Falcon & Winter Soldier Will Deliver The MCU Promise WandaVision Couldn't

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will restore the Marvel Cinematic Universe's promise of global adventure, something that WandaVision, by its very concept, was unable to deliver. Sam Wilson AKA Falcon (Anthony Mackie) reunites with his frenemy Bucky Barnes AKA Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) in the Disney+ series. The two best friends of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) will explore what superheroism means in the MCU after the events of Avengers: Endgame, while Sam also carries the legacy of Captain America and his shield.

Unlike Marvel's rival DC Comics' flagship heroes Batman and Superman, who live in the fictional Gotham City and Metropolis, the MCU has always been set in a mirror image of the real world. In fact, the Avengers never restricted their adventures to any particular city or country and, by Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, Earth's Mightiest Heroes also visited other planets. Iron Man set the stage for the MCU's globe-hopping; Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) was kidnapped in the Middle East and returned as Iron Man. Stark then visited Monaco in Iron Man 2. Avengers: Age of Ultron further opened up the world, taking the heroes to Johannesburg, South Africa, Seoul, South Korea, and the fictional Sokovia. Thor: The Dark World was largely set in the United Kingdom while Captain America: Civil War spanned Lagos, Nigeria, Romania, Berlin, and Siberia. Vision (Paul Bettany) and Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) even had a romantic interlude in Scotland during Infinity War before the Avengers made their stand against Thanos (Josh Brolin) in Wakanda.

Set in Westview, New Jersey, WandaVision was self-contained by design since Wanda held the town hostage under her magical Hex barrier while she lived as husband and wife with Vision in a TV sitcom fantasy. WandaVision delved into and redefined the mystical side of the MCU, and it also involved the agency S.W.O.R.D., but the series was primarily about Wanda Maximoff's unfathomable grief. If watching WandaVision felt uncomfortably claustrophobic at times, this was the point. Especially for the townspeople of Westview who were forced by Wanda's psychic powers to play roles in her television series against their will. WandaVision's ending, where Maximoff fled Westview and traveled to a remote, unknown mountainous location to learn the powers of the Scarlet Witch, also served to open up the MCU once more. Seeing Wanda alone in her log cabin reminded fans that there's a whole world out there beyond Westview.

The promise of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier's return to the MCU's trademark international adventure is one of the most exciting aspects of the show. While much of it will be set in familiar locales like Washington, D.C., The Falcon and the Winter Soldier's production also filmed in Prague. The bantering heroes will also venture into a new MCU locale, Madripoor, one of the most dangerous countries in the Marvel Universe. The international flavor of Sam and Bucky's exploits will once again make the MCU inclusive to fans all over the world.

The fact that the MCU's superheroes are global in scope is one of the unsung reasons why Marvel's movies are blockbusters loved by fans worldwide. In turn, part of the enjoyment of watching the MCU for international audiences is that the Avengers can - and have - fought evil in other countries. For the global fanbase, seeing the MCU's superheroes pop up in their own backyards makes them feel more tangible. It creates the impression that the Avengers truly belong to everyone. After all, even the MCU's version of the friendly-neighborhood Spider-Man (Tom Holland) has been all over Europe and even to outer space.

It also helps that the Avengers isn't strictly an American fighting force that defends the interests of the United States. Even though Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes are both U.S. military veterans who answer to Uncle Sam, they are accustomed to traveling all over the world to complete their missions. After WandaVision's wildly entertaining but Wanda-focused kickoff to the MCU's Phase 4, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is poised to open up the world to superhero adventure once again.

Next: Falcon And Winter Soldier Recap: Sam And Bucky's MCU Story So Far (All Movies)