The Falcon and the Winter Soldier - Episode 1 - Review

After a small break, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is back on Disney+ and you can say for a fact that The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is a vastly different show to WandaVision. The question is, does this show feel more like the MCU than WandaVision did, or is this its own unique thing as well.

*Spoilers ahead from this point*

While WandaVision was setup, to be a mystery out of the gate, Falcon and the Winter Soldier is a bit slower it that regard, there are still some mysteries, but the first episode is not focusing on those as much. Instead the focus is on the respective titular characters and how they are adjusting to life post the Blip, still a stupid name and their defeat of Thanos and the loss of Captain America. Sam is still doing what he can, flying around saving folks and Bucky is living a life of repentance, or at least trying to. What is perhaps most interesting is that the show is less about the action and more about the people when they are not in their fancy suits, including how they deal with people that are perhaps not as easy to impress when they are in plain clothes. Perhaps the element that I am not that keen on is the reverence for the loss of Captain America, which makes it feel like a Sword of Damocles hanging over the show, how it ends, does appear to want to change that, but I really want them to leave the Captain to the history books and focus more on the new.

What struck me at first, wasn’t the appearance of folks I wasn’t expecting, though that was fun, it was how much more I enjoyed the quiet moments. Seeing Sam return to his hometown and try to connect to his sister was, I think the first time I saw a blood relative at a sibling level in the MCU and it made me realise how large the world can be, for even a single character. On the other side of the casting, seeing Bucky attempt to make peace with the actions he was forced to do whilst brainwashed, was welcoming. Especially after Wanda just left town in her show, seeing someone attempt to right the wrongs of their past, is honestly not something we see a lot of in Marvel movies and while his attempts are not that strong, at least yet, it again highlights that the show is not going to just be all about things that go boom.

That being said, there are quite a number of things that do in fact go boom, or at least pack a punch and these moments are not the central aspect of the episode. There are only a few big moments and they feel like they could have been pulled from any of the Captain America movies, except for the visual effects, those are a letdown at times. If you liked Winter Soldier and its spy thriller nature, there is a lot similar her to discover, I said at the start there are mysteries here and while they are only laying down some basic foundations here, they are strong ones, so combine those, with actual character depth and things that go boom and the show is off to a good start.

I reference Captain America The Winter Solider, not only because it was where we got introduced to the current characters, but there is a certain amount of familiarity to the on-screen action. That is not to say that there are not moments of originality to the show, there are, but it is more like getting inspiration from a great piece of art, to help you find your own path. While the action is familiar, I can only hope that things divert more as the series progresses. The locations that they visit throughout the episode are varied and most are entertaining, I say that, because the opening location is nothing special, but seeing them bounce around the world is fun and means that we won’t be seeing the same location each episode.

What helped connect the show to those Captain America vibes, apart from the costumes and fights, was the fact that Henry Jackman, who composed the second two movies, is back writing all new music for the show. Much like getting Christophe Beck in from the Ant-Man movies for WandaVision, having Henry come back in and create new melodies, but also enhance the ones we know from the movies, adds a sense of connective tissue, above just seeing some familiar faces. While WandaVision was set in a world of fantasy, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is based in a world of reality, Marvel reality to be sure and that score helps embrace that fact.

The Falcon and the Winter Solider arrives by sticking the ever impressive, superhero landing, giving us a glimpse at what might come, with new threats and a new Captain America. What Marvel have managed to do is take some characters that we know a few things about and instead of just thrusting them front and centre, in fact shows us that they are just as human as the rest of us. The first episode is putting consequences into effect for the characters and not in the way many would expect, not only is that new ground for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it also gives new options for the titular characters to grow. The first episode hints at a much more dangerous threat and when you combine that with the collisions of their new lives, the show is easily prepared to soar and I can’t wait to see where it goes from here.

The Score

9.0

Early viewing provided by Disney

The Pros

+Getting to see real world implications for what the heroes have been through is wonderful

+Just enough mystery to keep things moving forward, but not to much that it becomes the focus

The Cons

-The former Captain America is a big sword hanging over the series and he needs to be removed

-Some of the visual effects feel incomplete, they are serviceable, but not what you might expect from Marvel