What Bucky Finishing His Winter Soldier Book Means For His Future

Warning: SPOILERS for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Finale - "One World, One People".

Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) finishing his book of people he has to atone for in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier essentially means he's finally ready to put his past as Hydra's assassin behind him and move forward. Bucky was burdened by his sins as the Winter Soldier and is cursed with constant nightmares as he remembers every victim and every kill. But thanks to Sam Wilson's (Anthony Mackie) counseling and his willingness to "do the work", Bucky is poised to move on as his own man.

When Hydra captured Bucky in 1945, they turned him into a brainwashed assassin with a cybernetic left arm to replace the limb he lost when he fell from a train in Siberia in Captain America: The First Avenger. Sgt. Barnes was previously a Hydra POW and was given a variant of the Super Soldier Serum by Arnim Zola (Toby Jones). Considering what Hydra did to Bucky, it's no wonder he's tormented mentally and emotionally: Hydra brainwashed Barnes to respond to a series of trigger words, which would place him under control. The Winter Soldier's mind would then be wiped after each mission and he was placed in cryo-stasis, which allowed him to remain youthful through the decades. To make matters worse, when Hydra tried to make more Winter Soldiers, Hydra used Bucky to test their unstable new weapons, although Barnes proved to be the only Winter Soldier who was reliable. Barnes remained the Winter Soldier until 2014 when Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) managed to break through Bucky's brainwashing in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Two years later, Shuri (Letitia Wright) of Wakanda finally deleted Hydra's programming from Bucky's mind, but all of his memories of all of his kills still remained.

In The Falcon and The Winter Soldier's finale, Bucky crossed off every name from his Winter Soldier list. Previously, Sam Wilson, who is a skilled counselor of veterans with PTSD, advised Bucky to "do the work" and "be of service" to the Winter Soldier's victims. While it's a little disappointing that Bucky's "work" took place offscreen, with the exception of his confessing to Yori Nakajima (Ken Takemoto) that he murdered Yori's son when he was the Winter Soldier, Bucky finishing his list means he's ready to break free of his past sins as Hydra's top assassin. By leaving his Winter Soldier book behind with his therapist, it seems that Bucky has also satisfied his legal requirements that came with his pardon as well. Barnes celebrated his liberation by joining Sam and his family in Delacroix, Louisiana, and enjoying just being Bucky Barnes once again.

It remains to be seen if Bucky completing his book means he's free of his nightmares, but one positive step seen in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is that he was able to sleep on the Wilsons' couch as opposed to how he slept on the floor of his own apartment in Brooklyn. While Bucky will likely always be the Winter Soldier since his Vibranium arm is a permanent reminder of his life as a cyborg assassin, he is now free to redefine what the Winter Soldier means if he chooses to. Alternatively, Bucky could also take on the persona given to him in Wakanda and become the White Wolf.

The next time MCU fans will see Bucky Barnes will likely be Captain America 4, which is reportedly going to be about Sam Wilson as the new Captain America, but they could also reunite in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier season 2 if that is greenlit. Bucky is also now known as an Avenger which means that he would likely be part of Avengers 5 if and when the superhero team assembles on the big screen. The White Wolf could also appear in Black Panther 2 and continue his story with the Dora Milaje in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. But Bucky could potentially pop up anywhere in the MCU. Most importantly, regardless of if he's still called the Winter Soldier or the White Wolf, Bucky will be his own man acting as a hero under his own self-determination.

Next: Why Phase 5 Still Needs Bucky's Solo Movie As Well As Captain America 4