The Falcon and the Winter Soldier: What’s hidden in plain sight in episode 6
By Mike McNulty
As new Captain America soars into action in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier finale, what clues have been left behind?
Well, the inaugural season of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier has ended. Or rather Captain America and the Winter Soldier! Yes, Sam Wilson finally became the new Captain America in this episode (although, technically, he already was the new Cap when Steve Rogers gave him the shield at the end of Avengers: Endgame, but I digress). Then, within hours after the airing of the final episode of the Disney Plus series, entitled “One World, One People,” Marvel Studios announced that a fourth Captain America movie, presumably with Anthony Mackie in the lead, is already in the works.
Of course, you’re here to see if there were any potential Marvel-related Easter Eggs and clues the finale managed to squeeze in. There’s a few, along with quite a number lingering plot threads like what’s Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) planning to do with John Walker (Wyatt Russell)? Who is Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) really working for? Is there anyone besides Zemo (Daniel Brühl) chilling on the Raft? Did the Wilsons save their family fishing business? Will Bucky (Sebastian Stan) date Sam’s sister, Sarah (Adepero Oduye)?
We’ll go over these questions (some of them anyway) and point out some other neat things as we take one last deep dive into The Falcon (ahem, Captain America) and the Winter Soldier. And as usual, there will be SPOILERS for those who haven’t seen the finale just yet.
New suits in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
A common trope in superhero comics is that when a character changes their identity, they also change costumes. Superhero television shows are no different, as we saw two characters get costume changes to go along with their new identities. And aside from both of them being America-themed, they’re also quite accurate to the source material.
For instance, Sam’s Captain America costume looks almost identical to the one designed by artists Rick Remender and Carlos Pachecos. There are, however, subtle differences. The comic version has a more pronounced circle pattern around the star, and center stripe around the waist is red instead of white. Also, wings in the comic costume are red instead of red, blue, and white, and have a much smaller wingspan. Another big difference is that it isn’t so gadget laden, particularly when it comes to the use of his new Redwing AI drone (which, again, is an actual red tailed falcon in the comics).
John Walker’s U.S. Agent costume is also a faithful reproduction of the suit created by Mark Gruenwald and Kieron Dwyer for the comics, too. It too, however, has some minor differences. The gloves cover most of the forearms in the comic book version, and there’s much more red in the belt. He also doesn’t have the tiny wings on the side of his mask, or even stylized versions like the MCU Captain America costumes did.
Walker’s also missing a key accessory: A shield. As his homemade one got destroyed in this episode, one would think Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine would’ve given him a new one along with the suit. Perhaps, however, Marvel Studios believes that only a Captain America should have a shield, the better to contrast between Sam and Walker. Then again, it’s possible that Walker can incorporate a more high-tech version, like Steve Rogers’ retractable Wakandan shields he had during Avengers: Infinity War (2018), or even a force field projector that forms a round shield pattern. We’ll have to wait a see when Walker shows up again in another Marvel Studios production. Which raises this question…