Falcon and the Winter Soldier Review

I realize this review is quite late--my schedule was thrown out of whack when one of my cats unexpected passed away.

Originally I was going to post a separate episode six review, but I think that's redundant, so this will function as both. I'll quickly go through the beats of the final episode and then delve into the show overall. I also have to call myself out: when I posted my last MCU news video, I talked about how it looked like Marvel wasn't going to give Falcon a film--clearly, that's not the case as a Captain America 4 is forthcoming. It's something I should be excited for, but I'm not.

I mentioned in my episode five review that there was still a chance for the show to stick the landing in the final episode, that despite numerous plot and character problems it was still possible, albeit unlikely. Unfortunately, all the problems that plagued the show leading into the finale continued. That doesn't mean there's nothing to like, but at the end of the day, this is inferior even to WandaVision (which was itself disappointing). On streaming, at least, we've seen the first set of serious missteps from Kevin Feige--the standard is not where it should be, falling well below the best Marvel Netflix seasons, striking the middling tone of The Runaways, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage. In talking about the show on Small Screen (where the four of us had split opinions), even those who enjoyed it agree it has issues and this matches the response from people I know--granting that anecdotal evidence is broadly meaningless.

But let's not put the cart before the horse. Here are the beats of the finale:

• The Flag-smashers move in on the GRC (Kellyman insisting violence is the only solution--keep in mind that this is someone Falcon admires); Bucky, Falcon, and Sharon gather to try and stop them; Falcon reveals his outfit and calls himself Captain America; he fights Batroc again while Kellyman calls Bucky to try to persuade him to not interfere--he tries to persuade her otherwise (she idiotically asks if he's ever fought for something bigger than himself--how stupid is she?); the GRC bureaucrats are herded into a van and Bucky speeds off in pursuit while Sharon kills a Flag-smasher because she's EVIL (Falcon has no reaction to her admitting to the murder, which is reminiscent of his indifference to Zemo killing Nagle); Falcon chases after people in a helicopter, which lacks any drama because it poses no threat to him and we don't care about the people in it
• Flag-smashers want to flee, but Kellyman doesn't want to, preferring to kill the hostages--her vacuous companions, while they disagree, stick with her and take over the van; some people applaud Falcon saving a dude; the Flag-smashers endanger some innocent people to keep Bucky busy
• Walker (his injured arm healed--presumably because of the serum) arrives and Kellyman apologizes for killing Hoskins--saying she doesn't want to kill people who don't matter (this is a lie as her command to her companions contradicts this--and again, this is someone Falcon admires); Walker is swarmed and Bucky runs in to help--one of her cronies attacks, trying to kill him
• Falcon continues the helicopter chase (which remains dramatically impotent--the real story is happening with his companions)
• Walker is up and beating the remaining Flag-smashers, but loses to Kellyman, who then tries to send a truck full of people to their deaths by a fall and Walker tries to save them rather than chasing after her--he gets attacked by the Flag-smashers and they all fall--Falcon arrives to save the day and the people cheer (the cringe-factor is strong); Falcon tells the Flag-smashers to give it up; Batroc arrives and uses smoke to help the Flag-smashers escape instead of a gun to kill the heroes
• Walker, Bucky, and Falcon split up to find them all; Sharon is there and finds Kellyman first--Sharon is revealed as the Power Broker and she wants them to come back and work for her; Batroc arrives and wants more money from Sharon or else he reveals who she is; she refuses and she and Batroc get shot; Falcon arrives to prevent Kellyman from executing Sharon; Falcon inexplicably refuses to fight Kellyman as he continues to think she's fantastic
• Bucky and Walker catch the rest of the Flag-smashers in about five seconds (let's keep in mind Falcon has literally caught none of the group in the entire show)
• The Kellyman/Falcon "fight" continues and when Kellyman is about to execute Falcon, Sharon shoots her instead, killing her--this is the only death in the entire show that impacts Falcon
• Falcon talks to the GRC and tries to make the case that the Flag-smashers aren't terrorists in an awkward speech that bureaucrat guy responds to with the reasonable point about logistics--Falcon then tries to compare the GRC to Thanos, which is...what?--and when he's told he doesn't understand, he says maybe that's a good thing--what? He says that the GRC's problem is they didn't understand the Flag-smasher's cause--what? His speech goes more broadly to the use of power that's much better, but it's undercut with his bizarre attachment to Kellyman; Sharon is waiting around, apparently just fine after the gun shot
• Zemo at the Raft listens to how his butler killed the remaining Flag-smashers; he's achieved everything he wants in the show with no consequences for his actions
• Daffy Duck reappears (apparently aware of and approving Zemo killing them off) and Walker appears in his U.S. Agent uniform and he's very happy about it
• Bucky tells the old dude who he is and we cut to his therapist where off-screen he's completed his list and left her the book--thank god solving a lifetime of emotional trauma only takes a couple of minutes on-screen
• Isaiah has immediately changed his mind about Falcon being Cap; Falcon let's us know the GRC has changed their minds because of his speech; he takes Isaiah to the Cap museum where there's a section for Isaiah (as goofy as this is, it does track in part, as Isaiah was angry about was being lied too and deleted from history--the former can't be changed, but the latter can)
• Montage scene at the boat
• Post-credit scene with Sharon where she gets offered a pardon despite being a crime lord (?), but it turns out she's still in criminal mode because she's EVIL!

It's obvious that the conversation about Falcon falls well behind the one for WandaVision, but worldwide it echoes the final episode spiking just slightly above the first (not the case in the US, however). The general pattern between the US and the rest of the world is similar, but ultimately in the former that initial excitement could never be fully recovered (which is ironic given that the US audience was the obvious target). Full ratings are not yet out, so we don't know how well the social media buzz equates to views, nor do we know how much its impacted subscription increases/retention. Through three episodes (via Nielsen) the show was the 2nd most watched (behind the YA-targeted The Irregulars, a show whose lead actress couldn't act her way through a wet paper bag).

Assessing the Show

Falcon and the Winter Soldier can only work for an audience that values emotions, messaging, and performance over plot and character. The problems of logic in the show are so overwhelming that there's no defending them. I don't want to repeat my character arc discussion from the episode five review (link above), but I do want to highlight some of the problems that drag the show down--signs of incredibly poor story decisions from showrunner Malcolm Spellman and his writing group.

The whole point of the show is for Falcon to become Captain America--we don't need a show if he's simply going to accept it carte blanch when Steve Rogers gives it to him. Unfortunately, Sam is passive throughout the show and makes decisions that run contrary to his role as Captain America. Let's go through it:

• His suit is a gift via Bucky from the Wakandans
• He rejects John Walker for no apparent reason (the only stated reason is that he and Bucky will be more effective if they are unofficial--but how are they unofficial? Someone is paying for them to do this--Falcon has money problems, remember--and they are given access to military equipment, so....)
• He never finds the Flag-smashers--a combination of Torres and Zemo do that for him
• He never defeats the Flag-smashers--Walker/Hoskins save him in the truck fight, Walker/Bucky capture the foot soldiers, and he refuses to fight Kellyman, whom Sharon Carter kills her
• He doesn't oppose his antagonists--he actually agrees with the Flag-smashers (even though he doesn't really understand their goals), meaning he's opposed only to their methods
• He doesn't solve the boat problem--his neighbours sort it out (What kind of message is this? Ignore the system (the banks) that turned him down and put your financial burden on your neighbours? What? This is an old Republican talking point--self-help for minority communities rather than changing the system)
• He can't secure a loan, but never struggles for money and has Pepper Potts' number....
• He can't he talk either Kellyman or Walker down despite his past of dealing with ex-soldiers--both become murderers and the one he councils (Kellyman) actually gets worse
• He can't help Bucky recover--he just repeats the therapist's advice
• He can't put Walker on a better path--he gets him discharged and Daffy Duck gives him new purpose
• He can't convince Isaiah Bradley that he should be Captain America, instead it's the public's acceptance that sways him
• He shows no awareness or interest in other racial issues in the military despite having spent his life serving in it
• He can't successfully stay undercover--he forgets to turn off his phone in Madripoor
• He can't avoid antagonizing Walker and Hoskins--he repeatedly turns down their offer to join forces, refuses the chain of command in refusing to turn over Zemo, and allows the Wakandans to beat them up which let's Zemo escape
• He can't prevent Hoskins from dying
• He's utterly indifferent (in terms of his reactions) to the deaths of Nagle and Hoskins, and indifferent to the actions of killers (Zemo, Kellyman, and Sharon)
• His painful ignorance of how systems work undercuts his final speech ('with a phone call you can feed millions' is not how it is)
• Nothing about Falcon is different at the end of the show--other than the suit, he's the same guy that he was at the end of Endgame (this is very different from WandaVision)

Falcon is a man without agency, which is ironic since Isaiah's story is all about having agency taken away from you. There might be one or two points above that you disagree with, but there's no denying Falcon is a passenger in his own story. This robs the show from its principal point of impact--I was never excited to see Falcon on his journey after the first episode--I had some interest in other characters, but in the finale, whenever we cut to Falcon, it was perfunctory hero stuff that carried no weight whatsoever. While WandaVision is a very flawed show, at least Wanda's journey was more significant than a costume change.

Other Problems

What a clusterfuck of inanity this group is. They get super soldier serum from Sharon in Madripoor in the past, but the GRC's plans to close refugee camps prompts them to give that up and try to bring them supplies (?); when they feel like they aren't being taken seriously, Kellyman starts killing people, believing murder will motivate bureaucrats...who she doesn't think care about human life? She threatens to kill children (Sarah's kids), and then decides that if she murders the GRC heads that will change things (as if there wouldn't just be more bureaucrats to take over). Falcon, her primary supporter, she tries to kill and is only stopped when Sharon kills her. What kind of antagonists are these? Their goals are confusing (the GRC actually makes valid points when it's discussed in the finale), their escalation is ridiculous, and the show takes their side through Falcon. Spellman clearly doesn't understand government systems or radical groups. You can imagine a coherent storyline here, but if the Flag-smashers are going to be sympathetic, the GRC needs to be evil in a very clear way (instead of being, from all appearances, essentially a UN-style org), and if they aren't then the sympathetic portrayal has to be removed. Either way, the conflict has to be explained clearly at an early stage.

Bucky is introduced as suffering from nightmares and struggling to deal with his past--something that never interferes with him performing as a hero in the show. This is terrible. And when he finally apologizes...everything is just fine? The rest of his list doesn't matter, the nightmares are over? How is that earned? In addition to this, his rejection of John Walker is bizarre--the idea of a man desperate for people to give him a second chance won't do the same for someone else?

While I think Zemo is a highlight in the show, that's largely down to the performance. His story doesn't make much sense--little effort was made to integrate it with what's in Civil War (why was his family in the circumstances described if he was a rich baron?)

Georges St-Pierre does the best he can with his material, but you can't be an effective villain if you never succeed. Batroc lost to Steve Rogers in Winter Soldier, loses to Falcon in episode one, and then fights Sam's Captain America evenly before getting shot. A villain needs to be threatening to be effective and Batroc just isn't that.

As a member of the continuity police, why don't the Sovokia Accords (still in effect) apply to Falcon and Bucky? The whole reason Steve etc were on the run after Civil War was because of the Accords, so...what?

There are no consequences to taking it whatsoever, so if its consequence free, what's the problem? Other than Zemo, no one seems very worried about it. Incidentally, does no one ever stop to think that bullets stop serum people just as effectively as regular people?

What is this choice? How do you go from the obviously very good character from Winter Soldier and Civil War to the villain turn where Sharon Carter is now only interested in money because...I guess her friends didn't want to pardon her in Endgame or something? It makes no sense. Without a Skrull-turn this is just bizarrely tone deaf.

What is this performance? It's the worst set-up for a character in the MCU--she's beyond ridiculous. It can be salvaged by better writers/directors, but it's far worse than Ralph Bohner (where Evan Peters at least knows what he's doing and what show he's in).

The Good

The show is not all bad, of course, and the problems are as irritating as they are because of the standard we expect. While not perfect, the John Walker story is excellent--he has a classic hero background--there are things he struggles with, he makes mistakes, he has something to overcome. It's a little trying that the actress who plays his wife can't act, but other showrunners can ignore her if need-be. It's strange to say but he (and Zemo) are the clear highlights of the show.

Final Thoughts

For the second show in a row the MCU had no stakes. Falcon and Bucky are never in any real danger and Falcon is never at risk of losing the shield. Where is the investment, where is the tension? Achieving something without struggle is the realm of fanfiction and Mary Sues, and while WandaVision shares many of the same problems of Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Wanda actually has to go through a full emotional arc. Where's the emotion for Sam? He's sad about Isaiah's story and he loves Kellyman, but there's no personal crisis--the financial problem is his sister's and is solved easily. I have no idea how you rescue him from this show--you can't if Spellman's script for Captain America 4 is actually kept. What the MCU's future plans are I have no idea. Chris Evans is actually younger than Anthony Mackie and the latter already had a big hill to climb--that hill is now a mountain and I worry for the film.

Is the bloom off the rose for Kevin Feige? We've had two middling shows that suffered from the simple problems of plot and character logic--something the MCU should never struggle with. From Guardians 2 until now the movies are almost 50-50 between good and average (with the aforementioned, Ant-Man 2, Captain Marvel, and Spider-Man 2 in the 'meh' category). The problem in all of those films was the writing and that's exactly what's plagued our first two Disney+ series'. It's a worrying sign to keep an eye on.

This article is written by Peter Levi (@eyeonthesens)