![]() ![]() Seeing Bucky cope with this is gently amusing, although his Battleship beau not being given a name on-screen sadly suggests it likely won’t work out for our recovering assassin.Despite all this character work, this first episode still manages to cram in a thrilling aerial dog fight for Falcon. As sad as this is, though, Marvel does its magic by weaving this into an awkwardly funny date scenario. Nakajima as a way of silently apologising for murdering his son years earlier is bittersweet. The gradual reveal that he has befriended the elderly Mr. Weight is added to this in how Bucky makes amends for his crimes. That remains somewhat true here - he’s definitely the weaker of the pair in this episode - but exploring this difficult side of Bucky has at least begun to make his tortured personality more authentic. He’s always been a moody and somewhat two-dimensional character, which hasn’t helped Sebastian Stan inject much life into him. His therapist unfortunately falls into the hard-ass counsellor cliché that I think slightly undermines its message of taking these issues seriously, but there is definitely a recognition that past trauma is haunting Bucky. ![]() This provides another angle on important societal issues, while acknowledging the multiple layers of his victim/perpetrator situation. The method of therapy he uses, which involves apologizing to those he’s hurt in his former life, parallels that of substance abuse recovery. A portion of Bucky’s story is told through the framework of a therapy session, demonstrating an understanding of the mental burden this all takes. Safe to say, none of these tasks are proving easy. Here, the focus is on Bucky’s recovery from decades of Hydra indoctrination, his attempts to make amends for his past actions, and his efforts to integrate into American civilian society. The exploration of The (former) Winter Soldier isn’t quite as rich as that of Falcon, but shows equally admirable ambition. This first episode is divided almost neatly into two storylines, that of Sam and Bucky, by virtue of them being separate for the entire duration. ![]() Spellman has already stated that Sam being a Black man will be actively recognised by the show, and it’s wasted little time in doing so. And as the loan officer rejects Sam and Sarah’s application, it’s clear that writer Malcolm Spellman is commenting on the racial divide inflicted by the system. The gulf between the recently deceased Iron Man - with his mansions and towers and infinite wealth - and Falcon, who is taking on government contracts to attempt to make ends meet, is made painfully obvious. It provides light humour as the loan officer recognises and fawns over an Avenger, but the fun soon breaks as Sam answers long-wondered questions about how superheroes pay their bills. ![]() The scene in the bank, in which Sam and Sarah apply for a loan, is brilliantly multi-faceted. This is all well packaged as part of his relationship with his sister, Sarah (Adepero Oduye), who is struggling to keep her family supported. He is, after all, not Captain America, and so we also see plenty of The Falcon’s personal issues, too. Sam’s ongoing struggles with Steve's legacy are just one portion of the show, though. While this mirrors the origin of the character, Steve’s story saw him willing to rebel against the corrupted government in order to uphold core American values, and so a DoD-owned Captain America feels in opposition to his legacy. There’s also some fascinating implications here that I hope future episodes will dig into, namely whether a state-created Captain America is effectively just another arm of its military might. Again, Mackie’s eyes say it all in this scene he didn’t just not want to replace Steve himself, he didn’t want to see anyone take up the mantle. Episode one’s closing moments already push that story ahead with the introduction of a new, Department of Defense-endorsed Captain America, played ever so briefly by Wyatt Russell. Or perhaps not, should Marvel choose to toy with our expectations once again. This starts The Falcon and The Winter Soldier’s journey to a place where, presumably, Sam will recognise his own strength and answer that call. A touching heart-to-heart with Don Cheadle’s Rhodey, who attends the shield donation ceremony, helps set up the stakes of The Falcon’s arc while Sam may not feel as if he can be the new Captain America, the country is in desperate need of one. Surprisingly, rather than embracing Steve’s mantle, he gives it up. ![]()
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