Sam Wilson did not accept the heavy task of succeeding Steve Rogers.
The first episode of the Falcon and the Winter Soldier series aired on Disney +. A first episode which takes its time to lay the foundations of the new Marvel series, but which ends with a real cliffhanger: a new Captain America has taken over from Steve Rogers and it is not Sam Wilson.
Please note, the rest of the article contains many spoilers.
It is at the very end of the episode “A New Order” that the new character appears. Introduced to the crowd as the “new Captain America,” the character has yet to reveal his true identity.
Super Patriote alias US Agent
Fans of Marvel comics will certainly have recognized John Walker, aka Super Patriot. This character made his appearance in issue 323 of the Captain America comics, released in 1986. Created by screenwriter Mark Gruenwald, John Walker is far from a smooth and square superhero. He often flirted with the line between right and wrong. With this character, Gruenwald wanted to explore blind patriotism and fanaticism.
John Walker shares some Steve Rogers similarities. In general, the two characters are quite close, but one rather embodies wisdom and justice, while the other lets himself be carried away by his emotions and is often extreme.
After the death of his brother during the Vietnam War, John Walker also enlisted in the American army. During a mission, he hears about the Power Broker, a treatment that gives superhuman skills to those who take them. And that’s exactly what John Walker is going to do. But this treatment has a price and to reimburse it, Walker will join the association of professional wrestlers Unlimited Class Wrestling Feredation (UCWF) where he will meet Ethan Thurm who will become his manager. The latter convinces him to put on the superhero costume and that’s how John Walker becomes Super Patriot.
But the role of Super Patriot is quite different from that of Captain America. John Walker will travel all over the United States to organize patriotic rallies and perform community service. During his travels, Super Patriot will not stop attacking Captain America whom he considers outdated. He wants to become the new symbol of the nation.
Super Patriot still manages to prove his worth since he managed to thwart a terrorist attack planned in Washington. This is why, when Steve Rogers puts away the weapons, the Commission on Superhuman Affairs offers the job to John Walker, who accepts. Unfortunately, the Commission is infiltrated by Red Skull men who will do anything to tarnish the image of the new Captain America.
The identity of John Walker will eventually be revealed to the world which will cause the death of his parents, murdered by a militia in the pay of Red Skull. The superhero will then take revenge and kill those responsible for the death of his parents.
Deemed unworthy of wearing Captain America’s uniform, John Walker is dismissed from his post. The Commission will tell the whole world that John Walker is dead. In fact, the man has changed his identity and now embodies the US Agent.
The latter joins the ranks of the West Coast Avengers – where we find Hawkeye, aka Hawkeye – a new team of superheroes managed by the US government. After this team disbanded, John Walker joined other superhero gangs (Force Works, The Invaders, Omega Flight).
John Walker plus fort que Steve Rogers ?
If Steve Rogers and John Walker are two fairly comparable superheroes. They both have great strength, fight mostly melee, and have a shield. But where Steve Rogers was propelled to the peak of normal human potential, John Walker was offered superhuman abilities.
He is thus stronger, more enduring and more agile than Steve Rogers, but the latter benefits from decades of experience which balances things in a way.
Morally, Super Patriot aka US Agent is much darker and more unstable than Captain America. He is ambitious, brutal and lets himself go to his emotions, where Steve Rogers keeps his head cool and above water. John Walker goes far in the idea of patriotism and sometimes loses ground under the pressure. An aspect that his enemies have exploited in the past.
A faithful adaptation in the series?
If the Falcon and the Winter Soldier repeats the character from the comics, the latter should be quite different from the original. “ We strayed a bit from the books, so we added very, very different dimensions, especially after Wyatt [Russel, l’interprète de John Walker] got involved and started to really inhabit the character […] we haven’t done half of what’s on the books “, Said Malcolm Spellman, screenwriter on the series. We can therefore expect surprises.
The next episodes will obviously teach us more about this character. The appearance of a new Captain America should obviously have a big impact on Sam and Bucky. It’s hard to imagine that they could form a trio of vigilantes. Will John Walker be Steve Rogers’ true successor? Will Sam finally decide to take up the torch? Hard to say. We will have to wait for the broadcast of the next episode of Falcon and the Winter Soldier expected on March 26 on Disney +.
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