The MCU Confirms Black Panther Still Didn't Trust Bucky

Warning: SPOILERS for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Episode 4 - "The Whole World Is Watching," and for Bucky's storyline.

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier episode 4 confirms that King T'Challa AKA the Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) and the Wakandans didn't fully trust Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) because they built a failsafe into his Vibranium arm. Ayo (Florence Kasumba) of the Dora Milaje tracked the escaped convict Baron Helmut Zemo (Daniel Bruhl) to Riga, Latvia, where she confronted Bucky for the first time since his healing convalescence in Wakanda.

At the end of Captain America: Civil War, Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) brought Bucky to Wakanda so that Shuri (Letitia Wright) could use her advanced technology to rid Barnes' mind of his Hydra programming. Bucky volunteered to go back in cryo-sleep until Shuri could erase the brainwashing that turned Barnes into the Winter Soldier. Shuri was successful, and T'Challa allowed Bucky to stay and recover in Wakanda, where he lived peacefully as a farmer. At this point, Barnes only had the use of his right arm as his cybernetic left arm was destroyed by Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) during Civil War. Nicknamed "The White Wolf", Bucky embraced the "calm" of life in Wakanda, thousands of miles removed from the decades of perpetual violence and killing Barnes was forced to commit as the Winter Soldier - until the Children of Thanos invaded Earth and Bucky joined Steve Rogers, the Avengers, and Black Panther's army to defend Wakanda from the aliens. With this call to action, and with Bucky's mind finally free of all Hydra influence so that the people around him could trust him again, T'Challa gave Bucky a new Vibranium left arm.

The Falcon and The Winter Soldier episode 4 revealed that Ayo and Bucky had a closer relationship than anyone knew. After Shuri fixed Bucky's Hydra brainwashing, it was Ayo who was given the unenviable task of testing the White Wolf to see if he would still transform into the Winter Soldier. Bucky even emotionally broke down in front of Ayo. This connection is why Ayo gave the White Wolf the respect of asking him why he broke Zemo out of prison instead of just attacking the Sokovian Baron. Ayo even granted James an extra eight hours to finish his mission with Zemo before the Dora Milaje would come to exact justice on the man who murdered King T'Chaka (John Kani). But when that time was up, Ayo led the Dora Milaje after Zemo as promised. When he confronted Ayo in the melee, the Wakandan royal guardswoman shocked Bucky by activating a failsafe that disconnected Bucky's Vibranium arm - literally and figuratively disarming the White Wolf.

While Bucky had no idea it existed, the Wakandans building a failsafe into his cybernetic arm makes perfect sense. After all, Barnes is a foreigner who was graciously given Wakandan hospitality by King T'Challa himself. This was likely out of T'Challa's respect for Steve Rogers and his loyalty to Bucky, as well as the Wakandans' understanding that Barnes was framed by Zemo for the U.N. bombing in Vienna that killed King T'Chaka. But even given Shuri's successful anti-brainwashing, there was still ample reason for the Wakandans to question Barnes' sincerity as a person whether or not he was still the Winter Soldier. The fact that Bucky was happy to live quietly in the country and didn't demand any special treatment worked in his favor, but it was prudent to be cautious when it came to fully trusting the White Wolf.

Further, Bucky's arm is Vibranium technology, which is incredibly valuable and a very generous gift from T'Challa. When the White Wolf received his new arm in Avengers: Infinity War, the Black Panther had just endured his throne being temporarily usurped by Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan). Killmonger planned to use Vibranium tech to bring the world to its knees. T'Challa eventually agreed to open Wakanda's borders and share Vibranium in a controlled manner with the outside world after centuries of isolation.

Considering the power of Vibranium and the responsibility Wakanda feels for its proper use, it only makes sense that they'd ensure a way to take Bucky's arm from him if it became necessary. However, the fact that Bucky's Vibranium arm can be instantly disconnected from Barnes' shoulder without causing the White Wolf any harm in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier actually shows how much respect Wakanda has for him, even if they may not fully trust Bucky.

Next: Bucky's Zemo Plan Betrays Black Panther's Civil War Ending