John Walker: My Favorite Character in Falcon & the Winter Soldier | Movie Barfs

John Walker may not be the perfect Captain America, but Falcon and the Winter Soldier would be nothing without him.
Top 11 Cringe Moments in Falcon & the Winter Soldier: • The Falcon & The Winte...

[@CaptainPikeachu]

I've always said that if John Walker had been the protagonist of the show and the story was told through his POV, people would have looked at him differently and would have justified his actions as they've done with plenty of MCU heroes who've done bad things or made mistakes. But because this was Sam and Bucky's show and they were the protagonists, the story framing was always going to be unfair when it came to Walker because they had to make the audience agree with the protagonists' feelings. Nevermind the fact that Sam and Bucky were shown doing things that everyone criticized Walker for, because story framing made what they did okay but what Walker does not okay. The show was so effective, I guess, in manipulating the audience that honestly I think people are hating on a version of Walker that they made up in their heads that doesn't actually exist within the canon told on-screen. John Walker is not even a villain, he's the tragic fallen hero of this story, destined and doomed to fail because he has to fall in order for Sam to rise, an imagery that they literally use in the finale episode when Walker falls from saving the truck and Sam literally raises it back up. Walker was never going to be able to succeed because the narrative was never going to allow him to success. His tragedy is trying to be a hero in a story that he was never meant to be the hero of. He is definitely an under-appreciated character who gets way too much hate that he actually doesn't deserve, especially considering that his kill count in the MCU is actually far lower than a lot of the heroes. And he is easily the most memorable and interesting and best character in the show, and I really hope Wyatt Russell wins some awards for his performance.

[@moviebarfs5912]

Exactly, well said! It's all about framing sometimes. When Hawkeye goes on a killing spree in Endgame, the film focuses on his sad face in the rain, making him look sympathetic. When Wanda imprisons a town to play out her fantasies, Monica Rambeau tells her she "gave it up" for their sake, making her look like the hero. But when poor JW kills one terrorist, the film focuses on the shock and horror of the passer-bys.

[@CaptainPikeachu]

@@moviebarfs5912 The notable thing for me was because of the way they framed him killing the Flag Smasher, people literally forgot that this was the same Flag Smasher whom seconds ago was restraining Walker so that Karli could murder him simply for being a symbol and to send a message. Walker is expected to show mercy to this guy who seconds ago had no intention of showing mercy to Walker. And even if the guy didn’t directly kill Lemar, he’s no less innocent given the fact that by restraining Walker, he prevented Walker from saving Lemar and was an active participant in creating the scenario that led to Lemar’s death. The Flag Smasher guy was literally an accomplice to murder and attempted murder and terrorism. So the fact that the show tried to just paint it as “captain america killed a foreign national” is just more attempts of the show purposefully manipulating the narrative to a gullible audience who already hates Walker and is eager to have reasons to get rid of him as Captain America. And while I don’t think he should have killed the guy and I don’t agree with his decision, the overwhelming amount of outrage that people had to Walker and saying he’s evil or bad because of this moment is just so strange to me, especially given how often people just brush off MCU heroes reacting to loss by doing killings in retaliation. And while I get the show was trying to obviously reflect real life imagery and commentary on police brutality, I thought it was dangerously irresponsible of them actually to conflate police brutality to a person’s traumatic reaction to the murder of a loved one. Because police brutality is a systemic issue of racism and power imbalance, not a single person literally losing it because his friend just got murdered in front of his eyes. It’s like they’re unintentionally saying that if you don’t grieve “the right way” then you’re a bad person. Having Sam, a guy who counsels traumatized soldiers, help beat a traumatized and mentally ill soldier into broken bones and unconsciousness is just a really weird thing to show, like is this what he does with traumatized people who may react violently? Because if so then yikes! Mentally ill people already often the targets of violence, the show didn’t need to accidentally help perpetuate that with their one character who’s supposed to be a counselor. I know the show isn’t trying to do it on purpose but its mishandling of how they presented Walker’s trauma and how they framed him - barely allowing him to even mourn his friend since literally no one else in the story seems to care - it all contributes to villainizing his trauma.

[@coder9928]

@@CaptainPikeachu Sam only cares about the shield. His and Bucky's whole reason for hating John Walker was because of the shield. Sam showed far more understanding and care for a literal terrorist than for a fellow soldier.

[@workingman9019]

I WANT MORE WALKER! HE IS NOW MY FAVORITE MCU CHARACTER!

[@veritasvanburen_]

@@CaptainPikeachu your comments are insanely insightful. I always felt like I was being psyoped into hating him but I could never word it as well as you did! Brilliantly put! The writers of this show are bloody clever.

[@GigaChadh976]

Honestly, John walker deserved the shield far more than Sam. Sam gave it to a goddamn museum instead of doing what Steve asked.

[@TheReaIestOne]

Finally. THANK YOU 🤣 The show made the whole thing about Sam's race as the whole reason for him giving the shield away. But they did that towards the end when they didn't know where to take the show anymore. "So let's just make the whole thing about race and nobody would complain because they wouldn't wanna sound like a racist". In actuality at first Sam gives it away only because he felt he wasn't good enough to fill Steve's shoes. And when they found someone that wanted to try and fill his shoes, both him and Bucky gave him the cold shoulder. So who's really at fault here? 🤔

[@vice2versa]

Well he who remains said in the final ep of loki that you need to have the journey inorder to grow. They did that for sam, bucky and Walker.

[@Randomperson11121]

And then tried to forcefully take it from walker right after his friend just died

[@mariofatovic6521]

@@vice2versa But that's not the only journey to take. The obvious, but potentially best journey for Sam to go through is trying to live up to the impossible standards that Steve set up as Captain America and then ultimately realising that being his own Captain America is how he should continue and that he doesn't need to be another Steve Rogers but instead continue to be the only Sam Wilson. The journey that Sam and Bucky take was trash and horribly written.

[@Wolffman109]

@@TheReaIestOne They're devaluing Steve Rogers' character to just him being white. That's what happens when you ignore story just for woke politics.

[@ilovedc9786]

The writers wanted us to hate John Walker...but Wyatt Russell's acting made us love his character even more

[@360Roko]

They accidentally made a good character. Marvel's writing has become so bad, when they try to make a character we're supposed to dislike, they make the most sympathetic and well written character in the show.

[@brian0057]

@@360Roko At the end of the show, I actively hated every single character (Sam and Bucky very much included) except for Walker.

[@tobsonasanya4765]

​@@360Roko no

[@tobsonasanya4765]

​@@brian0057 you serious lol

[@360Roko]

@@tobsonasanya4765 Literally yes. John Walker is the unsung hero. Bucky and Sam are dumbasses.

[@Atharun18999]

Walker wasn't in the wrong. Unlike Sam and Bucky, he WAS a sanctioned active soldier. His partner, who was also a sanctioned active soldier, was just killed during an active OP by a super soldier. He did his job and killed said super soldier terrorist who did NOT surrender and would have gone on to continue killing others. This show is a perfect example of how the writers are trying so hard to make him a bad guy yet he was more justified in his actions than just abut anyone. It also spotlights the hypocrisy with the Dora Milaje, as well as making Sam and Bucky behave foolish. They were both soldiers as well but someone how did everything that Walker was criticized for and sympathized with the enemy (at least Sam) but it was ok when they did it?

[@Ricky_Spanishh]

He was always helpful to them even when they broke zemo out. He could've arrested them and he'd have the right as he was the only person sanctioned to find Karly and her group. Even tried to give them a ride. Tried to help in the truck fight and even saved civilians in the final fight. He's a hero.

[@wafflingmean4477]

Thank you for reminding me that the Flag Smasher Walker killed didn't even surrender. He said "It wasn't me." He did not say "I surrender" or "arrest me". There were at least 5 or 6 Flag Smashers with the serum if I remember right. All of whom just tried to kill Walker. What, is he supposed to just leave him there? He has no way to restrain this Flag Smasher without giving up on chasing the rest. Handcuffs aren't going to work. And if he knocks the guy unconscious and moves on, odds are since the serum causes you to heal fast the Flag Smasher would come to pretty quickly and be gone before Walker could come back for him. ANY one of them that escapes is an insanely high risk, not just in the damage they can do but if someone were to get hold of them, and take blood samples, there's a chance of the serum being reproduced again. Unless Walker's prepared to give up chasing the others, the only sensible option is to kill this one, or let Bucky hold him down while Walker and Sam continue the chase. Do I think Walker thought about all this? No. He was out for revenge. But even if he hadn't been, fighting to kill was still the best option. His only mistake was not maintaining his composure on camera. No one watching had any idea Walker or the Flag Smasher had the serum so cannot understand the necessity of putting this guy down. And no one could understand just how much damage you need to do to a super soldier to reliably kill them. That shield is vibranium and it still took a few hits before Walker killed the guy. While it's implied Steve got stronger over time even after his initial procedure, we saw Steve take hits from Thanos and get back up. If either Walker or this Flag Smasher are even 20% as strong, then it's obvious Walker can't afford to hold back. If he does the Flag Smasher could tank the hit and counterstrike. You know, like they did with Bucky in almost every single fight? And like Steve did to Tony for most of the final fight in Civil War?

[@elongatedsedation324]

People always say he surrendered, but he didn't. He was, by definition, stalling.

[@glitchhoffe1293]

And the guy throw *concrete* at Walker just moments before out in the open with such force that it breaks on impact. He is an accomplice to the crime for kidnapping Lamar and holding Walker back from saving him, he also ran away into a crowd of people and could of very well hurt them considering he is the weapon… And has helped kill many innocent people.

[@Wolffman109]

5:47 Small problem: Nico was NOT surrendering. At no point does he say, "I give up" or "I surrender". Instead, he just tries to say that Lemar's death was in no way his fault, when he's at least partially to blame.

[@mariofatovic6521]

He also kept trying to get up so he could escape, that's also not surrendering.

[@Wolffman109]

@@mariofatovic6521 Not to mention throwing whatever that thing was at John's head while he was chasing him (what was that, anyway? Cinder block? Water fountain?).

[@dizzydoom4230]

@@Wolffman109 Seemingly a water fountain fashioned with some sort of stone overlay. AKA, the exact kind of thing that could kill someone if you threw it at them like Nico did.

[@Wolffman109]

@@dizzydoom4230 Don't forget that Nico was attempting to murder John, so he's an accomplice to Lemar's murder.

[@riteshjadhav1382]

​@@Wolffman109 maybe a cement slab

[@centipedekid9824]

What John did was not wrong whatsoever. That man was a terrorist who was apart of a group that just killed his best friend. That same terrorist was also infused with the super soldier serum making them a living weapon so the excuse of being unarmed doesn't work. Plus you have to remember he hurled a cement slab at John so hard that it shattered on impact with the shield and if John didn't take the hit he would have injured civilians. So now the terrorist that killed his friend and is a danger to the public is trying to escape, John caught him and he didn't surrender. He said "It wasn't me" not "I surrender" or "I give up". He was stalling and if John hesitated he would have put his safety on the line and everyone around them the terrorist have proven they will kill innocent people if they deem it necessary. Objectively as a soldier John Walkers conduct was correct.

[@veritasvanburen_]

EXACTLY, omg. Also, this is what he was TRAINED to do. As a soldier you cannot hesitate. You have to act on instinct otherwise you risk yours and other people’s safety. That guy minutes prior had aided Lamar’s death by restraining John. He is just as complicit as Karli. Why is John Walker going out to war and killing foreign troops worth 3 medals but him killing a literal terrorist means he is stripped of his titles? Because he had a crazy face while doing it?

[@lordtachanka5512]

Thank you!

[@jeffsoltess4853]

Thank you!!!!!!!!!! Everyone I have this argument with doesn't understand that the Flag Smashers are dipshit terrorists. Walker was the only one with the balls to do what needed to be done!

[@allenaju1856]

Honestly that’s what makes Steve and John different even though they are both soldiers.

[@tobsonasanya4765]

Eh the guy was on the ground already plus he could have knocked him out

[@umapessoaqualquer3688]

John Walker was the true hero. He killed a terrorist that had already killed innocent people. First thing he does after Lamar's death is to go talk to his family He offers Bucky and Sam help He stops to save people in the last episode Bro was just a good dude, better than the other two protagonists

[@Karlken0209]

I seriously rage quit in the last episode when they make John - after all his struggle, after his heroic decision of choosing to save people instead of revenge - fail to save that truck just so Sam could appear and save the day then got all the praise. Yes John still contributed in the saving of those people, but it clearly show how the writers of this show think and want us to think, which feel like a straight up bully to me.

[@Blazethespacewizard]

There was definitely an agenda pushed unfortunately

[@joeyabrams9505]

It’s funny how Wyatt Russel admitted that he knew almost nothing about the MCU, and yet he became one of the coolest characters in it, hope to see more of U.S. Agent and hope that Wyatt Russel does his Marvel homework.

[@openfly4u]

Honestly makes it better imo, no preconceived notions or expectations of how the character "should" be. Also, the character is a Soldier so would probably not know much when it comes to "accepted vigilantes" rules of engagement, he`s a soldier, trained to do what normal bog standard human soldiers do; work in a cohesive team and make split second decisions in the heat of combat, a moment of hesitation and all of your friends die, or civilians get killed. Not to work with uncooperative (to the point of actively working against the "team") adults, even in the military, if you dont like someone, it comes secondary to the mission, because if shit like that affects you, you and your team are as good as dead. Hell as a bog standard soldier you arent even trained to deal with gene enhanced mutant living weapons that can rip your arm off. IMO they wrote him well, since he IS an outsider to this kind of world, being in the public eye, with EVERY action scrutinized.

[@Swagat_Mishra]

John Walker was perfect for his character. People who are being mad at John Walker, these so-called fans don't even know who John Walker is from the comics. John doesn't have a perfect personality nor he is a total psycho. He's just a soldier who does his job. I would like to see John Walker in future with his own shield.

[@lessermook7608]

I hate they robbed him of the truck save scene for Sam. Garbage. Just let him have it man.

[@dekaritheprofessor2631]

I agree completely!!

[@Randomperson11121]

Which didn’t even make sense, Sam is a regular human being regardless of wings his bones would crush in the weight of that truck filled with 7 or so people tf

[@Wolffman109]

@@Randomperson11121 Plus, if he gets hit by a strong person like Abomination, he's paste.

[@Randomperson11121]

@@Wolffman109 exactly, just let falcon be falcon…there’s literally 0 reasons for him to be captain America…he has his own identity and skills, he’s nowhere near the skills or abilities or captain America, Bucky is right there and the most fit for the role

[@Wolffman109]

@@Randomperson11121 To quote Steve, you're damn right.

[@GigaChadh976]

5:45 dude, the flagsmasher was not surrendering. His hands were not above his head and he didn’t say “I surrender” or anything like that. He said “it wasn’t me it wasn’t me.” And his hands were in a defensive position. He was hostile and dangerous and John has no way of taking him in, that guy would have killed any officers brought in to hold him.

[@saugatphuyal850]

Many say John killed a nico who was defenseless and has no weapon , I find this very funny because nico himself is a super soldier, obviously he was a living weapon who could kill anyone with a punch

[@GigaChadh976]

@@saugatphuyal850 Yeah it’s like a guy being on the ground with an AK

[@saugatphuyal850]

@@GigaChadh976 I feel like if Sam and Bucky were nice towards John ,he wouldn't have turned into an animal

[@GigaChadh976]

@@saugatphuyal850 Yeah but asking heroes to be nice to people that don’t exist just to feed their egos just doesn’t fly now. I’m so sick of superheroes being consumed by petty disputes like this

[@user-xx6vy9ri8p]

@@saugatphuyal850 And he didn't, he saved people in the finale.

[@brian0057]

John Walker was the only character on the show I didn't actively hate when all was said and done. Everyone else was a being a piece of shit towards him for no apparent reason and virtually from the get go.

[@ARIADNARB]

+100 agree! In this show showrunners could made me hate Bucky while I loved him until this series!!! I understand Sam and John opposition - it is about the Shield. But Bucky act in this series like really asshole! They cares about Karli but do not cares about Lemar's life! They stand and look while Wakanda's girls killing Wallker and only when Sam said - Bucky! he start to protect John. Yes, Sam and Bucky want in this moment Dora Milaje to show Walker that he is suck, but... is this heroes' behavior?

[@changvasejarik62]

John walker to was a highlight of phase four. I gave up on phase four after love and thunder but walker and a few others made it so I didn’t regret watching phase 4.

[@Charismaniac]

The guy showed more growth and character development than the overglorified members of the mainstream Avengers team. They got a bunch of movies and still weren't as complex and honorable as Walker and Hoskins who only got a few episodes and not a lot of screen time. I can't wait to see more of the US Agent. Battlestar will never be forgotten.

[@noahclark4052]

Exactly 💯

[@riteshjadhav1382]

True

[@TheScarletSlayer]

When they guy who's suppose to be seen as pure evil is ironically the best written character

[@changvasejarik62]

You know what made me ok with walker being picked for captain America? The three medals of honor. Irl no soldier got more than two and both had some disillusionment about the military. To have three showed walker was one of the most worthy choices for the role as he has the skills and life experience. Hell he was even good with the PR side of captain America until he decapitated a guy and even then I was fine with him because while niko was quivering in fear, the phrase “life by the sword, die by the sword” is a phrase I don’t feel enough people know or understand. Niko chose to live by deranged super soldiers for him to be killed by one is not a tragedy.

[@Kenchinito2207]

John walker was also my favorite character. I even prefer him as a Captain America. Steve Rogers was inhuman, perfect in his morals. John Walker acting on his emotions (killing the flag smasher) was an act that proved he was human.

[@moviebarfs5912]

+1 for this comment. I also thought Steve was a little too much of a saint, with hardly any flaws. John Walker just had one bad day.

[@flintson2268]

"One bad day is all it takes to ruin a life": the joker

[@jeggsonvohees2201]

@@moviebarfs5912 How is Steve a saint exactly?

[@jacknapier8201]

At no point did the superpowered terrorist say "I surrender" he just said "It wasn't me"

[@nategraham6946]

Walker and Steve did the exact same thing. The only real difference is that falcon was just standing there and did NOTHING to stop it. And I find it fascinating that people, thanks to this show, are defending and siding with terrorists, and get upset that one dies, after having killed many others. And the very fact that Walker was able to forgive falcon and bucky enough to be friends with them shows he is more like Steve than they are, and thus, more worthy of the shield and title of Captain America.

[@1992holycrap]

And let's not forget, all of this was completely unintentional on the writers' part.

[@nategraham6946]

@@1992holycrap Or was it?

[@1992holycrap]

@@nategraham6946 Knowing the types of people who worked on this show & the whole MCU thus far... no, it absolutely wasn't.

[@nategraham6946]

@@1992holycrap Very true. Unless they are going for good and honorable guys are bad.

[@1992holycrap]

@@nategraham6946 Wouldn't be surprised if they were; these people are completely morally bankrupt & have absolutely zero sense of self-awareness.

[@WiccanRiley]

Hes the most sympathetic character in the whole show. And Wyatt Russell did a great job

[@Wolffman109]

I couldn't agree more.

[@PeterParker-ff7ub]

He was a good person and everyone hated him for killing a terrorist.

[@justaguythatlikescomics6921]

Then there is Tony, Hulk and Thor who kill criminals daily by either blasting them,smashing them, throwing a godly hammer at them

[@lessermook7608]

So John did nothing wrong, and kept getting disrespected-- until he did screw up.

[@Wolffman109]

It reminds me of a Scarlet Witch quote: "You break the rules and become a hero. I do it, I become the enemy. That doesn't seem fair."

[@Firemarioflower]

@@Wolffman109 Come on man she was pure evil

[@Wolffman109]

@@Firemarioflower Not when you look at her history. She lost everything and everyone she cared about, and then was abandoned by everybody else. Couple that with the fact that she has a point, and it makes it harder to judge her that way.

[@dumbly-stupid]

@@Wolffman109 sure it's sad and terrible what happened to her but that doesn't excuse her from her actions

[@Wolffman109]

@@dumbly-stupid I'm not saying it does.

[@roberthennigan1851]

Your are right John walker is the best character in the whole show, it really wouldn't be worth watching without him. Wyatt Russell's acting was the best part of the show.

[@moviebarfs5912]

Definitely, and it was sad that the poor guy actually received death threats from upset viewers.

[@Wolffman109]

@@moviebarfs5912 Not me. I will always love his character, unless the writers screw him up again.

[@captainfighter7666]

People hate him cause he killed a TERRORIST WHO WAS NOTTTT AND I SAID NOT BEGGING FOR HIS LIFE.But people mostly hate him cause he isn't Steve or Sam, someone chosen by Steve

[@Wolffman109]

@@captainfighter7666 I SECOND THAT MOTION!

[@averagechadlegionary5824]

@@Wolffman109 I wouldn’t get my hopes up considering the MCU’s track record as of recently. They prioritize politics over entertainment these days. It’s such a shame Wyatt Russell got so much grief man. I wish there was a way we all could show him that those ideologues giving him hate aren’t representative of us at all.

[@superswaggerorgasm]

John walker is every combat veteran's experience in Afghanistan for the last twenty years. He's 100% modern day captain America. Not some idyllic fever dream from the greatest generation.

[@cane6074]

He is the Hero we need! not the one we want!

[@youcantbeatk7006]

How is he impatient or impulsive for telling them to stay the hell out of his way? He already spent days asking them nicely and they refused to collaborate. They were putting his mission in danger and he was even more justified when they broke a mass murderous terrorist out of prison. Also he was fighting a superpowered terrorist surrounded by a crowd of civilians. It would've been too risky to let up on him and try to peacefully arrest him. Don't even try to say "he surrendered" either because he was only begging for mercy after fighting back and running didn't work. He would've tried to fight and run again if he was actually given mercy and he would've murdered more people.

[@shockwave191]

Let’s also remember, while he was trying to pull the truck back. A bunch of flag smashers came to stop him, so he fights them all with one arm, if that doesn’t seem like Captain America move; I don’t know what is anymore.

[@catspaw3092]

Wyatt did a wonderful job he didn't deserve the hate he got good grief people he's playing a fictional comic character.

[@averagechadlegionary5824]

Something fascinating is that he takes the serum which is supposed to bring out more of who you are so him being more of a flawed but genuinely good man after taking the serum is really interesting showing that he truly is a hero. I personally loved him and thought the moments with him were the saving graces for all the other cringe crap the show pushed although I highly doubt that was by design. I’m pretty sure the writers wanted us to hate him while sympathizing with that psychopath chick but realized it wasn’t working so they did a 180 in the last few episodes. I honestly hope the MCU leaves him alone though BC their track record as of recent isn’t the greatest and I’d rather them not butcher my boy like they have practically every other character they have in their lineup.

[@gerbbabycare3771]

I remember arguing with my girlfriend's family about how amazing Walker is. They were watching the show before I was, and every time they listed a reason they hated him I would just say they were describing an interesting character. Everyone was so predisposed to hate him because he wasn't Steve that they didn't even want to see his layers as his own character. He's a modern patriot haunted by what he's done for his country that continues to serve anyway because he believes in its goals. He literally asks Sam and Bucky for help in being a better Cap and they shun him for it, yet they're the ones we're supposed to root for. You see him be an insecure man in a world or superpowers and gods, and any attempt at bravado is really to assert that he holds some importance. That was a difference I really loved between him and Steve. Steve always introduced himself with "I'm Steve Rogers", but Walker always said "John Walker. Captain America" like it validated him. I also think something all the shows struggled with was the runtime, assuming that 6 episodes equated to 3 movies. There's a reason Arrow had at least 20 episodes a season. I think the writers realized this when Walker went from "I want to be the best I can" to "Do you know who I am" between episodes 2 and 3, because by the time we got to really be introduced to him as a character the show was already through a third of its runtime. (It's all good though. My girlfriend and I both agreed he'd have been more interesting in Winter Soldier because his approach to total surveillance would be more nuanced and conflicted.)

[@1992holycrap]

Typical writing mistake that woke left-leaning propagandists make: in trying to make a character who represents their political/ideological enemies look detestable, they instead make said character into a legit underdog who looks & acts extremely sympathetic & reasonable compared to the designated "good guys."

[@ogcipher4967]

Walker's not the antagonist or the "villain" he's actually the hero of the story. Also what do you mean he's inpacient. The man gave Sam and Buck a shit load of chances to join him, he got Bucky out of prison for fuck sake, helped them fight super-soldiers when he's just a dude in a suit, completelly outmached, and what he receives is distain simply for existing. Also the entire killing that dude with the shield thing, Walker was in the right, he wasn't dealing with some petty thief surrendering, he was dealing with a super soldier, a living weapon, who's part of a group of degenerates who blow up buildings killing innocent people for the lols and who just helped kill his best friend and coleague. Walker not taking care of the super soldier would have put him and everyone around in danger, like we know what a super soldier is capable of, considering we've seen both Cap and Bucky do insane shit, and what's her face just one punched his friend to death. And let's not kid ourselves, Steve did waaaaay worse things, like fk me at the beggining of the series Falcon was shooting rockets at people, and Walker killing one dude is the big bad moment. Stop being influenced by what the show wants you to feel and think for a second.

[@Wolffman109]

6:59 What about Yelena Belova? She murdered an entire prison's worth of people with an avalanche and quipped about it!

[@bipstymcbipste5641]

She's also quipping about all the genuine moments of horrors from Natasha's life like the operation to make you sterile. The movie shits on all of it BUT SHE'S SO QUIRKY THO

[@Drave_Jr.]

Also adding onto Walker having more trouble than Tony. The Flagsmashers are supersoldier serum enhanced. You can not disarm or detain them in an effective manner Walker would've had available. Also, the man only pleads after running away, trying to fight twice more, and getting knocked down a third time, only saying it wasn't me, not something saying "I'm surrendering"

[@JimmyC1994]

If the showrunners really wanted to show a monstrous and murderous Captain America they should have used Nuke instead of US Agent. He usually is shown as this irredeemable, uncaring monster (basically if The Punisher killed everyone instead of just criminals)

[@ericnguyen9770]

Exactly

[@1992holycrap]

Didn't he already show up in the Jessica Jones show on Netflix?

[@JimmyC1994]

@@1992holycrap they can bring him back for this. I don't think that show is canon to the MCU anymore anyway

[@freddman0135]

5:55 another point I saw from another video: the flag-smasher only surrendered after: -he killed John's best friend and partner -ran for several blocks -had an open and hard battle against John -got severam civilians on danger -was literally against the ropes and had no other choice

[@Charismaniac]

John Walker is a deep character who carried a big part of this show and I really like how he handled the dramatic elements. For me, the best part was when he was mourning Lemar Hoskins. The guilt and anger building up because he lost his best friend and brother in arms was the key point in winning most of us over. He was on his knees reflecting on everything, then cracked his neck and in a very calm, yet scary way said "time to go to work." That's some main character energy right there! Him and Helmut Zemo were the best characters in the show. Lemar the Battlestar will be missed... I love that dude.

[@1992holycrap]

Shame the show's *actual* main character cared more about the life of an unrepentant, mass-murdering terrorist & impotently lecturing a bunch of hamstrung politicians that they need to "Dew Betta."

[@Mustang-wt1se]

Going by body language the guy was not surrendering, he was stalling. Yes killing is bad but he was still a super soldier terrorist near a crowd of potential hostages

[@Hashbrown1682]

Walker earned the right to be Captain America

[@Nameless0061]

He's frankly the only good character in this series, the only one who felt real. He has internal conflicts, dreams, he's broken, he wants to be better, he also gets angry, he lies to people and aso protects people. And the worst about all of it is that the plot and the other characters treat his as a villain or some kind of fascist.

[@workingman9019]

I don't think U.S.AGENT is anymore cringy than any other hero name.

[@risingdoom]

Let me guess, you don't read comics

[@workingman9019]

@@risingdoom rarely why? I read the good ones like secret wars and maximum carnage.

[@risingdoom]

@@workingman9019 Nvm, i take my words back

[@Wolffman109]

I personally think it's kinda clever.

[@ryszakowy]

i like how marvel failed at making things properly steve gave shield - that didn't belong to him at this point - to falcon falcon goes around as captain america america puts new captain america walker tries to do the right thing walker is portrayed as a villain for trying to stop actual terrorist bucky and sam get no consequences from hanging around with zeemo "you need to do better senator" you'd think if anyone would sympathise with walker being forced to be a weapon it would be bucky but white straight man bad so they beat him and leave him broken and bleeding

[@Operation_Bagel]

#WeWalkWithWalker

[@Wolffman109]

#JohnWalkerForever

[@Hashbrown1682]

Oh I liked Walker when he was introduced 3 medals of honor. 1 is hard enough 3 is legendary

[@DMcPherson]

I liked John Walker to,he got the short end of the stick.He seemed like a stand up guy but Sam and Bucky treated him like he was an a whole when he was nothing but kind to them for the most part,You were spot on.I also like latinas so it was easier for me to sympathize with the man after seeing his wife dumb as that is.

[@jeffsoltess4853]

Overall I really hated this show, especially the writing. The only worthwhile reason I keep having to watch it is to see John again. He is the best part of the show and is a criminally underrated and overhated character. I legitimately wish we had gotten a show about Walker instead of Bucky and Sam, cause Walker and Lamar were the only ones worth caring about in this dumpster fire of a show.

[@noahclark4052]

Exactly man 💯

[@adriflux7704]

I accidentally stumbled into a John Walker appreciation club on a corner of YT and I love it.

[@zedbee2736]

i will never not enjoy people relating more with John Walker than the two title characters

[@brentoutashape9141]

Steve Rogers fought against the Germans AND the Japanese in WW2. As a SOLDIER. Surely...he killed people. Enemy combatants. Friendly fire. Collateral damage . I'll bet there were even Rules of Engagement and superiors he had to answer to. It's not like he was Superman flying by the White House and waving in the window, saying, "It's Ok, President Roosevelt, they were ALL bad guys, and I didn't even have to kill them!" PR nightmare? sure. Murder? No.

[@jeggsonvohees2201]

There's a great video by a channel called Clipped Coin that goes into great detail explaining how and why Walker did nothing wrong. CC is former military who has experience with facing threats on foreign soil, as well as how the military would react irl to the situation.

[@mordercainear9573]

To me John is the "unlucky guy" he's a good guy but he been through so much and Sam and Bucky giving him more shit doesn't help. He's like Eddie Brock of Cap

[@Wolffman109]

4:12 This part reminds me of a Doctor Strange quote: "Well then, you kiss the lunchbox goodbye, because that's the kind of justification our enemies use."

[@Riley095]

Walker killing that guy was fully justified if you go off military doctrine.

[@robinthestate6548]

My favorite characters were him and Zemo. Zemo just stole the show.

[@workingman9019]

I like how Lamar was giving sam and bucky a go to hell look outside the jail. Also the scene in the jeep was funny! "I got mad respect for both of you, but you were kinda getting your asses kicked until we showed up."

[@reddjustaguy1598]

Steve would not have approved of the way Falcon and Bucky treated Walker.

[@louisduarte8763]

5:44 According to another video about Walker I watched, nope, that guy was not surrendering. He didn't outright say "I surrender" or have his hands in the right positions. Also, that guy held John back while Karli killed Lemar. That's why John holds ALL the Flagsmashers at fault. 8:19 As I read in other comments under other videos , the government throwing Walker under the bus just to keep up appearances is very realistic. What I don't think is realistic is the government not ignoring an angry Twitter mob. 10:57 And I hope USAgent gets his own shield, like he does in the comics.

[@jorgerincon6874]

I didn't get the backlash either for killing a terrorist, a terrorist who had a body count by the way, so no "oh hes just confused and needs guidance" like they portrayed some of the Skrulls. Captain America has killed a bunch of dudes. Hawkeye and Black widow specially. Hell Iron man in his first movie took down an entire terrorist organization by killing them

[@gigeorge6sic6]

He looks like the old guy from UP when he’s wearing the Cap helmet

[@joscar062]

When he doesn't have the stubble

[@Paxchi]

"Both of [Tony and Walker's] choices are wrong." I'll have to disagree with you there. Tony was attacking Bucky unprovoked for something Buck did while under mind control. Tony was going to murder someone who had really done nothing wrong of his own volition. Tony was also in the Iron Man armor which gave him an immense physical advantage over Bucky, to where it was only Steve and Bucky's teamwork and some luck that allowed Steve to beat Tony. John was trying to take out a terrorist who had just participated in murdered his best friend. Not only that, the terrorist had willingly committed numerous atrocities, including the murder of innocents. The guy also did not surrender, he was holding up his hands defensively, but he was actively trying to escape and fighting back when possible. The guy was also a super soldier who was just as powerful as John was. What John did would likely be labeled "executing an enemy combatant". As someone who generally prefers superheroes to not kill unless they have no other option, I don't like that John killed the Flagsmasher. But I don't know that it was essentially wrong for him to do it within the confines of that situation. It would have been more admirable for him to spare the guy, but within that situation it's actually understandable. Much more so than what Tony was trying to do. And to be fair, Sam actually kills way, way more people throughout the show than John does.

[@eliben4066]

This is what I was trying to tell everyone, why doesn’t this have more views?

[@moviebarfs5912]

Thanks for watching! Walker was kinda over-hated and under-appreciated

[@eliben4066]

@@moviebarfs5912 Yeah, he does not deserve the hate he got. Marvel probably wanted that reaction tho, really well-written character. Love the guy!

[@Wolffman109]

Unfortunately, a lot of people are too swept up in the glamorous music to notice the millions of flaws in this show. I've seen other TFATWS videos make barely any views or comments, even though they're spot-on like this one was.

[@stevejohnson4526]

This was well done, congrats.

[@moviebarfs5912]

Thank you Sir 😉

[@jamesturpin9091]

The fact that a seasoned veteran with an impeccable and impressive service record while trying to maintain professionalism and fill shoes he doesnt feel qualified to is somehow the imposter. Then him killing a terrorist that had killed innocents while blinded by murder of his best friend and comrade makes him evil? I would do the same thing.

[@iceman7763]

Loved John Walker. Best character in the show. Hope MCU uses him in a movie

[@meridiantelekoms]

Not a better antagonist but a better hero.

[@mrgodzillaraptors8632]

Keep in mind that the terrorist guy literally surrenders the moment he is out of any options. He wasn’t sorry whatsoever and was basically just trying to save his ass.

[@popejpv]

Carly and The Flag Smashers sounds like a great punk band name

[@trestcone7344]

I feel that you really can appreciate John without a pair of military tinted goggles. My man's was given a mission and a roe, caps old friends were actively interfering in the mission but he was still trying to work with them, in the end the active terrorist took a us soilder hostage changing the mission from capture to straight up kill, the so called surrendering terrorist was an no way making a clear surrender and he acted within the limits of his roe

[@whattheduck8244]

When john kills a terrorist he is made a villan ,when iron man does it he is a hero .

[@slackstarfish8133]

People who hated John Walker in this show clearly have no idea what makes a character well written

[@DivineEnclave22]

Wish he would’ve had more fight scenes with the serum but I really hope he gets a series not a movie

[@daniellledogil1506]

The weapons IS more a Disney thing, they want It to be as family friendly and that kind of thing IS a Big no

[@en6853]

John was absolutely the best character in this show. The writers done their absolute best to make him unlikeable. Didn’t work at all. The show overall was shit

[@RandomCorvid]

FatWS framed in another way: Sam and Bucky bullying and acting like children to a guy who is just trying to do the right thing.

[@thepunisherbot8548]

I Love John walker he just reminds me of myself

[@DougieYT]

While i wasn't a fan of Walker in this show, i could feel bad for him in some parts, Like when Buck pretty much shitted on him and told him he'd never amount to Steve Rogers, and if this show wanted antagonists, they should've just got one of Cap's old enemies from the comics and twist around the origin a little bit since Cap is elderly now

[@NephritduGrey]

How do you arrest a super soldier (neither innocent nor defenseless) while you are alone, just had your best buddy killed, and two a-holes ex-heroes who despise you out of jealousy hence won't be any meaningful help, plus the other super soldiers on the lose who tried to kill you earlier and may do so again? Walker did nothing wrong with ending the terrorist threat.

[@fortcastellan1730]

If Walker was 'wrong,' what was the 'right' solution? How was he supposed to take a super-soldier prisoner? Handcuffs? That wouldn't restrain a super-soldier, nor make him less dangerous. So, Walker could either arrest the murder and trust him to willingly remain a prisoner and not attempt to escape...or restrain him by breaking his arms and choking him out. Yeah, I'm sure that would have been treated so much better by the audience....

[@TWID101]

Do you know how hard it is to shoot to immobilize its really hard

[@Xumenade]

The dude John killed was not an unarmed civilian and perhaps not even a non-combatant- when you can lift a car overhead you are always armed and dangerous, effectively, and it's clear the flag smasher would have fought more or escaped if had any option to whatsoever; it's also probable that if John had hesitated that the flag smasher would have taken advantage of it to escape. It wasn't surrender, it was a combat casualty. Also later, "hey you look like you are in the middle of a ptsd response after a highly traumatic event, which I have a lengthy pre-Avengers career in recognizing and helping with others- Bucky here also knows a lot about what that's like, about the difficulty of integrating the complicated and awful emotions from a violence-addled career. Looks like somebody needs an ass kicking."

[@hunterackerman1697]

Ah man, now I wish they didn't kill Batroc in the end and then have a spin off series where U.S. Agent fights high profile, non-Avengers level threats. People like Rumlow, Batroc, I don't think the guy from Iron Man is dead, people like that, out of the public eye.

[@scottstephenson724]

“Shoot to immobilize” lol

[@cybertramon0012]

Given how Walker says he’s just trying to be the best Captain America he can be and considers the events that earned him his medals of honour as the worst days of his life, I get the strong feeling he didn’t volunteer to be Cap. It’s very likely the government hose him and just told him he’s Captain America now. And the Captain is a symbol; he’s a representation of America itself. A bit like the Statue of Liberty or Uncle Sam. And it doesn’t look good if he doesn’t succeed at his missions, or needs to be rescued by others all the time. Because it reflects badly on America if their best isn’t all the great. Plus there’s the fact that even if Steve wasn’t the strongest person in the room, he could handle himself or give people orders, and everyone respected and listened to him. Bucky and Sam don’t respect him because of a decision the government made; the Flag Smasher sympathiser probably wouldn’t have spat at Steve; and as pointed out the Wakandans just seem arrogant acting like they can go anywhere and definitely overreacted to him touching them. And then of course was the moment Lamar was killed. Walker’s best friend was killed before him, trying to save his life. You see Walker act like Lamar was simply knocked out, until he realised that he was straight up dead. Of course he’s going to lose it. Of course he’s going to start smashing the first Flag Smasher he sees to the point of killing them. That’s a normal human reaction. But of course, the show treats it like police brutality because since we, the audience, are supposed to think the Flag Smashers aren’t completely bad, we’re supposed to see the death as tragic. The show treats Walker like he’s gone insane. But as they also show later, once he’s had a chance to really process his grief and calm down, he’s still a good person. Basically, the show treats Walker like he’s unfit to be Captain America because he has normal human flaws, a trait I am very tired of. Too many works seem to think that if you’re flawed, you’re not really good until the world has hammered those flaws down. No one’s without flaws of some kind; Tony had done a similar thing to Walker when he blamed Sam for Rhodey getting shot down in Civil War.

[@prateekkhanna5540]

9:46 i think they took that route to set him up as a person who thinks he is righteous but he was wronged by the system......that is in line with the Thunderbolts line up that Disney has already announced Ghost, Taskmaster, Red Guardian, Yelena, Bucky and now Walker......they are all kinda good guys who were wronged by the organisations they worked for I think that is something that will come up in Thunderbolts I also believe that Thunderbolts are not the suicide squad of the MCU, none of them are full blown villains who'll be forced to do some job for Valentina/government.....I think they were all manipulated to act as a villain by different organisations and they'll be looking to do something good with their gifts, willingly But they'll turn once they realize they are being tricked "again", none of that "you don't follow my orders, you die" bullshit

[@haydengoodall6767]

And in his spare time, John Walker was also a gold medal winning, World record setting, middle distance running Olympian from New Zealand during the 1970s and 80s.(also famous for his long, flowing brown locks).

[@rbiznezz2]

Loved John Walker, I always found him to be a sympathetic character.

[@nicholasmartins3030]

So what Steve killed people on World War II and in the avengers and why complain and acuse John walker ?

[@yuboikai1646]

John Walker is the best character in phase 4

[@Talsedoom]

Marvel tried to make a villain people gonna hate. Instead this guy turned out to be the only good guy in the show. And Marvel still don't get it why audience loves him.

[@peterattilaradivojevics5645]

I've steped out of the MCU years ago. But every time I hear someone talk about this show Im just getting more convinced that Steve made the wrong choice. Falcom gets the shield, becomes Cap.A. cool. Than he promises Steve that he will do what he can to become worhty of it. Than they take the shield away from him and suddenly that promise means nothing. He immediatly casts away everything Cap.A. stands for soley because hes own ego. Hes not compassionate, cooperative, goal oriented, protects the weak the best way he can. No. He just does everything he can to make someone elses job harder. Thats not being Captain America, thats just being an asshole.

[@damonknight2494]

the only reason the terrorist surrendered was because they had no way out of the situation, minutes before he killed his friend and the terrorists are known to kill people indiscriminately, captain america killed hundreds of people and people calls him a hero, john did the right thing

[@rithycheyhangsoth3413]

Thank you for the video

[@moviebarfs5912]

Thanks for watching!

[@Zhello79]

MCU's John Walker reminds me of that one US Marine (Cole) from Battlefield 3 when you had to choose to help the Russian soldier (Dima) in order to save New York or attack a fellow marine, Cole.

[@pamalamadingdong6428]

Thank you for this.

[@moviebarfs5912]

My pleasure!

[@rob2540]

without this guy the show would have been a sleeper

[@addy3164]

My favorite character from FatWS, can't wait to see his comeback in Thunderbolts

[@sergentsnugglemuffin1543]

Nice work mate

[@moviebarfs5912]

thanks! Great name btw

[@Northoid]

i like john walker but i dont prefer him as captain america, hes just an interesting character to me as he tried his best to be a hero but in his search he became a villain

[@tiffanyroberts6460]

And Sam Wilson told a US Senator to be nice to terrorists, that’s what I call a villain.

[@centipedekid9824]

@@tiffanyroberts6460 Ikr. Sam wants them to negotiate with a teenage emotion, super soldier, terrorist.

[@coder9928]

John was never a villain. An imperfect soldier yes but not evil in any way.

[@tiffanyroberts6460]

@@coder9928 he’s a true American hero who fought to defend his country and was demonised for it,

[@coder9928]

@@tiffanyroberts6460 Yes. "Poor terrorists boohoo". Falcon and the Winter Soldiers gives a terrible message. Soldiers are bad but mass murdering terrorists have a point...

[@aaronchung8059]

I don't think we should make him the beware captain America especially because of the source material but he makes a great protagonist when the writers aren't sabotaging his character

[@alexandersilva3327]

9:22 lol i loved what u did here

[@djinconroe]

"Flag Smashers",,,, Makes me laugh every time I hear it. That's the best the writers could come up with?

[@samuelwoodouse4482]

Man these videos really make it sound like John walker would have been a great captain america