It would be a shame to sleep on this. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier subverts expectations and roles established by the Captain America films, primarily at how we look at American Exceptionalism. Duplicity and duality finally seem to be at the core and it's refreshing and interesting to know that basically the only thing keeping Sam and Bucky positive on governmental oversight was Steve himself.

John Walker's character is fascinating because of how it plays into and against Steve's traits. No longer is Captain America some altruistic force; now he functions even further as an arm of the military. Although Walker would have you believe he's doing everything for the greater good, the greater good is frequently challenged within Steve's arc. By setting up Walker as more of a stereotypical, arrogant military man combined with Sam and Bucky's distrust, the cynicism is not only pushed onto Walker as a Cap replacement but also towards American foreign policy as a whole.

This is something MCU detractors have been citing as fault in the franchise for years, the lack of any critical eye towards the American war machine. I am utterly enraptured.

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