Bucky Barnes, The Winter Soldier, has been through a lot since his early partnership with Captain America and his time as a brainwashed Hydra assassin. Although Bucky is now free of Hydra’s programming in both the comic books and MCU’s The Falcon and the Winter Soldier TV series, he continues to suffer from feelings of isolation and depression. It’s easy to see why. After being used as a cryogenically frozen soldier for decades, Bucky has lost most of his close family members and friends due to the passage of time. In the comics, however, the Winter Soldier gets a chance to reunite with a long-lost sister — and the results are heartbreaking.
Rebecca Barnes was Bucky’s kid sister growing up in Shelbyville, Indiana, but the two were separated following the death of their parents. After living at a boarding school, Rebecca made a life for herself and never suspected that her brother was having adventures with Captain America, or that he would be killed in action, only to be revived as a brainwashed soldier.
Decades later, however, an elderly Rebecca met Steve Rogers while the two volunteered at a shelter for impoverished veterans. As the two chatted, Rebecca let slip that her brother was James Buchanan Barnes which shocked Steve. A quick check through the civil service databases confirmed that Rebecca was indeed Bucky’s sister, which prompted Steve to visit Rebecca (as Captain America) and reveal the truth about Bucky’s identity. The reunion proved a happy one for Steve and Rebecca, who came to see each other as family.
Rebecca was introduced in the short story Precious Gifts by Len Kaminski and Ron Lim for the 1991 Marvel Holiday Special during a time when Bucky was supposed to be dead. Instead of becoming a forgotten character, however, Rebecca returned briefly in Captain America Vol. 3 #48 to attend a memorial Cap hosted for Bucky along with fellow war veterans Namor the Sub Mariner, Nick Fury, and others. Unknown to everyone at the time, Bucky was alive and active as the Winter Soldier. Eventually, comic creators saw fit to revive Rebecca once again — first in a flashback scene from Bucky’s childhood in Captain America and Bucky #620 and then in person in Captain America and Bucky #624 when Bucky caught up with her in the present.
Unfortunately, by that time, Rebecca had succumbed to Alzheimer’s disease. Although she recognized Bucky, she was confused over how he could have remained so young. She also met Natasha Romanov (aka the Black Widow) and told her she was a “good woman” and that she was happy Bucky had someone to take care of him. While Bucky was happy for the reunion, he realized Rebecca wouldn’t remember the meeting for long due to her condition.
Their meeting was very reminiscent of Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter’s reunion in Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014), but while MCU’s Bucky did let slip that he had a surviving relative in the present (one of the four siblings he was said to have in the MCU), a reunion seems unlikely. Fortunately, Bucky is taking steps to establish new connections in the present, showing that the Winter Soldier may finally be coming out of the cold.