Falcon & Winter Soldier Makes Hawkeye Much Worse Than Bucky

The attention Bucky Barnes’ time as the Winter Soldier has gotten in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier makes Clint Barton, most famously known as the original Avenger “Hawkeye”, seem like a much more ruthless assassin. Bucky Barnes has gone through some intense psychological pain from several decades of being brainwashed by HYDRA. He committed many heinous crimes like murdering Tony Stark’s parents, but as The Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 4 revealed, his torment came to an end when he broke free from his mental programming in Wakanda.

Time and again, the MCU has proven that superhero battles come with a high price tag. The Sokovia Accords were established in order to hold superheroes accountable for the collateral damage their actions often entail, which usually involves catastrophic chain reactions, such as Tony Stark’s wish to protect the world resulting in the rise of Ultron, whose rebellion in turn resulted in the destruction of Sokovia and Baron Zemo’s revenge. Zemo then succeeded in splitting the Avengers apart and made it easier for Thanos to retrieve the Infinity Stones. Even Steve Rogers’ early adventures as Captain America had him witness the supposed death of his best friend, Bucky Barnes, back in WWII.

Unfortunately for Steve, Bucky resurfaced as a brainwashed killing machine. The Winter Soldier became infamous for his ruthlessness, but even though Bucky was the titular main villain in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, he managed to clear his name and turning his life around, to the point of earning a spot in popular tributes to the Avengers, as seen in Spider-Man: Far From Home. The opening scene in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier episode 3 showed just how painful Bucky’s time as the Winter Soldier really was, with him breaking down in tears at the realization that he can’t be manipulated to become the Winter Soldier anymore.

Before the events of Avengers: Endgame, Clint Barton traveled to Japan and hunted down criminals in a particularly brutal way. As the sword-wielding Ronin, Hawkeye adopted a Punisher-like persona out of his own volition and decided to direct the pain of losing his family to Thanos’ snap toward taking justice into his own hands. This was a sensible reason for Hawkeye to sacrifice himself at Vormir, and he did confess to Black Widow that his death would help him atone for what he had done. Besides, Clint will have a chance to redeem himself in the upcoming Hawkeye Disney+ show. But still, Hawkeye actively pursued what Bucky Barnes so desperately tried to leave in the past, even as a mode of catharsis.

Both Bucky Barnes and Clint Barton have left their Winter Soldier and Ronin identities behind. Although their malicious deeds still come up to bother them, they have taken the first steps to have a clearer conscience. While Clint passes on the torch to Kate Bishop and Echo in Hawkeye, Bucky defends the Captain America legacy in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

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