The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is set to determine Sam and Bucky’s future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. WandaVision kicked off Marvel’s Phase 4. Surprisingly, the show started off on a lighter note. But eventually, the show picked up its speed. The same concept is being carried forward by The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. The show has lesser episodes hence it didn’t take much time for the show to layout its narrative and tell people what exactly is happening. The show focuses on Sam’s responsibility as Captain America and Bucky’s confrontation with his past.
The show also brings in recurring threats such as Zemo and his desire of living in a world with no superheroes, as he believes their shenanigans come with a lot of collateral damage. But more than that, we see Wyatt Russell as John Walker in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. He is being portrayed as the new Captain America. Even though fans hate this particular character, Russell seems to be having no problem with it. This very statement of his has put the fans at ease as he wanted the fans to hate his character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
But we see ourselves asking a question – How is the new Captain America different from the old Captain America? Well, one thing is for sure that the new Captain America, John Walker (Wyatt Russell), is not a super-soldier, unlike Steve Rogers (Chris Evans). Steve Rogers was injected with a super-soldier serum, following which he got superhuman strength, speed, and flexibility. Through this, he was able to stand a chance against supernatural threats, and hold his own as Captain America.
The Falcon and The Winter Soldier begins with Sam giving up the Cap’s shield. But it doesn’t take long for the government to go against Sam’s best interests and find someone else to take on the mantle of Captain America. Episode 2 of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier finally introduced the new Captain America with his quick appearance and a wink that immediately provoked the fans to despise him. His grand introduction across the country included TV interviews, press conferences, and deployment on missions already. This also included the revelation that John Walker’s Captain America isn’t a super-soldier, and set up his very existence as Captain America to be completely human-like.
Walker confirms that he has no super-powers whatsoever, unlike Bucky Barnes (Winter Soldier) or Steve Rogers (Captain America). Originally, Walker should have had his powers by this point in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This comes in with the wake of other MCU characters as The Falcon and The Winter Soldier introduced Isaiah Bradley, the first black Captain America. He appeared in episode 2 and confirmed his part in the super soldier program. He was experimented on by the government and his blood studied for thirty years while he was in prison.
This comes with the indication that the government had access to the super-soldier serum throughout, so why wasn’t it given to John Walker? This could be a very interesting decision. If we look back, Steve Rogers was an amazing Captain America, but with his powers acquired by the super-soldier serum, he always found himself in a tiff against the government. Now that the government got to handpick their Captain America, it is fairly understandable that they wanted to have the bigger hand. John Walker is an accomplished soldier but he wouldn’t be able to stand up to the government on his own. This makes him more obedient to the government’s orders, further sell him as more of an everyday American who “earned” his stripes.
There could be another existing possibility. It was revealed in The Incredible Hulk that the serum used on Emil Blonsky was among a limited supply. So it could be very much possible that the government doesn’t have much of the serum to give to John Walker and as a result, he could not possess the right amount of power as Steve Roger did. But another factor that dons into the government’s decision of not giving Walker the serum is that they want to see Walker proving his worth and allegiance to the government.
John Walker is not a super-soldier at the moment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it is believable that further in the Marvel Cinematic Universe he wields the powers of Captain America. Maybe he will get ahold of the serum and use it on himself to stand a chance against the Flag-Smashers.
The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is currently streaming on Disney+. Have you watched it yet? Let us know in the comments below!
