Pre-game for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, airing on March 19.
Because you had WandaVision FOMO!
Howdy ho and nice to see you here for Watch Yourself’s first Monday weekly “Spotlight” post. Smash that subscribe button here :-)
Spoilers ahead: the overarching plot of Marvel movies est. 2007. No WandaVision spoilers!! Yet!
I’m too deep into the Marvel universe (Sebastian Stan’s eyes) to disparage the sheer amount of content the Marvel machine has cranked out. Still, with 23 feature films since 2007, I would not fault you for saying “pass!” from wading into the Marvel waters if you aren’t already YMCA summer swim team ready.
Easy, right? COVID hit, movie rollouts stop anyways, no big —
EXCEPT HERE COMES (CAME) WANDAVISION AND THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER (F&WS)
F&WS stands to deviate from the magic-heavy, reality-bending style of WandaVision, with promoted F&WS clips hinting at the traditional superhero, Tango & Cash/gotta get those bad guys genre. F&WS will be a limited series with 6 weekly episodes, and that’s all (probably - we never know with Marvel). WandaVision caused such a hullabaloo in the digital sphere that even my non-Marvel friends wondered how they could get in on the action. There’s a 23-movie universe of dynamics about Marvel characters, relationships, and motivators that enhance a viewer’s appreciation for WandaVision, and now, for The Falcon and the Winter Solider. If you had WandaVision FOMO and are looking to avoid the same “snoozed the alarm through my performance review” feeling for F&WS, here’s the cheatsheet:
Should-watch Marvel movies before starting The Falcon and the Winter Soldier:
Captain America (2011)
Avengers (2012)
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)
Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Black Panther (2018)
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Avengers: End Game (2019)
All Marvel movies est. 2007 are available on Disney+ besides the Spiderman movies (BOOOO SONY) and the bizarre Edward Norton-as-Hulk movie.
Should-know Marvel movie (not comics - ask a different nerd) characters before starting The Falcon and the Winter Soldier:
Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, AKA “The Winter Soldier”
Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson, AKA “The Falcon”
Emily VanCamp as Sharon Carter, AKA a run-of-the-mill secret agent. Girl power!
Daniel Brühl as Helmut Zemo, AKA furrowed-brow bad guy in Civil War
(Probably) not in F&WS, still significant:
Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, AKA “Captain America” (RIP?)
Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, AKA the founder of the Avengers
If you want to hop in with no movie (re)watching, here are 7 should-know plot/character tidbits:
Bucky Barnes, AKA the Winter Soldier, was Captain America’s childhood bestie and protector before 90-pound Cap got beefed up/genetically manipulated by Tony Stark’s (Iron Man) father in 1941. Both Cap and Bucky were genetically “frozen” at different times in the mid 20th century, which is why both of them look fresh out of the botox clinic when the core Marvel movies take place in the 2010s + beyond.
Sam Wilson, AKA the Falcon, met Cap in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, after getting pissed because Cap kept lapping him around the Washington Mall. In Sam’s defense, Cap did not have to run so close to him. They bond over being traumatized from the military, Sam helps Cap out, and Sam gets the VIP invitation to join the Avengers.
Bucky was captured by HYDRA (Nazis and bad aliens) and turned into a “super soldier” that could be “activated” by a series of words. Uh oh! His reputation made it easy to be framed for a peace summit bombing, the boiling point that sizzles the piping hot stove burner in Captain America: Civil War.
The “Sokovia Accords” were the center of Civil War, and are a set of UN documents regulating “enhanced individuals” like the Avengers. Notably, Tony Stark was pro-accords and Cap + Falcon + Bucky were anti.
Both Sam and Bucky “snapped” in Avengers: Infinity War, meaning, they disappeared for five years after Thanos (bad guy! Now dead!) killed half of the population. Then, in Avengers: Endgame, the remaining Avengers “blip” everyone back to reality, and Bucky + Sam fight in the final battle against Thanos.
At the very end of End Game, Cap time travels back to 1940-something to spend his life with his gal, Peggy, then returns to normal times as an old man to pass down his vibranium shield/A Very Good Weapon to Sam.
Peggy’s niece, Sharon Carter, is a secret agent who was introduced in Captain America: Winter Soldier, and there was a lot of romantic tension between her and Cap (yuck). Sharon will reprise her role in F&WS, and five dollars says she and Bucky get cozy.
Marvel has been tightlipped about the plot specifics of F&WS, but here are conflicts we can expect:
Helmut Zemo continues his anti-superhero crusade; Bucky and Sam are in conflict with the government over the government-superhero relationship; Bucky and Sam disagree about how to best follow in Cap’s knee-high, buckled boot footsteps.
Critics and fans alike speculate WandaVision’s smash success will dim F&WS’s reception.1 Here’s where the show may run into problems on the viewership front:
WandaVision’s genre-defying plot is more intriguing than the (expected) predictable action F&WS plot; WandaVision will run for multiple seasons, while F&WS is a limited series, so there is built-in “why does this matter long term?” trepidation.
Here’s where F&WS hold an advantage: Captain America is one of Marvel’s most beloved characters, and fans will want to know how his legacy plays out from the perspective of his two best bros.
Let me know if you watch F&WS because I literally only have two known people in my life who I know are going to watch!!!
Bye
- Becks
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, not WandaVision, was supposed to launch Marvel’s Phase Four in August 2020. Just COVID things!
F&WS show-runner Malcolm Spellman wrote a Sopranos video game, which I think is hilarious.
I'm taking notes
I'm taking notes