Falcon And The Winter Soldier: 5 U.S. Agent Comic Characteristics The MCU Got Right (& 5 They Ignored)

As much as The Falcon And The Winter Soldier was about the journey of Sam Wilson from being the Falcon to the new Captain America, it’s also about John Walker’s evolution from Captain America to being the U.S. Agent. This follows his arc in the comics, but the show didn’t take everything from the original source material.

FATWS was very faithful to the general story of John Walker from the original Marvel Comics storyline from the mid-80s, but key details were left out or revised. Some of them were easily and understandably left to the side, but others are arguably missed opportunities for longtime comic book readers.

10 Got It Wrong: The Super-Patriot

One of the biggest changes from the comics to the Marvel Cinematic Universe for John Walker is how he’s introduced. Fans first meet him in the MCU as a veteran, already appointed as the replacement Captain America. When comic book readers met him in 1986 in Captain America #323, he was a supervillain, the Super-Patriot.

Walker first appears as an antagonist. He publicly questions Captain America’s motives and actions, as well as those of the U.S. government. He is then attacked in public by the Bold Urban Commandos, but readers quickly discovered it was all a ruse on the part of Walker.

9 Got It Right: Appointed Captain America

In both the comics and the MCU, John Walker is appointed by the government to replace Steve Rogers as Captain America. Walker became one of the most important versions of Captain America after Rogers stepped down from the role in disgust.

He declines the change that forces him to report directly to the Commission on Superhuman Activities, not wanting to become a political tool. The Commission then appoints Walker as his replacement. In the MCU, the commission that appoints Walker is less defined than in the comics.

8 Got It Wrong: The Power Broker Gave Him His Powers

Both John Walker and the Bold Urban Commandos were members of the Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation. In fact, the attack at the rally in Central Park was a classic wrestling kayfabe. The ruse is the ultimate work of The Power Broker, a villainous operator who is also responsible for giving Walker his powers.

John Walker gets his powers from the Power Broker in a roundabout way in the MCU thanks to a vial of Super Soldier Serum, but in the comics, it’s much more of a direct relationship.

7 Got It Right: Violtile Personality

The MCU does a great job of humanizing John Walker, perhaps more so than the initial comic books, but one thing both got right is Walker’s volatile personality. In the MCU, Walker’s anger and frustration seem to be a product of his time in battle whereas in the comics it’s less well defined.

Walker’s tendency to use violence as his ultimate solution to every problem largely derails his career as Captain America. During his tenure, he kills a number of members of the supervillain group the Watchdogs, including the Left-Winger and Right-Winger, who had tried to join the Bold Urban Commandos.

6 Got It Wrong: Bold Urban Commandos

The Bold Urban Commandos, or BUCs as they were also known in the comics, play a big role in the origin of John Walker. In the MCU, they don’t exist at all. Walker’s past with the wrestling federation and the Super-Patriot persona has been completely excised for the MCU, and along with them the BUCs.

All of them had enhanced strength and stamina via The Power Broker. After Walker became Captain America in the comics, their utility quickly became irrelevant, with one lone exception.

5 Got It Right: Partners With Battlestar

John Walker’s friend and partner Lemar Hoskins is the one holdover from the comics out of the Bold Urban Commandos. Lemar teamed up with Walker as the superhero Battlestar, just as he does in the MCU, though his journey to that point was different.

Lemar was originally an alternate version of Bucky, adopting the name and costume of the classic Captain America sidekick. Concerns about the historical association of the name with African-American men led writer Mark Gruenwald to give him his own superhero identity.

4 Got It Wrong: Tragic Family Backstory

In the MCU, not much is known about John Walker’s immediate family outside of his wife. In the comics, readers discovered quite a bit and it became very tragic. Both his mother and father are killed by the Watchdogs, and Walker actually misses their funeral due to his obligations as Captain America.

This grief and trauma pile on his already fragile state and leads him down a darker and darker path that ends with Steve Rogers taking the shield back from him and becoming Captain America again.

3 Got It Right: Fights Sam Wilson

In the MCU, Sam Wilson and John Walker fight each other over the fate of Karli Morgenthau and the Flag-Smashers. Also at stake is the fate and legacy of Captain America. The two battle it out in the comics as well and had a major battle during Sam’s tenure as Captain America during the Civil War II storyline.

Sam faces a great deal of public pressure to step down from being Captain America. Keane Industries, the company the Americops private police force Sam is fighting, asks John Walker to ask Wilson to resign. This leads to a huge knockout brawl between the two. Sam wins with some help from his avian friends, with who he can communicate in the comics.

2 Got It Wrong: His Death Is Faked

In the MCU, John Walker is publicly shamed and humiliated for his brutal attack on a member of the Flag-Smashers. In the comics, his exit from the role of Captain America is much more violent.

John Walker is assassinated in public at a press conference where Steve Rogers announces his return as Captain America. This is later revealed to be a ruse like the one that inaugurated his career.  Walker’s handler General Haywerth fakes his death in public in an effort to give the disgraced Walker a new identity.

1 Got It Right: Becomes The U.S. Agent

Both the MCU and the comics are in alignment when it comes to what happens to John Walker next. Though the circumstances are different, after his exit as Captain America, Walker becomes the U.S. Agent. Walker was rehabilitated in the comics and went on working for the commission with his new identity.

He adopted a new black and red costume and a vibranium shield. He would then go on to join the West Coast Avengers, one of the best Avengers rosters ever. His volatile personality led to a lot of friction with the rest of the group and he was on his own again after a few years.

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