The Moment That Defined Why Steve Rogers Is CAPTAIN AMERICA And Why John Walker Isn't | Falcon And The Winter Soldier

Falcon And The Winter Soldier is very much set around the battle for the shield. It’s a symbol with a long legacy that has had a lot of controversy surrounding it. The item is something that can be used as both a means of defence and as a weapon and because of this it really brings out the personality of the person behind it.

Steve Rogers and John Walker are both people that have portrayed the mantle of Captain America and though they share a lot of similarities the pair have one defining moment that shows why one was the true version whilst the other was a failure.

We’re gonna be breaking it all down in this post, but if you haven’t seen episode 4 of Falcon And The Winter Soldier then I highly recommend that you click away now. If you have, let’s get into the moment that defined why Steve Rogers is Captain America and why John Walker isn’t.

Similarities

Steve and John share a lot of similarities. Both were picked by the government to perform as pieces of propaganda that would help to solidify America’s stance in the world. Whereas Steve was a symbol of the country during the second world war, John signifies police solidarity and this is shown in the black and white flag that he bears.

This is a symbol of that movement and clearly, the pair were picked to perform certain roles for the US.

They have several characteristics that line up with one another and both have performed acts such as diving on grenades, attending performances and tracking down terrorists.

The pair even look alike and it’s clear that Walker was picked as a means to reassure America that they were safe after the snap completely devastated the planet.

Their Differences

However, there is one moment that both carried out which showed their differences. For Steve, this comes at the end of Captain America Civil War and for Walker, it comes at the end of episode four of Falcon In The Winter Soldier.

Walking Away

For context, Steve has just spent the entire film fighting through thick and thin to protect his friend Bucky. He’s also however fighting for freedom and to stop the government from taking control of The Avengers so that they can decide who they can and can’t help.

Both these sides are symbolised by Tony Stark who not only signed the Sokovia Accords, but at this point wants to kill Bucky because he murdered his parents.

The fight is absolutely brutal but Cap pushes through and manages to beat Tony. He pummels him with his shield which is a moment that you should pay attention to as it returns later on with Walker. Cap could easily kill Tony and he almost does but instead, he spares his life and abandons the shield in order to go on to become the Nomad.

The shield very much symbolises America and it was also made by Tony’s father. He casts this to the side to show that he doesn’t want to carry it anymore and this defines that Steve will not cross over the line to retain the mantle.

Thus he truly deserves to be Captain America because he is willing to question whether he’s even right for the role.

Brutal Murder

Now flip over to John Walker who too has one of his mortal enemies in a vulnerable position.

Walker represents order and the man is symbolic of a police state that enforces oppression on those who do not fall in line. This is given lip service by the enactment of the patch act which we discover in the show calls for tighter borders and control.

Whereas Steve was about freedom, Walker clearly isn’t and he thinks that people should fall in line. Walker is willing to kill for it and he slams down the shield whereas Steve didn’t.

This is because Steve is able to see things from all sides and he would rather have a debate that he loses over stamping down the opposition simply because he doesn’t agree with them.

That simply isn’t the case with Walker and whereas Steve stayed his hand, Walker drives down the shield to kill his enemy.