The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Let's use this space to talk a little about the comics version of John Walker. Walker was a former soldier who went through a training process with the Power Broker. He eventually becomes the Super Patriot believing he represents the ideals of America more than Steve Rogers. He eventually became a super hero and ended up taking over the mantle of Captain America when Steve abandoned it and became Nomad. Walker eventually became U.S. Agent, briefly joined Force Works and continuously struggles with being a "good guy."
"Power Broker"
Sam Wilson: [wearing a garish suit] "I'm the only one who looks like a pimp."
Baron Zemo: "Only an American would assume a fashion-forward black man looks like a pimp. You look exactly like the man you're supposed to be playing: the sophisticated, charming African rake named Conrad Mack; a.k.a. the Smiling Tiger."
Sam Wilson: "He even has a bad nickname."
Sam and Bucky go to visit Zemo and he convinces Bucky to help him break out of prison in order to help them track the Flag Smashers. Zemo leads them to the island nation of Madripoor where they find out the Power Broker hired former HYDRA scientist, Wilfred Nagel, to recreate the super soldier serum. When they go to confront Nagel, Zemo takes matters into his own hands. Also, there are other players who want Zemo back in custody and they aren't playing around.
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| There's the Zemo we know. |
I have to start this off by talking about Madripoor. I knew they were in Madripoor as soon as I saw that skyline. Madripoor is a key part of the X-Men so I feel like Marvel is just teasing me. You're giving me Madripoor, which I love, but without Wolverine's alter ego, Patch or Psylocke. It just feels incomplete without mutants. Here's hoping that mutants will be in the MCU soon and populating Madripoor. I will day the design is perfect. Low Town is a perfect mixture of bright lights and dinginess. The bar is filled with the shady characters that you'd come to expect. It's fantastic watching Sam, in particular, try to blend in. He takes that shot with the snake venom or whatever and then blows their cover inadvertently when Sarah calls when they are with Selby. He does his best.
This episode sees the return of Daniel Bruhl's Baron Zemo last seen in "Captain America: Civil War." I always felt like Zemo was underserved in that movie. Zemo is a big villain and while I appreciate the pathos that they tried to give him, he sort of felt like an afterthought. He's definitely not in this series. It's great to see Zemo flex. He's got his private jet. He is consistently fucking with Bucky and Bucky hates it. Zemo is oddly charming in this. He's totally a bad guy and a murderer. I mean, he kills Nagel in cold blood, but come on. Did you see him dancing at the party? We don't deserve it.
This episode sees the return of Sharon Carter. When the bounty hunters go after them, Sharon saves them. Sharon has been living in Madripoor since the Sokovia Accords and things haven't been great. She's a fugitive and hasn't seen her family in years. This is not the same Sharon we know and she's "working" for the Power Broker. It's interesting to hear Sharon rail against the country that she used to serve, but it makes a lot of sense. Sharon continues to be a badass. I loved her taking out the bounty hunters at the rail yard while Bucky, Sam and Zemo are meeting with Nagel.
Karli ups the Flag Smashers game by bombing a GRC warehouse that they just robbed with people still inside. Harming people is not the best way to get people behind you, but 6 months worth of supplies kind of evens things out.
Grade: B+
"The World Is Watching"
Baron Zemo: "The desire to become a superhuman cannot be separated from supremacist ideals. Anyone with that serum is inherently on that path. She will not stop, she will escalate until you are forced to kill her. Or she kills you."
Bucky Barnes: "Maybe you're wrong, Zemo. The serum never corrupted Steve."
Baron Zemo: "Touché. But there has never been another Steve Rogers, has there?"
Bucky meets with Ayo of the Dora Milaje and she gives him 8 hours before they come for Zemo. During that time, Zemo is able to figure out the time and place for the memorial of Karli's foster mother, Donya Madani. Walker and Hoskins are getting nowhere so they decide to follow Sam and Bucky. Sam wants to try to reason with Karli one on one, but things go sideways due to Walker's impatience. It's not all a bust for the new Captain America. He ends up with the last vial of super soldier serum. Zemo escapes during a tussle with the Dora. Sam is drawn to a meet with Karli after she threatens Sarah, but when tragedy strikes, will the new Captain America do the unthinkable?
We have to start at the end. That image of John Walker dressed as Captain America holding the bloodied shield after using it to bludgeon Flag Smasher Nico to death after Karli kills Hoskins. The look in his eyes as he brings the shield down on him over and over again is crazed and it puts a pit in my stomach every single time I see it. This was bound to happen. Walker has been humiliated, at least in his eyes, over and over again. Walker believed he'd'd suit up and immediately be respected, not just but he world, but by the superhero community as well. The public, especially these displaced people, have zero respect for Walker, as they see him as a representative of the people ejecting them from their homes. Sam and Bucky have not time for a man who is masquerading as one of their best friends. This Cap gig is not all it's cracked up to be and you can see it in Walker's face in ever close up. His heart isn't even in that autograph signing.
The show plays it cagey with whether or not Walker has taken the super soldier serum until he literally bends a pipe. Everything comes to a head when Hoskins is killed. Walker loses it. Everyone gets the murder on film. If the super soldier serum does exacerbate who someone is, what does that say about John Walker? Nothing good.
The other centerpiece of the episode is Sam's talk with Karli. It's great because there are no easy answers. Yes, Karli's actions resulted in people getting hurt and dying, but the reason why she is doing it, you can empathize with her. Anthony Mackie and Erin Kellyman have an easy rapport and this episode was really a fine showcase for Kellyman. Even when she's threatening Sarah, you kind of empathize with her and that is something.
The action continues to be top notch. There are three main action set pieces in this episode and my favorite is probably the one with the Dora Milaje. They prove that they are not to be trifled with. They easily take down Walker and they have no time for his condescending folksy bullshit. Ayo punching in some sort of hidden code to eject Bucky's vibranium arm was probably my favorite part of the episode.
Zemo continues to be the hidden gem of this series, but sometimes I don't get what he's doing. He coerces the whereabouts of Donya's memorial out of children using Turkish delight. He tells them that Sam and Bucky are bad men and not to tell them anything but that never comes back around. He tells them where the memorial is going to be held. So, what was the point of it? To show that Zemo is a double crosser? We already knew that.
It's a minor detail in another solid episode.
Grade: A
Next up, Walker faces the consequences of his actions, Karli and the Flag Smashers put their final plan into action and a new Captain America rises.
What do all think of these episodes and the series as a whole? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
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