'The Falcon and the Winter Soldier' – Episode Five, ‘Truth’


I can't quite believe that there's only one more episode to go now... where did the last five weeks go? It's gone so quickly and 'The Falcon and the Winter Soldier' has got so good so quickly that I really don't want it to end now. 'All good things' though and it's not like there won't be another cool MCU show hot on the heels of this one (I'm looking at you 'Loki'...) So here we are for a shorter than usual (it's been a long week and I drunk too much cider earlier) look at 'The Falcon and the Winter Soldier'. I'll be honest, there's more than likely going to be spoilers in this post so if you haven't seen 'Truth' yet then you may want to consider watching it first. This post will still be here when you get back ;o) For everyone else...

What I loved most about 'Truth' is that the big fight, and all the shouting afterwards, is dealt with first like it's no big thing. Don't get me wrong, it is a particularly brutal showdown between Sam/Bucky and John Walker (who I will not be calling Captain America anymore, no matter who he thinks he is) and you feel every single punch being thrown. And the blood is still on the shield, that's made really clear... Hard hitting then, and in more ways than one, and that's before you get to the trial of Walker who is clearly a wreck by this point (liable to explode) and I was left wondering why the US government are letting him walk while they kept Isaiah locked up and experimented on him for thirty years. Oh yes, Walker's white, that's the reason why, and that's why this episode, while setting everything up for the finale, is just amazing in the meantime. It acknowledges that divide and is really sharp in it's criticism of how America treats you if you're not white. It's a shitty way to be treated, 'Truth' doesn't shy away from that and is a better slice of TV for it.

'Truth' is thoughtful in other ways as well as everyone is having to face up to their own truth and we get to see some quietly powerful moments happen as the main players work through it. Sam has to figure out if he can make Captain America's shield relevant to more than just white America while Bucky must confront the fact that he is looking for closure in all the wrong places. There's even an unexpectedly poignant moment where Zemo realises that he cannot keep running for the rest of his life. And then you've got Walker who is so fractured by this point (is this the serum making him more of what he already was..?) that he is clinging to the 'truth' of his service to America in an attempt not to sink. The truth is there and it's not letting anyone off easily, it also points to a potentially explosive finale where all of this is going to come together and leave everyone in a far different place to where they started. At least, that's what I'm hoping anyway.

'Truth' is about setting everyone up for the final showdown but it's also a real searching look at what the truth is in this situation and whether our players have the strength to be able to deal with this when it's right in front of them. 'Truth' succeeds on both counts and the bottom line is that the countdown to next week's episode starts right... now.

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