4 things we want to see in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Balance out the villains and make them threatening

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier seems to be juggling a lot of villains. First we have the return of Baron Zemo from Captain America: Civil War. Then, we have a new, deadly organization led by the Flag-Smasher. And finally there’s the Captain America wannabe U.S. Agent. That seems like a lot of villainy to handle for a movie, but luckily for the show, it’s not a movie. While three villains seem overwhelming at first, the serialized format could help balance them out.

Baron Zemo has the benefit of having been introduced already, so there will be no time wasted establishing his motives or backstory. He’s got a menacing and sounds especially sinister in the trailer, monologuing that “superheroes cannot be allowed to exist” and about completing what he started in Civil War. While this could be referring to Sam and Bucky — perhaps he’ll try and drive them apart — he could also be talking about U.S. Agent.

This Captain America understudy could be more than meets the eye. With the real Cap gone, the U.S. is likely looking for a replacement. John Walker could become the first government-manufactured “superhero” and continue the Sokovia Accords storyline introduced in Civil War. There could be a huge twist as Thunderbolt Ross beings producing his own super-soldiers with a version of the serum that gave Captain America his powers. That would give Zemo motivation to stop this new program and might even get Sam and Bucky to temporarily join forces with a man who tried to kill them.

Flag-Smasher’s group could also be tied to this super-soldier serum plot. We know that Sam and Bucky were assigned to stop them, but that could be a distraction. From the trailer, we see they are are capable fighters as their leader takes down Bucky with ease.

These villains, both new and old, are an exciting addition to the Marvel universe. I’m interested to see if the three of them are connected somehow.

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