Ephemeris of the Mind (Show Review) The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
Time to read: 2 min read
Show Cover
Every time something gets better for one group, it gets worse for another.
Past Marvel show reviews:
Review
As with WandaVision, this is another Marvel spin-off series. This time the story follows the Falcon and the Winter Soldier (duh), as they try to stop the global terrorist group called the Flag Smashers.
The premise of the story is very interesting; we get to see the social impacts following the events of Avengers - Endgame. This series felt much more down to earth than other Marvel series; the characters deal with non-superhero problems, such as the Winter Soldier struggling with therapy and the Falcon trying to qualify for SBA loans. The main antagonists, the Pokémon GO terrorist group which uses an app to recruit volunteers to carry out attacks, is a bit generic and kind of corny. I do appreciate the effort of the writers to add more nuance, though.
Due to the length of the show, many of the characters were much more flushed out than the movies; parts of the show felt more like a drama than an action flick. The Winter Soldier was one of my favourite characters from the film franchises, so it was great to observe his character development, especially his gradual friendship with the Falcon. This series is also significant plotwise for the film franchises, as it establishes the next iteration of Captain America.
WARNING
Spoilers in next paragraph.
There were two pleasant surprises. The first is Madripoor, one of my favourite fictional locations from the comics, being depicted for the first time in the Marvel cinematics universe. The second is Zemo, who I felt was one of the worst villains from the Marvel films but is redeemed in this series; Zemo is perhaps my favourite character in this entire show.
Conclusion
A bit slower than other Marvel franchises but still features the Marvel magic.