The Falcon and the Winter Soldier

One of the weakest contributions to the MCU since 2008. The main characters are likeable, unfortunately in a completely dull series and pathetically narrated story. The quality of some of the episodes is average, but most of them are downright terrible. It absolutely doesn't work as a whole, and the story is built up in such a way that it doesn't get interesting for even a second. The characters’ actions, their motivations and story twists, everything is so predictable and sloppy that I am surprised that the big shots at Marvel signed off on it at all. It may have had the ambition to come close to the atmosphere of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, but that begins and ends with the visual style of the closing credits. WandaVision was a slightly above average series which at least had a decent amount of originality, but this work is truly a waste of time. If you keep track of all the MCU releases, you’ll probably watch this one, too. But if you mainly watch movies, you may as well skip these 6 episodes. You won’t miss out on anything important. (23.04.2021)

As an expansion to the Marvel Universe, it’s fine. I would call it an add-on that doesn't offend, it presents some new features and gadgets, but I wouldn't call it very exciting or, God forbid, a full-fledged movie, although it has its bright moments. The action is OK for a series, the visual effects are passable (except for a few minor things) and it has the drive and dynamism we've come to expect from Marvel. There is not much to say about the story, it does have a main plot, but the large number of characters and their confrontations in various situations are far more interesting. I’d be fine with a sequel, but it’s not necessary. (02.05.2021)

Action isn’t everything. I’m willing to turn a blind eye to a very poor story rewritten from bioterrorist threat to non-Covid running around Prague, but not to the amateurish directing. I often didn’t understand how the scenes followed each other, who is where and why they do what they do. Mackie is transformed from the likeable Falcon into an unlikeable moralist and unfortunately the writers change him too quickly, sometime in the gap between the last two episodes. Much more interesting is the genesis of U.S. Agent. Bucky’s transformation into a good guy revolves around someone’s grandpa and a notebook with a list of crossed out names. And the formerly excellent Zemo becomes a comic book caricature again. Better screenwriters, better directors. They also need some help with the action scenes: the actors and special effects can’t do it alone. P.S.: GRC is a really dumb abbreviation. (23.04.2021)

I was skeptical about WandaVision because it literally made me suffer from boredom, but thankfully The Falcon and The Winter Soldier already resembles Marvel more and the creators finally realized that Marvel should be action-packed, which this series undoubtedly is. At times, I felt like I was watching a sequel to Captain America, which I consider the best Marvel movie after The Avengers because it stays grounded. So, instead of magic and sci-fi worlds, my favorite martial art and fights on PG-13 get the spotlight, and they are surprisingly solid and sometimes unexpectedly gritty. The development of The Falcon (those who have seen it know) is satisfying, the new Captain America on the scene is cool, the Winter Soldier seemed a bit underutilized, I felt like he almost didn't use his arm at all and kicked more often, but whatever, and Baron Zemo and the visit from Wakanda definitely pleased me. Each episode is action-packed and there aren't so many conversational passages that would make me bored. It's entertaining and nicely shot. Although the villains are weak again (the biggest weakness of Marvel is confirmed here as well), it didn't bother me that much. It's definitely a step forward from Wanda and I hope Loki will blow everyone away! 7/10. (27.04.2021)

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier works almost perfectly in terms of action and offers more than one imaginative (albeit slightly overdone here and there) sequence that both thrills and excites. In terms of the story, however, I often had a hard time accepting and believing the motivations of the "bad guys", which was certainly helped by the (to me) exceedingly unlikeable casting. Of the storylines, Bucky's therapy sessions and the return of Zemo and the Wakandans appealed to me the most. I found Falcon to be vastly unbalanced and far too "American", while John Walker just went almost completely out of my head throughout (except perhaps at the end of episode 4). Along with action and sci-fi adventure, the series tries to highlight (not only) contemporary issues (racial discrimination, "powerless individual" x "all-powerful government", terrorism, etc.), which it only half succeeds in doing. The series doesn't outright offend, but it doesn't impress either - especially after the genre-bending WandaVision. (25.04.2021)