“The Falcon and The Winter Solider” Finale Review
The season finale of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” aired on Disney+ on Friday, April 23, and fans seemed to have mixed feelings on it as a whole. While the finale may not have been the best episode, “One World, One People” is a decent episode that provides a very strong close to the series as a whole.
Throughout the entire saga of Captain America’s story arc, there is an over arching theme of history and how we remember the past. In “Captain America: The First Avenger,” we see how he became a symbol in World War 2; in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” Steve learns how Hydra manipulated S.H.I.E.L.D. all throughout history; in “Captain America: Civil War,” Earth’s past with super-humans influences how people and governments now view the Avengers, and after the events of “Avengers: End Game,” the idea of history turns into the creation of legacy.
Throughout “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” Sam Wilson struggles with the idea of taking up Steve’s legacy because he doesn’t think any person is the right man for the role of Captain America. After seeing what power can do in the wrong hands, Sam learns that he is the one to take up the mantle and he proves that in the finale.
In the final episode, Sam demonstrates that he is physically very capable of being Captain America. The wing suit and shield combination shows us some pretty fantastic moves in Wilson’s arsenal, and he is more than capable of fighting super soldiers without any need for the serum himself.
At the end of the episodes action set, Sam talks to the government in front of the whole world about how they need to work with each other to help the people who were misplaced by the blip. He also shares about how the government, in this case the GRC, cannot be making decisions for people when they don’t know what those people are going through.
After refusing to fight Karli the entire series, Sam proved that he isn’t Captain America to fight people, but he’s in that position because he knows how to help people and tries his hardest to do so.
The cherry on top of the episode is the ending between Sam and Isaiah. Sam learns about how Isaiah is a forgotten relic of America’s past because the history books decided to sweep his story and heroism under the rug.
Isaiah was a product of the racist history of America and he felt all the possible consequences of being African American during the 50s. Sam wanted to do justice by him the entire series, and at the end he got Isaiah a memorial in the museum where Steve Rogers is remembered.
One of the biggest faults of the finale, which has lots of fans upset, is the reveal that Sharon Carter was the power broker the whole time. A lot of decisions her character made were contradictory to what her goal was, like framing Sam and Bucky for killing Selby.
Sharon Carter doesn’t seem to be in the position to be running the city of Madripoor, but if they explain in future MCU projects how she rose to power than fans will be pleased.
“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” was a very strong event for only the second show in the MCU’s lineup of series on Disney+. The entire series had good character development from Sam and Bucky, very good action sets, expanded Marvel Studios’ universe, and brough us a new hero. Not to mention Sam’s new suit is absolutely beautiful.
Rating: 4/5
Sam Roberts is a junior majoring in telecommunications. To contact him, email sam.robertspsu00@gmail.com.
