Captain America: Is There A New Cap Coming to the MCU?

rWith Steve Rodgers turning over the Captain America mantle, there was a huge void behind the shield. He’d pass on his legacy to Sam Wilson aka Falcon and not his lifelong friend Bucky Barnes, better known as The Winter Soldier. With many fans upset that the MCU set up a huge transition for Bucky to take over for Cap, it never happened, and for good reason.

The obvious choice was always Sam over Bucky. Captain America isn’t just a superhero out here beating up bad guys because he can. The character has always been the one to stand up for the little guy, put his own life on the line, and stand in the way of evil. That “All-American, good ol boy” persona that has existed in the world is in large part due to the history of Steve Rodgers as Captain America.

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In Falcon and the Winter Soldier, we see those same qualities in Sam as we did in Steve, but he doesn’t seem to want it. Despite Bucky’s rehabilitation from the Winter Soldier program, Cap still chose Sam. Maybe he didn’t want that life for Bucky, knowing everything he’s been through and knowing what the mantle holds. After Civil War, he knows just how much pressure being the leader brings and there’s a good chance he feels his lifelong friend deserves to be at peace. Sam is a great fit to take up the shield because Steve knew he’d “do the right thing”.

But maybe the right thing isn’t for Sam to remain Captain America. While he possesses that same fight and heart that Steve did, he doesn’t seem to feel comfortable in the leadership role. Even at the end of Falcon and the Winter Soldier when he accepts his fate we have to wonder how long it will last. Could Sam be chosen to hold the position until he finds a replacement himself? If there’s anyone out there who knows the toll of being Captain America more than Steve, it’s Sam. He’s had Steve Rodger’s back almost as much as the shield itself.

Knowing that Sam wouldn’t be long for the role of Captain America, was he chosen because he’d know exactly what it takes to fill that role? He could just as easily turn it over to Bucky, but even he knows it’s not his journey to make, but there is already a character we’ve met who could take up that role. In Falcon and the Winter Soldier, we meet Isiah Bradley, a super soldier himself. At his age, his best days are behind him, but we do meet another character related to him who could fit the mold, his grandson Eli Bradley.

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Little is known about Eli. However, it doesn’t take a genius to see how he could be set up as the next Captain America. As was stated before, Captain America always sticks up for the little guy. From the outside looking in, Eli has a front-row seat to how the world treats good men. For the majority of the series, we see just how much Sam has to struggle to take up the shield. It’s the exact same way the world would have reacted knowing there was an African American super soldier and why Isiah was kept so secret.

No matter how good these men were they weren’t accepted. No matter who they looked to save, it wasn’t enough. Eli has a front-row seat to a world that sets unrealistic standards for good men to be great.

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.

He’s witnessed the torment that both his grandfather and Sam had to shoulder to be accepted. But there’s one scene that stands out. When Elihe refused to let Bucky and Sam enter his home to speak with his grandfather. While it might be a throw-away scene to some, it portrays him as that protector.

Eli stands up to a would-be threat despite being outnumbered and outmatched. It sounds very Captain America of him. At the show’s end, they take a tour of the Captain America exhibit and Isiah’s part in it. It’s in that moment we could be seeing Eli learn just how much the role means. He’s seen how the world has treated good men. Now is seeing what it means to be a good man himself.

Sam might have taken on the role because he thought that’s what Steve would’ve wanted. However, in the end, he probably had an idea Sam wouldn’t want it and would eventually pass it on. Did Steve Rodgers hand over the shield knowing he wasn’t going to be around? Was Sam always a temporary solution? Did he know Sam would find the right man for the job?