The Marvel Cinematic Universe has no shortage of super soldiers filling out its ranks of enhanced individuals, but not all possess the same level of strength. From the 1940s all the way through to the current day MCU, super soldiers have been a valuable commodity, especially as the world grows increasingly cluttered with enhanced heroes and villains. While there are dozens of characters who have been enhanced by some form of Dr. Abraham Erskine's original super soldier serum, only a handful have achieved their desired outcome. Even fewer of these individuals have the necessary strength, stamina, and power to make an impact on the world scene.

The history of the MCU's super soldiers begins with Captain America, who received Dr. Erskine's experimental serum in 1943 during the events of Captain America: The First Avenger. The unparalleled success of this operation immediately began a race between nations, notably including the United States and the Soviet Union, to develop their own version of Erskine's formula after the original was destroyed, resulting in multiple new super soldiers popping up over the next several decades. However, the scientists that followed the late Dr. Erskine were unable to perfectly duplicate his original formula until the 2020s, dooming most of the new super soldiers to pale in comparison to the original.

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9 Red Guardian

David Harbour as Red Guardian ready for a fight in Black Widow

Black Widow introduced the MCU's version of Red Guardian, whose origin is directly tied to that of Captain America. Alexei Shostakov was a Soviet soldier who was injected with a Russian super soldier serum similar to that of Dr. Erskine's, serving as the superhero known as the Red Guardian throughout much of the Cold War before landing in a Siberian gulag for several decades. However, while the serum did provide Alexei with enhanced strength, it, like many other imitations of Erskine's serum, failed to measure up to the success of the original formula, leaving the Red Guardian forever in the shadow of Captain America.

8 The Flag Smashers

Marvel's Flag Smasher in Falcon and the Winter Soldier

Karli Morganthau and her legion of terrorist Flag Smashers attempted to follow in Steve Rogers's footsteps, becoming the first individuals injected with a brand-new serum created by the Power Broker, who was later revealed to be Sharon Carter. The Flag Smashers' serum was the first true replicant of Dr. Erskine's formula after decades of failed experiments, thereby giving them strength parallel to that of Captain America himself. While this group of newly born super soldiers certainly had the potential to live up to the legacy of Steve Rogers, they were untrained, untested, and unceremoniously killed off by their enemies before they could put their true powers to the test.

7 The Winter Soldier

Bucky fights in Infinity War

Turned into a living weapon by Hydra, Bucky Barnes may never duplicate Captain America's heroism, but he remains one of the most fearsome super soldiers in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After his apparent death during World War II, Bucky was recovered by Hydra, who provided him with a weaponized metallic arm and spent the next several decades experimenting on him with their own super soldier serum. Now free of Hydra's brainwashing after decades of serving the villainous organization, the Winter Soldier remains just as formidable as he once was but still cannot measure up to the strength of other enhanced individuals who received the pure form of Dr. Erskine's serum.

6 U.S. Agent

John Walker as US Agent in the MCU

After Steve Rogers's retirement, the U.S. government selected John Walker as the new Captain America, but he very quickly proved that he was not as worthy of the title as his predecessor. Seeking to make up for his shortcomings, Walker stole a vial of the Power Broker's super soldier serum and used it to enhance his abilities. Now operating as the U.S. Agent, Walker has had ample time to test his abilities, having fought both the Winter Soldier and the Falcon following his enhancement. It is clear that Walker is stronger than the super soldiers created by other knockoff serums, though he has yet to surpass the original Captain America.

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5 Isaiah Bradley

Isaiah Bradley MCU Story

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier revealed several secret super soldiers in the MCU, including Isaiah Bradley. Bradley was injected with experimental super soldier serum as a part of a covert government operation that sought to replace Captain America following his disappearance in 1945. Before being betrayed and imprisoned by his country, Bradley embarked on several secret missions, including one in which he went up against the Winter Soldier, crushing his metal arm during their battle. Although the MCU has never shown Isaiah Bradley in action, it is clear from his war stories that he is far stronger than any of the other knockoff super soldiers that followed Captain America.

4 Red Skull

Red Skull staring menacingly

The leader of the MCU's premiere supervillain group Hydra, the Red Skull was also the very first super soldier in the franchise. Johann Schmidt worked with Dr. Abraham Erskine prior to the events of Captain America: The First Avenger to perfect the super soldier serum but tested it on himself before it was ready. As a result, Schmidt was transformed into the grotesque Red Skull, though he still possessed the strength and durability bestowed by Erskine's original formula. Nevertheless, the Red Skull's strength still pales in comparison to that of Captain America, whose good heart amplified the serum's abilities to create one of the most impressive superheroes of all time.

3 Captain America

Chris Evans as Steve Rogers looking up in Captain America Civil War

Captain America's legacy in the MCU is far beyond that of any super soldier that came after him. As the first completely successful recipient of Dr. Abraham Erskine's serum, Steve Rogers became the standard by which all other super soldiers were judged. During his long and eventful career as a superhero, Captain America displayed incredible feats of strength, including single-handedly keeping a helicopter from lifting off and even holding the Mad Titan Thanos at bay for several moments. Steve's strength was only enhanced by the goodness of his heart, which even allowed him to lift the mighty hammer of Thor in the battle against Thanos.

2 Captain Carter

Captain Carter in live action and animated form in the MCU.

Even more powerful than Captain America is Captain Carter, an alternate reality version of Peggy Carter who received the super soldier serum rather than Steve Rogers. Possessing the same good heart as Rogers but a far stronger body, Captain Carter became one of the world's strongest heroes in her alternate universe. She proved to be capable of the same feats as Earth-616's Captain America and more. Two versions of Captain Carter have appeared in the MCU so far, and both are shown to be incredibly powerful, with What If's Carter being key in taking down the supreme version of Ultron and Earth-838's variant going toe-to-toe with the Scarlet Witch herself.

1 Emily Blonsky

Abomination in his cell in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law.

Although the MCU's Hulks and super soldiers are closely related, most Hulked-out individuals are not considered to be super soldiers in the same way that Captain America or Bucky Barnes are. Emil Blonsky proves to be the exception in this regard, specifically receiving the serum that turned him into the Abomination under the hope that he would become a super soldier in the same vein as Captain America. This process gave him an enormous amount of strength and even allowed him to go toe-to-toe with the Hulk, something that even Captain America could only dream of doing. When it comes to super soldiers, there are none stronger than Emil Blonsky.

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