Episode two, ”The Star Spangled Man,” starts with an introduction to the new Captain America, John Walker (Wyatt Russell). He seems like an actual decent human being with relatable problems, creating a dilemma for the viewer. Should you like him because he seems genuine or dislike him because he’s not the Captain America that you’ve gotten to know over the last decade of Marvel movies? This is something that’ll be developed over the next four episodes for sure.
Bucky (Sebastian Stan) and Sam (Anthony Mackie) finally reunite due to John Walker’s appointment and, as expected, are as dysfunctional as ever. Their action scene early in the episode is fun, yet nowhere near as good as the opening action scene in the last episode. We learn that all of the Flag Smashers are enhanced by the super soldier serum, which adds to the conflict and gives them a clear upper hand. After that, the episode slows down considerably.
While every episode of Marvel’s Disney+ shows have been cinematic, this episode feels like a TV show, a very expensive TV show at that, but still a TV show. There’s a tense conversation between John Walker, Lemar Hoskins (Cle Bennet), Bucky and Sam. All of whom come off as jerks at some point during the conversation, whether intentional or not.
Then there’s a scene showing the Flag Smashers seeking refuge from a supporter, it establishes them as actual people instead of just black and white villains with no shades of grey. Despite this, neither of these scenes feel impactful or necessary for the plot; we already know that Sam and Bucky don’t like John and Omar and we know that the Flag Smashers have supporters and fight for some altruistic goals.
These scenes are followed by the best scene of the episode by far, when Sam and Bucky go to Baltimore to meet Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly), who’s revealed to have received the super soldier serum in the Korean War and have fought Bucky during that time. Isaiah was erased from U.S. history and thrown in jail as a reward for his heroics.
This reveals a dark history in the MCU of wiping away the accomplishments of Black heroes, something Sam himself is going through. This racial disparity is then accentuated by police who racially profile Sam before realizing he’s the Falcon. It’s territory I didn’t expect a Disney+ show to venture into, but I’m glad it did, despite the backlash it’s already receiving from some fans.
Bucky gets arrested by those same police officers for missing his court-mandated therapy, which leads into another highlight of the episode, Sam and Bucky’s group therapy session. It’s a scene which showcases the chemistry of Sebastien Stan and Anthony Mackie, it’s hilarious and also gives insight into how they feel about each other. Bucky hated that Sam gave up the shield and Sam despises that Bucky can’t accept his decision to give up the shield.
They then talk to John and Omar again, it again doesn’t go well. It seems by the end of this conversation that John is starting down the path of becoming an antagonist. I’m unsure where the show plans on taking his character, but I’m here for it either way. The episode ends with Sam and Bucky going to meet Helmut Zemo (Daniel Bruhl), or Baron Zemo, the villain from Captain America: Civil War.
This episode isn’t amazing, but it’s still better than most TV right now. The pacing isn’t great, the dialogue isn’t as good as the premiere, but it’s still OK. It injects some real-world issues that I feel needed to be discussed, and they’re poised to be featured more in future episodes. I expected there to be a down episode of the bunch and this happened to be it, hopefully the next episode brings it back to form.
