Summary
Captain Americais an icon in comic books, and since the MCU debuted him in 2011, he’s been an icon in cinema too.Captain America: Brave New Worldis the fourth main movie starring a version of Captain America, but this time, it’snot Steve Rogers.
Sam Wilson shifted from The Falcon to Captain America as the titular hero inThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier,which was a show on Disney+. With that show,Captain America: Brave New World, the Steve Rogers trilogy, and a secret adaptation, there are six Captain America adaptations in media worth discussing. Let’s rank them all without diving into too many spoilers.
This may surprise some people, but before the MCU began and viewers could enjoy Chris Evans as Captain America inCaptain America: The First Avenger, there was a lower-budget comic adaptation.Captain Americawas released in the 90s without much fanfare. Steve Rogers in this film is a far cry from any of the other versions out there, be it in live-action or cartoon form. The costume looks silly, the shield is barely used, and Captain America seems uninterested in stopping the Red Skull or being a hero at all.
It wasn’t a hit in 1990, but since then, thisCaptain Americamovie has kind of had a resurgence among movie fanswho love good/bad movies. Some of the acting is over the top, and Captain America has one move that may have viewers asking, “Did he just do that again?” before laughing uproariously. It involves being sick in a car, so let’s just leave it at that and get to the main attraction: the MCU versions.
Cast
The 1979 version ofCaptain Americais probably more obscure than the 1990 version. However, it’s easily a better movie despite the low budget. It was made for TV and viewers can easily tell thanks to the poor costume and weird see-through version of Captain America’s iconic shield.
While it can be just as dull as the 1990 version at times, the 1979 version knows it’s based on a silly comic book character and tries to have fun with it. It’s still leagues away from anything in the MCU, but this is another case for good/bad movie fans out there to check out. What’s more, this version of Captain America actually does some heroic deeds and doesn’t just ditch people. A sequel,Captain America 2: Death Too Soon,directed by Ivan Nagy, was released in November of that same year, but was much less remarkable besides the presence of the late great Christopher Lee as the villain, General Miguel.
Captain America: Brave New Worldseems like it was a long time coming, asThe Falcon and the Winter Soldierwas released back in 2021. Was the wait worth it for fans of Sam/Falcon/Captain America? That depends on viewers hoping for the next best MCU saga. It doesn’t outdo anything that came before it, but it’s also an intriguing thriller in its own right.
What holds it back is the length and unevenness of the pacing between the action and the melodrama. It also fails to highlight some of its better characters, like Isaiah Bradley, Sidewinder, and one other villain who will remain under wraps. It does at least set some things in motion that seem interesting for theMCU, like finally talking about the Celestialspost-Eternals.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldierwas one of the first runs ofMCU shows released on Disney+. It’s the first thing that showcased Sam as Captain America followingAvengers: Endgame. He was given the shield by Steve Rogers, but Sam still struggled with the weight of the name “Captain America.” That’s when the U.S. government stepped in and nominated their own successor to Steve Rogers: John Walker. While struggling with accepting this proposal, Sam and Bucky have their own adventure babysitting Baron Zemo and trying to avoid John and the government.
The first few episodes ofThe Falcon and the Winter Soldierare enthralling thanks to the chemistry between Sam and Bucky. Baron Zemo is great too, and furthers the bickering between the two while expanding on his character fromCaptain America:Civil War. The second half of the show is a bit more meandering as it tries to figure out who its villain is. It’s an important show that sets up bothCaptain America: Brave New WorldandThunderbolts*,but it’s a mixed bag overall.
Captain America: Civil Warwas a good movie because it set up a lot of things, likeThe Falcon and the Winter Soldier. For example, it was the first movie to feature Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa, aka. Black Panther, and that chase scene with him on foot still looks amazing almost a decade later. It was also the first movie to feature Tom Holland playingSpider-Man, which showcased how the MCUknew what they were doing with Peter Parker.
The sagas of those two characters alone madeCaptain America: Civil Warworth it. There are other good things about the movie too, like bringing in accountability for the actions of superheroes, but it didn’t quite carry the same legacy as the Civil War arc in Marvel comics. The stakes felt lower, and it probably would have been better if the MCU waited for more heroes to join the cause further down the line.
Captain America: The First Avengeris campy fun like the 1990s version should have been if it were made to honor the source material. Yes, some of the action isn’t as exciting as later MCU films, and the CG effects are a bit laughable now. Skinny Steve Rogers looks like he could have come out of an A.I. rendering, but regardless, the movie works because of the heartfelt portrayal Chris Evans gives as Captain America.
This “aww shucks” gimmick that the movie leans on to characterize Steve Rogers works because Evans is such a good actor. It’s a fun superhero movie on top of it being anexciting World War 2 adaptation. It’s a movie that can be enjoyed on its own without having to worry about fifty other MCU projects in the works.
Captain America: The Winter Soldieris the movie thatCaptain America: Brave New Worldwanted to be. It’s another movie that can stand on its own while still setting things up for the future and concluding things like the dismantling of S.H.I.E.L.D. as an organization. It was a smart choice to make the movie a political thriller/spy movie first and a superhero movie second.
This Captain America could go toe to toe with other action spies like James Bond from the007films or Ethan Hunt from theMission: Impossiblefranchise. Steve’s dedication to Bucky is endearing and that elevator scene is just endlessly rewatchable.Captain America: The Winter Soldieris not just the bestCaptain Americamovie, it’s easily one of the best MCU films that regularly makes it into the top ten or even top five discussions of the franchise’s lengthy catalog.
