skygiants

well, first of all, I think the Falcon was just about as thematically important (speaking of people who share life experiences, speaking of soldiering parallels)

I loved the Falcon, but I don't see anywhere near that level of thematic intertwinedness in his storyline. There's a reason Pierce's line, "Your work has been a gift to mankind" and so on, is juxtaposed in the trailer against images of Cap. Winter Soldier is the direct flipside of the coin, the dark parallell of Steve's story every step of the way (including the ice). The political plot would be nowhere near as effective if Winter Soldier hadn't shown exactly what kind of world they're aiming for, what their idea of a supersoldier is.

And for Steve personally, so much of his storyline is about what he's lost, how his world is irrevocably gone. Bucky's appearance is a glimpse of hope, that's twisted beyond recognition because Winter Soldier can't connect with him personally anymore, and has become a representation of everything he detests politically.

Sam's a badass and a great friend, but pretty much the only scenes that are relevant to Sam's story are the ones he's in. Bucky's story is all over the film. Even in some of Sam's scenes, like when he talks about how he lost his wingman.

IDK, this is so frustrating, because I feel like I can't properly articulate a pattern that is so obvious to me in terms of how the story is set up, and so masterful, and it's just... not there for most people.

It's a bit like when I was a kid and asked my dad, "Why is the movie called Amadeus when everyone called him Wolfgang?" and he said, "Because Amadeus means 'loved by God'." Which is undeniably what that film is about. Likewise, Winter Soldier isn't physically present for very much of the film, but his relevance echoes through the film.

I mean, yeah, calling it "SHIELD is fucked up" would be even more relevant, but that'd give the game away entirely.

As for what they'll call the next one, that's a fair point, but since we don't know what'll happen in the next one there might be another title that's just as relevant.