The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is only getting started, but it’s already involved in controversy as it’s being accused of queerbaiting – here’s why. Now that the Infinity Saga came to an end, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is ready to move forward with its highly-anticipated Phase 4, which will not only cover the movie side of this universe but also TV shows that will directly impact the movies and other series. Kickstarting this new wave was WandaVision, and now that it’s over, Marvel fans are now enjoying The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
Set a couple of months after the events of Avengers: Endgame and thus Steve Rogers’ retirement, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier sees Sam Wilson/Falcon (Anthony Mackie) deciding whether or not to take on the mantle of Captain America, and Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), who is still struggling with his dark past as the Winter Soldier. The first episode was all about catching up with these characters separately, but the second one finally saw them reuniting and teaming up, but the reunion wasn’t smooth nor cheerful, and they exchanged some words before they put their differences aside to work together – but in the process, there were also some moments that reignited the queerbaiting accusations against the MCU.
The relationship between Bucky Barnes and Steve Rogers has been interpreted as one of more than best friends since their introduction in Captain America: The First Avenger, and this was only made bigger as their relationship evolved in the MCU. The same has happened with the relationship between Bucky and Sam, and the first episodes of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier were charged with homoeroticism, which fans were quick to point out on social media, but with that also came the criticism of the studio’s tendency to queerbaiting, as (unfortunately) it’s not something new in the MCU.
There was one moment in particular in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 2 where the title characters roll together in the fields after their fight against the Flag-Smashers, this as Sam saved Bucky, which resulted in them rolling in a way that has already been parodied in various ways. After that, they were forced into “couple’s therapy” by Bucky’s therapist, Doctor Raynor, which included a “soul-gazing” exercise. In addition to all this, in the first episode, Bucky mentioned while on a date that he finds dating apps to be weird because of all the tiger pictures, which viewers were quick to point out as a tease of Bucky’s bisexuality as tiger pictures were quite popular on dating apps and mostly found on men’s profiles. Unfortunately, the MCU has a long history of queerbaiting and these hints in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier are now joining the list.
Marvel fans won’t forget how the studio gave Steve an unnecessary and brief romance with Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) in Captain America: Civil War (and after the death of Peggy Carter) which felt like a desperate move to show the audience that there’s no such thing as a romance or attraction between Steve Rogers and his childhood friend Bucky Barnes. Other examples outside the Captain America bubble are a “bisexual moment” with Valkyrie that was cut from Thor: Ragnarok, a flirtatious moment between Okoye and Ayo in Black Panther that was also cut, and the studio’s failed attempt at LGBTQ+ representation in the infamous support group scene in Avengers: Endgame.
The homoeroticism shown in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier feels like yet another failed attempt from Marvel to bring LGBTQ+ representation to the mix, and it remains to be seen if the MCU will continue on this queerbaiting path for the rest of the series or will finally embrace Bucky’s potential bisexuality. Surely, The Eternals will introduce the MCU’s first openly gay superhero, but given the studio’s long history of failures at representing the LGBTQ+ community, the queerbaiting problem should be fixed as soon as possible.