The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Review

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Review

“The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” is an emotionally charged, uncomfortable at times, magnificent piece of filmmaking, disguised as a weekly television show. It follows the endeavors of two long-time sidekick characters of the Marvel comics world, the Falcon (played by Anthony Mackie) and The Winter Soldier (played by Sebastian Stan). 

We see the same level of iconic shots we’ve grown accustomed to over the past 13 years of Marvel films in this adventure. Characters sticking the landing in the superhero poses, characters jumping out of planes, being thrown from moving vehicles and of course, being slammed through walls. But it also explores the human side of being a superhuman, in very clever and intriguing ways.

We first met Falcon and The Winter Soldier back in April 2014 in the Marvel film “Captain America: The Winter Soldier.” Since then, we’ve seen countless adventures with these two flanking the side of Captain America (played masterfully by Chris Evans in the films). But with this new show, which takes place after the events of Marvel’s 2019 blockbuster film “Avengers: Endgame,” we get to see them take the stage and own the spotlight for themselves in a world where Captain America has retired and passed his iconic shield on to the Falcon. 

Getting the nod to be the leads of their own story, Mackie and Stan do not disappoint.

The series takes us around the globe in an effort to help prevent a group of super-human terrorists from committing crimes and disrupting the world as it rebounds from the earth-altering events of “Avengers: Endgame”. This, however, is just the plot device that allows the action to unfold on the screen. 

The real meat of the series is the racial undertones of what it means for a black man to be handed Captain America’s shield. 

The shield weighs heavier in Falcon’s hands than it ever did in Captain America’s, and not because Falcon doesn’t have a Super Soldier cocktail coursing through his veins as Cap did, but because what it means for a black man to be the outright symbol of America for the world.

The show runs parallel with real-world conversations we’ve seen bloom over the last few years. It explores the race relations in modern America, geopolitical struggles, our current “always connected” lives we lead where a cell phone image and video can go viral and span the globe in a matter of seconds, as well as the use of excessive force by people in powerful positions.

Though it was based in semi-reality, there were some story issues throughout the series. This was, after all, a Disney-produced and distributed series that had to be family-friendly at all costs. 

This means we didn’t get in-depth looks at what it means for a black man to be decked out in the star-spangled propaganda that Captain America wore or what it means to have your rights stripped away by a person in power or what it feels like to be racially profiled by the police. 

Instead, we get brief glances at what these situations look and feel like from the point of view of a family-friendly lens.

Instead of showing Falcon being ripped from his car and tased or accosted by police, we get a short interaction of racial profiling by two police officers who quickly recognize Falcon and the dialogue goes on, not addressing the topic again. 

We hear a heart-wrenching story of betrayed trust from the government/military and irreparable damage it caused, from one black man to another, but instead of digging deeper, we’re quickly moved past the topic and on to the next plot point.

Examples like this occur in each of the six episodes. This is Disney’s family-friendly approach to hard but necessary conversations.

Entertainment Weekly had this to say about the watered-down feeling the series had, “The outline of this series suggested sky-high ambitions… But ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ was more interested in retreading the megafranchise's greatest hits.”

But to me, the Disney touch on these challenging and heavy topics is a good thing. It shows that colossal corporations are noticing the world around us and are (slowly) engaging in the conversations to help us get to a better world for all, no matter your race, religion, sex, or what have you.

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier didn’t dive headfirst into these topics, but they did dip their toes in them and that’s the most we’ve ever seen from any of the Marvel films or series. The way they went about telling these stories and hitting on these topics worked and worked well in a refreshing new way.

NPR put it great when they said, “Even though the first season of ‘The Falcon and the Winter Soldier’ focused on a complicated plot about super-powered freedom fighters becoming terrorists, the real purpose was to spend six episodes transforming the Falcon.” This series was a coming to terms story for the Falcon and the inclusion of everything else was just icing on the Marvel storytelling cake.

Over the course of six episodes, we learn about the struggles Falcon has been going through and watch as he uses the tools around him to come to terms and overcome them. We dive into The Winter Soldier’s depression. We feel for his grapple with therapy and past traumas. We get to see the growth of these characters from superfluous supporting characters, who at best knew each other in passing, into paramount characters that are no longer simply acquaintances but now full-fledged equals and friends.

In a world full of entertainment bursting at your fingertips, streaming services, and web-based television and film at no or low cost, everyone is competing for our eyes, our attention spans, and our wallets. With what this series brings to the table and the way it delivers tough talking points and high-flying action, taking the five and a half hours to watch all six of these episodes is as obligatory as eating.  

For less than the cost of one adult movie ticket, you can get access to this series plus every other Marvel-Disney film or series as well as every other Disney or Fox film ever made, for an entire month. That alone makes it a must-watch for me.

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan

Summary: Falcon and the Winter Soldier are a mismatched duo who team up for a global adventure that will test their survival skills -- as well as their patience.

Rated: PG-13 for violent action

Distributor: Disney

Available on: Disney+

Rating: 5 Stars