Falcon & Winter Soldier Finale Proves The Show's Title Was A Lie

Despite titling the show The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, the Marvel Studios original series proved that the show's title was never the right one in the finale. Steve Rogers' time as Captain America came to an end after the war against Thanos in Avengers: Endgame. After Steve handed off the shield to Sam Wilson, that became the beginning for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. The Disney+ original became a spinoff for Sam as he reunited with Bucky Barnes, while getting to the point where he could finally accept becoming the next Captain America, after struggling with the government-appointed Cap replacement John Walker. As John eventually is stripped of his role, Sam officially becomes the MCU's new Captain America in the finale.

While The Falcon and The Winter Soldier did see the two Avengers take on the Flag Smashers, the show's finale made it evident that the show didn't live up to its title. Despite working and fighting together, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier's finale concluded with Sam's storyline coming full circle as he took on the Captain America title. However, despite trying to make it look like they had equal billing, the series was much more focused on Sam's journey than both of them. Not only does Sam have the better and more compelling arc, but this was mostly a Falcon series, with the Winter Soldier as a supporting player. Even though Bucky's search for redemption is part of the overall storyline, Sam is the one who carries the majority of the show.

In the end, this was always bound to be the case for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier and it's not a bad thing, by any means. The passing of the shield from Steve to Sam is a far bigger universe story than Bucky looking to redeem himself. Captain America was and always will be one of the MCU's biggest foundations ever since Steve's saga began in Phase 1. But after Steve ended his journey in Avengers: Endgame, Sam becoming the next Captain America was always the more important deal for the MCU's Phase 4 and beyond. While Bucky is a big player in the franchise, his storyline would never be able to be as massive as Sam taking on the iconic Marvel title.

Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson and Sebastian Stan as Bucky in Falcon and Winter Soldier

The MCU has made it clear that Captain America is a huge symbol in the world. With Steve passing it on to someone else, it was always going to be something the entire world would pay attention to in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Even though Bucky is still on a big path, the world doesn't know of the Winter Soldier in the way they know about Captain America. Even though it was entertaining to see Sam and Bucky tacking on a new threat together, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier is still a misleading series title.

Had this been a proper Falcon show, things may have looked differently as Sam took the final steps to become Captain America. Bucky's presence is absolutely not forgotten, but his arc never felt like it was on equal grounds with Sam's storyline. It was inevitable and the right direction for the show in the long run, despite The Falcon and The Winter Soldier maybe not being the best title for the show. Sam becoming the new Captain America after Steve's final contribution to the world, holds more weight than Bucky trying to figure out his life after decades of being the Winter Soldier. However, with Captain America 4 in the works, perhaps that can become an actual Falcon and The Winter Soldier story that the Disney+ show couldn't live up to in the end.

NEXT: Captain America 4 Is Better Than Falcon & Winter Soldier Season 2