The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

 

I just finished the sixth episode of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier on Disney Plus. I wanted to write this as soon as I could because I want to do this while my feelings are fresh. I had big feelings about the last two episodes. When this series first started, all I wanted was for them to address the impact of having a black Captain American and how Sam Wilson handles that responsibility. We got a snippet of that when Rhodey and Sam speak for a few minutes in the first episode. On it's face, it seemed like a simple conversation. However, it was dripping with a lot of subtext. Basically, Rhodey was trying to tell him that if Sam doesn't take up the shield, that Cap hand picked him for, the Government would get their own guy and it would not be a black man. In the second episode, we meet Isaiah Bradley and we touch on race a little bit more there. We even have a scene where the policy are called and they almost arrest Sam. If it wasn't for his fame, he would have been treated like any of us. They were starting to get to the topic. Instead of digging even more, they decided to follow the Marvel formula for a spy thriller action movie. I enjoyed them, but they did not give me what I wanted at first. They showed that Sam Wilson is more than capable to hold his own and I think that was important for what was going to come later.

Sam's interactions with Bucky were more contentious than they've ever been. You later find out the why for it, but the first few episodes it is exhausting. Like, do they like each other at all? Why even work together?

Then we get to episodes five and six. These were by far my favorite episodes and I'm going to tell you why. Finally, they really touch on the weight of the title of "Captain America" for a black man. You see the pain in the second conversation we see Sam have with Isaiah Bradley. He was a man who was done dirty by the country he serves which hits home because it is all too real. For any black person that was in the military, this resonates. To see it even addressed in a show like this is what I wanted to see. You can't have Sam take up the shield and just ignore the real world that exists around him. To do so would be holding up this idealistic view of the world that just doesn't exist. The scene also displays how this affects Sam and goes into why he was so hesitant in the first place. I keep talking about this scene because it was truly powerful. I'll admit it brought me to tears because this is how it can feel. 

Later in the episode, we get an apology from Bucky and establishes the fact that he and Steve had no idea what it meant for a black man to be Captain America. That admission shows that he opened his eyes and understood Sam's initial decision. He took ownership of that and realized he had been out of line. After all the bickering they did, this was also refreshing to see. Again, this had me in my feelings again.

You see a montage of how Sam trains to use the shield, differently than Steve did, because he does not have the super solider serum to rely on. This only makes you want to root for him more. He is just a regular dude that is putting it all on the line for his country.

Finally we get the sixth episode where he is fully in his new costume and claiming the title. We get some great action sequences where he more than proves his worth. Even though I didn't like the acting of the extras, I loved seeing the black people in the crowd reacting to Sam as Captain American and how proud they were. Then we get the Captain American speech, this time from Sam Wilson. He clearly owns the moment and credit has to be given to Anthony Mackie, which I will talk about later. Again, I was brought to tears because his speech is moving and I loved seeing him give it. All I could think about is how these are the kind of heroes I will want my son to see. Here's a character I want him to embrace. I can tell him that there is a black Captain America too. 

I also want to mention that the scene where Sam walks Isaiah into the Captain America exhibit and shows that he will not be forgotten is also another important scene. Did I tear up again? You're damn right I did.

One last point I want to touch on is how important family was in this show, specifically to Sam Wilson. He showed that he never forgot where he came from and his community returned that in kind. He embodied the best of them and I think it is always a great thing to display positive images of black people in TVs and movies. They did this with Luke Cage as well, but in the MCU, they keep pulling some of the black characters out of their comic origins of Harlem and placing them in the South. For Luke Cage, it was Georgia. For Sam Wilson, it's Louisiana. It's definitely a choice and I don't disagree with it, but I am seeing a pattern. 

The reason I'm saying all this in the past few paragraphs is I do not want to undersell how important a figure Sam Wilson has become. Like T'Challa, it is giving little black kids a hero that they can root for. That they can be the hero. That they can play Captain America.  I always say this, but I truly wish I had something like this when I was a kid. I'm glad that more shows like this exist.

As for the rest of the show, I thought it was well done. It looked slick and well produced. I am so grateful that Anthony Mackie is the Falcon. He has a natural charisma that is hard to replicate. He unfortunately got lost in the other movies, but now that he has his own show, you can see that he can clearly carry it. Like Chadwick Boseman, I think he will be a person that little black boys will look up to. I'm sure he's aware of the weight of carrying something like this and you can tell that is how he approaches it. He has made Sam Wilson a fully believable character. Sebastian Stan was great as well, as his Winter Soldier continued to struggle through his past and finally seems to have come to a resolution on that. 

I loved seeing Baron Zemo, Sharon Carter and the Dora Milaje show up for a bit. I'm glad we get an anti-hero in John Walker. The Flag Smashers, you start to see where they are coming from too. Finally, this one flew under the radar, but this show sneakily introduced Joaquin (Sam's friend) into the universe. In the comics, he also becomes another iteration of the Falcon. 

If I was to say anything bad about this show, it is that it is trying to juggle too many things at once and that leads to a lot of tonal shifts. My favorite episodes are the ones where we spend time with Sam or Bucky outside of the super heroics. When they are just talking. Those are sandwiched in between tense action sequences, espionages and double crosses. When I say this out loud having Baron Zemo, John Walker, the Flag Smashers, the Power Broker and the introduction of Valentina Allegra de Fontaine is a lot. Focusing on maybe two of these three and sitting with those would have been good enough.

I liked this show way more than WandaVision and that is for the reasons I mentioned above. It spoke to me and I had been anticipating it a lot more. I look forward to the Marvel Universe now rallying around Sam Wilson as Captain America and I hope they let him have this title for a while. I highly recommend watching this show.