How to enjoy The Falcon and the Winter Soldier after WandaVision
By Mark Lynch
Before you watch The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, make sure you’re not expecting something that it isn’t.
The success of Marvel Studios is both a gift and a curse. On one hand, it keeps people anticipating their next projects. On the flip side, however, expectations can be set too high.
Let’s take The Falcon and the Winter Soldier for example. Marvel Studios’ announcement that Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes were going to be on a show together was major. Their interactions in Captain America: Civil War set the stage for that years ago in a perfect way. The pair’s chemistry was spot on and the way they fought to be Steve Rogers’ best friend was very entertaining.
With that in mind, there’s almost no way this can fail: The problem is WandaVision debuted first.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier looks like it’ll be an action-packed buddy comedy but it seems like one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe projects we’re used to seeing on the big screen with a lot of explosions, jokes, and villains that are defined early. However, WandaVision wasn’t like anything we’ve seen in the MCU.
It kicked off the MCU’s fourth phase on a more emotional and serious (and hilarious) note than we’re used to watching from a Marvel Studios project. It was a welcome surprise that reinvigorated the MCU. But for fans going into The Falcon and the Winter Soldier with expectations of WandaVision, it would be a good idea to not do so.