-bending “Wandavision,” buddy movie-esque “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier” and the multiverse-spawning/spanning “Loki”) all had their own unique feel and style, but from the very start of “Hawkeye” it becomes clear that this is an altogether more human affair. The show starts with a flashback to 2012, and the Battle of New York featured in the first “Avengers” movie, only this time we see events through the eyes of Kate Bishop, a young girl living in a beautiful NYC penthouse with her parents. As her home takes a pounding from alien invaders, Kate is saved by an arrow from Renner’s Clint Barton. Reeling from the death of her father, Kate asks her mother for a bow and arrow, and vows never to allow herself to be helpless again. Two years after the events of “Avengers: Endgame,” Clint is in New York with his family, trying to squeeze as much Christmas cheer as possible out of the holidays, while still struggling with hearing loss (from all the explosions), the trauma of the last few years, and his secret past as the murderous vigilante Ronin. When a now-adult Kate (Hailee Steinfeld) winds up stealing the Ronin suit and attracting the attention of some shady underworld types, Clint reluctantly dusts off his superhero gear and resolves to set things right. Hawkeye has always been the least theatrical of the MCU Avengers, and Renner’s reluctant hero feels right at home in this lower-stakes, holiday-themed limited series. (The first two episodes were available from launch, with weekly instalments on the way.) “Hawkeye” is guilty of some missteps, with plot holes wider than an exploded penthouse, but Renner and Steinfeld have sublime chemistry — he as the cynical, aching superhero and she as his overenthusiastic sidekick (and, presumably, eventual Avengers replacement). It’s just charming enough to make you overlook its flaws.