‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ Reminds Us What it Means to be Captain America

(Photograph courtesy of the official Twitter for ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,’ @falconandwinter)

 

Many fans of superheroes since childhood probably remember a defining moment in their lives where they looked at the panel of a comic, or a scene in a television or movie saw their favorite superhero and thought to themselves “That. That’s what I want to be like when I grow up.” Of course, a big part of that is because they see how cool and untouchable the superhero is, how incredible it would be to have superpowers, but an even bigger part, embedded in our very humanity, wants to be like them because we see how good these characters are. We see the battle of good versus evil, see a hero that chooses the right path more often than the easy path, and we want to see ourselves do the same. We look up to them because, at the end of the day, most of them are just good people trying to do the right thing.

Today, one of the first superheroes that comes to mind for most people when it comes to doing the right thing is Captain America, and Steve Rogers left some massive shoes to fill. It’s been a quoted theme throughout the Captain America movies that Steve wasn’t a perfect soldier, but a good man. While he’s never been perfect, he always did what he felt like was the right thing to do, without hesitation and despite circumstances. He joins the military specifically stating that he doesn’t want to kill anyone, he just doesn’t like bullies, regardless of where they’re from. He just wanted to be a good man, and that was the main reason that Dr. Abraham Erskine chooses him for the super soldier serum that would later lead to him becoming Captain America. Steve wanted to protect people. It’s why he joined the military, it’s why he joined the Avengers, and it’s why he fully intended to face Thanos and an entire alien army by himself with a broken shield. In fact, it was one of the main reasons why he chooses a shield as his symbol and as a weapon. Shields are designed to defend, to protect, and that ideology that Steve had is the reason why Sam Wilson is the perfect person to be the next Captain America.

John Walker was never a good fit for the mantle of Captain America, and he was never intended to be. On paper, he seems like the perfect fit with his military experience, but that only made him a textbook perfect soldier. He never had the heart needed to be Captain America, and he proved that multiple times throughout the duration of “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.” He proved it when he was impulsive when he thought Karli Morgenthau was an extremist beyond the point of saving when he thought the only way to be Captain America was to be a super soldier, and he put the final nail in the coffin when he murdered someone in cold blood using the very symbol Steve Rogers choose to protect people.

This has never been the case with Sam Wilson. Sam understood from the very beginning that the title of Captain America was more than a title and that taking the shield was more than taking on a mantle. He knew that it meant something, and knew that it meant the person taking it on had to stand for something more than a suit donning the stars and stripes. Sam is like Steve in many ways, and one of the biggest and most important ways is that he’s compassionate and loves people. Like Steve, he sees the good in people and sees that that’s something he’s willing to protect.

Sam believed Isaiah Bradley and empathized with his beliefs on becoming Captain America while still holding his ground in the belief that he could change that. He understood Karli’s fight and faults but wanted her to change her tactic and understand that her voice could be heard without harming other people. He understood that Bucky Barnes may have been the Winter Soldier, but they are not the same person, and the crimes he committed were against his will. He knew that Bucky was worthy of forgiveness and redemption not just because he was Steve’s best friend, but because he was the embodiment of someone who had horrible things happen to him that were outside of his control, and those things changed him but didn’t define or control him any longer. Sam saw the good in people, even when they often couldn’t see it themselves. He believed that people, when given the right chance, could and would do better. That they could be better.

Symbolically, the title of Captain America will always be more than a mascot, a super soldier, or someone with military training. Carrying the shield, carrying the mantle of Captain America is a symbol of good triumphing over evil, of sacrifice, of protection, of faith in humanity. It’s a symbol of love for the people, despite who they are, where they come from, or what they identify as. Sam Wilson will never be Steve Rogers, but he doesn’t need to be. He won’t always do things like Steve. He won’t have the same following or approval that Steve had, and he will encounter things that Steve would never have to encounter. Sam isn’t a super soldier, and he’ll never have the same privileges that Steve had. But even without the super soldier serum, even with the extra hurdles that will be thrown at him that Steve could never even imagine, Sam Wilson is a good man that loves people and thinks they’re worthy of saving. That’s why Steve Rogers choose him. That’s why he’s the perfect fit for Captain America.

Written by Ashley Laney

 

Lynn Makes

Hi, I’m Lynn, and I Make.

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