Since there was no Marvel content released in 2020, it only makes sense that they have should have a packed line-up for the following year. 2021 started off WandaVision, which focused on Wanda Maximoff’s sitcom-styled journey in dealing with her grief. Having released only a week after that show’s season finale, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is the newest TV show that Marvel has brought to Disney+. All episodes have now been released, so if you’re looking to avoid any spoilers for the show and you haven’t watched it yet, you should make sure to do that before you read any further.

The premise of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is pretty simple: a terrorist organization known as the Flag Smashers has been causing trouble and it’ll require a heroic duo to solve the problem. While Sam Wilson (The Falcon, played by Anthony Mackie) and Bucky Barnes (The Winter Soldier, Sebastian Stan) might have some issues between them, they’ll have to overcome them in order to deal with the problems that threaten to divide them. One such problem is the new Captain America, a decorated war hero by the name of John Walker (Wyatt Russell) who was tasked with taking on the mantle (and the shield) of Steve Rogers. On the topic of Captain America’s replacement, senior Josh Kennedy said that “initially, it was upsetting, but now I somewhat see it as a good thing because we got the introduction of John Walker. He’s a great antagonist and a very in-depth character, which brings a lot to the show.”

While on the topic of a new Captain America, it would be wrong to ignore one of the main focuses of the show: Sam’s journey to fill the shoes that Steve Rogers left for him while also carving his own path. While this character arc is a little delayed as a result of Sam giving the shield to the government, it was pretty predictable to most people, such as senior Chris Nguyen. “After the last Avengers movie, I was expecting the series to show Sam’s transition to Captain America. Seeing Steve give Sam the shield at the end of that movie obviously set up for a show transitioning the Captain America title.” However, others thought that the transition would take place earlier in the show, like Josh, who said, “my full expectation was that Sam would take up the shield immediately.”

Of course, the show isn’t entirely focused on the title of Captain America. Another main plot point of the show involves the buddy-cop relationship that Sam and Bucky have in their attempt to stop the Flag Smashers. As a result, both characters (who haven’t had their own movie/TV show prior to this) have been given a great amount of character development throughout the show. While Sam’s aforementioned arc has already been detailed, it should be mentioned that Bucky has also been given some time in the spotlight in order to redeem himself for his days as the brainwashed assassin known as the Winter Soldier. Chris appreciated the character development, saying “I’m definitely a bigger fan of both Sam and Bucky. I’ve always had the opinion that each of the heroes in these movies deserve their own movie or show for a backstory. Knowing more about each of these characters makes it more enjoyable when they are in movies together.”

2021 seems like a great year to be a Marvel fan. With new content being released (nearly) every month, there’s quite a few movies and TV shows to look forward to. Now that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier has wrapped up, it won’t be much of a wait until the Loki series starts on Disney+ in June, which is (if nothing else) going to have just as high of a production value as any of the previous Marvel shows. While The Blue and White won’t be reporting on that show, hopefully this article will be enough for any Marvel fans that read our publications.