What would you have done with Bucky?

[JudicatorPrime]

The pairing of Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes (as former side-kicks of Steve Rogers) always felt right.

Except, technically Sam was never Steve's sidekick. He was Steve's partner. They were meant to be equals. But that's not the perception, and it has always been what is wrong with how Sam has been portrayed, even from the most progressive of writers.

I really hope that the Falcon and the Winter Soldier doesn't turn into some kind of sidekick palooza. Both characters deserve better.

[Alan2099]

I think the biggest problem with Bucky is that everything about him, there's a character at Marvel with a bigger name and longer publishing history who does the same thing. Bucky's a soldier....just like Cap. He's a spy/assassin....just like Nat. He's got a long history full of bad stuff and he's trying to do better....just like Logan. So if you want a Bucky book to do well and stand out, you gotta reach beyond the base character. That, or just accept that the book won't offer anything readers can't find with more well known heroes, which isn't a position you really want to be stuck in.

Gun toting cyborg with a mysterious past from another era, we got Cable.

Heck, Winter Soldier isn't even the first gun toting burnt out anti-hero who used to be Bucky. We had Nomad before that. I actually preferred Nomad. Winter Soldier retcons the original Bucky into something he wasn't and undoes his death.

[Spidey5640]

Exactly this. I’ve always thought the same...The stories are right there ready and waiting, it seems a big waste that no ones yet jumped on it.

Agree. Why would either Bucky or Natasha trust ANY government outfit based on their histories? No way would they be on a team with others they don't know. They're two loners and for good reasons. Cap may be the one person they trust but that's it. They should be the good guys who trust NO ONE. Operate independent and on the cusp of the law.

[jackolover]

Except, technically Sam was never Steve's sidekick. He was Steve's partner. They were meant to be equals. But that's not the perception, and it has always been what is wrong with how Sam has been portrayed, even from the most progressive of writers.

I really hope that the Falcon and the Winter Soldier doesn't turn into some kind of sidekick palooza. Both characters deserve better.

I didn’t mean for their pairing to mean a sidekick palooza, just that Sam and Bucky have a common factor in Steve Rogers to their experience. Sort of like brothers.

In a pinch, I’d put Sam Wilson in the Invaders with Namor and Torch, because the brothers feel resonates with Sam and Bucky, like it does with Namor and Bucky.

[Chris0013]

Except, technically Sam was never Steve's sidekick. He was Steve's partner. They were meant to be equals. But that's not the perception, and it has always been what is wrong with how Sam has been portrayed, even from the most progressive of writers.

I really hope that the Falcon and the Winter Soldier doesn't turn into some kind of sidekick palooza. Both characters deserve better.

Like when he showed up in the Luke Cage led Mighty Avengers and everyone was like "Where's Cap?" and Sam is like "My first name is not Captain America and..."

[Thundershot]

In the decades I’ve read comics, there were always three deaths that mattered and shouldn’t be undone.

Uncle Ben
Thunderbird
Bucky

Bucky has been back for a while. Thunderbird is likely coming back because of the current X-Men status quo. That just leaves Uncle Ben...

[Chris0013]

In the decades I’ve read comics, there were always three deaths that mattered and shouldn’t be undone.

Uncle Ben
Thunderbird
Bucky

Bucky has been back for a while. Thunderbird is likely coming back because of the current X-Men status quo. That just leaves Uncle Ben...

I think he is back....

[Thundershot]

He may have been in a crowd scene, but one would think they’d make a bigger deal out of the first X-Man to die coming back... (not counting Vulcan’s crew)

[ARkadelphia]

In the decades I’ve read comics, there were always three deaths that mattered and shouldn’t be undone.

Uncle Ben
Thunderbird
Bucky

Bucky has been back for a while. Thunderbird is likely coming back because of the current X-Men status quo. That just leaves Uncle Ben...

Uncle Ben is NOT coming back. Hell, they taking his rice off the market.

[JudicatorPrime]

Like when he showed up in the Luke Cage led Mighty Avengers and everyone was like "Where's Cap?" and Sam is like "My first name is not Captain America and..."

Exactly. Sam getting the shield and mantle only to give it right back to Steve was the clincher. Marvel can be frustratingly counterproductive. Almost as frustrating as the Republicans who claim to admire and honor the life of Civil Rights icons, but who are doing everything in their power to keep the voter suppression that the icons railed against very much alive today. The only way Sam would have a fair chance at being his own hero would be for him to die and come back as someone else; something else. The damage is done.

Ironically, that's what they're doing for Bucky. Must be nice.

[JudicatorPrime]

I didn’t mean for their pairing to mean a sidekick palooza, just that Sam and Bucky have a common factor in Steve Rogers to their experience. Sort of like brothers.

In a pinch, I’d put Sam Wilson in the Invaders with Namor and Torch, because the brothers feel resonates with Sam and Bucky, like it does with Namor and Bucky.

I get what you're saying. I'm just on edge, because once again it looks like Sam is being pulled into the intense gravitational field that is Steve Roger's story and mythos. And yes, Sam teaming up with Bucky is just that. Same would be true if he joined the Invaders.

Sam was supposed to be his own man, but the only time that he's ever been free of Captain America recently was (1.) when he himself took on the mantle of Captain America, and (2.) as Bucky's co-star. Why'd they bother giving him wings, if he's never going to be free? Steve's last name should have been Casta-Longshadow, because whether he knows it or not, he does just that.

I know the TV series is due out eventually, so I'm trying to keep an open mind. But I am so ready for Sam to have his own stories that don't involve Steve, or anyone associated with Steve. Like Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp, Sam needs a chance to build his own individual legend before he teams up with someone who is also, in his own way, a legend.

[Kaled]

I think Marvel is missing a chance at having the own version of Jason Bourne with Bucky. He is perfect for spy/espionage stories. Yes we have Black Widow but I feel Marvel has only just started playing her in the spy world just in the last few years. He could explored the crime underworld and go where other characters could not. He could go undercover similar to the Shroud and work to defeat them from within. That at times could put him at odds with other Marvel Heroes.

[Frontier]

I get what you're saying. I'm just on edge, because once again it looks like Sam is being pulled into the intense gravitational field that is Steve Roger's story and mythos. And yes, Sam teaming up with Bucky is just that. Same would be true if he joined the Invaders.

Sam was supposed to be his own man, but the only time that he's ever been free of Captain America recently was (1.) when he himself took on the mantle of Captain America, and (2.) as Bucky's co-star. Why'd they bother giving him wings, if he's never going to be free? Steve's last name should have been Casta-Longshadow, because whether he knows it or not, he does just that.

I know the TV series is due out eventually, so I'm trying to keep an open mind. But I am so ready for Sam to have his own stories that don't involve Steve, or anyone associated with Steve. Like Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp, Sam needs a chance to build his own individual legend before he teams up with someone who is also, in his own way, a legend.

He was created for the Captain America book and stories so I feel like it's kind of difficult to divorce him from the franchise. Him being Cap and teaming-up with Bucky is an extension of that.

It's like expecting Agent 13 to be a major player outside the Cap books when (much as I love Sharon) she's a Cap supporting character at the end of the day.

[JudicatorPrime]

He was created for the Captain America book and stories so I feel like it's kind of difficult to divorce him from the franchise. Him being Cap and teaming-up with Bucky is an extension of that.

It's like expecting Agent 13 to be a major player outside the Cap books when (much as I love Sharon) she's a Cap supporting character at the end of the day.

If that's the case, they should kill off Sam. He'll never be able to outgrow Steve's shadow.

[disillusion386]

If that's the case, they should kill off Sam. He'll never be able to outgrow Steve's shadow.

That's a bit extreme. I understand your frustration, but there will just be some characters who will always play supporting or team player roles. It doesn't mean they should be killed off just because they can't get out of the lead character's shadow. Having said that, it just takes one writer's outstanding idea that actually sells books to get beyond that.