The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: What’s hidden in plain sight in episode 1

What sort of Easter Eggs and clever winks can we find in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier? And is it really that much different than the comics?

Coming off the success that was WandaVision, the second television series from Marvel Studios, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, began last Friday on Disney Plus. And so far, based on its first episode, “New World Order,” it looks as though producer Kevin Feige will score another hit. It’s also clearly a very different series from WandaVision. Whereas the previous series was more supernatural mystery and sitcom parody, Falcon and Winter Soldier is your action spy thriller, taking many of its cues from Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014). It even has the return of the French kickboxing mercenary, Batroc (Georges St-Pierre).

WandaVision also relied on many visual clues and Easter Eggs that left viewers like yours truly speculating on what would happen during it’s nine week run. There are Easter Eggs in Falcon and Winter Soldier, too. Only, on the basis of the series’ first episode, “New World Order,” they definitely seem to be fun little winks and nods towards the self-aware TV watcher. So just as we did with WandaVision, we’ll be spending the next six episodes of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier going over them… and be making some comparisons between what’s in this series with what was in the original comics.

So get those sharp avian-like eyes ready and, naturally, there’s potential SPOILERS from here on out.

The Falcon’s Wingman in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

No, I’m not talking about Sam Wilson’s (Anthony Mackie) AI drone, Redwing (although the comic version is much different than the MCU version for the simple fact that its an actual falcon whom Sam telepathically communicates with). I’m talking about his buddy, Lt. Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez). And before you ask, yes, his depiction in this episode is very different from the comics, too.

For starters, he’s neither with the United States Air Force or even an adult. As depicted in Captain America: Sam Wilson, Torres was a teenage undocumented immigrant from Mexico who settled in Arizona. After being kidnapped by a white supremacist group called The Sons of the Serpent, and then experimented on by a mad scientist named Karl Malus, Torres became a “human/falcon hybrid.” This gave him the ability to fly and, like the comic book version of Sam Wilson, a psychic bond with Redwing. Oh, and he’s also part vampire, too, which allows him to regenerate from critical to fatal injuries like Wolverine (because comics!).

Anyway, since Sam Wilson was the new Cap, this meant Torres became the new Falcon. Considering how the series is setting up Sam to wield the shield, perhaps the inclusion of Torres means he’ll strap on the wings.