25 Star Wars and Marvel characters responsible for making Disney+ a success
By Mark Lynch
24. Bucky Barnes
Actor: Sebastian Stan
"Look, that shield represents a lotta things to a lotta people, including me." -Bucky Barnes
Bucky Barnes is one of the best characters in the MCU. Beyond being a top-five fighter and partner, he’s done something few characters have. He’s been a hero and a villain. This gives him more depth than most people have. Bucky knows what it’s like to do atrocious things leading to a better understanding of evil people.
Unfortunately, Bucky Barnes was captured by Hydra, but it worked out. He was always a tough and skilled fighter. While he was mind-control his skills improved. He's now faster, stronger, and deadlier than he was. The metal arm was an improvement as well.
Of course, hundreds of people were killed while he was the Winter Soldier. However, as we’ve seen throughout What if…? a catastrophe can have positive results. For example, he was instrumental in both fights with Thanos and his army. Without him, the Mad Titan would have won easily.
MCU fans will always go back and watch his fights, but that’s only part of the story. He was the best part of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier because the story was told in depth. Viewers got to see that, while he smiled and joked, he wasn’t okay. That’s the beauty of shows as opposed to movies. You can dive into a character in depth.