Although The Falcon and The Winter Soldier's Flag-Smashers are terrorists, Karli Morgenthau (Erin Kellyman) and her band of Super Soldiers are the true successors of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) in spirit. Karli had a withering view of Captain America and the oppression of disenfranchised people his star-spangled shield stood for but, in essence, the Flag-Smashers and Steve Rogers fight for many of the same ideals.

Like the Flag-Smashers years later, Steve Rogers became an enemy of the state and was even commonly referred to as a "war criminal" after Captain America: Civil War. Rogers and his loyal team of Avengers rebelled against signing the Sokovia Accords, which Cap felt was driven by political agendas and restricted the Avengers' freedom to choose who to save and when. Rogers not only ended up taking on Team Iron Man led by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) but he became an international fugitive wanted by every government on Earth (except Wakanda). Morally, Steve was correct in his views on the Sokovia Accords, but even Captain America was powerless against the world's governments assembled against him. It ultimately took Thanos (Josh Brolin) wiping out half of all life in the universe followed by the Avengers resurrecting them and saving the universe from Thanos to fully restore Steve Rogers' heroic standing as Captain America in the public eye.

Related: The Sokovia Accords: Every Known Rule In The MCU

Similarly, the Flag-Smashers weren't truly evil or genuine supervillains in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Rather, they were desperate people who were driven to stand up against the Global Repatriation Council and the world's governments who were enforcing new laws they felt were unjust. Karli was one of the millions of people welcomed into countries that opened their borders after Thanos' Snap, only to be kicked out of their new homes and rounded up like criminals five years later after the Blip brought the billions Thanos killed back to life. But at the core of the issue, Karli Morgenthau wanting refugees who were displaced by the GRC to have their freedoms restored and the right to choose is no different from Steve Rogers' stand against the authoritarian bent of the Sokovia Accords.

Karli Morgenthau holding a child in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Like Rogers, Karli and a handful of her closest allies became enhanced by the Super Soldier Serum. While Morgenthau resorted to terrorist acts like kidnapping GRC members and she killed Lemar Hoskins (Cle Bennett), the Super Soldier Serum didn't necessarily bring out latent evil in Karli or her friends like it did the Red Skull (Hugo Weaving). Morgenthau's tragic mistakes can be explained by the fact that she was a misguided teenager - "just a kid" - who was woefully in over her head. Like Steve Rogers, Karli even turned to his old ally Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp) for help, although the Flag-Smashers betrayed Carter and stole the Super Soldier Serum.

However, Karli and the Flag-Smashers' cause was intrinsically sound, so much so that even Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) understood Morganthau's point of view and agreed with her - just not the way she was choosing to go about fighting for her cause. The best indicator that Karli was actually right is that Sam, as Captain America, tried to save Morgenthau. Wilson then took up the Flag-Smashers' cause and successfully argued the wrongs the GRC was perpetrating with the Patch Act.

Steve Rogers' Team Cap and Karli Morgenthau's Flag-Smashers took on the most powerful governments in the world because they felt they were right, despite the fact that they all knew it was a losing proposition that would cost them dearly. In Karli's case, she paid with her life. And yet, in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, Morgenthau did something not even Steve Rogers accomplished: Karli and the Flag-Smashers found millions of supporters to rally to their side and fight for their cause, and that included Captain America Sam Wilson.

Next: Why Falcon And Winter Soldier Shouldn't Have Killed Off Karli

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