Ladies and gentlemen, your new, and true, Captain America.
Moment subpages are Spoilers Off. You Have Been Warned.
Trailers
- In the "Join" trailer, Sam throws Cap's shield at Karli, who proceeds to kick it away. The only other person who was able to stop Cap's shield when it was in motion was Bucky, and that was only because of his cybernetic arm.
- From Trailer 3
:- Sam is shown practicing the maneuvers needed to wield Captain America's vibranium shield. While his voice-over implies that he still doesn't feel up to the task, his agility in moving suggests that he's almost there.
- In previous trailers, the Flag-Smashers are hitherto-portrayed as mostly-human. One of them, however, seems to have the strength to jump from a great height to the ground In a Single Bound.
- In a combo of Barehanded Blade Block and Bullet Catch, Bucky manages to catch a knife thrown inches away from his face.
- The extent of the durability and strength of Falcon's current wingsuit are demonstrated, allowing him not only to turn his wings into a makeshift barrier shield, but also deploy in fluid motion when he is in high-speed situations (even more so than what we have seen in his previous outings).
- Conversely, there was clearly a conscious decision to not advertise the fact that the show had managed to scoop up big star Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and keep it a total secret until the episode's release (up to and including literally smuggling her onto the set dressed in a black cloak, much like what they did for Evan Peters in WandaVision), a level of restraint not often seen in this franchise that makes the scene far more impactful.
Episodes
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Episode 1: "New World Order"
- Sam's first outing has him trying to retrieve a kidnapped military liaison from a transport plane, before the chase goes out of Tunisian airspace and several helicopters shooting at him. He succeeds at his mission completely solo.
- Sam once said "I do what [Captain America] does, just slower". This scene reminds us that he really can do what Captain America did.
- At several points, Sam manages to chase and catch up with high-speed helicopters and transport planes, which are rated for speeds over 500mph. Sam is just a guy with a backpack, no Power Armor or Super Serum, and yet this guy who has both his predecessors' weaknesses and none of their strengths can do just fine withstanding those speeds and kick copious amounts of ass.
- Batroc once again returns as the leader of the team kidnapping the military liaison, and much like his previous appearance, he spends most of his screentime being a legitimate threat to Sam, and nearly succeeds in his mission.
- In a villainous example, Bucky’s nightmare of him carrying out an assassination mission as the Winter Soldier is incredible to watch, starting off with him pulling a guard through a wall with his cybernetic arm, and stabbing, shooting, and impaling the other guards with complete ease. It looks like a scene straight out of John Wick and reminds the audience why the Winter Soldier was a name that people were afraid to mention in public.
- Part of Bucky's attempts at coming to terms with his time as the Winter Soldier involves him, apparently of his own initiative, dismantling and exposing the many ex-HYDRA and HYDRA-associated people that he helped empower.Bucky: I am no longer the Winter Soldier. I am James Bucky Barnes. And you're part of my efforts to make amends. (smiles)
Episode 2: "The Star-Spangled Man"
- In a rare case of Villainous Underdog dealing The Worf Effect, the Flag-Smashers' transport mission (where they are engaged by Sam and Bucky, later reinforced by John Walker and Lemar Hoskins) succeeds. These are possibly amateur civilians whose primary advantage is having super soldier serum, and they are going up against trained military operatives (with two being bona-fide Avengers, and one also being a super soldier). They still manage to give them difficulty and get away scot-free.
- Walker and Hoskins's Big Damn Heroes moment. Them holding their own against not one, not two, but three super soldiers is quite impressive. Special mention goes to Walker's skills with the shield; he sends several Flag-Smashers sprawling with well-aimed throws, and when Hoskins is kicked off the truck, quickly slings the shield under him to break his fall.
- Isaiah Bradley shows that he really was a Captain America-level badass:
- He mentions that he once faced off against Bucky as the Winter Soldier in South Korea in 1951 and, in his words, "whupped [Bucky's] ass" and took half of his metal arm. To put that in perspective, Steve Rogers beat Bucky solo in the helicarriers above the Triskellion, but it was a grueling battle. In Civil War, a brainwashed Bucky quickly took Cap down (albeit when Cap was reluctant to fight), went through a gauntlet of Falcon, Tony Stark (sans armor), Black Widow, Agent 13, and Black Panther, and still couldn't be taken down. Bradley beat Bucky solo, when Bucky was in his prime. Tells you the levels of badassery that this old super soldier had.
- As Isaiah explains the torment that he was subjected to, he vents his frustration by hurling a tobacco tin with such force that it embeds itself into the wall. It's physical proof of the horrific treatment that he just described to Sam, but also shows that even in his advanced age he's still immensely strong. Yes, this is definitely a man who was capable of going toe-to-toe with the dreaded Winter Soldier.
- It's not clarified what Winter Soldier's mission back then was, but given that it took place during the Korean War and HYDRA's methods are to escalate conflicts, Bradley defeating the Soldier may have singlehandedly prevented World War III.
- The very first thing that Bucky tells Sam about Isaiah during his introduction? That the man was one of the very few heroes that HYDRA legitimately feared, as much as Steve Rogers. Coming from Bucky, this says it all before even learning what he did.
- Especially after the full reveal of what happened to Isaiah. The United States may not have respected him, but HYDRA certainly did.
Episode 3: "Power Broker"
- Bucky breaking Zemo out of prison before he can finish explaining it to Sam. The plan to break Zemo out is itself also quite impressive. It involves Bucky starting a prison riot by making one paranoid inmate think that someone is going to kill him. Zemo then takes advantage of the ensuing chaos to impersonate a guard and escape.
- Crossing over with Nightmare Fuel, Bucky has to mimic his old Winter Soldier persona in a Madripoor bar, and easily thrashes several patrons without any change in expression.
- A mysterious sniper takes out Zemo's contact before she can kill our heroes, and keeps helping them out as bounty hunters chase them through the street. After all that buildup, it turns out that this is the return of Sharon Carter.
- While Bucky, Sam, and Zemo were interrogating Nagel inside his lab, Sharon single-handedly fights off a small army of bounty hunters outside.
- Zemo's Big Damn Heroes moment during the escape from the docks; not only does it mark the first moment in the MCU where he actually wears his classic mask, but he proceeds to take down half a dozen men, first by shooting a gasoline tank, and then by taking out the remaining two with his hand-to-hand skills. He then proceeds to find an escape car and helps the gang escape, even though he easily could've taken it for himself to flee.
- Bucky telling Zemo "Those days are over" right after Zemo tries to trigger his brainwashing with the keywords.
Episode 4: "The Whole World Is Watching"
- In the flashback, Ayo performs the Winter Soldier keywords one last time as a final test to see if Wakanda was successful in removing his programming - but she's doing it alone in a secluded mountainside. When Bucky expresses fear, Ayo calmly tells him she won't let him hurt anyone. The fact that Ayo is willing to perform the ritual alone, even on the off chance Bucky's programming was not successfully removed and she would indeed have to stop him, speaks volumes about why she's the second-in-command of the Dora.
- When Bucky asks how John and Lemar were able to track them to Latvia so quickly, Lemar responds, "you really think two Avengers walking around [in public] don't immediately stick out?" Apparently along with his pardon, Bucky is publicly recognized as an Avenger.
- Another Zemo moment— he mostly manages to take down Karli Morgenthau, who was posing a major threat to Sam and Bucky, with a gun. He lets her escape, but by then she's dropped the remaining vials of the Super Soldier Serum. He apparently smashes all but one of the remaining vials... which is taken by Walker, who goes completely off the rails and murders a Flag-Smasher in public, which will no doubt put a stain on their perception of super soldiers. (The Walker part probably wasn't Zemo's plan, but it still works.) With the scientist behind the serum dead and his lab destroyed, and the only other vial fueling a now-crazed Walker, Zemo once again wins the battle that he wants to win.
- This exchange between Bucky and Zemo, showing Steve lived up to the "good man" promise from First Avenger and then some:Bucky: Maybe you're wrong, Zemo. The serum never corrupted Steve.
Zemo: Touché. But there has never been another Steve Rogers, has there? - Walker makes the mistake of touching Ayo's shoulder without permission. She demonstrates his mistake by putting him on the floor in a few moves, and not letting up from there.
- Sam actually warns Walker that he'd have a better chance taking Bucky (a super soldier with a cybernetic arm) than the Dora Milaje, and we very quickly realize that he's not kidding in the slightest. Remember, the Dora Milaje fought in the Battle of Earth, and these women survived.
- It's actually implied that Ayo's subordinate deliberately threw her spear into that spot just so Ayo could knock Walker into it if things went south.
- And some more of how Crazy-Prepared the Dora Milaje are: they installed a way to instantly remove Bucky's vibranium arm if he turned on them.
- On a subtler note: after subduing John Walker, one unnamed Dora Milaje takes the shield by stepping on its edge and flipping it to her hand— the exact move that Steve Rogers did in his iconic elevator fight scene in The Winter Soldier. It helps hammer home to Walker how much of an Inadequate Inheritor he is that a random Wakandan female warrior one-ups him with Steve's Signature Move, and it's done with no words.
- The shield was pinned to a table by a vibranium spear, and Walker couldn't yank the spear free to retrieve the shield. The Dora pulls it off like it was nothing, further implying that Walker isn't even worthy of holding the shield, much less representing it.
- And then, there's this exchange.
- Bucky and Sam also get to participate against the Dora Milaje and despite not trying to harm them at all, they still managed to put up more of a fight than John and Lemar, demonstrating that the Dora Milaje may be the most badass woman crew around, but the Avengers are STILL considered the world's greatest heroes for a reason.
- Bucky in particular doesn't seem to be trying much at all against Ayo and he even looks more annoyed than taking the fight seriously. It's telling that he could have beaten her had he wanted to and the fact that she, the second best fighter and second in command of the Dora Milaje, couldn't beat him unarmed while she herself was armed with her country's trademark spear and had to resort to using a trick he didn't know could work on him to end the fight, demonstrates how he isn't just superhuman, he's also the current most skilled fighter around who had earlier went toe-to-toe with Black Panther himself, the most elite Wakanda fighter.
- On the other hand, the Dora were also holding back, as they didn't want to kill the Avengers, who were still their allies despite having freed Zemo, and they still managed to pressure and eventually incapacitate them. How does Nomble beat down Sam when he grips her spear? She simply responds by freeing it and then using the blunt parts of the spear to trounce him. Ayo gets the most credit for being tactical: After Bucky makes it clear her skills with her spear can't really make a dent on him, she makes a sudden and unexpected choice to shift to using her bare hands.... To activate the detachment fail-safe on his vibranium arm. The look of surprise on Bucky's face as she's using the move makes it even more awesome on her part and combined with her pragmatic decision to ignore Walker and Lemar shows that she isn't the second-in-command of the Dora Milaje just for her combat skills. She has that position and is trusted to lead the group to recapture Zemo because she also is smart and wise enough to know when a fight can't be won through martial prowess alone and resort to tactics to gain the upper hand.
- Bucky demonstrates the big difference between the Flag-Smashers, who are civilian revolutionaries given super soldier serum, and himself, who was a trained soldier before he was given a variant of the serum and a cybernetic upgrade, and then spent half a century honing his skills as a master assassin. The results are several decidedly one-sided fights, especially the poor sod who tries to get into a knife-fight with him. The only Flag-Smasher who lays a finger on Bucky is Karli, and only by sucker-punching him when he drops from a balcony.
- Although it falls squarely into Nightmare Fuel due to the context of the scene, John's Super Soldier Serum enhanced-prowess is something to behold. At one point he kicks a Flag-Smasher across a hallway and down a flight of stairs, and then defeats him by bending a metal bar around his arm.
- In a previous scene, John taunts Sam by saying that he should put down the shield to 'make this a fair fight.' Come the brawl with the Flag Smashers, and Sam proves that you don't need the serum to go toe-to-toe with a bunch of Super Soldiers.
- It's subtle, but it turns out that his years of being a counselor for soldiers has enabled Sam to get a rather good read on those around him. He calls out Zemo on doing his "stupid head tilt" whenever he tries to play mind games, and based on Zemo's reaction, it was something that he wasn't even aware that he does. He later flips Zemo's argument on wanting to kill all super soldiers by making him acknowledging that he sounds eerily similar to the idea of "playing God" that he always denounces. This actually shuts Zemo up and the man can't muster any response whatsoever because he realizes that Sam is completely right. He pulls this same kind of ploy on Karli Morgenthau during their conversation, making her realize (however briefly) that her current ideology of seeing certain people as "roadblocks" to her goals actually makes her very similar to the "supremacists" that she's fighting.
- Bucky also gets points in this episode for being the first character to get a genuine reaction of fear out of Zemo in perhaps the entirety of the MCU.Bucky: Wanna see what someone can do with leverage?
- When asked if he would take the supersoldier serum if it were offered to him, Sam answers no with zero hesitation. This gets him some Villain Respect from Zemo, demonstrates how secure he is in his abilities even without the serum or the shield, and sets him apart from Walker, who is later asked the same question and hesitates for a long time (and is ultimately seduced by the lure of the serum).
Episode 5: "Truth"
- Sam and Bucky (eventually) use teamwork to take Walker down. Bucky gets Walker's shieldbearing arm in a pin, and Sam uses his jetpack to fly forward, applying enough force to break Walker's arm and strip the shield from him. That's right. While holding back and not trying to kill, Falcon and Winter Soldier defeated a man who was close to Captain America's level and giving it his all and trying to outright murder them.
- Walker acquits himself well. He's outnumbered, fighting one well-trained opponent who is on his physical level, and another who has decent tech, a great deal of experience against dangerous odds, and is a special forces airman. He loses, but he still manages to temporarily put the vibranium arm out of commission, rip Sam's wings off of his jetpack, and leave both of his opponents bloody and battered.
- Bucky once again gets to show why he was considered to be HYDRA's greatest fighter and a formidable opponent even to Steve using his shield in this fight. He doesn't have the same weaponry he used against Steve and is holding back to not kill while Walker goes all-out and has no qualms killing him, yet he still proves to be a much more efficient fighter than Sam using his technology. While Sam spends most of the time using his gadgets to dodge and attack, Bucky fights Walker straight on and manages to show more skill than Walker in combat and get in shots as well as disarm him of his sidearm. He also prevents Sam from suffering the same fate as Nico, just as John Walker is about to attack Sam in the same manner with the shield, and manages to beat him numerous times and even knocked down stops him from using the shield to cave his chest. When Walker was disarmed, he tries to punch Bucky.... Only for Bucky to just easily block the attack and punch and then man-handle him without breaking a sweat for Sam to finish him off. Demonstrating how had he been fighting all-out and wanted to kill Walker, he probably could have beaten him on his own, and how even with the serum amplifying his combat prowess, Walker is still not quite at the same level of Steve in combat.
- Zemo gets when one when Bucky raises the gun at the Sokovian memorial. He does flinch a bit at first, but swiftly accepts what is about to happen. As far as he knows, the serum is no more. There may be more super-soldiers out there, but there's nothing he can do about that. All he can do is die, the way he wanted to after he thought he destroyed the Avengers.
- And yet, Bucky manages to get one over Zemo anyway; when he fires the gun at Zemo, it just clicks empty. Bucky then opens up his vibranium hand and drops the gun's bullets to the ground, proving to Zemo that he's not the kind of man that Zemo thinks he is before the Dora Milaje shows up to finally take Zemo away. Credit to Zemo too, as he accepts that with absolute nonchalance, giving Bucky advice and having a friendly parting.
- Bucky's tentative smile when he reveals to Zemo that the gun isn't loaded. He had Zemo dead to rights and, despite everything Zemo's done to him, he chose not to kill him, thereby proving to himself that he's not the Winter Soldier anymore.
- Sam's Training Montage with the shield (all while Louisiana Hero is playing as a Theme Music Power-Up) is impressive. He did well with the basics, but it took him a while to master the more advanced maneuvers that he'd need to perform if he were to take it up for real. Master them, he did.
- The ending of the episode. Karli and the Flag Smashers are about to attack the GRC, with extra equipment and reinforcement from Batroc. Their plan moves into motion when the power goes out as the GRC is having their final debate. But little do they know that Sam has been soul-searching, exercising, and mastering the Mighty Shield. The episode ends as Sam opens the case that Bucky gave him, ready to use it against the Flag Smashers. Everything is in place for a Big Damn Heroes moment... and the true return of Captain America.
Episode 6: "One World, One People"
- Sam's Big Damn Heroes moment... and his debut as the new Captain America. To say that his new suit is every bit as badass as Steve's would be a major understatement.
- Then there's this quiet moment that cements just who Sam really is now.GRC Senator: I'm sorry, who are you?
Sam: (casually walking past to get on with business) I'm Captain America. - It's also a nod to how one of his predecessors first cemented himself as Captain America.
- Then there's this quiet moment that cements just who Sam really is now.
- At one point in Sam's rematch with Batroc, his shield gets knocked away, but then he uses the 'step-on-the-shield's-edge-to-bring-it-up' move that Steve and Yama the Dora Milaje used, only it's now an offensive move to momentarily stun Batroc. It not only solidifies that Sam has mastered the shield, it also symbolizes that he is now truly Captain America in skill and ability.
- He also uses the Charging Star move to knock Batroc down.
- When Bucky is demolishing the Flag Smashers, Karli comes up with a cruel yet efficient way to get him off them long enough for them to get away: she sets one of the armored trucks on fire, knowing he'll go to rescue the hostages. It works like a charm, and only Walker's timely arrival prevents her from getting away.
- When Walker has to choose between avenging Lemar or saving the GRC hostages, he ultimately goes for the latter. Despite having gone off the deep end in the last two episodes, John is ultimately still a good, if flawed man.
- The best part is that Walker is once again being filmed by civilians, meaning that everyone will get to see the good parts along with the bad, and know that there is a chance for him to redeem himself.
- Speaking of which, John going up against the Flag Smashers is nothing short of cathartic, since he had every reason (personal or otherwise) to go after them. And he gets to show that while he's not at Steve or Bucky's level in skill, he STILL was one of the best fighters the U.S. had and was chosen to be Captain America for that reason. He beats multiple Flag Smashers at once and delivers a Curb-Stomp Battle on Karli, No Selling any fortunate blows she managed to land while every blow he lands on her sends her back. The only reason she knocks him down long enough to escape is because she was pragmatic enough to use surprise attacks.
- Sam's entire rescue of the NYPD helicopter and the hijacked helicopter, showing off his strategic prowess and smarts:
- In the first rescue, he has Redwing grab one of the pilots as the chopper spins out of control, while he rescues the other and gets them safely onto a nearby road bridge. He then proceeds to use his new vibranium wings and the shield to protect himself and the rescued pilot from the impact of the helicopter as it glances off his wings and skids into the water.
- The second rescue is a bit more elaborate, with Sam using Redwing to scan the occupants of the hijacked chopper for anyone with flight experience. We then get a tag-team sequence of one of the hostages working with Sam to regain control of the chopper, taking control of the helicopter just after Sam manages to break the chopper's glass with his shield and tackle the hijacker out of the pilot's seat.
- A blink-or-you'll-miss-it frame earlier in the sequence reveals that this particular hostage happens to be a former active-duty captain in the Philippine Air Force.
- Sam rescuing an armored van full of GRC hostages from falling several stories, Superman-style, made even more impressive by the fact that he has no powers, simply using his jetpack, a pair of jet-powered drones, and pure willpower.Older Bystander: It's the Black Falcon!
Younger Bystander: Nah, that's Captain America!- Much like Steve during his transformation into Captain America, Sam is audibly yelling from the effort of supporting all that weight. But instead of giving up, he simply thinks of another way around the problem, deploys his drones, and doesn't stop pushing until the van is back on safe ground. Because that's what heroes do.
- Many viewers noted just how ethereal Sam looked in this scene, thanks in large part to his wings and the spotlights constantly illuminating him from behind. He's quite literally an Avenging Angel!
- Bucky not only gets to beat down the Flag Smashers once more with ease, but he also gets to do that while they are using improvised weapons on him and Bucky is unarmed. Karli attacking him with a parking meter, he just dances around her attacks before using a simple chain to beat her down. Dovic using a piece of metal against him? He disarms him of that piece and knocks him down with it without breaking a sweat. Then, he gets to effortlessly catch the piece of rebar that Karli throws at him in one last attempt to kill him. The look on his face afterwards clearly shows how unimpressed he is with her dirty fighting tactics.
- Sam's speech to the GRC bigwigs is magnificent. He deftly unites his past and future struggles as a black man, in particular as a black Captain America, with those of the Flag-Smashers, and shames them into backing down and using their power and influence to help the refugees as well as still acknowledging the struggles of those who were Blipped, warning them that returning to business as usual and ratifying the Patch Act will just result in a new generation of Flag Smashers. The icing on the cake is that it was televised; doing anything else would have been political suicide. The fact that the main point is very much applicable to real-world politics just makes it hit even harder.
- Even better is the fact that this speech is the moment that cements Sam as the true successor to Steve Rogers, after John Walker tried and failed to live up to his legacy. It doesn't matter whether or not one is a super soldier or a military hero— Captain America is first and foremost about being a symbol of decency and moral authority. Sam not only embodies those ideals every bit as well as Steve, he got the entire world to recognize and accept it.
- Zemo once again gets the last laugh in the end when he has his butler blow up the remainder of Karli's Flag Smashers. All while he's just casually relaxing in The Raft, smiling at his victory over the Flag Smashers.Zemo: Super soldiers cannot be allowed to exist.
- The end credit scene is a major one for Sharon. She gets her pardon, and is reinstated into her old job. So does she give up being the Power Broker? Hell no! She's going to use her connections to funnel dangerous material to the black market and make an even bigger fortune. And everyone who knows she's the Power Broker is either working for her or dead.
- Sam getting Isaiah Bradley his own exhibit in the Smithsonian, ensuring that his history will never be erased and he will never be forgotten. And in a Freeze-Frame Bonus, the plaque for the exhibit pulls absolutely no punches in calling out the injustice of how the government treated him.
- The title card at the end?
