It’s the season finale (or series finale) of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier and it’s tasked with the monumental task of cleaning up all the plot points in one episode. The show does an adequate job of closing a few loops and giving the series somewhere to go down the road. The show had a lot to reconcile with Karli Morgenthau, John Walker’s crazy ass, Sharon as the elusive Power Broker, and finding resolutions for Isaiah Bradley and our heroes.
It’s certainly a tall order, and I found myself checking the time to see if the show was allowing space for each. It mostly sticks the landing, leaving some things on the table, like any sort of closure on what Karli’s ultimate plan was or what the position of “Captain America” actually is. Is it a government position or an adopted title? Who knows, who cares! Five Thoughts incoming; let’s get to them.
1. Seriously, what is Karli’s plan?
I haven’t given much thought to the overall “evil” plan this season, but this episode had me confused as to Karli’s endgame, for lack of a better term. The Flag-Smashers are all juiced-up and ready to kill all the people prepared to sign a bill that will redraw borders and displace the returning people from the Thanos snap. Let’s say that is successful, then what exactly? Murdering all those people would only strengthen the government’s resolve to take down Karli and pass those bills. At one point, Sam refers to Karli as misguided, and that is an understatement. She had a lot of support but no longer-term plan other than “murder ‘dem.” In the end, it’s Sam who accomplishes Karli’s goal with an old fashion dress-down of that Senator person and some banker lady. So, the villains won. Yay?
2. Chair vs. Shield. Chair wins. Flawless Victory
Batroc the Leaper has a strong beef with two out-of-three Captain America’s and is 1-1 in both fights. In fairness, his second tangle with Cap is completely serum-free, so he comes out with the advantage. If you aren’t a believer in that advantage, I point your attention to Batroc vs. Sam. At one point, Sam chucks that easy-to-use shield at Batroc, and he knocks it out of the air with an everyday government chair. Both items come crashing down with equal sadness. It truly highlights how these items should not be thrown at any time, but comics, ya know? Then Sam legit runs from the fight while trying to save face with a French-language goodbye. At least Steve put him down. I am not here to compare Sam to Steve. I am here to say Batroc beat that shield with a stupid, uncomfortable chair. It wasn’t even ergonomic.
3. The redemption of John Walker
Well, all that crazy went away fast, didn’t it? The last time we saw John Walker, he murdered a guy by bashing his face in with Captain America’s shield, fought Sam and Buck, and was dishonorably discharged. Then he went off to build a makeshift shield to exact revenge. Long story short, he was not a good guy the last time he showed his face. Watching him run around making jokes with Bucky and ultimately “redeeming” himself was pretty unsatisfying.
Not only that, he is rewarded at the end of the episode with a new suit and the title of U.S. Agent. We know he was a good man trying to do the right thing, but the show went through a lot to show us there is something not right about him. Now he’s just good again? I don’t think there has ever been a character who’s failed upward so much.
4. You ever notice how many crowds are present in these things?
While watching this episode, I became acutely aware of all the crowds that form around the most dangerous situations. This episode had multiple violent encounters with a myriad of onlookers, right in harm’s way. A lot of it is to have someone react to all the cool shit happening on screen, like Karli taking on Bucky or Cap catching that big ass truck (P.S. that truck would have crushed him against that rocket pack of his).
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This isn’t a new thing. Go back and watch a lot of these MCU films. There are always people just standing around, waiting to become a casualty. People with kids! Foolish people with really small kids! Go back and watch the ending of The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The Rhino takes on a small child dressed as Spider-Man while a crowd of onlookers is no more than 20 feet from the giant mechanical rhinoceros. I suppose my point is people are stupid and love to gawk at shit.
5. Isaiah Brandley get a history
One of the most substantial new additions to the MCU is definitely Isaiah Bradley. If you are still unfamiliar with him, you can read up on the character in Truth: Red, White & Black. The Falcon and The Winter Soldier introduced a very tragic character into the fold and treated him with the proper weight and respect. From casting the amazing Carl Lumbly to play him down to honoring the character’s legacy at the end of the episode. For someone who was used and thrown away by the government so harshly, having his deeds on display, so he’ll be remembered as a superhero is extraordinary. Sam’s gesture allows Isaiah to heal, even if it’s only a little, and their embrace at the end carries with it a lot of emotional weight. I hope we see more of him, especially once The Young Avengers start rolling out, with his ill-mannered nephew stepping up as The Patriot.
The wrap-up
The season has come to a close and has set things in motion for the future. Sam is now officially Captain America, and we play the character in the next Cap movie. Sharon Carter is a bad lady with access to government tech and secrets. U.S. Agent is in play working for Madame Hydra. It’s a full complement of changes to the Marvel meta. The future plans of the MCU are still fuzzy as we roll into Loki in June, but exciting things are in motion.
Don’t think we didn’t clock the whole “I thought Captain America was on the moon” line as a vague easter egg. Perhaps to Secret Invasion? Again, it’s unclear, but I am excited about what they have in store as usual. It’s always a treat to see these characters jump off the page and perform on the big screen. And so far, both WandaVision and The Falcon and The Winter Soldier have provided us with new, fantastic comic book characters for us to follow in the coming years. Now we have a month off before the trickster god comes calling, so let’s all take a breath and prep for Tom Hiddleston’s charismatic ass in the next series. Thanks for reading, folks.
On your left.
Noteables:
- That suit can’t be what was in that case, it’s so puffy and not vibranium
- If the evil villain calls you on a burner phone, just say “no, I’m good.” and go about your mission. What did you gain from taking the call, Bucky? Nothing!
- Wait, John Walker had to give up the shield, but they let him keep the outfit? That seems like an oversight.
- You have to give it up for Olivia Walker. That is one dedicated wife. I bet she would bury a body with John. Just saying.
- Did anyone else miss Rhodey? I was hoping for some War Machine action.
