Kari Skogland, the director of the Disney+ series, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, describes the reason behind Sam finally accepting Captain America’s Shield in the second last episode of the show.
The second last episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, which is approaching its final, focused on former Avenger, Sam Wilson(played by Anthony Mackie) who is seen struggling to come to terms with his own decision of giving away Steve Roger’s Shield. In this episode we finally see Sam accept Cap’s shield and the legacy that accompanies it. Skogland tries to give an explanation behind this.
The legacy of the Shield
From the very beginning of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, we witness various characters struggling to come to terms with the rich legacy and meaning that Captain’s shield carries with it, as a symbol of America. In the first episode, titled “New World Order”, Sam answers “like it’s someone else’s” to Steve Roger’s question of how the Shield feels. In episode 2, titled “The Star-Spangled Man.” Bucky Barnes and Wilson meet Isaiah Bradley, who was a Korean War veteran and was tortured for 30 years, for experimentation under the US army. After Bradley’s back story gets revealed, Wilson quickly comes to terms with the Legacy the shield carries as a symbol of freedom. This was all the while the shield was in the problematic hands of John Walker, the New Captain America.
Skogland’s explanation
In a discussion with EW, Skogland explains why after 5 long episodes of troubling with claiming the identity of Captain America, Sam is finally ready for the Shield. When Rogers first became a “super soldier”, the real definition of a hero was way different. It is almost as if the Shield represents an old era. The head writer, Malcolm Spellman along with Skogland wanted The Falcon and the Winter soldier to make a difference and they wanted to see what meaning will it hold for a black superhero to take on Captain America’s Shield, which is a traditionally white symbol. “We wanted Sam to engage in both a public and private conversation of what it means for a Black man to pick up such an iconic historically white symbol. By starting off with his acknowledgement of how important it is as a symbol, and that it is connected to a bygone era, Sam opens the door to the idea that what defines a hero today is not the same ideal as it was when Steve first picked up the shield.” Skogland said to EW.
We see Captain’s Shield pass on to the wrong hands, when John Walker takes it and later in the 4th episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, uses it to kill a member of the Flag-Smashers, which is the freedom-fighting group led by the antagonist Morgenthau. In the 5th episode, titled “Truth”, we find Walker justifying his actions while being stripped off his powers. While defending himself, he says, “I only ever did what you asked of me, what you told me to be, and trained me to do, and I did it. And I did it well.” Walker’s story discloses the bitter truth about what happens when power gets in the wrong hands and how damaging the consequences can be.
Fans await the finale
Fans cannot wait for the finale of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier in order to see how Sam’s character arc develops and plays out. Sam is on the path of becoming the New Captain America after taking the shield from Walker. After talking to Bradley, Sarah, and Bucky, he now truly understands what it means to be a real hero. With trouble on its way for Sam, as a showdown awaits between a vengeful Walker and the Flagsmashers, we can only imagine how interesting the finale is going to be.
